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What we think
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Updated January 10, 2024·
If you're looking for earbuds primarily for music and have a tight budget, the Creative Labs Outlier Air V3 will save you money while offering good build quality and battery life, also being sweatproof, making them suitable for exercise. In contrast, the JBL Live Pro 2 has active noise cancelling, slightly better overall sound quality, and is lighter and more portable, which might be preferable if you often travel or are in noisy environments. Both lack low latency features, so they aren't ideal for gaming or watching TV, but they both have integrated mics for calls and meetings. Consider your priorities and where you're willing to compromise when making your choice. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the Creative Labs Outlier Air V3
- Good for phone calls
- Very good for podcasts and audiobooks
Advantages of the JBL Live Pro 2
- The JBL Live Pro 2 has no clear advantages over the Creative Labs Outlier Air V3.
Key differences
Phone Calls
7.6
5.2
The Creative Labs Outlier Air V3 is good for phone calls, while the JBL Live Pro 2 is poor.
Podcasts and Audiobooks
8.9
5.8
The Creative Labs Outlier Air V3 is very good for podcasts and audiobooks, while the JBL Live Pro 2 is poor.
Noise Reduction
6.5
9.1
The JBL Live Pro 2 is excellent for noise reduction, while the Creative Labs Outlier Air V3 is only fair.
Battery
10.0 Hours
8.3 Hours
The Creative Labs Outlier Air V3 has 10 hours of battery life. The JBL Live Pro 2 has 8.3 hours of battery life.
Cost
$30
$90
$0
$50
$100
$150
$200
The Creative Labs Outlier Air V3 has a price of $30 and the JBL Live Pro 2 costs $90.
Build Quality
9.0
7.0
The Creative Labs Outlier Air V3 has excellent build quality, while the JBL Live Pro 2 has good build quality.
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Key similarities
Music
5.7
5.9
The JBL Live Pro 2 and Creative Labs Outlier Air V3 are both poor for music.
Gaming
5.1
5.3
The JBL Live Pro 2 and Creative Labs Outlier Air V3 are both poor for gaming.
TV and Video
5.4
5.5
The JBL Live Pro 2 and Creative Labs Outlier Air V3 are both poor for TV and video.
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How the Creative Labs Outlier Air V3 and the JBL Live Pro 2 compare to other earbuds and headphones
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Creative Labs Outlier Air V3 | JBL Live Pro 2 |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$30 | $90 | ||
Brand | |||
Brand | Creative Labs | JBL | |
Release Date | |||
Release Date | June 1, 2021 | June 1, 2022 | |
Form Factor | |||
Form Factor | Earbuds | Earbuds | |
Connectivity | |||
Connectivity | Wireless | Wireless | |
SOUND | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Music Score | |||
Music Score | 5.7/10 | 5.9/10 | |
Phone Calls Score | |||
Phone Calls Score | 7.6/10 | 5.2/10 | |
Gaming Score | |||
Gaming Score | 5.2/10 | 5.4/10 | |
TV and Video Score | |||
TV and Video Score | 5.5/10 | 5.6/10 | |
Exercise Score | |||
Exercise Score | 8/10 | 8/10 | |
PERFORMANCE | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery life | |||
Battery life | 10 Hours | 8.3 Hours | |
Wireless charging | |||
Wireless charging | Yes | Yes | |
Charging time | |||
Charging time | 1.5 Hours | 0.8 Hours | |
Bluetooth version | |||
Bluetooth version | 5.2 | 5.2 | |
Case Battery Life | |||
Case Battery Life | 40 | 24 | |
FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Active Noise Cancelling | |||
Active Noise Cancelling | Yes | Yes | |
Noise Reduction Score | |||
Noise Reduction Score | 6.5/10 | 9.1/10 | |
Virtual Surround | |||
Virtual Surround | No | No | |
Android App | |||
Android App | Yes | Yes | |
iOS App | |||
iOS App | Yes | Yes | |
Mic Quality | |||
Mic Quality | 6.8/10 | 7/10 | |
BUILD AND DESIGN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality | |||
Build Quality | 9/10 | 7/10 | |
Comfort score | |||
Comfort score | 7/10 | 7/10 | |
Size | |||
Size | Medium | Small | |
Weight (headset or single earbud) | |||
Weight (headset or single earbud) | 5.2 Grams | 4.8 Grams | |
Microphone style | |||
Microphone style | Integrated | Integrated | |
Shopping
Creative Labs Outlier Air V3
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Dig into reviews and images
Trusted Reviews
Kob Monney | July 2022
"The V3 present the best version of the Outlier Air series yet. The new features such as Active Noise Reduction and Ambient mode are integrated well; the performance of both is as good as you’ll get below £100. The design is less bulky and more comfortable thanks to being smaller and lighter, and the Outlier Air V3 eke out more clarity, detail and definition from music."
JBL Live Pro 2
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Dig into reviews and images
What HiFi?
What HiFi? | February 2023
"The JBL Live Pro 2 TWS occupy an interesting space in the wireless earbuds market. They’re a step up from cheap wireless earbuds and allow you to access better sound quality without having to make the jump to more premium options from the likes of Bose, Sony and Sennheiser. They’re an entertaining listen, easy to use and manage to pack in a lot of useful features. We think they’re well worth a listen."
Get a great deal on the Creative Labs Outlier Air V3 or the JBL Live Pro 2
About Creative Labs
Creative Labs is a Singaporean technology company specialized in the manufacture of multimedia products. They created the world-famous Soundblaster soundcard back in 1989 which was a staple of the gaming community for a long time. Nowadays, besides still marketing their discrete audio systems, they offer a wide array of headphones, gaming headsets and speakers that still preserve that same heritage.
About JBL
JBL is an American audio equipment manufacturer. Owned by Harman International which is, itself, owned by Samsung Electronics. JBL markets a wide array of monitoring speakers, professional headphones and consumer market headphones and earbuds. It was founded in 1946 by James Bullough Lansing (whose initials give the company its name) and has become one of the most prolific audio companies ever. Their products were responsible for audio during the 1969 Woodstock Festival.
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Why trust us
This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec earbuds & headphones team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest earbuds or headphones information and makes it digestible for you.
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