JBL Tune 230NC TWS

amazon JBL Tune 230NC TWS reviews

Following true wireless headphones such as JBL Tune 115 TWS, and JBL Live Pro + TWS in 2021, JBL has just continued to launch the latest rookie ANC noise-canceling headphones of 2022 called JBL Tune 230NC TWS.

JBL Tune 230NC TWS attracts attention when equipped with a 6.0mm driver and JBL’s signature Pure Bass sound technology, focusing on energetic, vibrant tracks. The product is equipped with ANC active noise cancellation technology with a quartet of microphones to help reduce unwanted sounds from the surrounding environment such as traffic and talking to provide a more complete audio experience.

Box case true to JBL tradition, complete accessories

If you’ve ever used JBL’s popular headphone models, you’ll find the JBL Tune 230NC’s box very familiar. It is still an elongated box with a prominent product image printed on the front. Pure Bass (pure bass) and Zero Noise (no noise) features are also emphasized on the box, accompanied by other outstanding features such as ANC active noise cancellation, and battery life.

The back of the box is still partially transparent so that users can take a look at the design before deciding to “single latch”. Other useful information also appears on the side of the box, such as support for both Google and Amazon Alexa virtual assistants.

The included accessories of the Tune 230NC in addition to the headset and the carrying case also have 2 more silicone ear cushions, a USB-C cable, and a user manual. The good thing is that the USB-C cable of this headset has a flexible Type-A connector, allowing it to be plugged in in any direction, very convenient. The cord is also made of flat anti-tangle.

The design is similar to the JBL Live Pro + version, comfortable to wear, sturdy, with IPX4 water resistance

The design of JBL Tune 230NC inherits almost completely from the previous “brother” JBL Live Pro +. This design “subtles” many similarities with rival Apple AirPods Pro, especially the housing. Both of them have an in-ear style, a large, round, beveled housing design that looks almost like a mini hair dryer. This type of beveled housing will help the headset go deeper into the ear canal, and seal the ear.

However, the “tail” – stem of JBL headphones are completely different from rival Apple thanks to the square, masculine design, and Apple in the form of a round, elongated, more feminine cylinder. On the “tail” part, JBL also arranges to charge pins and status lights for easy monitoring.

In addition to the black version that I experience in this article, JBL Tune 230NC also has fancy white, blue, and sand colors, suitable for young people. The company also did not forget to add characteristic orange color to the ear tip ear cushions to create accents.

When worn on the ear, JBL Tune 230NC is completely neat, but with 2 quite large and long tails, you will be immediately recognized as wearing headphones. The feeling of wearing is comfortable, comfortable, not hot or clogged when worn for a long time. The entire outer shell is made of rough texture, effectively limiting fingerprints and sweat, and easy to clean.

I tried running, jumping with high intensity, riding a motorbike (sitting behind) at a speed of 40-50km / h, and even continuously shaking my head vigorously, JBL Tune 230NC was still firmly on my ear. This headset is also IPX4 water resistant and can withstand rain and light spray. You can safely use Tune 230NC under moderate rain or during exercise and sports activities, even if you are a person who sweats a lot.

The charging box part of the JBL Tune 230NC has a plump, compact design that easily fits into a trouser pocket or crossbody bag, and opens and closes with one hand conveniently. The front of the box has 3 LED lights to indicate the large battery capacity, convenient to observe. When the box is in a charged state, these LEDs also have a visual motion effect.

Inside the box, the earphones are held firm thanks to the magnets. Even if the box is tilted upside down and shaken vigorously, the ear remains fixed. It’s a pity that the Tune 230NC’s charging box does not support wireless charging, but only charges via the USB-C port. According to specifications from JBL, this charging box supports fast charging allowing 10 minutes of charging to have enough battery life to listen to music for 2 hours. Although only made of plastic, both the charging box and the earbuds of the Tune 230NC are well machined, the connection lines are tight and seamless.

