Today in our Jabra Evolve2 85 review, we’re going to check out Jabra’s best Evolve2 headset, the Jabra Evolve2 85. The Evolve line of Jabra always focuses on professionals who need an excellent headset for conference calls.
The Jabra Evolve2 85 is one of their latest headsets, and we’re here to find out if it delivers the performance worth paying for. We’ll also test the mic and audio quality for you. We currently have the MS version and Black colour of the headset.
With an MSRP of $730 AUD (MS or UC Stereo + Stand) is it worth purchasing? Whether you’re thinking of providing these headsets to your company or using it personally, we’ll put this headset to the test and see if this is the headset you should get.
Jabra Evolve2 85 Packaging
In this section of our Jabra Evolve2 85 review, we’re going to talk about the packaging. Most premium headsets today are packed inside a sturdy carrying case, along with the user manual and extra cables.
The Jabra Evolve2 85’s box comes in a grey theme covered with a dark grey thin cardboard. The Jabra logo is on the upper-left corner of the cardboard, and the model is written sideways on the lower-right corner.
In the middle, you’ll see a sample picture of the headset inside. They’ve ensured that the Jabra Evolve2 85 is “the best headset for concentration and collaboration”.
On the lower portion of the box, it says that it has Active Noise Cancellation. Even though the headset has 10-microphone technology, you can still squeeze the battery for up to 37 hours.
Lastly, on the upper-right corner, you’ll see what interface your headset has. Depending on which one you picked, it should indicate what model you have. Our sample here has the USB-C Dongle.
Taking off the cardboard cover, you’ll see a welcome message and fundamental product usage. Underneath the box, you’ll see where the headset originated and some additional information mostly for warranty purposes. At the back, there’s a sign on the lower-left portion, which says where the packaging came.
As you open the box, there’s an instruction page imprinted behind the front cover of the box. Follow the guide written there as you get to it. Inside, you’ll see a carrying case with an imprinted Jabra logo in the middle.
Under the carrying case, you’ll get the Warnings and Declarations booklet. The most important part here is the carrying case. It feels sturdy and hard, which secures your headset firmly. The zipper on the side makes it easy to open and grab your headset.
Opening the carrying case, you get the accessories and the headset. The accessories are 3.5mm to 3.5mm audio cable jack, a USB-C cable for charging, an airline headphone adapter, and a dongle.
Now, let’s move on the next section of our Jabra Evolve2 review.
Jabra Evolve2 85 Review – Design and Functionality
In this section of our Jabra Evolve2 85 review, we’re going to talk about the product’s design and the specific functions it offers.
The Jabra Evolve2 85 is a UC Stereo Bluetooth headset that comes in two different colours. The first one is black & grey as a dark colour, and beige for a light colour. The sample we have is the black & grey variant.
The texture of the headset is mostly matte. The black and grey colour blends in perfectly as a dark-themed headset.
Since the headphones easily fold, it fits into the carrying case perfectly. They fold flat on any surface, which makes it very portable and easy to carry. With these folding options, you can let it hang on your neck.
As we take a closer look at the headphones, it has a foam on top that provides more comfort to your head. The quality is overall, impressive! Upon adjusting or twisting the ear cups, you won’t hear any squeak or plasticky sound.
The padding on the ear cups is made out of thick leather, providing the best comfort for your ears. Jabra does an excellent job of designing headsets for prolonged usage.
Behind the left earcup, you’ll find two contact points for a wireless charger in which you can purchase separately. Under the left earcup, you’ll find the power switch, LED indicator, USB-C charging port, and the audio jack.
On the back of the right earcup, there’s a large button which functions as an answer or end call button. There are also media keys available, which are Play, Pause, and Skip.
Now, both the left and right ear cups have a microphone built-in. But there’s also the boom mic in which you can pull and twist so that it points out into your direction. The boom mic isn’t detachable, but you can easily hide it with the right earcup.
Lastly, the boom mic also has a mute feature. You can either press the button beside or tuck it back into your earcup.
Key Features of the Jabra Evolve2 85
In this section of our Jabra Evolve2 85, we’re going to highlight all the key features that make it an excellent product.
Maximum Comfort
Jabra Evolve2 85 features soft cushion and leather pads for prolonged usage. Enjoy wearing it all day without too much pressure on your ears.
Extended Battery Life
With long-lasting battery life, enjoy up to 37 hours of endless calls or music. Also, you can quick charge for 15 minutes and enjoy 8 hours of battery!
Active Noise Cancellation
Active noise-cancelling gives your voice a filter to avoid background noise without degrading the quality!
Software-Configurable
Jabra Evolve2 85 has downloadable software to enhance your overall user experience. You can use the equalizer in your audio, enable or disable noise cancellation, and more! Check out their Support Page to learn more.
