THE search for ideal sound is an elusive quest, given the speed at which new products ares launched.
For the here and now, if you’re looking for earbuds that deliver a composed and near complete package in terms of features and audio quality, the new release from JBL comes very close to this imaginary audible finish line.
The JBL Tour Pro 3 is packed with an abundance of features, is small enough without being fiddly, and big enough to sit comfortably in your palm, pocket or handbag. Available in two colours — black and latte (presumably named after coffee and not milk) — the case also comes with a touchscreen that makes it a lot more interactive and interesting.
Touch And Play
In today’s era of connectivity and communication, that touchscreen should appeal to the digital natives and those who have migrated and possibly downsized from large speakers to headphones and earbuds.
Flip open the lid and pop out the Tour Pro 3 earbuds — with stems, which allow for easier manipulation to get the best possible seal for your audio enjoyment. Comfortable in the ear, there is a generous selection of 5 different sizes of silicon tips to choose from, and an additional pair of foam tips that delivers a better seal and keeps out more of the extraneous sounds.
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The earbuds are easy to pair with your smartphone, and the app offers a range of customisable options. After the initial set up (remember to take off the protective film on your earbud stems), you’ll find yourself immersed in music, which envelopes and engages you.
The screen allows you to adjust a suite of effects. Combined with the app on your smartphone, you can handle your music by phone, via the case, or deal with basic matters like phone calls, track selection and ambience control by tapping the buds.
Review Follows Below
Nifty Features
The Tour Pro 3 earbuds seamlessly switch between two devices and is also able to charge wirelessly. They will also be a great asset on your travels as you can use the Smart Charging Case as an audio transmitter dongle. By plugging it into the inflight system you can enjoy the entertainment with your own earbuds instead of having to deal with cables and poor quality headsets. You can also use this to plug into your computer, especially for calls.
With full Auracast functionality, the Tour Pro 3 earbuds will go further as more devices equipped with this feature come on stream, allowing you to join a broadcast by tapping in with the case and the app.
Sound Moves
Six mics working in conjunction with JBL Crystal AI algorithm deliver your phone calls, though I’ve never found communicating through earbuds as efficient as a corded headset or directly on the smartphone. But it did perform well in a Zoom discussion.
For those who tend to lose an earbud, the Tour Pro 3 has a find your earbud feature, which emits a sound to help you locate the separated bud.
At around the $350 price mark I was impressed with what I was getting. The music proved full-bodied and rich, and thanks to the ability to adjust the equaliser to suit my audio preferences, I could get to revisit and enjoy my favourite tracks across a spectrum of genres, especially those that had been remastered.
The equaliser settings can be personalised to suit your needs and saved for quick access.
With so many options that could be changed via the touchscreen you can sometimes spend too much time locating the features you’re after. Might be good, in future versions, or possibly a future software update, to be able to customise the screens so they flow in the user’s preferred sequence, for ease of accessibility.
With 11 hours of playtime stored on the buds (depending on what features you’ve turned on), and 33 hours in the case, the Tour Pro 3 would be good for a week’s worth of music for the average listener.
