Entered CNET Catalog: 08/13/2008
SKU: 607421740173
Manufacturer: Jabra
Manufacturer description
Designed by world-renowned European design house, Jacob Jensen this headset enhances and simplifies the life of luxury, focusing on authentic materials, intuitive technology, outstanding comfort and excellence in audio. Built upon the legacy of the Jabra JX10 headset, while capitalizing on the inherent virtues of authentic titanium: power and elegance, Jacob Jensen combined sleek lines, strict symmetry and the striking contrast of materials to create this elegant headset. The body of brushed anodized titanium is offset by a deep-black, high-gloss trim. The resulting Jabra JX20 Pura is easy-to-wear and embodies luxury and mobility, class and convenience.Product summary
The good: The Jabra JX20 Pura is a beautiful and stylish headset with an innovative power switch and a comfortable fit.
The bad: The Jabra JX20 Pura has disappointing sound quality, and it's quite expensive.
The bottom line: The Jabra JX20 Pura may look luxurious on the outside, but it suffers from poor audio quality.
Editors' review
- Editors' Choice: No
- Reviewed on: 08/12/2008
When the Jabra JX10 first debuted two years ago, we marveled at its size and design. We hailed it as the best Bluetooth headset we've seen. In the two years since, we've seen even smaller headsets come our way, and its spot as the cream of the crop has been dethroned by the Aliph Jawbone 2. This year at CES, Jabra announced the Jabra JX20 Pura, which it poised as the much-improved successor to the Jabra JX10. Though it is indeed a whole lot sexier than the JX10, and dare we say the Jawbone 2 as well, it doesn't deliver the sound quality we've come to expect from headsets of this price range. In fact, most of our calls sounded downright awful. That said, the JX20 Pura is certainly an attractive-looking headset, as long as you're willing to fork out about $170 per unit.
The Jabra JX20 looks and feels like the definition of a luxury headset. Clad in titanium and glossy black accents, this tiny headset (measuring 1.6 inch long by 0.75 inch wide by 0.3 inch thick) has a smooth finish all around and is quite lightweight at only 0.5 ounce. On the right spine is the Call button, while two volume buttons sit on top. There is a little plastic nub on the left spine that looks a lot like a button, but it's actually just a design detail. Though all the buttons are raised above the surface, we found them a little too skinny for our tastes.
You might be wondering how to turn the device on. The Jabra JX20 Pura features an innovative power switch incorporated into the earpiece itself. Twist the earpiece clockwise 90 degrees to turn it on, and twist it back counterclockwise to turn it off. On the back of the headset underneath the earpiece is a tiny little LED light that glows purple when the device is on. The earpiece is small enough to fit in the ear and rests comfortably against the ear canal. There's also an optional ear hook and eargel cover for added security and comfort. We didn't find the ear hook to be necessary, however.
We paired the JX20 Pura with the RIM BlackBerry Pearl. Pairing went very well, since the JX20 Pura automatically goes into pairing mode when it is first turned on. Call quality was a disappointment, to say the least. Crackling sounds dominated most phone calls, and static and echo were a huge concern. Callers could hardly hear us at one point because the static was so loud. We tried making the same calls just with the cell phone to make sure it wasn't the cell phone at fault, and indeed, cell phone calls sounded just fine--the static only occurred when we were using the headset. We will attempt to pair the headset with more cell phones to see if this is a reoccurring problem.
Features of the JX20 Pura include the capability to answer, end, and reject calls, as well as voice dialing support, last-number redial, call waiting, call hold, and the ability to transfer calls from the headset to the phone and vice versa.
The Jabra JX20 Pura comes with a USB charging cable, an AC adapter, plus a desktop charging cradle. It has a rated battery life of 6 hours of talk time and 8.3 days.
User opinions
Select a User Opinion to view: 1 2 3 4out of 4 user reviews
bad audio & reception, bad on/off design, bad buttons
Pros: 1) works well with for females or users with high pitch voices.
2) nice classy titanium-bling impression
Cons: 1) very poor audio for average, low and deep voices.
2) poor bluetooth reception.
3) on/off switch
4) very poor button design & implementation
5) cheap titanium scratches VERY easily
bluetooth reception is poor. when outdoors, left ear to front right coat pocket is too much distance for this bluetooth to handle. missed syllables and clicking sounds result from poor reception.
on/off switch is STUPID. the switch design constantly makes a creaking sound like it's going to break. the ear hook gets in the way and turns the unit off frequently. not using the ear hook is not an option when tested by me and three non-family members.
buttons are EXTREMELY small and HARD TO PRESS. the hard plastic buttons need to be pressed firmly with a non-short fingernail and at least one other finger to hold the bt headset in place.
the titanium finish adds a nice classy touch, but it is VERY easily scratched (possibly because it is not aircraft grade titanium.)
out of 4 user reviews
won't pair to two devices as listed
Pros: stylish, easy to use
Cons: Paying a premium for style
out of 4 user reviews
Best overall headset on the market- period
Pros: Best audio quality in a bluetooth earphone for phone calls or music, superb microphone quality, off the charts signal strength, best fit/comfort out of all bluetooth headsets. And how could I forget that it's Scandinavian-ly sexy.
