Another cool pair of earphones doing the rounds are the Bose SoundSport Free. Identical to the Jabra Elite 65t, these earphones also sport a decent battery life of around five hours (matching up with the Apple AirPods). They have a built-in microphone and are compatible with both Siri and Google Assistant. But is that all? Well, we beg to differ. There are plenty of differences between these earphones. Today, we’ll be talking about the key differences between the Jabra Elite 65t and Bose SoundSport Free.
1. Design
At first glance, the design of both the earphones looks similar. However, the Jabra Elite 65t is slightly smaller and lighter than its counterpart. They are sleek and fit comfortably without sticking out much. This smaller size can be attributed to the fact that it doesn’t come with heart rate sensors and accelerator like the Elite Active variant. When it comes to the fitting, the Elite 65t bundles three extra set of silicone ear tips. Once you’ve found the right pair of ear tips, they’ll fit snugly and will seal your ear canal. Even if they don’t have wings or fins, you don’t have to worry about them falling off while running or exercising. Furthermore, the smaller design ensures that the outer part does not move around. Lastly, the dual-tone gives them a beautiful and modern touch. On the other hand, the Bose SoundSport Free is a bit chunky and stick out of the ear. That may end up giving your head a goofy look. Though they fit well, all thanks to the StayHear+ Sport tips, the bulky outer body gives the sensation that they might fall anytime but they don’t. On the upside, these earphones are light and come with tiny wings or fins to hold the buds in place. When it comes to controls, both the earphones have them built on the buds. The Elite 65t gives you the added benefit of switching off a single earbud. Other than that, you can skip tracks or control the volume through the buttons on the left bud. However, doing that might require a bit of practice. The controls are a bit similar in the Bose SoundSport Free earphones. The SoundSport Free also has dedicated volume control buttons and a multi-functional button to take care of tracks and calls. The only difference between the two is the location of the controls.
2. Sound Isolation
Both the earbuds produce great audio output with Jabra Elite 65t and Bose SoundSport Free delivering deep and punchy bass. The key feature which we will be focusing on here is the sound isolation and how good it is. As we mentioned above, the Elite 65t comes with three sets of ear tips. So with the right fit, they prevent letting in ambient noise. The equalizer settings within the Jabra Sound+ companion app further amplify the passive noise isolation. The passive noise isolation is pretty impressive when the EQ has been set (which is a must, we will get to that at the end of the post). Also, you have to keep in mind to keep the HearThrough feature turned off. The HearThrough feature is a transparency feature which allows you to adjust the degree of ambient noise to monitor outside surroundings, especially for traffic and other noise when running outdoors. On the other hand, the semi-open earbud design of the Bose SoundSport Free doesn’t do much when it comes to noise isolation. You may hear ambient noises in noisy environments. You can mask them with high volumes but we don’t recommend that. On the bright side, this will help you better gauge your nearby surroundings.
3. Companion App Features
Both the earphones have their respective companion app. The Jabra Sound+ boasts of many notable features like the aforementioned HearThrough feature and Soundscapes. However, the feature that stands out most is the Equalizer. You guessed right. It lets you tweak the sound as per your taste. As per our experience, the default sound profile of the Elite 65t might appeal to a casual music enthusiast. Hence tweaking it is one of the first things you could do, should you buy these earbuds. Also, you can choose to auto-pause the music when you take the buds off. Smart, right? The Bose Connect app also has its share of features including the option to enable/disable voice prompts, Locate Earbuds (to help you find misplaced buds), and the Auto-off timer. Plus, the app makes the process of connecting both the earpieces a walk in the park. Sadly, it doesn’t have a built-in EQ, and that may irk you if you are an audiophile. Also, it lacks the auto-pause function that stops the music when you remove the earbuds. Check out the Bose SoundSport Free
Which One Should You Buy?
Ever since Apple launched the AirPods, the earbud market has ballooned. The Jabra Elite 65t and the Bose SoundSport Free are similar in many respects, whether it’s the charging time, or the Bluetooth connectivity (both have Bluetooth 5.0). More importantly, both charge quickly and the charging time is near about the same with both the earphones delivering five hours of battery life on a full charge. So, if you’re looking for a combination of great sounding and great looking earphones, why not give the Jabra Elite 65t a try? Meanwhile, you can invest the $44 to buy a portable Bluetooth speaker. The above article may contain affiliate links which help support Guiding Tech. However, it does not affect our editorial integrity. The content remains unbiased and authentic.