One point I am not very satisfied with in the charging box of the Tune 230NC is the way the company places the earphone tail inward. This causes inconvenience when every time I put the headset in the box, I have to rotate the headset to the right direction to put it away, and also very confused between the left ear and the right ear. This is the point I think JBL needs to overcome in the next versions.

ANC noise canceling is good but not excellent

Active noise cancellation ANC (Adaptive / Active Noise Canceling) has now become a popular feature on many true wireless headset models priced from $40-130. However, ANC technology also has many different levels. With JBL Tune 230NC, the difference compared to the elder JBL Live Pro + is that it will not be possible to fine-tune the ANC to each specific need.

With an in-ear design tucked deep into the ear, even though ANC has not been turned on, Tune 230NC still has a pretty good noise cancellation effect. When ANC is turned on, Tune 230NC can eliminate about 60-70% of environmental noise but will favor sounds such as talking or air conditioning fans. As for vehicle engine sounds, Tune 230NC’s ANC has not been able to effectively block them. Therefore, the ANC on JBL Tune 230NC is more suitable for use in an office environment. You just need to open the music at about 50% volume to be almost completely “isolated” from your colleagues.

Of course, like most ANC headphones today, JBL Tune 230NC still suffers from the sound of the wind when ANC is on. You will hear the sound of the wind hitting your ears, especially when riding a motorbike or jogging. At this point, you should turn off ANC.

Another valuable point is that besides ANC noise cancellation, JBL Tune 230NC is also equipped with a Transmutation feature called Ambient, which helps to hear the environment sound clearly without removing the headset. Tune 230NC’s Crosstalk feature has up to 2 different modes. One is Ambient Aware to hear the ambient sound but keep the volume level of the music playing. The other mode is TalkThru, which will reduce the music volume to near maximum, suitable when you need to talk to the opposite person. Unfortunately, Tune 230NC does not have a proximity sensor to automatically stop/play music when removing or wearing headphones.

where can you get a JBL Tune 230NC TWS online

The app allows for diverse customization

To be able to harness the full power of JBL Tune 230NC, JBL offers the My JBL Headphones app and offers in-depth customization for this headphone model.

My JBL Headphones have a very intuitive and user-friendly interface, helping you manage your headphones scientifically, view the detailed battery life of the left and right ears or the charging box, customize the Equalizer, customize the sports touch controls, or find headphones when lost…

In addition to allowing customizing the Ambient Sound Crossover feature, My JBL Headphones also allow choosing 3 different connection modes to reduce latency or enhance sound quality in the Smart Audio & Audio section.

By default, JBL Tune 230NC is set to Audio Mode to ensure the highest sound quality. However, when playing games or watching videos, you will need the lowest possible latency and now switch to Video Mode. If you find that the headset has an unstable connection like in an office, where there are too many Bluetooth devices around and can cause interference, try switching to Normal mode.

JBL Tune 230NC itself uses a touch control mechanism and gives high sensitivity, and accurate command reception. By default, you can switch between ANC, and Crosstalk, or completely disable both when tapping once on the left ear. Meanwhile, double-tap will enable TalkThru Crosstalk mode on and off (reduce music, easy to talk without removing headphones) and touch and hold to activate virtual assistant Google Assistant or Siri, Alexa, Bixby, Cortana. You can also call up the virtual assistant with voice commands like Ok Google or Alexa. JBL Tune 230NC supports interacting with virtual assistants to turn on and off ANC, Crosssound, check battery life, and power off the headset.

When you need to stop/play music, tap once on the right ear, tap twice to skip to the next track and tap three times to go back to the previous song. The right ear also uses tap and hold to activate the virtual assistant.

When there is an incoming call, both ears use the same double-tap to receive the call and long-press to reject (or turn on/off the mic during a call).

With the My JBL Headphones app, you can customize the above touch operations. However, customization will be limited according to the available settings. You will not be able to adjust the volume, switch noise cancellation, crosstalk, and control music at the same time. Touch and hold are also always “fixed” by calling the virtual assistant, which cannot be changed.

