Only days ahead of the official start of CES 2024, JLab has given us a look at its continuing move into higher-performance audio with the $80 JBuds Lux ANC Wireless Headphones. They can be preordered starting January 3 in three different colors: white, graphite, and a sage/mauve combo, with shipping expected to start as soon as late February.
JLab is also debuting its latest budget-priced noise-canceling wireless earbuds, the $60 JBuds ANC 3 True Wireless Earbuds, available in black, starting January 3.
It’s clear that JLab is trying to draw comparisons between the JBuds Lux and noise-canceling headphones from Sony, Bose, and other high-end manufacturers. The folding over-ear design strongly resembles models like the Sony WH-XB910N and WH-1000XM4, and in its press release, the company points out that the new headphones use 40mm drivers, the same size used by those other brands.
While driver size is hardly a good indication of sound quality, there’s no doubt that JLab is delivering on battery life. The JBuds Lux have a claimed 70-hour playtime on a single charge with ANC off, and even with ANC on, the claimed 40-hour playtime is an impressive number. A fast charge of 10 minutes will buy you a claimed additional four hours.
Additional features include support for Bluetooth 5.3, including Bluetooth Multipoint and LE Audio. They’re compatible with Google Fast Pair, and the JLab app gives you access to a fully customizable set of EQ controls in addition to the quick-access EQ modes from the headphones themselves.
In addition to noise-canceling and transparency modes, the JBuds Lux also have a Safe Hearing mode, which limits volume exposure in line with World Health Organization limits.
The JBuds ANC 3 True Wireless Earbuds are compact and use JLab’s now-familiar charging case design with an integrated USB-A charging cable.
They offer three listening modes: ANC high, ANC off, and Be Aware (transparency), which can be customized via the JLab App, and an impressive claimed 42+ hours of playtime with ANC off (34+ with ANC on).
Their IP55 rating provides decent protection from dust, water, and sweat, while an available “Movie Mode” is intended to reduce latency for better dialog sync for movies and TV shows.
Like the JBuds Lux, the JBuds ANC 3 work with Google Fast Pair, adding a locating feature should you lose the buds.
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Simon Cohen covers a variety of consumer technologies, but has a special interest in audio and video products, like…
JLab’s tiny JBuds Mini wireless earbuds are the smallest we’ve ever seen
Officially, JLab isn’t saying that its new JBuds Mini wireless earbuds are the smallest in the world. After all, with the insane number of wireless earbuds now available on Amazon, Alibaba, and elsewhere, there could be some that are smaller than the JBuds Mini. Instead, JLab’s claim is that the JBuds Mini are the smallest true wireless earbud from any major manufacturer. And I’m forced to agree — I’ve never seen any buds this small.
JLab announced the JBuds Mini at CES 2023 and we’ve been patiently waiting for the company to make them available. Today’s the day: You can buy them from JLab directly or from retailers like Amazon for $40.
Updating our Sony WF-1000XM5 review
As the Barenaked Ladies famously sang, it’s been one week. One week since Digital Trends and the rest of the techno-review world published the first reviews of the Sony WF-1000XM5 wireless noise-canceling earbuds. Or at least, these were supposed to be the first reviews. As it turned out — and at first unbeknownst to any of these publications — Sony didn’t send out full production versions of the XM5. Though they looked exactly like the earbuds that you can buy today, they were unfinalized prototypes. We were clear about that at the time, and we want to be as transparent about things now.
Once Sony confirmed we’d initially been given prototype units, we published a sort of placeholder review that was heavily caveated to explain the situation to readers. One week later, Sony sent out full production XM5 units, and we’ve since updated our review with our final thoughts using production units — the same as what you can buy today. (Spoiler: The production units solved all the problems we saw with the prototypes.)
Sony updates WH-1000XM5 with head-tracked spatial audio and better multipoint
Sony has released a software update for its flagship noise-canceling headphones, the WH-1000XM5, that enables head-tracked spatial audio — a feature the company first debuted this week on its new WF-1000XM5 wireless earbuds.
The update also includes an enhancement of how Bluetooth Multipoint works on these wireless headphones. Previously, you had to choose between connecting two devices to the XM5 simultaneously or being able to use the company’s LDAC hi-res Bluetooth codec. Turning on one of these features would automatically disable the other. Now, you can leave LDAC enabled and take advantage of simultaneous connections, even if one of the devices isn’t LDAC-capable (like an iPhone).
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