Jabra is an audio product company known for its premium products. But since last year, they started focusing on true wireless earphone sets in the affordable class such as Jabra Elite 3 and Jabra Elite 2. This year, they are seen to be absent with other flagship products and still remain with Jabra Elite 7 Pro as a premium option that most recent.
On the other hand, the new product is the Jabra Elite 5 which is a mid-range TWS that comes with many features and functions more or less the same as the Elite 7 Pro. The only question is, is RM699 good enough for Jabra?
Specifications And Design
Jabra Elite 5
Type of in-ear headphones
EarGels ear buds
6mm Audio Driver
Qualcomm aptX
SBC, AAC
Hybrid ANC
Microphone 6x microphone
HearThrough
Bluetooth 5.2 sensor
Auto pause
Battery Up to 9 hours continuous
36 hours with charger
10 minutes charge, 1 hour use
Bluetooth connection
Google Fast Pair
USB-C charging
Qi
Android, iOS app support
Physical Button Controls
IP55 waterproof capability
Selling Price RM699
Overall, the specifications of the Jabra Elite 5 are more or less the same as the Jabra Elite 7 Pro. Even the audio mixer used is the same, which is actually 6mm. But in terms of codecs the Elite 5 has Qualcomm aptX support which their flagship model doesn't have. Ear buds also use the EarGel type. Although this TWS has 6 microphones, it does not support the same active noise cancellation (ANC) system as the Elite 7 Pro but instead simply uses a hybrid type of ANC.
Jabra also includes the same Bluetooth 5.2 support, but adds one of my favorite features missing from the Elite 7 Pro, Google Fast Pair. Then an additional feature is Spotify Tap for quick access to Spotify which is definitely useful for customers of this service.
The battery is also claimed to last longer, where continuous use can reach up to 9 hours and with the charging pod can reach 36 hours compared to before which was only 8 hours and 30 hours. But charging is slower with 10 minutes for 1 hour compared to 5 minutes. For water and dust protection it only supports IP55.
The design of the Jabra Elite 5 is seen as a combination of the Elite 85t and the Elite 7 Pro. It uses an 85t-like charging pod that has an LED light on the front showing the battery level, tethering and charging mode. It also supports Qi wireless charging, while each earphone has a small and compact Elite 7 Pro-like design. Overall the Jabra Elite 5, it's a TWS that is light, small and easy to carry anywhere and store.
Earphones with EarGel buds are seen to be smaller than usual. If I usually use the M size, this time I need to use the L size to make sure it fits and is tight in the ear so that there is no audio leakage.
Audio Quality
The audio quality on this TWS is not the same as the Elite 7 Pro despite using the same audio driver. Even so, the listening experience is still more or less the same except that it has a few shortcomings that distinguish it that will be noticed if you are familiar with Jabra's audio profile. But if it's a first time user, the audio on the Elite 5 is in my opinion one of the best on the market.
Bass/Low
This TWS has a strong enough bass, compact and has a satisfying thump. Who would have thought, this mid-range TWS is able to provide a bang that is quite lively and fun to listen to music and enjoy various videos. Bass fans will definitely be happy with this TWS, because of the good bass capabilities and almost on par with flagship Jabra products.
Vocal/Mid
The vocals by the male singer's voice are deeper and tasteful. Every song sounds more melodious and satisfying. But the female singer's voice is more delicate and soothing, which depends on each individual's taste. Mid on TWS is undeniably good enough and fun to listen to. But the settings on the application I tested are the default type and this can change if the equalizer is used.
High Tone/Highs
The lack starts to be heard in the high-pitched section. This is because it is not exciting enough. When the instrument or vocals have reached a level close to being palatable, palatable, it continues to sink. This indirectly affects the immersive listening experience. Without MySound on the app and only a basic equalizer, the highs are difficult to fine-tune.
Audio Staging & Isolation
Jabra Elite 5 provides an energetic, lively overall and fun listening experience. But it will not provide a comfort for listening in the long run because it will feel tired and too fibrous. The TWS audio staging is kind of up front and not comprehensive enough to provide an immersive listen. But it doesn't feel cramped in the head and there is still room to give some freedom for each instrument to be distinguished.
ANC/Noise Clear Mode
Jabra since before they used a full active noise cancellation system, they are quite expert in the use of passive and hybrid noise cancellation. So for this new premium mid-range TWS, they continue to use Hybrid ANC. What's surprising here is that their algorithm is getting better because it's quite difficult for me to tell the difference between normal and hybrid ANC.
This is because it works well enough, having good enough background noise canceling performance that puts me in a world of my own when listening to music or watching videos. Their iconic HearThrough sound-through mode is also clearer with no distortion. It is clean and comfortable to use if in the office for me to be aware of what is happening around.
Battery
As of today, I've been using the Jabra Elite 5 for three weeks and I'm pretty happy with the battery life. Their claim to last up to 9 hours without ANC and 7 hours with ANC I can confirm is correct. While with the charging pod it can last up to 36 hours without ANC and 28 hours with ANC I can also confirm.
I feel satisfied that it can last longer. The charging rate of 10 minutes for 1 hour of use actually does not feel that long, although there are competitors such as OnePlus Buds Pro which are faster which is 10 minutes 10 hours of endurance.
Applications And Controls
The Jabra Sound+ app no longer feels like it used to. This may be because I'm used to it, but when I gave it to my colleagues who rarely use Jabra they could continue to use it just fine. This is on iOS which has pretty fast performance. In this application; it allows users to control ANC levels, change controls on physical buttons, activate Spotify Tap and select virtual assistants.
In addition, this application must also be installed to update the firmware. The shortcoming that I noticed is that this TWS does not support MyFit and MySound to customize the audio with each user. This may be one of the shortcomings that we feel this TWS is not exciting enough compared to Elite 7 Pro or Elite 85t.
Conclusion
The Jabra Elite 5 are true wireless earphones that are pretty good to use. Jabra wants to try to attract more people by selling it at a more affordable price than their flagship product, but still able to enjoy the same great features and functions as the Elite 7 Pro and Elite 85t. For example, although it uses hybrid type active noise cancellation it has excellent quality on par with real ANC.
The battery lasts a long time with comfortable ear buds even though the size is a little small. The selling price of RM699 is competitive for Jabra products but there are several other TWS in the market that compete quite fiercely namely OnePlus Buds Pro (RM799), Huawei FreeBuds Pro 2 (RM899) and Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro (RM899).
After testing them all, Jabra has a well-rounded package that is worth it with better ANC. OnePlus has better audio, but less satisfactory ANC. Huawei and Samsung are both interesting and great but the flagship features that make them great require only Huawei and Samsung devices. This indirectly positions the Jabra Elite 5 as the best overall TWS at a more affordable price than the competition.
Pro
Pretty great audio though not flagship class.
Still has the best ANC quality.
Clearer sound-through mode.
Easy to use and multi-device friendly app.
Supports many types of codecs and extensions.
Cons
Designs that are bored because they are the same every year regardless of class.
Ear buds that are getting smaller and a little looser.
Beige color on the body and white on the ear buds that get dirty easily.
