One thing that really pushes my buttons is when online reviews for wireless earbuds use the Apple AirPods Pro as the benchmark for comparison. I don’t know how many times I’ve seen someone go on about how “these are worthy competitors to the AirPods Pro” or “how these earbuds give the AirPods Pro a run for its money”. It’s ridiculous! First off, the AirPods Pro are a great pair of wireless earbuds, but are they the best? That’s a no. Does it deserve to be THE standard of measurement for what counts as good wireless earbuds? Again, a hard no.
With that long ass paragraph out of the way, we can begin our Jabra Elite 75t review!
I’m not going to lie, I had high expecations for the sequel to Jabra’s pretty solid Elite 65t series. I mean yes, it had its flaws, but that’s exactly why I was looking forward to the 75t’s. Smaller in size, better in fit and much easier on the eyes.. Could this be the best all round wireless earbuds yet? It was hard to expect anything less, really.
How it looks
They say first impressions are lasting impressions, and even before I got my hands on the ear buds, they looked great. Let’s start with the charging case. There can be no doubt here, Jabra has immensely improved in this department. Not only is the case smaller, but it is SO MUCH EASIER to open. One thing that was kind of annoying about the Elite 65t’s was that it was impossible to open with one hand, so this is definitely a welcome change.
On top of that, Jabra has finally added a magnetic closure that makes opening and closing the lid so much more seamless. Not only that, the magnets also keep the buds in place when you open the case, so you can wave goodbye to your earbuds spilling out when you open the case (which in case you didn’t know, happens a lot with the AirPods Pro).
In terms of bud design, they look a hell of a lot better too. The 75t’s are 20% smaller than its previous generation but put next to each other, it looks a lot more than that. While the 65t’s stuck out of your ears too much, the 75t’s are a lot slimmer and more subtle. This is thanks to the shorter tip of the earbuds where the voice mics are placed.
How it feels
So we’ve established that it looks good, but does it feel good? Is it comfortable to wear? Does it fit your ear better? The simple answer is yes. The buds are not only lightweight but also designed to fit a wider variety of ears. One of the problems with the Elite 65t’s was that it simply didn’t fit right for everyone. Jabra seems to have fixed this problem with the 75t’s. Being lightweight, the buds are a lot more comfortable but as with all in-ear earbuds, it does tend to get uncomfortable after hours of wear.
In terms of usability, Jabra keeps it plain and simple, and that’s just the way I like it. I hated Sony’s touchpads on the WF-100XM3’s because I kept accidentally pausing and/or cycling between noise cancelling and the ambient sound toggle every time I adjusted the buds. Add to that the issue I had when using the buds lying sideways and the fact that there’s no volume control and you can see why I like physical buttons.
How it sounds
For me, the most important thing is always the sound quality. The Elite 75t’s may share the same driver as its predecessor, but it actually sounds better. This is probably thanks to its superior fit. The first thing you’ll notice is how overbearing the lows are. The bass is punchy. Too punchy! Which can be a bit much in my opinion. Thankfully, you have the Jabra Sound+ app to fine-tune audio and it actually lends itself greatly to most music genres.
The Elite 75t excels at reproducing mids and highs, with the buds making you feel real emotion in lyrics and crisp sounding rides, hats and keys. Another area where the buds shine are with 808s, which sound freaking great here. The Elite 75t’s may not be sweatproof, but when it comes to gym/workout music, they’re going to be your best buds, trust me.
Are the Elite 75t’s the best sounding wireless earbuds in the market? No, that title still goes to the Sony WF-1000XM3’s, but they’re sure as hell better than the AirPods Pro in this department and in my opinion, are up there with the best when it comes to sound quality.
What it offers
Let’s address the elephant in the room here, the Elite 75t does not come with ANC, which may immediately make you lose interest but I assure you, its passive noise cancellation is a decent alternative. The noise isolation on these things are actually really impressive and honestly, Jabra’s HearThrough technology compensates for the lack of ANC. I say this because I never really found ANC useful to begin with though, so if ANC is a deal breaker for you then maybe these aren’t the buds for you.
With the buds in your ears, you won’t be able to hear 90% of whats going on around you. Activate HearThrough, which utilizes the same four-microphone technology as the Elite 65t and you’ll be able to distinguish sounds and hear voices clearly. One nifty feature on the Elite 75t is that the mode automatically turns on when pausing music, which I found to be really useful.
The Jabra Sound + app is another nifty feature that allows users to really customize just how they want their earbuds to sound. It also comes with a feature called Soundscapes, which produces different noises to drown out distractions. You’ll absolutely be using the app to tweak the EQ on your buds or if you ever need to relax.
One of the cornerstones of the Jabra brand is superior call quality, and the 75t offers just that. If call quality is a priority for you when it comes to buying wireless earbuds, then the Jabra Elite 75t is the one you want. When on calls, the four-microphone system works well to relay clear voice transmission and do an excellent job of rejecting background noise.
Battery life
Jabra claims the Elite 75t offers 7.5 hours of battery life on a single charge. In reality, you get a decent 6.5-7 hours of usage, which in all honesty is great given that the Elite 65t and AirPod Pro gave me just 5 hours. Of course, there are buds out there with better battery life but trust me, 7 hours on a single charge along with an additional 20.5 hours stored up in the charging case and you’re good to go anywhere without having to worry about your battery life.
Price
Good quality wireless earbuds are going to set you back a bit, and the Jabra Elite 75t is no different. Priced at RM949, they’re not exactly cheap. Given that the AirPods Pro are more expensive however, I would recommend these over Apple’s flagship wireless earbuds. If you take a proper look online, you can get these bad boys on a pretty good discount, so that’s definitely a plus point.
Conclusion
The Jabra Elite 75t is a worthy successor to the Elite 65t and in my opinion, in the top 3 best wireless earbuds on the market right now. A sleeker design? Check. A better charging case? Check. Improved fit and sound quality? Check. Unbeatable call quality? Check. These buds are ticking all the right boxes and given that a lot of people are opting to buy the AirPods Pro for some strange reason, I would highly recommend considering these instead.. because you know, they sound better and sell for cheaper. So yeah.
