JBL Live Beam 3: True Wireless Earbuds with a Smart Touchscreen

In today's digital age, True Wireless earbuds have become an essential accessory for many. With their compact design, convenience, and continuously improving sound quality, True Wireless earbuds perfectly meet the entertainment and work needs of users. The JBL Live Beam 3 stands out in this segment, with its main feature being a charging case equipped with a smart touchscreen, offering a completely new user experience.

The JBL Live Beam 3 delivers great sound quality and long battery life, with a charging case that includes a touchscreen for quick and easy control. Released on August 3, 2024, the Live Beam 3 is JBL's second True Wireless model, following the Tour Pro 2, to feature a smart charging case. The 1.45-inch touchscreen is highly responsive and displays sharp visuals, allowing users to interact without needing to use their phone or connected device.

Compared to the Tour Pro 2, the JBL Live Beam 3's touchscreen offers more diverse and intelligent features. Users can view information such as connectivity status, battery levels, date and time, as well as perform functions like adjusting volume, managing the equalizer, skipping tracks, accepting or rejecting calls, switching between active noise cancellation (ANC) modes, activating the voice assistant, or turning on the flashlight (which switches the screen to white light). Changing the lock screen wallpaper is also possible directly on the screen, although it is limited to pre-set images compared to the app.

The charging case, while made of plastic, boasts a high level of finish and features a rectangular design similar to most current True Wireless earbuds. However, due to the integrated screen, the case is quite heavy at 72 grams, significantly more than the Sony WF-1000XM5 (39 grams), Jabra Elite 8 Active (46.4 grams), or AirPods Pro 2 (50 grams). The case also includes a USB-C port for charging, a power button to activate the screen, and a loop for attaching a strap.

Unlike the Tour Pro 2, where the earbuds are housed within a recessed compartment, the Live Beam 3's case has a more open design, making it easier to retrieve the earbuds. However, the interior is prone to dust accumulation and requires regular cleaning.

The case provides up to 36 hours of battery life, with the earbuds offering an additional 12 hours, bringing the total usage time to 48 hours, with wireless charging support. This is higher than competitors in the same price range, which typically offer 24 hours with the case and 6-7 hours with the earbuds.

The JBL earbuds maintain an in-ear design with a small, sleek stem and a modern, curved shape, featuring touch controls. The earbuds are equipped with 10mm dynamic drivers, with a wide frequency range of 20 Hz to 40 kHz, surpassing the usual 20 Hz to 20 kHz range. The product also comes with Signature Sound technology, which, according to the manufacturer, delivers deep bass, balanced midrange, and clear highs.

Weighing just 5 grams each, the earbuds fit snugly and stay in place even during vigorous movement or bending. Like other True Wireless models JBL is currently releasing, the Live Beam 3 emphasizes bass with deep, solid sound, making it ideal for energetic music genres. Compared to the Tour Pro 2, the Live Beam 3 offers significantly improved balance and clarity in the mid and treble ranges.

JBL has equipped the earbuds with ANC that adapts to different environments. When activated, ambient noise is reduced by about 80-90%, although some sound may still seep in, rather than completely isolating the listener from the outside world. The Spartial Sound surround sound feature works well for watching movies but may reduce audio detail when listening to music.

JBL has also enhanced call quality by equipping the earbuds with six microphones and features like Sound Level Optimiser, which balances the voice volume on the other end, Sound Setting to enhance bass or treble in the voice, and Private Call Mode, allowing users to remove one earbud and use it as a microphone. The call quality is high, even in noisy environments.

In addition to controls via the charging case, the JBL Headphones app allows users to adjust settings and customize the screen. Users can select images from their library or take new photos to set as the case's wallpaper. The device connects to smartphones via Bluetooth 5.3.

The Live Beam 3 is available in purple, blue, and black, priced at 4 million VND. It competes with models like the Sennheiser CX Plus, Beats Studio Buds+, Jabra Elite 5 (all similarly priced), Marshall Minor IV ($147), or Apple's third-generation AirPods ($179), but stands out with its touchscreen experience on the case and superior battery life.