JBL
JBL ’s smart , touchscreen - outfit tear cause is coming to the company ’s former propagation of Livewireless earbuds . JBL says that the $ 250Tour Pro 2 — the wireless earbuds that debut the voguish tear case in 2023 — quickly betray out after they went on sale , proof , perhaps , that there ’s an untapped need that the touchscreen instance meet .
The Live 3 were announced atCES 2024alongside JBL ’s new Bluetooth loudspeaker , wireless headphone , and political party speakers and will sell for $ 200 when they ’re loose in summer 2024 . Like previous JBL lively wireless earbuds , the alive 3 come in three variant , but JBL has changed the naming normal to match its Tune family of wireless earbuds . The new poser are the Live Flex 3 , the Live Beam 3 , and the hot Buds 3 . Each get along in a pick of two coloration : black and Ag .
The three versions offer a slightly dissimilar fit . The Beam is a fully closed stem - establish design , the Flex uses a semi - open root word - free-base conformation , and the Buds are a in full closed acaulescent model . The Beam and Buds models have anIP55 ratingfor detritus and water system , while the Flex is IP54 , making all three worthy for workouts .
The only other major difference between them is stamp battery life : The Beam has the greatest per - charge staying power with a claim 12 hours of playtime ( plus 36 hour in the showcase ) with ANC off , watch by the Flex , which pose the gamey total time ( 10 + 40 hours ) , with the Buds at lowest overall power ( 10 + 30 ) .
The smart charging case is the biggest change to the Live series in 2024 , with a 1.45 - column inch touchscreen embedded in the front . you may practice it to get at almost any feature film or setting the earbuds ( or the JBL Headphones app ) support . When I attempt it during my review of theTour Pro 2 , I get it fun and well-off to use but not hugely useful — it was no more convenient to practice the case ’s screen than it was to use the app ( or the earbuds ’ touch controls ) .
In addition to the smart charge case , the JBL Live 3 model get unspoiled battery life , Bluetooth 5.3 , and wireless hi - res audio good manners of Sony ’s LDACBluetooth codec . A plotted future update will also make the earbuds compatible withLE Audiofor better energy efficiency and low latency .
The one lineament that intrigues me most is the availability of JBL ’s truthful alive dissonance cancellation ( ANC ) on the Live Flex 3 . Semi - open earbuds like the Flex seldom offer ANC because , without a blotto seal provided by silicone confidential information , it can be very hard for the ANC algorithms to set off unwanted sounds — they lean to leak into your capitulum anyway .
In fact , JBL has never offered ANC on any of its previous Flex earbuds , so just how well it execute on the Live Flex 3 is an undecided question . If ANC is a top priority , I suspect that the Beam and Buds will still be a honorable alternative .
Rounding out their feature film place is wireless charging , Bluetooth Multipoint , JBL ’s spatial sound option , and six mics ( three per earbud ) for calls .
