The JBL Live Beam 3 earbuds are their latest on offer moving up from the JBL Tour Pro 2 with similar features and looks which unfortunately I never tested but from the getgo I was intrigued by being able to control your music from your earbuds case and how well it would work but these can offer more than one would expect after testing them out now for a few weeks. You can see a detailed first look here.
The presentation is as always excellent and identifiable easily in a store or online and the overall package pretty cool putting up as one of my favourite earbuds case this year so far and that is due to what can be done and how you can use the case and I am pretty sure others will follow in time which in fact some chinese manufacturers have done so with rampant ads on Facebook with a really cheap price so be warned, they most likely will be brutal and cheap knock offs some even using the JBL logo and trying to hide it, yes we seen you….
So the case is excellent and the earbuds are on the small side with small stems LED lights and magnetic points to stay put in your case with subtle branding on the outside of the stem, colour dependent this may stand out more but not in your face.
Of course you get the JBL app to set up the earbuds and you can use the case to do so too however once set up via the app I find you will no linger need to go near the earbuds you can even get message notifications on the earbuds case which is handy and this is also a neat way to keep you away from your phone giving you a little taste of some detox which is not a bad idea. The notifications are not rich however still it is a great idea.
Onto the sound as we go into detail on the case in the video review below and overall it is as you would expect from the brand with their custom sounds and app access you are in control not only from your phone but from the case, with their 10mm drivers highs lows and mids all fine nice bass and after going through my test look everything did really well you can customize the sound to your own needs which is vital on a pair of earbuds an no issues for me no lag latency or tinny sound when maxed out which is how I like listening to my music and movies etc.
Some might find the case as a gimmick however I found myself using it all the time and with some travel I have done I have brought them with me and will be doing so on upcoming tech trips very soon so watch out for some new cool tech coming soon here on the site and YouTube.
Battery life is also solid and you have an IP55 rating and with your ANC and really good ambient sound on tap these certainly should be on your radar and not overpriced either compared to the benchmark offerings from Apple.
The App
Features
● Smart charging case
● 10mm dynamic driver
● True Adaptive Noise Cancelling with custom controls
● BT 5.3 with LE Audio*
● High-res audio wireless with LDAC
● JBL Spatial Sound
● 6 mics for perfect calls and customized call experience
● IP55 certified waterproof
● Personi-Fi 3.0
● Multipoint connection
● Wireless charging
Up to 40 hours total playtime
10+30H play time (ANC off) with speed charge (10min=4h) via Type-C
The JBL Live 3 Earbuds series are now available on JBL.com for $199.95