You want simpler controls: The Epic Air ANC rely on two touch panels for music, volume, ANC, EQ, voice assistant and more. With so many combinations, it can take time to adjust. Every month seems to bring new sets of earbuds with longer battery life and more compact designs. As such, we can't list everything we like. But if you're still hunting, here are some other recommendations.

The bass makes an impact the moment you hit play on Billie Eilish’s Therefore I Am. There’s a good amount of detail definition in the low-end and the mid-range is crisp, allowing Eilish’s raspy vocals to take the spotlight when needed. You can manually power them on when they are out of the case by pressing and holding the earbud button/touch sensor for three seconds . You can also access the EQ presets by triple-tapping on either earbud. JLab offers three settings: JLab Signature, Balanced and Bass Boost, with the former the default setting. With so many features, memorising all of the touch shortcuts is a challenge. The earbuds didn’t always do what I wanted either, at times pausing when I tried to cycle through the EQ, for example.

How do the JLab JBuds Air compare to other true wireless earbuds?

Updated October 2023: We've added the latest AirPods Pro, Jabra Elite 8 Active, Sony WF-1000XM5, Beats Studio Buds +, Jlab JBuds Mini, Technics EAH-AZ80, Oneplus Buds Pro 2, and JBL Tour Pro. Finally, the earbuds are water-resistant to the tune of IP55, so they can withstand sweat and dust. JLab also sells a sports model of the Epic Air ANC, so that might be something to consider if your main use for them is for workouts. JLab Epic Air ANC features – No shortage of features here If you leave the earbuds in pairing mode for more than three minutes without connecting them to any device, they will automatically power off . To reset them, ensure the buds are in the case, then press each earbud button four or seven times on some models . You can disconnect the earbuds from a source device by turning off Bluetooth on the source device. The earbuds will then go into pairing mode and be ready to connect to another device.

You want a long battery life: With 12 hours in each earbud and 32 hours in total with the case (or 48 hours without ANC), the JLab outlast similarly priced competitors. Wireless earbuds are one of those ideas that sounded like a dream at first: Pop a little headphone into each ear and listen to music or take calls untethered from everything. The first wireless buds were gigantic, died after a few hours, and had a bunch of other problems. Times have changed. There are now tons of new models that sound fabulous and work perfectly. After testing hundreds over the past four years, these are our favorite wireless earbuds, in a wide range of styles and prices. The Epic Air ANC put in an energetic performance, with a greater emphasis on the low end of the frequency range. JLab also has an app called JLab ANC. While the ability to customise the EQ is always appreciated – and isn’t necessarily expected at this price point – the app is otherwise very basic. JLab offers a few controls, including the aforementioned equalizer settings and an ANC slider. I found the EQ controls worked well, but the app’s interface felt clunky and I struggled to notice any difference playing around with the ANC slider. Once powered on, the earbuds will blink white as they connect . Then, one earbud (usually the right earbud) will blink white and blue to show they are in pairing mode .

Suppose the earbuds were previously connected to a source device; they will automatically reconnect when you power them on, provided the source device’s Bluetooth is enabled and within the Bluetooth range. The earbuds come in a leather-style wireless charging case. The case itself is a little clunky compared to slimmer designs from other brands, but the most interesting feature here is the integrated charging cable. The use of USB-A feels outdated, but the built-in charger makes it super-easy to plug the earbuds into a port on-the-fly, without worrying about digging a separate cable from your bag. You want a good fit: The Epic Air ANC come with a wide selection of ear tips in different sizes to ensure a secure fit and a tight seal.

As suggested by the name, the Epic Air ANC take advantage of active noise cancellation. The earbuds have three levels of ANC – On, Off and Be Aware – which can be accessed by pressing and holding the left earbud. And because we’re not done yet, the earbuds come with a built-in low latency Movie Mode to minimise lag when you’re streaming Netflix.JLab Audio is an award-winning designer of personal audio including earbuds, headphones and Bluetooth™ speakers. In 2016, the San Diego Business Journal named JLab Audio one of the Best Places to Work in San Diego, JLab Audio CEO Win Cramer was selected for the 40 under 40 award by Dealerscope Magazine and The Wirecutter named the Epic2 Bluetooth Earbuds Best Wireless Workout Exercise Headphones.