Jabra today is launching not just one, but two new pairs of earbuds. The new Elite 10 and Elite 8 Active both fit two different lifestyles, with the former doubling down on flagship features like Dolby Atmos and the latter taking more of a fitness companion approach – as you’d expect from its Active naming scheme.
Jabra launches new Elite 10 earbuds
Jabra is looking to break out of the fitness end of the earbuds today with the debut of its most capable listening experience yet. The new Jabra Elite 10 arrive with a parade of high-end features, many of which are on the more elusive side compared to other earbuds on the market. I’ve been using them over the past week, and the spoiler version of this review is that these are some serious contenders for one of the best pair of cord-free buds around.
Right out of the box, the first thing I noticed was how different the form-factor of these earbuds were. More specifically, Jabra is employing a less typical shape for the silicone ear tips that makes for a more comfortable fit. With a tapered end, the buds seemingly redirect sound right into your canal to really take full advantage of the Dolby Atmos support and its companion Dolby Head Tracking tech. The fit is a little looser than your standard pair of buds (including the Elite 8 Active we’ll get to in a second), and really has made for listening experiences that are just as comfortable five hours in as the first few minutes.
Sound quality on the other hand is the one aspect about the new Jabra Elite 10 that doesn’t wow me quite like some of the other flagship buds that have come out this summer. It’s not to say that these sound bad – because that couldn’t be further than the truth. But the out of the box sound profile just didn’t capture my attention like I’ve heard over the past few weeks from the competition.
Active noise cancellation then immediately recaptured my attention. Jabra is flexing its new Advanced ANCTM technology this time around, and there really is no better word that flexing. The company is rocking some very impressive isolation tech that is right up there with the likes of Apple, Sony, and Marshall. I’ve found that these don’t do quite as good of a job at blocking out talking, which isn’t the best for a daily subway farer like myself. But any ambient audio might as well not stand a chance.
I am reluctant to say that these are a jack of all trades and master of none, because the Jabra Elite 10 are very good at just about everything they do. It’s just that there isn’t one feature that was as noteworthy as some of the other buds that I’ve been enjoying. I suppose that means these are less gimmicky, if you can call Sony’s exceptional ANC or Marshall’s rich audio performance that.
There are some other notable features worth writing home about, too. But I will just let the spec list speak for itself.
- Jabra Advanced ANCTM which blocks out 2x more noise than Jabra’s standard ANC
- HearThrough technology with wind noise reduction
- 6-hour battery (27 hours with case) with ANC on, including pocket friendly cradle optimised for wireless charging
- Bluetooth Multipoint connection & Hands-free Voice Assistant, Fast Pair, Swift Pair, Spotify Tap playback
The Jabra Elite 10 ANC earbuds are now available for purchase. They arrive direct from Jabra with a $249.99 price tag and come in several colorways: Cream, Cocoa, Titanium black, Gloss Black, Matte Black.
Alongside the more flagship pair of earbuds, Jabra is also out with the new Elite 8 Active. These buds take an even more fitness-focused approach, delivering many of the same features as the Elite 10 with a little more rugged form-factor. You’ll just have to look further than the charging case to find that, as both of the new releases have a near identical housing. Color aside, as well as an engraved logo on the front of the case, there’s not all too much that sets the two apart.
It’s not until you open up the earbuds and put them in that you start seeing what’s different. Or hearing what’s different, I suppose. The whole feature set is just a bit less capable, with some swaps that makes these more tailored to serenading you on runs and at the gym versus the flagship status of the higher-end models. Instead of Dolby Atmos, you’ll find Dolby Audio, and in place of the more specialized Jabra Advanced ANCTM is just more typical Adaptive Hybrid ANC tech.
There are thankfully some areas where the new Jabra Elite 8 Active do manage to out perform its flagship counterparts. There’s better battery life, which steps up to eight hours from the buds themselves and an extra 32 from the charging case. That’s with ANC enabled, too! So expect better usage for at-home listening.
And leaning more into that rugged form-factor, these earbuds arrive with full compliance with the US Military Standard for Ruggedized Electronics standard. The buds themselves are backed by an IP68 waterproof rating with 1-meter drop-resistance. The charging case then rocks an IP54 splash-proof design.
Even with some distinct functionality, there’s still a lot here with the Elite 8 Active that is the same as the Jabra Elite 10 earbuds. You’ll be able to rely on multipoint Bluetooth just the same, alongside Google Fast Pair support. There are two very important features that I’m glad to see make the cut, and joins some other inclusions like the Wind Neutralizing HearThrough tech and six onboard microphones.
All in all, I am very impressed with the feature set of the Jabra Elite 8 Earbuds. Especially when you factor in the $199 price tag. These aren’t going to deliver the best listening experience of all-time, which is just what the Elite 10 are trying to do. But if you want a little more of a workout-friendly package that still sounds great and delivers reliable active noise cancellation, the trade offs are going to be very well worth it.
You can buy the new Elite 8 earbuds right now from Jabra at $199, coming in caramel, navy, black and dark gray colorways.
Electronicsforward’ Take
It has been a big week for earbuds. After checking out the new Marshall Motif II from earlier in the week, I immediately shifted gears to check out the latest from Jabra. And oh, is there a lot to like. My first strong impression is just how strong of a feature set both the Elite 10 and Elite 8 Active have. Jabra retains the crown of having one of the more robust and diverse earbuds lineups on the market – which is even more true after today’s reveal.
If the individual performance wasn’t already great, I love that the lineup is getting a pair of releases that look to capture different points of the market. The Jabra Elite 10 are clearly going after the Pro scene from Apple, Samsung, and Google, while the Elite 8 Active look to stick with Jabra’s usual marketshare.
The bottom line here for me is that Jabra has made some of the most compelling earbuds for Android users. The onboard Google Fast Pair tech and Assistant support is going to make these some very compelling solutions that blow the Google Pixel Buds Pro and Galaxy Buds 2 Pro out of the water. Even as an iPhone diehard, there is a lot to like. These might not be my new daily drivers, but you can’t go wrong at either price point. The specs do largely speak for themselves, giving you an option between the best pair of fitness earbuds on the market with the Elite 8 Active or one of the more compelling flagship releases with the Elite 10.
Buy the new Jabra Elite 10 at Amazon and Jabra
Buy the new Jabra Elite 8 Active at Amazon and Jabra
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