Test: JBL Endurance Jump

Music is a great way to stay motivated while doing rigorous workouts, but the quest for great headphones or earbuds to take with you isn’t as easy as it seems. While there are options available, there aren’t that many choices. JBL is making its case with the Endurance Jump, hoping you’ll take the plunge and try it out.

Snug as a bug. The Endurance Jump doesn’t look like your typical in-ear Bluetooth headphones. With the light blue color of my test unit, I couldn’t discretely hide that I was wearing a pair of headphones. It’s chunkier and rectangular by the earbuds so using my hair to hide it isn’t possible. But this design approach is essential to keeping these headphones in place. JBL employs its TwistLock technology to secure the fit of the Endurance Jump.

I admittedly fumbled a bit when I put it on for the first time, but once you know the technique to keep it in, then it stays in. True to its name, you approach it at an angle and twist it in with the ear tips having a bit of suction to keep it in place. It hooks over your ear and keeps the headphones in place. I’ve used it for yoga and a light jog, and it stays in without an issue. I haven’t been able to swim with it, but the Endurance Jump is IPX7 rated, meaning you can even take this for a dip. It can withstand water up to 1m for up to 30 minutes. With how securely these fit, I can guarantee it’s still going to stay on while you’re in the water.

In fact, it fits so securely that it’ll start to pinch after an extended amount of time. There is a bit of fatigue once you’re past a couple of hours. Admittedly, I’ve used this beyond 30-minute workouts and used it as my main pair of headphones, but this might not be designed for that extended period of use. It’s also not meant to be worn by people with multiple ear piercings. Better take those out before trying to use the Endurance Jump.

A nifty little thing. The Endurance Jump has what it calls a Power Hook, which automatically turns these headphones on or off. When you separate the ear hook from the necklace, it turns the accessory on. And if you want to power it down, just attach it right back. It looks like it’s held together by magnets, so it attaches to that part of the necklace easily. This means you no longer have to fumble with controls if you want to turn it on or off while someone is trying to talk to you (although it is a bit tough to get the earbuds out). It also makes sure the headphones are powered down when you’re not wearing it. But also make sure you keep it in the provided case to avoid separating it and having the headphones power on and connect wirelessly to your device. You might miss calls and drain the battery in the process.

It is easy to set up via Bluetooth, though. But I suggest doing it while you’re already wearing the Endurance Jump to avoid it suddenly powering down when it accidentally attaches to the necklace.

Ready for the workout. It isn’t easy to drain the battery out of this pair of headphones. The Endurance Jump can easily last nine hours on a single charge (an hour extra from the promised eight). It takes around two hours to completely fill its battery. Now, if you only use this for workouts, then it’ll be easy to get many, many days out of this. JBL promises if you charge this for just 10 minutes, you can get an hour’s use out of it.

Touch it. The Endurance Jump is designed with a tap and touch control system. You can swipe or tap on the right ear to control music navigation, answer calls, and the like. My only issue with it is that it gets too sensitive to touch that sometimes when I accidentally touch it to adjust the fit of the headphones, it’ll pause the song I was listening to. Moving to and from one song to another is a hit and miss affair, too. But for simple play/pause and volume adjustment, this works just fine.

Nothing too special. Call quality is average at best with the Endurance Jump. While Bluetooth connection rarely gets disconnected here, the design itself doesn’t lend to offering clear audio for calls. The mic’s placement means it faces the back of the user’s head so those on the other end of the line can pick up a lot of noise around me instead of picking up my voice.

Audio quality when it comes to music leans a bit more on the low end. It tries to punch up the bass a bit, which sacrifices the quality of the other frequencies a bit. The quality won’t impress audiophiles, but it should be fine for average users who just want to listen to some tunes while they workout. The design of the Endurance Jump allows for a bit of a sound seal, which isolates some of the background noise. Speaking of working out, the Endurance Jump doesn’t come with internal storage, so if you do want to use these for swimming, you’ll need to have your phone nearby.

Also, just thought I’d mention, in case you wanted to connect the Endurance Jump to multiple gadgets simultaneously, that this can’t connect more than one device at once.

VERDICT

If you’re looking for something reliable to listen to music to while you work out, the JBL Endurance Jump is up for the task.

RATINGS

FORM FACTOR 7

BUILD QUALITY 8

EASE OF USE 8

PERFORMANCE 8

VALUE FOR MONEY 9

OVERALL RATING 8

SPECIFICATIONS

Driver size: 10mm (1 driver per ear)

Driver sensitivity: -20Db [at 1kHz/1mW (dB)]

Impedance: 16Ω

Dynamic frequency response range: 20Hz–20kHz

Connectivity: Bluetooth 4.2

Other features: Built-in microphone, IPX7 waterproof, touch control, Siri/Google Assistant support

Battery: Lithium-ion polymer, 120mAh

Price: P4,299

The JBL Endurance Jump is available at JBL Stores in SM North EDSA, TriNoma, SM Megamall, Fairview Terraces, Bonifacio High Street, Festival Mall, Robinsons Ermita, Glorietta 1, SM Mall of Asia, Alabang Town Center, SM Cebu, SM Cagayan de Oro, SM Davao, SM Bacoor, and SM Dasmarinas. To find out more head to,http://bit.ly/2ndOpinionEnJump