Product test
Philips open-ear sports headphones: affordable, but not a top model
by Siri Schubert
Jabra Elite 85h: Another pair of over-ear headphones with noise cancelling
11.9.2019
Translation: machine translated
The Jabra Elite 85h can do everything pretty well, some things even very well. Nevertheless, it is hardly the device the world has been waiting for. This is mainly due to the strong competition.
So the question is: What can the Jabra Elite 85h do better than the previous top dogs?
In terms of specs alone, the Jabra model has a few small plus points: It doesn't break straight away if it gets wet and has a very good battery life of 36 hours with noise cancelling switched on. But these alone are not reasons to buy.
The sound
The first impression of the sound is fine. However, a direct comparison with the competition from Bose and Sony reveals minor weaknesses. Jabra's bass is not as powerful as Sony's WH-1000XM3. The treble stands out very clearly - it's too dominant for me, I don't find it quite balanced.
Like Sony, the Jabras app offers a five-band equaliser with which you can adjust the sound. I can therefore attenuate the treble a little to suit my taste. However, I'm not a big fan of equalisers, because I think the sound has to be just right in the basic settings. The lack of impact in the bass, for example, cannot be conjured up using the EQ.
Somewhat disappointing for this price range: The Jabra Elite 85h offers neither aptX/aptX HD nor AAC. This leaves only the standard Bluetooth codec SBC. But even SBC sounds very good if the bit rate is high enough. And with Bluetooth 5.0, this should be the case in most situations.
In short: The sound is okay, but I think both the Bose QC35 II and the Sony WH-1000XM3 are better in this respect. And the cable connection is nothing more than a stopgap solution if a Bluetooth connection is not possible.
The noise cancelling
The app offers four profiles for everyday situations - so-called moments - which you can customise to suit your own preferences. A moment contains information on whether ANC or Hear Through is switched on or neither, as well as an equaliser setting. The headphones are also able to switch profiles automatically by analysing the ambient noise. Although this doesn't work too badly, I prefer to switch manually.
On balance, the noise cancelling functions are okay, but not the best I've ever heard.
The operation
If the Jabra can't beat the competition when it comes to sound and noise cancelling, why should anyone buy one? I think: Because of the handling. Because it's great.
When not in use, the ear cups are rotated so that they can be stored in the case to save space. This switches the Jabra off automatically. When you take it out again and turn the shells back, it switches on again.
This is practical. Even more practical: the music pauses when you take the headphones off and continues playing when you put them back on. Apart from a short delay of one or two seconds when taking them off, this works perfectly. If you don't want this, you can deactivate it in the settings.
The Jabra Elite 85h has five physical buttons that are easy to feel and yet unobtrusive in design.
Jabra offers firmware updates via the app. In my case, the update made it possible to switch the headset's voice announcement from English to German. The voice is very pleasant in both languages and the sound quality is decent - unlike the Bose QC35 II.
Making phone calls
Jabra has made a name for itself primarily with headsets for office communication. Jabra has built no fewer than eight microphones into the Elite 85h. The telephony function should therefore be appealing.
During a short test call, I was impressed by the voice quality. Although the voice is rather quiet for the person I am speaking to, it is easy to understand. Filtering out ambient noise also works well. In the app, I can set how loud I want my own voice to be through the headphones and even set up my own EQ for the other party's voice. Optionally, the Elite 85h can automatically answer calls when I put them on - which I would never do.
Conclusion: Okay, but not a hit
David Lee
Senior Editor
David.Lee@digitecgalaxus.chMy interest in IT and writing landed me in tech journalism early on (2000). I want to know how we can use technology without being used. Outside of the office, I’m a keen musician who makes up for lacking talent with excessive enthusiasm.
