Hey guys…. Time for a little more Tech Talk w/TK!!!
Alright, as my wife can attest, I have a lot of earbuds. Some might even say I have a bit of a problem. Wired, wireless, a combo of both, I’ve tried a lot. When I went looking for a pair of true wireless earbuds for my old work phone (Samsung Galaxy S8), I came across a pair from Jabra a couple of years back at Costco and had to give them a try. The Jabra Elite Active 65t!
Now, as most of you can tell by now, I am a big fan of Jabra’s headsets and speakerphones. After testing several out, I am convinced they make some of the best sounding devices on the market when it comes to microphone and call quality. That said, they haven’t always been as great on music quality. After trying the Elite Active 65t’s out for several years, I was once again left with the same impression, great for calls, but just ok for music. While I’m no audiophile, and I am a bit of a bass-head, the low-end punch on the 65t’s seemed a bit lacking for my taste. That said, after adding a pair of the Comply foam ear tips to the earbuds and playing with the custom equalizer settings a bit in the Jabra Sound+ app, I was able to find a soundstage I liked. The better fit of the ear tips allowed for increased comfort, less ambient noise, and seemed to help enhance the low-end punch a decent amount. Included below is a quick summary of my testing.
The Good:
- Call quality. Like other Jabra products, Jabra paid attention to the call quality on the Elite Active 65t earbuds, and they don’t disappoint. However, as these are meant to be for more active entertainment uses, do not expect the sophisticated noise-canceling microphones they offer on other headsets
- Durable design. With an IP56-rated water-resistant design and a 2-year warranty against damage from sweat and dust, you don’t have to worry about throwing these in your bag for a commute on the train. They’ll hold up.
- Good customization of sound in the app. Unlike some of its competitors, Jabra provides an app (Jabra Sound+) that allows you to customize the sound and other features on the earbuds. This includes features like a sound pass-thru setting that uses the mic to allow ambient noise through in a busy setting when you need it. They also include a couple of white noise and relaxation settings to allow you to increase your focus and reduce your stress. While not noise canceling, this was certainly a cool feature when released several years back.
- Solid battery life. With 5 hours of charge in the earbuds and 10 hours in the included charging case, you get solid battery performance. They also allow for 1 hour’s worth of use after just 15 minutes of charge. A good save if you forgot to charge them before a call, trust me.
- Alexa enabled. With the included app, you can choose between your phone’s voice assistant or Amazon Alexa at the press of a button. A pretty cool option for voice assistant geeks like me.
The Not So Good:
- No wireless charging. While they added it in later years, the 65t’s do not support wireless charging and require a micro-USB to be used to charge the case and earbuds.
- A small external LED on the bottom of the case. As they likely intended for you to charge your case and earbuds on their back, there is a small LED at the bottom of the case to indicate they are charging. Unfortunately, it does not give you a read-out of how much charge they have.
- The case is difficult to open. At least for me, I find the latch on the charging case to be a bit difficult to open at times, usually requiring 2 hands. While likely part of the more rugged design, don’t expect to just flip them open on the go like others on the market.
- Not a real comfortable fit. While the design was intended to be snug in your ear to prevent them from falling out during activity, the tight fit was a bit uncomfortable after some extended wear (1hr+). While that could just be me, it is something to consider.
Want to see some pics of the earbuds? Check out the slideshow:
Interested in checking it out for yourself? Included below are a couple of quick links.
Tech Talk w/TK 