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JLab JBuds Air True Wireless Earbuds
For anything more than casual listening, you’ll want to look elsewhere. However, the JLab JBuds Air True Wireless Earbuds remain one of the best bargains around.
Lab JBuds Air True Pros
- Exceptional value
- Ingress protection factor IP55
- Were we not talking about the price?
Lab JBuds Air True Cons
- It is difficult to hear the sound
- It fits poorly and is chunky
- AAC and aptX are not supported
JLab JBuds Air Create
A unique twist is added to the tried and tested true wireless design formula in the JLab JBuds Air. These wireless earphones are completely wireless, since they are Bluetooth buds that pair together to connect to your phone. They snap magnetically into a case which is also designed to provide a battery.
The JBuds Air, however, comes with an integrated charging cable built into a recess in the case. That is handy if you need to grab a quick charge anytime you like. However, the rubber cable connecting the lead to the case doesn’t seem to be able to survive any rough n’ tumble, so you wouldn’t be able to charge the buds if it snapped.
While the case doesn’t have the best battery life we’ve seen, it does keep the buds charged for 10 hours and the buds themselves can play for 3 hours consecutively.
JLab JBuds Air True wireless
True wireless earbuds tend to be bulkier than the JBuds Air in terms of design. Despite being light at 6g each, they just didn’t fit comfortably, as they’re not stem-free like the Apple AirPods or Funcl AI. It’s amazing how snug they fit in our ears, and we wouldn’t worry about them falling out if we worked out wearing them. However, we couldn’t find a configuration that didn’t irritate our ears over time.
Despite being constructed from plastic and rubber, the JLab JBuds Air can be used for workouts that are reliable regardless of whether you are looking for high-quality materials. Due to their IP55 protection from dust and water, they should be able to withstand a bit of gym sweat without any trouble.
Double tapping the right earbud will open Siri or Google Assistant if you like to talk to your virtual assistant without having to pull your phone out.
Assistive technologies
JLab JBuds Air have three preset equaliser options, which can be adjusted via the accompanying app, or by clicking on the earbud’s button three times to switch between the signature, balanced, and bass boost settings.
Bass boost pushes the low-frequency frequencies to the foreground, while signature heightens the treble along with the bass. We spent most of our listening time in the “neutral” balanced mode.
In light of the price point, the lack of aptX or AAC support makes sense, but the audio quality isn’t as good as it should be. No matter what the source or volume level was, we were met with distracting distortions when we used the JBuds Air.
There is a little too much harshness in the bass, even when in balanced mode. Bjork’s Hyperballad had bass frequencies that drowned out any shimmer or twinkle in any negative space when distortion wasn’t creeping in. Delicate reproductions cannot be achieved with the JBuds Air. Their thumping bass and beats make them perfect for anything. In spite of the distortion present within the earbuds, Mstrkrft’s It Ain’t Love sounded fierce with its compressed arpeggios.
In addition to being bad for watching videos, the JBuds Air have an unavoidable amount of lag between what you see on screen and what you hear. Also, the microphone was too echoey to be suitable for hands-free use by our call recipient.
It seems the JLab JBud Airs’ connection reliability is reliable at least. Once paired, the JLab JBud Airs will pair consistently with your audio player once removed from their charging case, and the 10 meter range claim fares well.
