Another day, another pair of true wireless earbuds with active noise cancellation—and this time around, it’s the new Jabra Elite 85t, the successor to the well-reviewed Elite 75t.
The new iteration builds on the previous generation with new features and a revamped design, but how does it compare to other old but popular models such as the Bose SoundSport Free? We put the two side by side to help you decide which one you should get and whether modern Bluetooth headphones are worthwhile or not.
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Jabra Elite 85t vs Bose SoundSport Free Comparison Chart
Model | Jabra Elite 85t | |
Price | ||
Design | Semi-open | In-ear |
Controls | n/a | Physical and voice |
Active Noise Cancellation | Yes | No |
Transparency Mode | Yes | No |
Water and Dust Resistance | IPX4 | IPX4 |
Battery Life | 7 hours or 5.5 hours with ANC on | 5 hours |
Charging Time | n/a | 2 hours |
Wireless Charging | Yes | No |
Release Date | November 1, 2020 | 2017 |
Colors | Titanium, Gold | Black, Midnight Blue, Bright Orange, Ultraviolet |
Design and Build
The in-ear

Going by its appearance alone, the Elite 85t are unmistakably Jabra. However, they’re now semi-open, a departure from the Elite 75t’s in-ear design. What that really means is their tips won’t be crammed into your ear canal. By the same token, they won’t make a tight seal, so noise isolation won’t be as good as before since some sound will manage to leak through. That’s where active noise cancellation comes in to “compensate” (more on that in a bit).
The
Audio Performance
The Jabra Elite 85t can keep outside noise out better with its active noise cancellation.

At the time of writing, the Jabra Elite 85t have yet to hit the shelves, so it’s hard to tell how they’ll sound exactly. But with the info at hand, they’ll at least perform better than their predecessor. For one thing, each earbud has a 12 mm driver under the hood for improved audio and three microphones. For the record, that all adds up to six microphones, four of which are for noise canceling.
Speaking of, Jabra calls the Elite 85t’s active noise cancellation Advanced ANC, which is basically a version of the technology made for earbuds without the noise isolation you’d get from in-ear headphones. It has 11 levels of sound, ranging from complete noise canceling to full transparency mode to let surrounding sounds pass through, which the company aptly named HearThrough.
The
Battery Life and Other Features
You’ll get a longer battery life out of the Jabra Elite 85t.

On a single charge, the Jabra Elite 85t are rated to last up to 5.5 hours with active noise cancellation on, going up to a total of 25 hours with the charging case. With active noise cancellation off, those numbers will increase to about 7 hours and 31 hours, respectively. The earbuds will also come with a wireless charging case, so there’s that.
Meanwhile, the
Both have an IPX4 water resistance, meaning they can withstand sweat and splashes. Thing is, the Jabra Elite 75t have an IP55 rating, and to put two and two together, the Jabra Elite 85t is getting a downgrade on this front.
Verdict
The Jabra Elite 85t’s modern features bring the
Clearly, the winner here is the Jabra Elite 85t. They have active noise cancellation, transparency mode, wireless charging, and longer overall battery life than the
Also, that doesn’t mean the Bose SoundSport Free aren’t worth getting anymore. With the price drops already rolling out, they’re affordable true wireless earbuds that make for an excellent workout companion.
FAQs
The Jabra Elite 85t are expected to be released on Nov. 1.
Yes, and that’s evidenced by the Jabra Elite 75t and Elite Active 75t. For the uninitiated, these true wireless earbuds have decent battery life and connection, a sleek design, and excellent water resistance.
Yes, the Jabra Elite 85t supports active noise cancellation with 11 levels of sound, going from full ANC to full HearThrough, which is what the company calls its transparency mode.
The Jabra Elite 85t is better than the
Last update on 2022-05-22 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API