Jabra is a name synonymous with premium audio products, spanning both consumer as well as B2B segments, with the latter seemingly being a bigger focus area. As such, the company sells only four TWS earbuds models and one pair of headphones in India. The Jabra Elite Active 75t is one such pair of TWS earbuds, marking the company’s latest entry into a segment that is dominated by the likes of Apple AirPods (review). At a starting price of Rs 16,999, the Active 75ts are not one to be purchased without due consideration of their audio quality, design, and features. Read on to find out answers to all of them in this detailed review.

Design and comfort

The very first thing you will notice when looking at the Active 75t is how small, sleek, and polished the case for the earbuds is. I have been privy to extremely bulky and unimpressive boxy designs for earbud cases like the Noise Shots X3 or the MEE TWS X10 (review). However, the Active 75t’s case fits easily inside my pocket to the point that sometimes I forgot that it was there in the first place. I’m also a fan of the deep blue colour and matte finish, both of which contribute to the pleasing aesthetics of the case. There is a Type-C port, which is pretty standard on TWS cases nowadays, for charging purposes. An LED light blinks red, yellow, and green signifying the level of battery left in the case.

The earbuds themselves are extremely light as all TWS should be, but they also fit snugly in my ears. The lightweight nature of the earbuds means that I can keep wearing them for hours without any kind of discomfort. The earbuds match the colour scheme of the case as do the silicone ear tips. Like with many other TWS earbuds in the market, the Elite Active 75ts have a single physical button on each buds for various controls. The seal with the ear is perfect, muffling the outside world noise akin to the active noise cancellation that is seen on the AirPods Pro or the Sony WF-1000XM3. One more interesting fact about the design happens to be that the Active 75ts are IP57 splash resistant, so workout sweat should not cause not any trouble to the earbuds.

Features

The Active 75ts are not your typical budget TWS earphones with basic functionality or AirPods clones, which can be expected given the pricing of Rs 16,999. First, let’s talk about the fact that these earbuds can connect with up to two devices simultaneously, which is a big help during my work hours where I like to have my earbuds connected to both my laptop and phone. The transition between the two devices is also extremely smooth such that when I receive a call on my phone, music playing via my laptop stops and the earbuds switch automatically to the call. When the call ends, the music automatically starts playing back from my laptop. 

While the Jabra Active 75ts do not have any ANC like the Samsung Galaxy Buds+, which I believe is a feature that should have been there, they do come with a “Hear Through” mode. It is activated by a single press on the left earbud and after it is enabled the microphones in both the earbuds amplify the ambient sounds. This is especially useful when someone is trying to talk to you while you are wearing the earbuds or when you are trying to cross a road with heavy traffic. Basic functionality such as Play/Pause music, Previous/Next track, Pair/Unpair is obviously present on the earbuds. The earbuds also have sensors that detect if the either of the earbuds have been removed from your ear, which will automatically pause any music playing and continue playback when the earbud is inserted back in your ear. 

Let’s also talk about the MySound+ app by Jabra which is available on both Android and iOS. While it’s not as extensive as the Sony Headphones Connect app, the features provided are to the point and what most people are going to use. The app automatically detects the earbuds when they are connected to the phone via Bluetooth. On the top, you will be shown the battery levels on both the earbuds along with the amount of charge left in the case. You can then also customise EQ presets according to the given options, which are My Moment, Commute, and Focus. 

Sound quality and battery

The Elite Active 75ts rely on a very bass-heavy signature in its sound output. As I’m more of a hip-hop/rap listener, I’m in the category of more the bass, the better it sounds. However, not everyone has the same taste palette. There is, of course, the option to reduce the bass levels in the MySound+ app. In general, the sound is extremely crisp and detailed, as befits the Jabra name.

With reduced bass, treble is more pronounced which is good news for listeners of songs with a Classical touch. Rock and metal genres have great instrument separation with Pink Floyd’s Another Brick in the Wall sounding like a treat for the years, while Nirvana’s Smells Like Teenage Spirit couldn’t have been more pumped up. Electronic music lovers can fine-tune the EQ settings in the app to give more weight to mid-range and bass rather than treble.

The microphone quality is also excellent on the earbuds considering quite a few TWS lack in this department. During my test calls with the Active 75ts connected to my phone, my voice was transmitted clearly to the other end. Owing to the current Coronavirus situation I was not able to test the quality in crowded locations, but I have no doubt that the earbuds will be effective there as well. 

As far as battery is concerned, Jabra has claimed a battery life of 7.5 hours for each earbud, while the case itself offers an extension of 28 hours. In real life, this translates to nearly a week before I had to charge the case, and my day involved about 4-5 hours of listening to music. 

Verdict

If base-heavy but incredibly clear music is something that is to your taste, then the Elite Active 75t are your perfect companion. The price could be deterrent, but you are getting features such as passive noise-cancelling, transparency, an app that has several customisation options, long-lasting battery which is matched by the case, and more. The real competition to the Jabra Elite Active 75t is the Apple AirPods Pro which are priced at Rs 24,900. The Elite Active 75ts are in a class of its own and it would take a big move from the likes of Sony to dethrone them. 

Editor’s rating: 4 / 5

Pros

  • Comfortable to wear
  • Delightful sound signature
  • Simple and easy app

Cons

  • Slightly bass heavy
  • No wireless charging