Jabra has announced the launch of its last pair of TWS earbuds, including the Elite 8 Active Gen 2 and Elite 10 Gen 2. It’s the last pair because Jabra has decided to wind up its consumer-facing TWS audio products business, which includes its Elite and Talk lineup of earbuds. The brand made such a decision due to changing market dynamics and increased profitability.
In a press release, GN CEO Peter Karlstromer recognized Jabra’s achievements in rivaling top brands and pioneering true wireless earbuds. Nonetheless, he explained that shifting market conditions and challenges in ensuring a profitable return prompted the decision to discontinue the Elite and Talk lines of audio products. Currently, the brand sees greater potential in other areas of its business.
“The decision to gradually wind down the Elite and Talk product lines is part of our commitment to focus on attractive markets where we can deliver profitable growth and strong returns,” said Karlstromer. “It is today our assessment that we cannot generate a fair return on investment compared to the many other opportunities we have within our Hearing, Enterprise, and Gaming businesses,” he added.
Jabra will reduce the inventory of the affected products, of which most are expected to be completed by the end of 2024. It will, however, continue to service and support customers for several years. As a result, the brand announced its last two pairs of TWS earbuds under the Elite line, including the Elite 8 Active Gen 2 and Elite 10 Gen 2. Jabra says these are its “best-ever earbuds.”
Read More: TWS Earbuds, Neckbands Launched In India: June 2024
Jabra Elite 8 Active Gen 2: Price, Features
Available for $229.99 (approx Rs 19,200), the TWS earbuds will be available later this month in colors such as Coral, Black, Navy Blue, and Olive. They are currently available to pre-order and come with a 2-year warranty.
As for the features, the Elite 8 Active Gen 3 comes packed with the world’s first LE Audio smart case where users can experience spatial sound from their TV or the treadmill at the gym, with easy plug & play to any device using the USB-C/3.5mm cable provided. Jabra claims that the ANC in Elite 8 Gen 2 cancels out twice as much noise than Elite 8 Active’s previous generation.
They come with a 6-mic setup for clearer calls and have physical buttons. They charge via USB-C and support wireless charging, too. The earbuds also support a wireless connection with a smartwatch. They feature a 6nm speaker with Dolby Audio support and features like Auto resume, auto pause, along with AAC & SBC codecs. The earbuds offer a battery life of up to 56 hours.
The earbuds have an IP68 rating while the case has an IP54 rating. The earbuds have also achieved a MIL-STD-810h rating. The connections are handled via Bluetooth v5.3 and they support multipoint connections as well. Google Fast Pair, Microsoft Swift Pair and voice assistants are also supported.
Jabra Elite 10 Gen 2: Price, Features
Priced at $279.99 (approx Rs 23,400), the Elite 10 Gen 2 are also available for pre-order and will come in Denim, Cocoa, Gloss Black, Soft White, and Titanium Black colour options. These earbuds will also have a 2-year warranty.
These Jabra Elite series earbuds are also packed with the LE Audio smart case where users can experience spatial sound from their TV or the treadmill at the gym, with easy plug & play to any device using the USB-C/3.5mm cable provided. They have support for Spatial Audio with Dolby head tracking. The ANC in these earbuds is touted to cancel out twice as much noise than Elite 10’s previous generation.
They pack a 10mm speaker and can provide a playback time of up to 36 hours with the case and have wireless charging support as well. All the other features on these earbuds remain the same as the Elite 8 Active Gen 2, except for the IP rating, where the case of the Elite 10 Gen 2 doesn’t have one while the earbuds themselves have an IP57 rating.