JBL Tune 230NC True Wireless Earphones Review: Good battery life with great sound
JBL Tune 230NC The price of this phone in India is Rs 5,999. It promises ANC, app support and good battery life. The price is also quite reasonable. Does it become another competitor in this segment along with OnePlus Buds Z2 and Oppo Enco Air 2 Pro? Find out in this review.
Design and Features of JBL Tune 230NC
The main difference between the Tune 130NC and Tune 230NC is that the latter has microphones on the earpiece stem. Apart from this, earpiece status indicators are also provided.
The JBL Tune 230NC has the expected design elements as expected from JBL – big logos on the charging case and earpieces, colourful eartips, and a solid industrial look and feel. The wearable may not look premium but it doesn’t look cheap either. I found it comfortable to wear during long music sessions.
Its charging case is neither too big nor too small. It can fit comfortably in your pocket along with your wallet or smartphone. Three indicator lights are provided on the charging case to show the battery level. A USB Type C port is provided at the back for charging. The sales package includes a USB Type A to Type C charging cable and three pairs of silicone ear tips for a customizable fit.
The earpieces have their own indicator lights that show connectivity status. A touch sensitive zone is also provided on their stem. JBL Tune 230NC is rated IPX4 for water resistance. There are two microphones on each earpiece for ANC and voice calls. One thing that may disappoint here is that there is no wear detection feature so that music can be automatically played or paused when the device is worn or taken off.
JBL Tune 230NC app and specifications
The JBL Tune 230NC comes with support for the JBL Headphones app which is available on Android and iOS. Through this, the touch controls can be changed and different presets can be chosen. In this, modes can be switched between ANC and ambient sound, battery level can be seen on the earpiece and charging case.
Its control customisation is not as smooth as I would have liked. The app lets you choose from different control sets like playback, ANC and transparency modes, volume, voice assistant controls, etc. You can choose a set for each earpiece, but the controls are fixed and cannot be customised within a set. The tap gesture was quite tricky for me. At times, a single tap gesture would be executed even while wearing the earpiece.
You can enable its voice assistant on your phone or Alexa, which requires a separate setup. The Find My Buds feature works well, which comes in handy when your earpieces get lost somewhere in the house. It gives a loud enough sound to find out where the earpieces are kept.
JBL Tune 230NC has 6mm dynamic drivers. Their frequency response range is 20-20,000Hz. For connectivity, they come with Bluetooth 5.2 which supports SBC and AAC codecs. The headset also supports ANC and Google Fast Pair.
JBL Tune 230NC performance and battery life
In terms of ANC and performance, the JBL Tune 230NC headset competes strongly with brands like OnePlus and Oppo. It has good sound and active noise cancellation. I listened to Mk.gee’s Over Here in it. The sonic signature was quite balanced and comfortable. The ‘lows’ of the track were quite soft, the sound was coming clean in the mid and high. Therefore, such tracks can be listened to for hours on it. Due to its enjoyable sound, I could easily increase the volume in places like my home or office. The sound stage experience was quite good. It was quite easy to feel the direction and other elements in the With Arambol 2 track by Astropilot. The deep bass of this track was quite good and melodious. It never felt weak or insufficient. The sound is not aggressive in it like the OnePlus Buds Z2. Users who want bass may find it lacking. Still, the sound feels clean, composed and well-tuned.
The active noise cancellation of the JBL Tune 230NC is quite basic, which is found in every affordable true wireless headset. The noise was quite low when used indoors. But it was not as effective when used outdoors or with the windows of the house open.
The ‘hum’ sound of the AC, noise of the ceiling fan and noise of the city environment could be heard. However, the sound experience improved with the help of ANC. The hear through mode showed texture and the sound was unnecessarily amplified. I only used the earphones for short conversations.
Connectivity and call quality are decent in the wearable. The earphones maintain a stable connection up to a distance of 4 meters from the source device. I did not face any problem while making calls indoors. Even outdoors, there was no problem while making calls even when the volume was increased.
The battery life of the JBL Tune 230NC is very good. The earpieces last 6 hours and 30 minutes on ANC and medium volume. The charging case offers three charge cycles and a total run time of 26 hours. The earpieces take 2 hours to charge. Starting from zero, you get 2 hours of backup in 10 minutes of charge.
Verdict
JBL is not known for budget TWS products, but with the active noise cancellation of Tune 230NC, it competes directly with brands like OnePlus, Oppo and Realme. ANC performance is ordinary and the sound is balanced. App connectivity is good and battery life is also quite good. The device is also comfortable to wear. If your budget is less than Rs 6000 then you can look at this headset.
There is no doubt that the competition in this segment is tough and there are already options like OnePlus Buds Z2 or more affordable JBL Tune 130NC is also in the list. If you look at the overall experience, you will not be disappointed with them.
