Jabra Elite 85t review

If you are looking for wireless compact earbuds with great active noise-canceling, we present to you “Jabra Elite 85t”. They come with a secure fit and offer excellent active noise cancellation which is adjustable for great sound quality for reducing background sound. Besides, Elite E85t has HearThrough mode using via Jabra Sound App.

Are true wireless earbuds are worth buying for 200$? You will find the answer in this Jabra Elite 85t review.

Jabra Elite 85t Review – Well-Built Design

The shape of the Elite 85t is not too much different from the Elite 75t. Actually, their shape looks so similar and along with the same control buttons. Most of the structures are still plastic. That means these wireless earbuds (both 85t and 75t) are not too heavy. The Jabra Elite 85t is a larger frame than the previous model but lighter, with the 85t being 6.4 ounces, but 75t equals 9.1 ounces.

Both Jabra Elite 85t and 75t are differentiating designs from other brands. The body construction is a rather circular and ergonomic design that provides more comfort and fits with the ear canal. The silicone cover has an earwax protector that prevents debris from getting onto the speaker grille.

The middle of each earbud adorns with the Jabra logo. The control playback by clicking on earbuds. You can reconfigure these controls via the Jabra Sound+ app. The Elite 85t comes with built-in 6 microphones, some for calls, and the other mics work for noise-canceling.

Control

Why does Jabra Elite 85t come with 230$ but not have a touch control feature? According to the company, some user experience studies have found that people prefer the feel of a button versus the touch gesture. Many of us prefer the touch control button, except me. I feel that physical buttons give feels more accurate in pressing and more confident in control. But someone feels that pressing physical buttons into the ears makes discomfort and a bit hurt.

I think it’s a personal preference. And which do you like?

Clicking sound when you press the button to make more sure the intended commands will be working properly. The Elite 85t also packs with an on-ear detection feature. It works quite well. The music will auto-pause when you remove the buds and resume again when placed the earbud back on the ear. It works precisely.

Virtual Assistant

If you value voice assistant, you will not disappoint with the Jabra Elite 85t. These wireless earbuds for under 230$ can work with Alexa, Siri, and Google Assistant with precision. The buds can have excellent speech recognition to register voice commands and work properly.

Active Noise Cancellation

Jabra attempt to create over-ear ANC headphones like the Elite 85h and was very surprised, they do it very well. The ANC of Jabra Elite 85H is close to Sony WH-1000XM3 and Bose QuietComfort 700 Noise Canceling.

Once Jabra released the Elite 85t, the Jabra still impressed us. The noise-neutralizing capabilities are well done as Sony WF-1000XM3. With its own dedicated ANC chip, the Elite 85t has 5 levels of noise cancellation that you can adjust via the Jabra Sound+ app. Where each ANC level differs by approximately 3dB.

Although the E85t has better features than the E75t in terms of ANC. With being semi-open design, So if you completely turn off ANC (via Jabra App). You will hear the outside noise louder than the E75t which better seal into my ears and do the great passive noise isolation.

Compare Jabra Elite 85t to Other Wireless Earbuds

Jabra Elite 85t Review – Microphone and Noise Cancellation

The Elite 85t is designed with built-in 6 microphones. Three mics dedicate for ANC mode, with 2 mics on the outsides and 1 mic on the inside. All three mics work together to cut out unwanted noise. Not disappointed, the Elite 85t can block external noise very well (you will not hear the dog barking sound or car engine or juice blenders sound).

HearThrough feature is the same too, 5 levels adjustable and you can use it via the app. HearThrough features of Jabra like an ambient sound mode of Bose QuietComfort earbuds. They offer better awareness of their environments without removing the earbuds from your ears.

The Sound Quality

When it comes to sound quality, the Jabra Elite 85t is not quite different from top-sounding true wireless earbuds such as the Sony WF-1000XM3 or Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2. With the 12mm driver, to add a larger and more detailed sound that can be customized in the Jabra Sound + app. They also offer great treble and good bass.

The Jabra Elite 85t also provides the equalizer that you can tweak the sound profile by use Jabra’s Sound Plus app (both Andriod and iOS smartphone). I haven’t even tweaked the EQ, I use the default setting and I like it. But you don’t have to comment like me in terms of EQ.

Something To Know About Jabra Elite 85t

One thing that I like about 85t is they can connect two devices at the same time. You can connect to a smartphone and in the meantime, you connect to your laptop and swap audio between them. If there is an incoming call while you listening to music on your laptop/computer, the Bluetooth will switch over to your phone.

Someone asked if the Elite 85t can use one earbud. The answer is yes, but only right buds that can use single, not left.

IPX4 waterproof rating, that’s means you can use it for activities that are not wet with sweat or water. So the Jabra Elite 85t can be protected from water splashes from any angle, but can not protect from water jets projected by a nozzle (6.3mm). This is one weakness that is inferior to the Elite 75t (IP55) and Elite active 75t (IP57).

When it comes to playtime, the Elite 85t well done. For a single charge, you can listen to music for 5 hours continuously. With a charging case, playtime extends up to 23 – 25 hours.

Jabra Elite 85t Review – Pros & Cons

Where to buy Jabra Elite 85t