Some other outstanding features of My JBL Headphones such as Auto-off allow the headset to automatically turn off to save battery if not used after a certain period; choose between virtual assistants on the machine; Find the headset if unfortunately lost, update the firmware and see the user manual.

Unique JBL sound quality, Dance music

Specifications of JBL Tune 230NC include a 6mm dynamic driver, frequency response range of 20Hz – 20kHz, and impedance of 16 ohms. Good headphones, including JBL’s speakers, have always been strong in the bass range and with the Tune 230NC, this continues to be promoted.

The abundant bass of JBL Pure Bass technology makes today’s popular Dance Pop, Rap, EDM, and R&B songs exciting, vibrant, and very suitable for gym, and jogging.

The mid sound is smooth and thick, though not very detailed, the upper mid and low mid have seamlessness and there is no feeling of choking singing like many other headset models. The treb is reproduced tinkling but not dazzling and harsh. Treb strip detail is quite high, reproducing the full instrument sound in Leave the Door Open – Bruno Mars.

In terms of voice call capabilities, JBL Tune 230NC gives satisfactory quality. This headset is equipped with 4 mics with the ability to filter wind and noise effectively, even when used on the street, the call sound is still clear.

Connecting Tune 230NC to Android phones is very quick because this headset supports Fast Pair technology developed by Google and the latest Bluetooth 5.2. As soon as you open the charging case, you will see a connection message on your phone without having to go to the Bluetooth menu to search for a device.

Good connectivity, agile, rare disconnection of one ear when listening continuously. Watching movies, listening to music or playing games is smooth, with little delay. The maximum connection distance can be up to 10 meters when there is no obstacle.

Note that this headset does not support connecting 2 devices at the same time, so when you are listening to music on your phone but want to switch to listening on your laptop or PC, you will need to pair again by typing and then pressing Hold on the sensor for about 4-5 seconds.

Impressive battery life even with ANC on

In terms of battery life, JBL Tune 230NC is claimed by the company to have up to 40 hours of the operation time, including 10 hours of headphones when ANC is turned off and 30 hours of additional supply from the charging box. If ANC is turned on, the headset can play music continuously for 8 hours, and another 24 hours from the charging case.

When used at 50% volume, with ANC turned on, I can listen to music continuously with Tune 230NC for about 8 and a half hours, more than the announced level. The charging case can fully charge the headset about 3 times. This is a very good level of battery life, enough for me to use an entire working day, and if used less, it takes a few days to need to be recharged. Time to fully charge the battery through the Type C port with a 15W charger takes about 2 hours, and with 10-minute fast charging support, the battery is enough to listen to music for about 2 hours.

The good thing is that the Tune 230NC is equipped with Dual Connect + Sync technology for you to flexibly use each headset in mono mode when just calling. In this mode, Live Pro+ will have almost twice the battery life.

Summary

The price is about $20 lower than the JBL Live Pro + senior, JBL Tune 230NC itself is almost a shortened version with the same design, reducing the customization of ANC noise cancellation, wireless charging, etc. accessories included but significantly enhanced battery life.

If you are a person who often needs to wear headphones and use ANC noise cancellation, JBL Tune 230NC will be the right headset for you because of its ability to work all day long. Besides vibrant sound quality, many useful auxiliary features such as crosstalk, TalkThru, and IPX4 water resistance.

Advantages:

+ Impressive battery life even with ANC on, works all day long

+ Powerful sound quality rich in bass, suitable for exciting music, sports people, gym

+ Unique design, many colors to choose from, comfortable to wear firmly, IPX4 water resistant

+ Anti-noise ANC is effective in an office environment

+ Clear voice quality, effective noise-filtering mic

+ App comes with many functions, diverse customization

Defect:

– The way to put the headset in the charging box is still inconvenient, you have to rotate the headset in the right direction

– Do not automatically stop playing music when removing or wearing headphones

– Customization of touch operations is still limited, must follow fixed settings

– The function for touching and hold the headset cannot be changed

– Can’t connect multiple devices at the same time