Details
Brand
Jabra
Model
Sport Pace
Battery Life
5 hrs
Latest Version
Yes
Key Features
• Syncs with Jabra Sport Life app to track workouts• Overear hooks hold buds in place• IP54 rating resists rain, dust, sand, and more• Bluetooth connectivity• Behind-the-neck reflective cable for safety• Three pairs of eargels plus micro• USB
Comfort
Over-ear hooks are not for everyone. Some reviewers of the Pace, however, have said that they found the over-ear hooks more comfortable than the in-ear wings that many headphones (including other Jabra headphones) tend to use instead. For the majority of athletes, the over-ear hooks will not pose a problem in the area of comfort—they may not be perfect, but they won’t be too bad, either. Since the headphones are so lightweight and since Jabra provides three sets of eargels to help you get a perfect fit, the overall comfort of the Pace is superb. The only issue with the comfort of the Pace is the headphones are not at all flexible, which may cause discomfort as you get into your workout.
Style
The Pace headphones have a behind-the-neck cable and an in-canal design. Color options for these Jabra headphones include blue with black trim, yellow, or red. The Sport Pace headphones have over-ear hooks to anchor the buds in place and give you better sound quality. These are glaringly noticeable from a long distance away. The headphones also feature a reflective strip around the neck to keep you safe if exercising outdoors in dim light.
Activities
The Jabra Sport Pace headphones are a great option for running. It has hooks that come over the back of your ear to ensure the earbuds will never slip, and when connected to your smartphone, it can track important details such as pace, distance, calories burned, location, and route. The headphones work for just about any other activity, though—biking, strength training at the gym, or any type of cross-training. The headphones connect to a Jabra Sport Life app, which lets you customize your workouts, one user reported that they even added yard work under this section. Don’t be afraid to be creative as you plan to use the Pace headphones—the over-ear hooks make the headphones a perfect choice for anything requiring jumping or pounding.
Basic Features
The Jabra Sport Pace headphones are a great option for running. It has hooks that come over the back of your ear to ensure the earbuds will never slip, and when connected to your smartphone, it can track important details such as pace, distance, calories burned, location, and route. The headphones work for just about any other activity, though—biking, strength training at the gym, or any type of cross-training. The headphones connect to a Jabra Sport Life app, which lets you customize your workouts, one user reported that they even added yard work under this section. Don’t be afraid to be creative as you plan to use the Pace headphones—the over-ear hooks make the headphones a perfect choice for anything requiring jumping or pounding.
Advanced Features
The Pace headphones are Bluetooth headphones. The Bluetooth version 4.1 is used, which was not the latest Bluetooth technology at the time the Pace headphones were released, but is a higher version than the versions used by comparable headphones. Bluetooth range in the Pace is 33 feet. The Pace has a microphone for voice commands through Siri or Google Now, or for phone calls. If you connect the Sport Pace to your phone, it will use your phone’s GPS to collect data regarding pace, distance, and calories burned, and if you are running outside, it keeps track of all of those plus locations and route. Pressing the “sport life” button found on the left earpiece provides an audio report of your progress so far.
Connectivity
The Pace can connect to Bluetooth, Siri, and Google Now. The voice quality of phone calls is reported to be excellent, and Siri and Google Now are convenient and simple to connect. The headphones also connect to Jabra’s free Sport Life app (or Jabra’s Sound app), this app tracks your workouts. Arguably, it doesn’t get into details—it only follows the basics, such as pace, distance, and location. As far as music, the headphones not only connect to your phone’s music library through the Jabra Sport Life app, but even have its own pump-up soundtrack for you to try. When syncing the headphones to new devices—whether a phone, computer, or TV—the Pace gives you directions and help through the headphones themselves.
Ease of Use
The earbuds are very user-friendly, especially if you happen to have used Jabra headphones before—as in previous models, the inline remote is located on the right side of the cable. The main button is in-between volume buttons, plus a microphone for phone calls or voice commands (through GoogleNow or Siri). To use the microphone, simply hold down the main button for two or three seconds—the main button also works as the power button if you hold it down for four seconds. Finally, the playback and skipping controls are precisely the same as in previous Jabra models. One downside is that the central button redials the last phone number you called with two taps, and this is easy to do by accident. The Sport Life app that syncs with the headphones is also very easy to figure out.
Power Source
The battery life of the Pace headphones is less than impressive—five hours or less is all you will get. (One of the reasons the battery drains so quickly is probably because of the need to turn the volume up so high.) The one redeeming factor as far as the battery is that just fifteen minutes of charging should get you sixty minutes of use (unless, again, you have to crank up the volume).
Sound Quality
Previous Jabra headphones have leaked noise, but it appears that the Pace does far better in this category, effectively sealing in sound. This is largely because of the earbuds’ positioning. Previous Jabra headphones have also not provided the bass presence that users wanted to hear, but the Pace has improved and has a bass presence that is strong and solid while not being overpowering. One complaint, however, is that achieving this balance means turning the volume of your music up almost to max volume. The Pace has a heavy low mid presence, and while the highs are not as detailed as they could be (probably to prevent hearing loss), they are still acceptable.
Durability
The durability of the Jabra Sport Pace should be high, they have a good build quality. One big reason why is because Jabra drew on the US Military standards for repelling water, sand, and dust as they designed the Pace, the Pace also resists sweat. Unfortunately, however, many users have reported their headphones breaking after only a few months of use. So the durability of the Sport Pace is not up to par.
Price
The price of the Pace is lower than the price of previous Jabra headphones, but it is still somewhat expensive. The Pace headphones come with two other pairs of fittings (Jabra calls them eargels) as well as a small micro-USB cable to charge the headphones. Even though the headphones do not come with a carrying case (the other Jabra headphones have), the amount of accessories still provides a good value for your money. The sound quality of the Pace is absolutely excellent, so no worries there. Overall the Pace will give you a good value for your money.
Bottom Line
The Jabra Sport Pace headphones are known for two main things: having an excellent audio quality with a balanced bass presence, and using over-ear hooks to confirm they will never come out of your ears no matter what you are doing. They’re not perfect—the battery life is short, the volume has to be turned up very high to get that good sound quality, and comfort may be an issue since the headphones are not at all flexible. But when you consider the Bluetooth connectivity, the workout app, the wonderful sweat resistance, and all the other great features of the Pace, you can see you are absolutely getting a great value for your money when you purchase the Jabra Sport Pace.