Cons: No mute, no vibrate alert, and answer/end button a tad difficult to press.
The editors must have received a defective one for the test.
For the proper context of this review: I had a Jabra BT 5010 before. My girlfriend has a gold Jawbone 2. I have an iPhone 3G for personal use, a Blackberry 8830 for work, and a Jabra bluetooth hub and automatic lifter for my desk phone at work.
My livelihood depends on my phone technology so I don't mess around
The first thing you will notice when you try it on is that the fit is superb. It can stay in your ear without the hook, but it tilts down a bit and might hurt your inner ear a bit. But once you put the smaller hook on -WOW- that's what anyone says that tries it because superglue wouldn't have it be more stable. I found the smaller hook to be the perfect fit that most headsets miss.
Once on pairing is a breeze... I paired it to the three devices with no problem. Follow the instructions to designate which phone you would like to be primary (have voice dial functions etc) and you are set to go. Only 2 can be connected at once though remember.
The speaker audio is the best I have ever heard for phone calls from any bluetooth headset. I mean it is crystal clear. I can hear breathing, inflections, and subtleties in verbal expression that you miss in other headsets. This headset lets you hear not just what they are saying, but how they are saying it. Also, it does that in any environment because of the automatic volume adjustment (that actually really works). I love my girlfriend's Jawbone 2 (which doesn't have multipoint) but I found it to have poor audio quality from the speaker. For music, the JX20 speaker outperforms the MOTOROKR S9 headphones I had as well!
Ok so the ever important microphone. My girlfriend and I did some tests with the Jawbone 2 vs. the JX20:
1)Overall microphone sound quality
-The JX 20 blows away the Jawbone 2 with the QUALITY of the audio. The noise assassin technology makes your voice muffled (a little charlie brown teacher effect) compared to the crystal clear quality of the JX20. JX20=10 Jawbone 2=6 BT5010=7
2) TV on loud, with people both talking and using machinery on the TV:
-The Jawbone 2 reduced the background noise out here by a bit more than the JX20. The Jawbone 2 had a noticeable advantage. Both distinguished our voices unmistakably from the background noise however, and every word was clear. Both blew away the BT 5010, MOTOROKR S9, and iPhone corded headset. I would rate the Jawbone 2 at 9.5, the JX20 at 8, the 5010 at a 4.
3)Riding a bicycle (wind noise)
-The JX 20 outperformed the Jawbone 2 in this test. Wind noise was present all the time with the JX20 but it was very faint, consistently non-distracting, and voice was clearly distinguished. By comparison the Jawbone 2 eliminated wind noise all together most of the time, but would regularly have short surges or booms of wind noise that made it impossible to hear what the other person was saying for short periods of time. The JX20 also has a small hole in the bottom where the microphone is inset, so that if you wanted to place an un-noticeable 2mm x 1mm piece of foam in it so that it is flush with the headpiece, it eliminates wind noise all together. Both handled traffic noise wonderfully. JX20= 8.5 without foam 10 with foam, Jawbone 2= 7.5
4)In the noisy office
-I found the JX20 to be superb in the office over any other headset except the Jawbone 2. It does not however perform as good as their full demonstration shows on their product page. My BT5010 would pick up sound from anywhere. With the JX20 you can always count on your voice being easily distinguishable and background noise non-distracting. However the Jawbone 2 eliminated my colleagues' voices more effectively. JX20=8 Jawbone 2= 9 BT5010=5 iPhone standard = 4
5)Signal Strength
-JX20 by a long shot: no more getting static because your phone is on the opposite side of your body! Also, we're talking a talkable 40 feet from your phone with the JX20 while the Jawbone 2 only does maybe 20ft before you start getting some distracting static. JX20: 10 Jawbone 2: 7
So overall, I found the JX20's audio quality to be the best.
Yes the headset and stand are disgustingly stylish.
The only three things I do not like about the JX20 are things most headsets don't have anyway, but Jabra's lesser ones do so I have to say it:
1) Mute functionality- my BT5010 had mute! Why do I have to use my handset to mute a call? the JX20 even has a button on the bottom that could be used for this but instead they made the button have no actual functionality.
2)Vibrating Alert: If it's noisy or I'm on my bike, I want to have no doubt that a call is coming in. It's in the BT5010 why is it not in the JX20.
3)The BT5010 had an easy slide out side in arm for answering and ending calls. The JX20 has a button, that is a tad bit difficult to press- not a forearm workout, but you have to consciously think about doing it each time.
I recommend this headset to anyone who wants the best. Period.
out of 4 user reviews
Excellent..... Best ever!
Pros: Sounds quality. Excellent battery life. People don't even know that I'm talking to them on a blue tooth device.
Cons: None so far
