What a day to be a JBL fan.
The audio company kicked off IFA 2020 with a splash, introducing a huge assortment of Bluetooth speakers and headphones, highlighted by the $500 JBL PartyBox 310. In all, there are five different speakers and four pairs of earbuds.
Here’s the breakdown.
JBL PartyBox 310
JBL calls the Partybox 310 “the ultimate portable party machine,” and the specs of this speaker make you want to believe the hype. The speaker itself is driven by 240 watts of power and offers dual mic and guitar inputs, as well as a light show that syncs with the music that’s currently playing.
JBL says the speaker has an 18-hour battery life, an IPX4 weather-resistance rating, and the ability to pair two PartyBox 310’s together for true stereo sound. There’s also an included app that allows you to switch tracks and customize the speaker’s lights from your mobile device.
The PartyBox 310 will be available in the U.S. starting October 25 for $500.
JBL PartyBox On-The-Go
Think of the PartyBox On-The-Go as the younger sibling of the PartyBox 310. It’s got six hours of battery life compared to 18, 100 watts of power compared to 240, and costs far less at $300. It’s also got plenty in common to the PartyBox 310, including an IPX4 waterproof rating, mic and guitar inputs, and light show capabilities for pairing with music.
You can also pair the PartyBox On-The-Go with another speaker for stereo sound, just like the PartyBox 310, and you can tune bass and treble with a wireless mic. The portability of the On-The-Go comes from amenities like a bottle opener and a padded shoulder strap, making the speaker a bit more friendly for road trips.
The PartyBox On-The-Go will join the PartyBox 310 for an October 25 release date in the U.S.
JBL Xtreme 3
The Xtreme 3 sports four drivers and a pair of bass radiators, with JBL claiming that these drivers can keep pumping music for up to 15 hours at a time. It’s got an IP67 weather-resistance rating, making it waterproof and dustproof, and charges via a USB-C connection. Plus, like the previous speakers mentioned in this lineup, the Xtreme 3 can be paired with another of its kind to create stereo sound.
The Xtreme 3 will come in blue, black, and “squad” (shown above) colors, and will be available in November for $350.
JBL Clip 4
The smaller Clip 4 still offers some solid specs, including a claimed 10 hours of battery life, an IP67 weather-resistance rating, and Bluetooth 5.1 technology. The speaker has an integrated carabiner to, ahem, clip onto your backpack when you’re traveling, and charges via a USB-C connection.
The Clip 4 has a wider variety of colors than the Xtreme 3, including black, blue, blue, and pink, red, pink, green and white, and the aforementioned “squad.” It’s coming to the U.S. in December for $70.
JBL Go 3
The smallest and least expensive speaker in this new lineup, the Go 3 has the same IP67 weather protection as its bigger relatives, but comes in at five hours of battery life, according to JBL. The Go 3 has Bluetooth 5.1 technology, a USB-C charging connection, and color options that include black, blue, blue, and pink, red, pink, green and white, and “squad.”
The Go 3 will be available earlier than the Xtreme 3 or Clip 4, coming to the U.S. in October for $40.
JBL Club Pro+
The JBL Club Pro+ is, as the name might suggest, the most premium new pair of true wireless earbuds introduced by JBL. They’re pricey, at $200, but comes with quite the list of features and specifications. Chief among them is adaptive noise-canceling technology, battery life that’s listed at six hours with noise cancellation on and eight hours when off (with three extra charges in the included case), and an IPX4 weather-resistance rating.
It’s also got Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa built-in, an ambient sound mode for pumping in sounds from the environment without having to remove a bud, and touch controls. The sound itself is driven by 6.8mm dynamic drivers, though it’s hard to say exactly how these buds will sound without hearing them.
The Club Pro+ will be available starting October 25.
Endurance Peak II
The $100 Endurance Peak II are designed with athletes in mind, and feature an earhook style and an IPX7 weather-resistance rating to give you adequate protection during workouts. The buds also claim to have six hours of battery life per charge, and 24 hours total with the included charging case.
JBL did not specifically say when these athletic buds would be available to the public, but we can expect they’ll be released with, or at least around the same time as, the Club Pro+.
JBL Tune 225TWS
The JBL Tune 225TWS is an interesting product, since JBL included a full specifications sheet with the rest of the products, but omitted a price or release date for this particular pair of earbuds. Without that information, we don’t know exactly what to think of these specs.
Depending on the price, five hours of battery life in a single charge and 25 hours total could be a value, or it could be disappointing. A seemingly missing water-resistance rating might not be anything to take serious issue with, or it could be a major problem. To be fair, it does come in six available colors, which is a nice perk no matter the price.
JBL Quantum 50
You don’t often see earbuds, instead of headphones, designed for gamers, but that’s just what JBL did with the $30 Quantum 50. These wired earbuds have 8.6mm drivers, a microphone positioned close to the mouth to assist multiplayer gaming, and compatibility for every platform including PC, Mac, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, mobile, and VR.
The Quantum 50 will be available September 4, 2020.
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