JBL’s latest offering, the Tour Pro 3 wireless earbuds, could easily be dubbed the JBL Tour de Force. Building upon the feature-rich Tour Pro 2, the Tour Pro 3 takes things to the next level with even more enhancements. Set to hit the market on September 22, these earbuds come with a price tag of $300.
Although the third-gen earbuds appear similar to their predecessors, they now come in black or “latte.” While the earbuds maintain their shape, the case has been slightly downsized with a 30% larger screen. Additionally, the case can serve as a transmitter for analog and digital audio through included cables for use with various devices.
Including this feature places JBL in a select group with companies like Bowers & Wilkins, LG, and Jabra.
Interestingly, the Tour Pro 3 do not use Bluetooth when connected to the case for wired sources. JBL claims this direct connection is more stable and has lower latency than Bluetooth, providing an ideal experience for gaming, calls, movies, and music.
Similar to their predecessors, the case allows direct control over functions like playback, ANC, and spatial audio.
The earbuds now feature dust and water resistance with an IP55 rating. Inside, a new dual-driver acoustic platform is employed, pairing an 11mm dynamic driver with a balanced armature driver, each equipped with its own DAC. This setup mirrors OnePlus’ recent announcement for their Buds Pro 3.
The Tour Pro 2 had lacked hi-res codecs despite being hi-res capable in response frequency. The Tour Pro 3 resolves this, supporting Sony’s hi-res audio LDAC Bluetooth codec, compatible with Android phones running version 8.0 or higher.
Head-tracking, an upgrade for spatial audio, has been added to the Tour Pro 3, addressing a previous limitation from the Tour Pro 2.
JBL has also introduced a new “JBL Crystal AI” call algorithm in the Tour Pro 3, promising enhanced call clarity even in noisy environments.
Notably, the Tour Pro 3 are JBL’s first full Auracast wireless earbuds, enabling users to access and tune into Auracast broadcasts through the JBL Headphones app. The charging case can also transmit using Auracast, facilitating easy sharing of media with others.
