Pick Them Up
| Powerbeats 3 Pros | UA Sport Wireless Pros |
|---|---|
| 12 Hour Battery Life | Heart Rate Sensor |
| Fast Fuel | Light Weight Design |
| Apple's W1 Chip | |
| Better Sound Quality |
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It's no secret I really like the powerbeats 3. They have a long battery life, they sound decent, they have apples new w1 chip which make using them with other apple products seamless and they have quick charging. But after using and reviewing the UA sport wireless heart rate earphones I can't decide which ear phones I'd rather workout with. So today I'm going to put the powerbeats 3 up against the under armour sport wireless heart rate earphones.
For starters, the powerbeats 3 come in a few color ways. But the all black ones usually retail for $149.99 over at Amazon. And Amazon randomly puts all of the other color ways on sale from time to time. The UA sport wireless heart rate on the other hand only come in 2 color ways, black or white but also retail for $149.99. If you want to pick either one of these up I'll have links in the description below with the best deals.
Design wise these earphones are pretty similar... They both have ear hooks which I really like and prefer over fins. They stay in place in most circumstances and are highly adjustable. They both have a wire connecting the two earphones and they both have inline controllers with very tactile buttons. And that's pretty much where the similarities end. First let's talk about their fit. The powerbeats 3 are in ear earphones while the ear tips on the JBL are meant to simply rest on the bowl of the ear. Which results in a lot of ambient noise getting in. Don't get me wrong, the powerbeats also don't have good noise isolation but it's a lot better than the JBL. And the sound quality between these two earphones are also very different. The powerbeats 3 sound way better than the UA sport wireless heart rate. And like I said in my initial review, the JBL sound very tiny and they have no bass. So if you're looking for sound quality get the powerbeats 3.
These earphones also have very different battery lives. The powerbeats 3 have a 12 hour battery life which will get you through multiple workout sessions. For me it's usually 3-4 depending if I do cardio or not. And they have fast fuel, which will get you an hour of playback from 5 minutes of charging. The UA sport wireless on the other hand only has a 5 hour battery life. Which is usually only good for about 2 workouts. But that battery has to power much more than your average wireless earphones. These JBL earphones also have a built in heart rate monitor which I'm a huge fan of. Sure they're not the only earphones with a built in heart rate monitor, but they execute on the feature better than most. Combined with under armour's record app, these headphones manage to quantify the data they collect and give you very insightful information about your workout and performance. And as a lifter, I'd rather have my HRM in my ear than on my wrist when I workout. I wouldn't be surprised if apple incorporates a heart rate sensor into the next generation powerbeats. Rumour has it they are also trying to add that feature into the next generation of the airpods. And having a heart rate monitor built into the powerbeats 4 will be a good selling point to upgrade from the powerbeats 3.
The under armour sport wireless heart rate connects to your phone with bluetooth 4.2 and they have a 30 foot range with direct line of sight to your device. The powerbeats 3 on the other hand have Apple's w1 chip, which allows for very simple pairing and seamless use between your other apple devices like laptop, apple watch, or iPad. Using Apple's w1 chip just makes using your headphones with multiple devices pain free.
And finally we've got the carrying cases. If you've been following the channel you know how much I dislike the included case you get with the powerbeats 3 and beats X. I just think they're so cheap and don't do much. The JBL earphones also come with a silicone case that's similar to the powerbeats, but they actually zip up.
So let's wrap this video up, shall we. The UA sport wireless heart rate don't sound good and have a crappy battery life. And they don't have quick charging. But the reason I really like them is because of their built in heart rate monitor and comfortable fit. And under armour's app does a really great job of displaying that information to you unlike other companies that have earphones with built in heart rate monitors. But I know that for the general user the powerbeats 3 is a better match especially if you have an iPhone. The powerbeats 3 sound better than these JBL, have a 12 hour battery life, have fast fuel, and they have that w1 chip. But just keep in mind, the powerbeats 3 aren't the best sounding sports earphones out there. If you're looking for amazing sound quality you're going to want to look into the jaybird x3. Ill have a link in the description below for that video.