10-Microphone Technology
Jabra Evolve2 85 improves your communication experience with its microphones. Enhance your voice further by using the boom mic.
User Hearing Protection
Jabra Evolve2 85 features Jabra SafeToneTM that gives extra protection to your hearing. Avoid high audio levels and random distortions with Jabra SafeToneTM!
Specifications
In this section of our Jabra Evolve2 85 review, we’re going to talk about the specifications of the product. Let’s start with the dimensions and battery life.
Dimensions and Battery Life
The unit has a dimension of 198.6mm in length, 160.0mm in width, and 77.3mm in height.
The Jabra Evolve2 85 supports active noise-cancellation on 4-microphone digital hybrid ANC. The drivers are 40mm, with a sensitivity of 117dB @1mW – 1kHZ. Also, the speaker frequency range supports 20Hz to 20.000Hz.
The battery life is superb because of its low power consumption. At 50 mW, this headset will last you 37 hours when fully charged.
The battery has a specific certification depending on what purpose you want to use the Jabra Evolve2 85. For talk-time, your battery can squeeze up to 30 hrs with ANC & busylight turned off, and 20 hrs with both ANC & busylight turned on. For music time, you’ll have up to 37 hrs with ANC turned off, and up to 32 hrs with ANC turned on.
Speaker Bandwidth
Now, the speaker bandwidth may vary, depending on the mode you use. If you’re using the music mode, you’ll have a bandwidth of 20Hz to 20.000Hz. For speaking mode, you’ll have a bandwidth of 100Hz to 8.000Hz.
Microphone
For the microphone type, it has 4 Analog MEMS and 6 Digital MEMS, with a sensitivity of -35 dBv/Pa for Analog, and -26 dBFS/Pa for Digital. Their frequency ranges from 5 to 20.000 for Analog, and 100Hz to 8000Hz for Digital.
Connectivity
And lastly, let’s talk about the connectivity. If you want to use Jabra Evolve2 85 in wired mode, you can use the 3.5mm jack. But for wireless modes, you have three options; USB-A Bluetooth Dongle, USB-C Bluetooth Dongle, and Bluetooth (5.0).
You can pair up to 8 devices and use 2 Bluetooth connections simultaneously with a range of up to 30m.
Now that you’re familiar with the product’s specifications, let’s proceed to the hands-on section.
Hands-on with the Jabra Evolve2 85
The Jabra Evolve2 85 is extremely easy to set up. You have three different ways of connectivity, and it works as intended once set up. If you have the USB-A version, you can use a USB-A to USB-C adapter to plug it on USB-C ports.
Since we have the MS version, it is best suited for Microsoft Softwares like MS Teams. Still, the buttons should normally function on any other platform or software. Let’s move on to the audio, noise cancellation, and microphone quality.
When it comes to the quality of audio, this headset performed spectacularly. Jabra is a company specializing in headsets for call-centres or communication purposes.
The Evolve2 85 offers a lot for the price you pay. It comes with a wide variety of aspects that most headsets lack. Also, if you’re a gamer or would like to listen to music, you don’t have to worry about the sound quality. The audio quality is outstanding, it performs like a mid-range gaming headset.
Most Jabra headsets support noise-cancellation. It’s a feature that most companies are looking for since it avoids background or random noises.
The noise cancellation of this headset does an excellent job of blocking all the noises without degrading the voice quality.
As for the ear cups, the Jabra Evolve2 85 has a closed-back design, which helps you focus on your daily tasks. The pads shape like an excellent gaming headset, which gives you the best comfort especially when you use it for a long period.
The Jabra Evolve2 85’s microphone quality was delightful. It utilizes 10-microphone technology, as well as the boom microphone. You’re given a choice whether to use the boom microphone or not, depending on your preferences.
The boom microphone will still sound better, but having a ton of microphones makes it easier to communicate while walking.
Overall, microphone quality performed well. It captures your voice in different ways, but it will never fail your expectations.
Jabra Evolve 2 85 Review Summary
We’re finally down to summarize our Jabra Evolve2 85 review. Let’s break down our opinions on why we think this headset is excellent.
Throughout our testing, the headset surprised us with what it offers. It performs exceptionally well with whatever we throw at it. If you have the budget to afford this premium headset, go for it.
Overall, the Jabra Evolve2 85 feels like you’ve entered a whole new world. Jabra knows what to feature in their headsets and their pricing is fair.
To conclude our Jabra Evolve2 85 review, we were very delighted. We recommend this headset for people who hate wires. The headset performed well in everything we tested, even if it isn’t about communication. If you’d like to purchase this product, click here.
