Bose Soundsport Free Vs Jabra 65T Elite Active

Thought I'd post a quick comparison on the two after being able to use both. I first had the Bose then just started using the Jabra this week because the Bose doesn't fit perfectly to my ear.

Sound:
Very similar sound profile. Bose probably has a tad more bass but overall very similar really. I'm not a audiophile so take my opinion on this with a grain of salt.

Fit:
This one is very personal, one might work for you better than the other. The Bose for me doesn't fit properly. I've tried to small and medium ear tips. Small just falls right off, where the medium fits but starts to hurt after 30-45mins of use. The Jabra ear tips fits me much better and I am able to wear this for hours with no problem.

Controls:
I never really used the buttons on the Bose since it's a bit too stiff to press. By the time I'm able to press something, it would've fallen off from the pressure. The Jabra's have a nicer control feel and setup. Forward/reverse and volume controls are easy to use.

Usability:
The Jabra has this niggle where if you pull out the left ear while playing music, that side will stop but the right ear continues. If you pull the right ear, both stops completely. For what genius reason was this done for? The Bose will keep playing on both sides no matter which one you take off, which means you can share one side to another person in case you're showing a video or wanting to share music.

Design:
A lot of people always talk about the Bose making you look like you have Shrek ears. But personally wasn't too bad for me. The Jabra is smaller and more discreet in the ear so if that's important to you, then this one is a clearer winner.

Battery:
Bose will always be better in this department. During use, it will last about 1 hour more than the Jabra. The Bose case also holds more charge than the Jabra so overall the Bose will last longer. The Jabra case is half the size of the Bose case so that's a consideration.

Calls:
Bose only works on the right ear. I don't know why they decided this was a great idea. Jabra works on both but I've been having issues with this for some reason. The first call usually doesn't work straightaway, the person on the other line can't hear me. I have to call back then it will work. This is very annoying.

I don't believe there is a clear winner here. Both have their positives and negatives. If there were other ear tips available in the market for the Bose that fits me better, I'd probably choose to keep this. But from what I've seen they're all designed exactly the same.

Comments

  • +1

    I'm sad no one has chimed in yet, but thanks for the review! It's always good to have hands-on reviews by people who're using these day-to-day. Even if one review in isolation may be subjective and not widely applicable or useful, a larger body of such reviews would lead to a more consensus view or opinion of products, so thanks!

    • Thanks, when I was shopping for one before, I couldn’t really get a definitive answer so I ended up with both.

  • Thank you for the review.

    For me, the Bose fit better - it will not fall off, whereas the Jabra will.

    For comparison, AirPods are easier to take off and put away than the Jabra. I imagine it'll be much worse for the Bose as both the case and earphones for the Bose are much bigger.

    • Fit is definitely a very personal thing. I just ordered some ebay ear tips for the Bose to test out. It looks exactly the same but hoping it fits differently.

      The case for the Bose is much better built. It has a magnet a has a satisfying click when you put the earphones back in. The Jabra has no magnet so you kinda rely on lining them up correctly. In saying that the Jabra case is much smaller and easier on the pocket for sure.

      The Airpods was never an option for me even though I actually use an iphone. To me it just looks silly with the mic hanging down like that. Looks even weirder than the Bose Shrek ears.

  • I use the Bose Soundsport Free every day and there's a problem with the left earbud disconnecting every now and then. It seems to be quite a common problem with these particular earbuds.

    The other "problem" is, it doesn't support aptx so when watching videos, so the sound and video is out of sync a little. Bose has said that they're designed for use while out and about and fitness (and not for watching videos).

    I've also got to mention that the hard pladtic charging case isn't really suit pants pocket friendly so I leave it at home if I'm not carrying my laptop bag. It's an awkward shape abd I worry it'll rip my pants when I sit down quickly!

    I haven't used the Jabra ones before, so I can't comment if they're any better.

    • The Jabra case is definitely easier on the pocket. But at the same time, it holds less charge than the Bose.

      I haven’t experienced disconnection issues with the Bose though. Maybe certain batches only?

      I still think both have their pluses and minuses with no actual one ahead of the other.

  • Which had the better mic? Call quality seems to be the issue with all the ones I try. They pick up plenty of other talking in a busy office.

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