Jabra Evolve 2 65 Flex headset review
The Jabra Evolve2 65 Flex has long been topping our round-up of the best Bluetooth headsets. So, we jumped at the chance to get our hands on the kit to test it out ourselves. But even with an impressively lightweight design, ANC, built-in microphone, and an excellent sound profile, is this high-end headset ready for business?
Jabra Evolve 2 65 Flex: Pricing & availability
The Jabra Evolve2 65 Flex retails for $329 from the company’s official site, but it is available elsewhere (we saw it selling for about $250 over on Amazon). You can pick between USB-A and USB-C connectivity, and whether it’s optimized for Microsoft Teams or UC. Add in the wireless charging stand and the cost rises to $389. Whichever configuration you choose, those numbers put the headset in the premium price-bracket.
Jabra Evolve 2 65 Flex: Unboxing & first impressions
Influenced by the Apple school of packaging design, unboxing the Evolve2 65 Flex is an experience. Simple, streamlined, effective.
Easing off the cardboard sleeve reveals a plain black cardboard box with the message ‘It’s what’s inside that counts (that’s why we’ve reduced our packaging).’ We cracked open the lid to find a fabric charcoal case nestled beneath a single instruction card. No room here for bulky manuals destined for the recycling bin or left unread in the kitchen drawer.
Now, this case is so light, you’d be forgiven for thinking Jabra had forgotten to package anything at all. But there is a 136g Bluetooth headset in here with a pocket for the Bluetooth adapter - another neat example of using the least amount of packaging in the most effective way. In the well of the box, there’s also a charging cable and a wireless charging pad.
Jabra Evolve 2 65 Flex: Design & features
Noise cancellation: Hybrid ANC
Battery: Up to 32 hours
Weight: 136g / 4.8oz
Contents: 1x headset, 1x fabric case, 1x USB Bluetooth adapter, 1x charging cable, 1x wireless charging pad (optional)
Connectivity: USB-A or USB-C, Bluetooth 5.2
Wireless charging: Yes
It’s difficult to reinvent the wheel when it comes to professional headsets - and who would want to? So yes, the 65 Flex looks exactly as a set of business headphones should look, complete with on-ear cups that extend, swivel, and fold for storage.
The overall design is a lot slimmer than the Jabra Evolve 2 65 that we reviewed. The memory foam earphones are noticeably thinner and smaller, featuring Jabra AirComfort Fit. Gone is the fully cushioned headband, with a single strip of padding now moved to the top. The wireless charger has been reduced from a stand to a pad. The built-in noise-canceling microphone is now only inches long, stowed within the right ear-cup where it can be flipped up or down to automatically mute or unmute. The plastic mic does feel a bit flimsy here - it’s an issue with the headset as a whole really - but we chalk that up more to maintaining the impressively feather-light build rather than cost-cutting.
Button are located to the rear of both cups These include pairing mode, a mute/voice assistant, play/pause, and volume/next track controls. On the right outer-ear is a button for answering and ending calls - and in our model, this also gave us Microsoft Teams control. On the left-side is the wireless charging zone. LED lights to the top of both ears display headset status.
As with any of the best noise canceling headphones, the Evolve2 65 Flex boasts advanced Active Noise Cancellation (ANC), which washes away unwanted background sounds. There’s also HearThrough technology, which Jabra says “lets you hear your surroundings and conversations”. Personally, this worked a treat while sharing an office. Coupled with the lightweight design, makes it oh-so-easy to forget you’re even wearing them.
Jabra Evolve 2 65 Flex: Performance
Overall, we found performance to be exceptional across the board. Sound quality is very crisp and clear. There’s no tinniness or artificiality to the audio, with outstanding stereo performance. And the microphone, with its noise-canceling tech, worked well - although less so when taking calls out and about. But then, this is a headset for the hybrid worker, best-suited to offices and home offices.
Although our Evolve2 65 Flex was “certified for Microsoft Teams'', we experienced no issues using Google Meet and Zoom. Not that we expected any problems. Fundamentally, this is still a standard Bluetooth headset, and for over a month we used this for work calls on a Microsoft Surface Laptop Go, music on our phone, and gaming on the Nintendo Switch and Xbox Cloud.
Very occasionally we encountered a problem with the microphone showing as muted (sometimes it really was muted, other times, it just appeared to be). We suspect this was a conflict between the built-in microphone’s auto-mute/unmute feature and the conferencing platform’s own mute controls. By opening up the mic’s Device Properties on the computer, we could manually unmute the unit, but we shouldn’t even need to be looking for a solution for a basic function. The large-fingered among us may also find the buttons, small and cute, a mite too small - even we of the average-hand sometimes fumbled to hit the correct one without stroking the ear-cup with our thumbs a good few times.
Elsewhere, we had no issues. Admittedly, we were a bit worried about an on-ear headset with ANC. We’re more used to the snug isolation of the over-ear Anker Soundcore Q20 for day-to-day listening, but the 65 Flex is surprisingly excellent at blocking out background noise. If you work in a busy office (or just want to concentrate) and don’t want an all-encompassing over-ear model, this is a top choice.
You can switch between ANC and HearThrough using the Jabra Sound+ app. It’s here where we optimized audio and updated the firmware. There’s also a music equalizer and music presets, which offer options like a bass boost for music or a speech mode for podcasts. If you’re anything like us, you might enjoy ambient noise when focusing on work - we listen to so much, it featured in our Spotify Wrapped - so we especially liked the Soundscape mode. No more searching for playlists, you can quickly switch between the likes of white noise, ocean waves, and birdsong. The app is certainly worth investigating. We found the interface is nice and simple, and even if you’re not traditionally an audiophile, it’s very straightforward to enhance your listening experience.
Jabra Evolve 2 65 Flex: Final verdict
The Jabra Evolve2 65 Flex is one of the best headsets for working from home and the office. Designed with the hybrid worker in mind, it’s lightweight with ANC, built-in microphone, and an excellent sound profile that can be customized in a welcoming companion app. But it is expensive, and it’s not the most rugged option out there.
It’s not a budget option by any means, although you can hear those extra dollars in the audio. It’s delightfully light, with cushioned pads as soft as clouds. Not too tight but never threatening to tumble off the head - although we wouldn’t recommend anything more active than swiveling in your office chair. However, that lightweight design means the build quality does feel less than robust. The Evolve2 65 Flex lacks the sense it would survive the crunch of a turbulent commute. In that case, you’ll absolutely want to upgrade the soft fabric case to a hard-shell.
It’s not perfect - mind you, show us a headset that is. Whether the issues are deal-breakers will depend on what you want from a wireless business headset. If you want a cheap headset for the occasional meeting that could’ve been an email, or you’re working out in the field, there are better options out there. If you’re looking for a model that’s comfortable, professional, and svelte, it’s one of the best you can get.
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