The Jabra Elite 85T available from Amazon for £219
Audio brand Jabra has been my go-to brand for the last year especially the Jabra Elite 75t so when I got sent a pair of the Jabra Elite 85t you might be able to understand my excitement. However, after a few weeks of testing these a question arises are they really that different to the 75t?
If you are someone who has never experienced the other products from Jabra and the 85T is your first purchase I promise you will be happy with your purchase. They look great and they offer you ANC which is something you did not get with the Elite 75T.
The Jabra Elite 85T costs £219 via Amazon and comes in 4 different colours:
- Copper Black
- Gold Beige
- Grey
- Titanium Black
In this review, we were sent the grey version which was lucky as they are the same colour as my elite 75T so we can show some comparisons as we move forward in this review.
The Jabra Elite 85T has only been available since November 2020 so they have only been available for 2 months. When you unbox them you get the earbuds in a black charging case as well as USB-C cable and three sets of different sizes of silicone EarGels to allow anyone to use these even if you have small or large ears.
Design
Jabra is a brand known for cutting edge design but the Elite 85T but unfortunately they are basically the same design as the previous model the Elite Active 75t. Now that is not a bad thing completely as like I have said I very much enjoy my 75t model.
The Jabra Elite 85T are IPX4 meaning they are water-resistant allowing you to use these in the gym or when running. The Elite 85T focuses on the audio experience and uses ANC to help offer a fantastic sound that removes any outside noise.
When you take a closer look at the design the buds are a little bigger compared to the 75T version and this is due to the use of the ANC. Apart from that if you placed buds next to each other you might not be able to notice the difference. The fit of the buds I found to be as comfortable. Maybe the 85T protrude out of the ears slightly but not by much. The Elite 85T are slightly heavier the bud weighs 6.9g compared to 5.5g with the 75t version,
The silicone EarGels that fit on the buds help offer a more secure seal to aid the ANC. I found these add to the overall comfort of the buds. In terms of controls, they are still as easy to use as the previous model and the controls include playback, volume, ANC & HearThru which allows you to still listen to your music but also let in some outside noise. Ideal for when you’re cycling on a busy road or when you are at a train station on a busy concourse (remember these days pre-Covid).
The main difference between the 75t & 85t is the charging case. The charging case in the 85t is Qi-compatible to my pair of 75t but since I did my review on them Jabra has now made the charging case in the 75t Qi-compatible allowing for wireless charging. It’s the size and weight which is the most noticeable with the difference in the case for the 85t case nearly twice the size and when you consider weight the 85t case is nearly 10g heavier but am not overly sure why.
Jabra Elite 75t(Left) Vs Jabra Elite 85t (Right)
Audio performance
The audio quality in the 85t really is not massively different compared to the 75t version. I guess once you hit perfection what else can you do?
Well, Jabra has tried to fine-tune the 85t and has a few improvements such as the inclusion of the 12mm speakers. What this means to the consumer the buds are slightly bigger and offer a little bit more bass giving you that extra depth to your music. The overall sound quality is warm and offers a very natural sound and offers lots of detail and great bass. However, they sound identical to the 75t. So one does question why not just buy the 75t instead.
These buds have ANC option which does a great job of blocking out unwanted outside noise. They also have the HearThur option but so does the 75t. The volume can get quite high which is great as some other brands do tend to keep the volume to a said level to protect the battery life. When pumping up the volume it does not distort.
Connection wise it will not be a surprise that the Elite 85t come with Bluetooth 5.0 they have been very stable when I have used them but with the current lockdown, I have been prevented from testing them in the normal places like Liverpool St station and in the middle of central London. These buds also allow us to take calls and I used them to speak to clients and they worked perfectly and gave me no reason to complain.
Battery life
Battery life is also a big plus for the Elite 85t we found when testing them they offered 5.5hrs of battery life with ANC switched on or 7 hours with ANC switched off. You also have 4 full charges offering 25hrs with the charging case or 31 hours in total without ANC. This battery life is not too dissimilar to what you get from the Elite 75t apart from the opportunity to charge the case wireless using a Qi-compatible charging plate.
The Elite 85t also comes with the quick charging function which means with just 15 minutes of charging you get one hour of playback time in return which is ideal when you’re out and about.
Verdict
The Jabra Elite 85t offers a great pair of buds that offer ANC and offer a very good audio quality and most importantly a great bass and decent battery life. However, the Elite 75t were so good I feel Jabra has missed a trick why try and improve on what are an excellent pair of earbuds. I feel the Elite 85t has added this extra bulk for the ANC but it seems a little odd as that did not need to make the buds bulkier and less snug fitting.
My main issue is the fact yes they are a good pair of earbuds but are they that much of an improvement on the Elite 75t? I would have to say if you have the opportunity to buy a pair of Jabra Elite 75t as considering they cost £163 via Amazon compared to the Jabra Elite 85t at £219 via Amazon for what is basically an identical pair of buds without the extra bulk in the build a better IP rating and you also save some money.
Jabra Elite 75t (Left) Vs Jabra Elite 85t (Right)
Product Rating:
Design: 4.0 out of 5.0 stars
Features: 5.0 out of 5.0 stars5.0
Performance: 5.0 out of 5.0 stars5.0
Battery Life: 5.0 out of 5.0 stars5.0
Value for Money: 4.0 out of 5.0 stars
Overall Rating: 4.6 out of 5.0 stars 4.6 Stars
The Jabra Elite 85T available from Amazon for £219
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