In-ear headphones have their place in the world, despite how many people you see these days wearing both on and around-ear units. For one, in-ear units are usually much smaller and easier to carry around with you and second, they stay in place much better especially for those who live an active lifestyle. If you work out a lot, you wouldn’t really wear the larger headphones because of the weight and because you would sweat so much that the larger ones would just feel really uncomfortable. Again, this is wear in-ear units come in and where the JBL Synchros Reflect would come into play.
The JBL Synchros Reflect are in-ear headphones made specifically for sport use featuring a sweat-proof design, secure fit ear-tips for intense workouts, and a highly reflective cable design for those who like running in low-visibility situations.
STYLE
With in-ear headphones, I didn’t think there was really much you could do to make them stand out in the looks department aside from maybe jazzing up the outer casing or having them come in flashy, bright colors. The JBL Synchros Reflect does this to an extent. The casing itself is rather sedate looking with the JBL logo in the middle. It’s fairly minimalistic and doesn’t really look too exciting unless you get it in one of the other colors, not black. What does differentiates these from other in-ear headphones is the ergonomic ear tips. These don’t just plug into your ears or loop around the outside of your ears. These tips actually contour to the inside cavity of your ear allowing them to stay in much better while also being much more comfortable than your conventional in-ear headphones.
Another differentiating design feature of the JBL Synchros Reflect is the highly reflective, tangle free cable. It’s a flat cable with a reflective coating on both sides of the cable and a tiny strip of color showing through depending on the color headphones you get. It’s actually very attractive and something different from what you would normally see. The reflective cable is great for those who like to work out at night and allows others to see you in the dark.
FEATURES
The JBL Synchros Reflect has many features you would expect from a good quality in-ear headphone. For instance, there is and inline remote and microphone included that allows you to control all aspects of your music while also being able to pick up phone calls. The inline remote allows for play/pause, volume control, and the ability to go forward or backwards though your playlist.
The headphones feature 8.5mm dynamic drivers giving you JBL’s Signature Sound profile and PureBass performance. Not only that, these things are sweat-proof, which means even the hardest, sweatiest workouts won’t slow you down. When you’re not working out, instead of putting your Synchros Reflects away, you can just pull them out of your ear and magnetically clasp them together around your neck to keep them secure and out of your way.
- Brightly-reflective, sweat-proof cord design
- Ergonomic ear-tips and angled ear pieces
- Cable management system with serious attraction
- Extension cable for ‘just the right length
- iOS® or universal remote control/mic
- Groundbreaking JBL-quality sound
EXPERIENCE
I used to use in-ear headphones all the time, mainly because they were small and could fit in my pocket. I hated using them though because they were so uncomfortable at times and would usually make the inside of my ears hurt after about 30 minutes of use. The JBL Synchros Reflect doesn’t do this though. These are actually quite comfortable after long periods of use and it’s mainly due to the ergonomic ear tips. They are shaped in such a way where they rest inside the cavity of your ear and not actually inside your ear hole. You don’t have to push these in very far to get a nice, comfortable fit. With three different sized ear tips available, there should be one that will fit your ear.
Another benefit to these ear-tips that I find is that they too passively block out noise from the outside world. This allows you to enjoy more of your music without interference. Speaking of music, the sounds from the Synchros Reflect are simply amazing. Audio is very clear with these and you get very distinct highs and lows. You get a good amount of thumping bass from these which is surprising considering their small size. The bass on these are on par with what you’d expect from much larger headphones. I tried these out with all types of music genres, from rap, hip-hop, pop, and country and they all sounded great with these. They are very loud and you can crank them quite high, though I would probably advise against that.
The inline remote included also works flawlessly though they work a bit different than what you might expect. Volume gets their own separate buttons while the center button has different functions depending on how many times you tap it. One tap is to play and pause. Two taps is to skip forward to another track while three taps is to skip backwards. You can also single tap this button to pick up or hang up phone calls.
The Synchros Reflect also has a couple extra neat features, aside from its reflective cable. The cable itself is actually quite short, which is great for those who mount their portable music devices on an armband. However if you use your device in your pocket, there is an extension cable you can attach to make the cable longer. This is neat because it means you have a variable length cable depending on your needs. There’s even a handy clip on the cable so you can clip it to your shirt and keep it from flapping around.
FINAL THOUGHTS
I had a favorite set of in-ear headphones before that I thought were perfect for my needs. I may have to push those aside now because the JBL Synchros Reflect might have just overthrown those. These not only sound great, but are one of the most comfortable sets of in-ear headphones I’ve ever used. Not only that, they actually stay in my ear and don’t fall out. Once in, they take a bit of effort to pull out. I love all the little extra features they include, the inline remote, variable lengths, reflective cable, and the handy clip. They all add up to one of the best in-ear experiences. These won’t replace my dedicated around-ear headphones though for travel, but they will work nicely when I have to go work out or go do something where I know I’ll sweat.
On a side note, if you’re turned off by the fact that they are wired, you’ll be happy to know that there is a wireless version of these exact same in-ear headphones. They are called the JBL Synchros Reflect BT.
The JBL Synchros Reflect can be had in 4 different colors – Black, Blue, Red, and Green. Each set includes 3 sizes of ergonomic sport ear-tips for a more comfortable fit.
