Over the last while I have been testing the all new Jabra Elite 3 which is their latest entry to the market and it is their first affordable pair if you will keeping much of their trademarks in play here, I have said for a long time now Apple and their prowess in the earbuds market is long gone and any tech journalist that continues to say different is just a mega fan boy in denial and that is all there is to it and before you get rich with your keyboard I own Airpods, there is much better value out there now and Jabra now throw a new pair of earbuds into the mix. You can check out the full unboxing HERE
Build and design
The design has changed slightly and more industrial looking but this is ok and they look well in the standard dark gray we have you can see an image compared to the 85t below, they fit well in the ears and give a good seal and are locked into place rather well and with the right size tips on you should be good to go and get the maximum benefits you would expect, there is no stem on these like previous models either and perhaps something other folks might like but earbuds with or without a stem do not bother me.
These also have a smaller profile that the 85t and do not stick out as much and that could be a big win for some too and again something that does not bother me much but does for others.
Controls
The controls work well here and by that I mean you have a large are top tap here with that clicky button effect over the tap a certain area which means you are guaranteed to pull off the command you want and you also get the Sound Plus app but here is what I found really odd was that you loose adjustable EQ controls you get from say the 85t, in fact when testing at first I thought I was loosing the head for a minute and popped back in the 85t just to be sure and I was right, this is an odd exclusion here but you have to remember the price but you do get the access to the app which is a bonus.We go through the controls as ususal in the video review but for the most we have go the needs required and expected at this price point.
Sound
The part people really only want to read in a review – I will be the first to admit given I am a huge Jabra fan but we are not biased here, they are no 85t but also they are sub 100 euro earbuds either, they do lack ANC and Auto Play/Pause but with the seal you get with the right tips gets them off the hook for passive noise isolation here and as for the Play/Pause thing it never bothered me you have controls to stop the music after all. If this is your first venture into buying new earbuds you will not be disappointed and from coming down from the 75t I was not either given the price of the earbuds the overall sound was great, not as loud or punchy or defined as the 85t but a decent job overall with highs lows and mids and are fine for Netflix You Tube and music and it is better again in a quiet environment.
Conclusion
For the price you pay here you are doing well for the money even with the excluded features, you do get an IP55 rating which is sufficient for most,decent battery life and an overall good listening experience which overall I would describe as bright, they are robust and easy to use and you have to remember the cost of these, Jabra is a well known brand and that might slip people’s minds here but the entire package as a whole delivers overall and throws a spanner into the works for other manufacturers to think about, just like smartphones the cost to performance ratio has dropped significantly over the last few years and the time has well come for earbuds too.
See video below for more. BUY
