Danish brand Jabra is known for its enterprise-focus audio line, including wireless headphones and earphones. The company has a parallel line of consumer-centric products aimed at working professionals. Fresh in this line is the Jabra Elite 5, which was unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show 2023. These wireless earphones are brimful of features, including hybrid active noise cancellation, wireless charging, multi-point connectivity, and IP55 rating for water and dust protection. On paper, the Jabra Elite 5 seems to be a value-for-money proposition in the premium wireless earbuds segment. Is it? Let’s find out:
Design
The Jabra Elite 5 has a no-frill design, on both the case and earbuds, which may look boring to some. Starting with the case, it is a rectangular tower-shaped unit made of plastic. Coated in black colour, the case has Jabra branding on the front followed by LED light for case battery and charging indication. On the rear, there is a USB type-C port for wired charging. The Jabra Elite 5 supports wireless charging and the company makes it clear by engraving Qi sign on the bottom of the case.
Open the case by flipping the top and you see the earbuds resting and charging. The earbuds do not go deep down in the storage cavity and it is a good thing because this way you do not have to make efforts to take the earbuds out from the case.
Coming to the earbuds, these are not the best-looking units but seem purposefully constructed for good in-ear fit and feel. That said, the earbuds latch to the ears and do not come off accidentally. These are lightweight, making them suitable for extended usage. The ear tips, however, could have been better. They are made of hard material and cause discomfort after long sessions. The earbuds boast button controls, which may seem archaic compared to gesture and touch controls in modern-day earbuds but beat both these kinds in terms of precision and accuracy – no accidental touches.
Features
The Jabra Elite 5 is a pair of wireless earbuds with an extensive features list. Unlike most other wireless earbuds, these are focused on both audio and call experiences and boast dedicated features for each of these functions. For example, there is an auto-answer call feature that allows you to answer calls by simply putting in one or both earbuds.
In a related function, there is auto-mute microphones feature that puts the call on mute if you remove earbuds from your ear. These call-related experiences are on top of generic audio functions such as auto-pause, which pauses music or media playing on the connected devices if you take off one or both earbuds. The addition of calls-related features on top of audio-related features makes the Jabra Elite 5 one-of-its kind wireless earbuds geared toward novel experience.
Multi-point connectivity is another feature worth mentioning. You can pair the Jabra Elite 5 with two supported devices simultaneously. The earbuds are smart enough to direct the audio from the device in use. For example, the earbuds automatically shift audio from laptop if you are in a video conference to smartphone if there is a voice call. The experience is smooth overall, but there is scope for improvement. The earbuds prefer connection with the first paired device and priorities audio from it in all occasions. This, sometimes, causes conflict and requires manual intervention.
Important to note the features and customisations are available through Jabra Sound+ app, which is available on Play Store and App Store for Android and Apple smartphones.
Performance
Audio quality is one area where the Jabra Elite 5 leaves one asking for more. The earbuds’ 6mm audio drivers are good but not the best. The earbuds deliver quality audio, but at the cost of loudness. That said, the volume is on the muted side and fails to energise the spirit even if you put on a happy song like ‘I ain’t worried’ by OneRepublic from Top Gun Maverick. There are equalisers to fine-tune the output based on personal preferences and there is a noticeable difference in output in each available EQs setting. However, none of the EQs solve the loudness issue.
The Jabra Elite 5 might not be the best wireless earbuds for audio experience, but these are the ones to beat in terms of call experience. With ANC, you can answer the calls even in loud environments and be confident about no distractions from ambient noise. Besides, the earbuds feature three-microphone on each unit that work well to pick voice sans ambient noise for clear in-call experience on both ends.
Rounding up the package is the modest on-battery time of six hours (ANC-on), which is close to the company’s claimed seven hours. With a charging case, the earbuds can go up to 28 hours.
Verdict
The Jabra Elite 5 is aimed at working professionals on the go and it does impress on core capability with astounding call experience and related features. It would have been an all-rounder if the audio experience for music and media has been on par with call experience, if not better. That said, the Jabra Elite 5 at Rs 14,999 is good for niche audience but not for masses.
