JLab Unveils $ 49 Alternative to Bose Frames Sound Sunglasses

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Maybe you had your eye on Bose’s second generation Frame sound sunglasses, but you looked at the $ 250 price tag (£ 240, AU $ 400) and said no. Well, JLab Audio is releasing a $ 49 alternative this spring. The JBuds Frames is in fact open-ear true wireless earbuds that pinch on your existing glasses.

This is an interesting concept that JLab describes as a bring-your-own-frame design, although it clearly seems a bit far-fetched and a bit insulting to call these earplugs ‘frames’. International prices are not currently available, but $ 49 is around £ 40 or AU $ 70.

JLab says that its JBuds Frames consist of ‘two independent Bluetooth true wireless audio devices that can be mounted on the temples of sunglasses, glasses and similar blue light blocking glasses. “They have 16mm drivers and JLab claims that your music can not be heard” by the bystanders “, but from my experience using Bose Frames, it only applies if you are looking for audio with a more moderate volume shallow listening.

The battery life is rated at 8 hours and the clamping devices have an IPX4 waterproofness, which makes splash resistant. They charge with their own pogo-pen cable.

You can use it to make calls. “With the most convenient buttons, the user can accept or reject calls, adjust the volume, and switch between JLab’s Signature and Bass Boost EQ settings,” says JLab.

I doubt they will sound as good as Bose Temporame, which contains 22mm drivers – virtually all the sound-not-Bose-sound sunglasses I have tried have sounded mediocre and are usually not in the bass section. (Bose’s new Frames 2.0 offers improved bass, and while the sound quality is surprisingly good, it does not equate to a decent set of true wireless earbuds.) But the JLab Frames cost a fifth of the Bose Frames’ price, so if they simply sound decent enough, you can be satisfied with their performance.

Aside from sound quality issues, the whole audio-sunglasses category seems to be starting up like several other companies, including Amazon and its Echo Frames, Bose followed with competing products that usually cost less. They especially appeal to runners and cyclists who do not want anything in their ears so that they can hear traffic for safety reasons.

Important specifications

• More than 8 hours of playing time
• Two brackets attach the JBuds Frames to almost any type of glasses, with two sets of silicone sleeves ensuring a tight fit on styles with smaller temples
• 16.2 mm drivers
• Output: 120 +/- 3dB
• Codecs: AAC / SBC
• 20 to 22 kHz frequency response
• Impedance: 22 ohms
• With Dual Connect, one of the JBuds Frame devices can be used independently
• Two different EQ settings
• Supply power: 5V 90mA
• 120 mAh lithium polymer battery
• Charging time: 2 hours
• Assistance time: 100 hours
• Range: 30 meters (10 meters)
• Weight: 11.7 grams per frame component
• IPX4 waterproof rating
• Two year warranty
• Price: $ 50
• Spring 2021 available

Play now:
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Bose Frames 2.0 audio sunglasses review

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