Despite the rise of competition in the over-the-counter hearing aid space, quality hearing aids remain stubbornly expensive. Top producers aren’t budging their premium prices, but they’ve quietly been introducing cheaper alternatives for consumers on a budget. Case in point is Jabra’s Enhance Select 50R, the company’s entry-level model.
At first glance, the behind-the-ear 50R looks almost identical to Jabra’s other hearing aids, like the Enhance Select 300, but a closer examination reveals a few hardware changes, including a curvier, almost vintage design and a bit higher weight. At 2.94 grams, it’s nearly 0.4 grams heavier than Jabra’s flagship Enhance Select 500. A single button on the back of each hearing aid controls volume (volume up on the right, down on the left) and lets you cycle through the four preset environment programs.
Aside from its slight weight gain, the major differences are all under the hood, and primarily they amount to features available on the 300 and/or 500 that have been stripped out of this unit.
Gentle Boost
Photograph: Chris Null
Sound processing tech is one of the biggest changes, as the 50R has a less sophisticated audio processor that lacks the spatial awareness you get with the Enhance Select 300 and 500. The 50R still has background noise reduction and speech prioritization features, but Jabra notes it is more suitable for quieter environments than loud ones.
The difference in audio quality between the 50R and 300 is noticeable, though it’s hardly profound. I’ve always admired the way Jabra’s hearing aids provide a gentle, natural boost to hearing quality while dulling noise, and the 50R is nearly the same, devoid of hiss and feedback, while offering an organic, easygoing improvement in all types of environments, even mild crowd noise. (Jabra’s standard four modes—all-around, restaurant, music, and outdoor—are also available here.)
But the sound is a bit flatter and less three-dimensional than with the 300 or 500. I only detected this nuance due to years of experience testing dozens of hearing aid models of varying quality; sometimes, the differences among them are very fine-grained. But again, it’s not a huge gap, and I expect most users will find the sound quality spot-on.
I didn’t find the 50R hearing aids to be quite as comfortable to wear for extended periods as Jabra’s other hearing aids, but again, this is a nuanced distinction and perhaps a natural result of the slight increase in weight.
Another feature stripped: The Enhance Select 50R supports Bluetooth streaming for calls and music, but lacks hands-free calling features and support for Auracast. This is probably not a huge deal-breaker, as streaming over hearing aids is rarely a treat. The lack of any real bass response to speak of on the 50Rs comes as no surprise, and is par for most traditional hearing aids, particularly Jabra’s.
Case Closed
Photograph: Chris Null
Lastly, and this is a big one, but Jabra’s 50R hearing aids don’t include a battery-powered charging case. They only charge via an open-top desktop charger that has to be plugged via a USB-C cord to relay power directly to the units. A simple plastic clamshell case is also included, but it has no power features and is usable only for protection. Jabra claims the 50R hearing aids provide a 24-hour running time on a full charge, which seems to be about accurate based on my usage during testing.
Many of the features remain the same as you’ll find in other Jabra models. The Jabra Enhance Select mobile app works identically with the 50R hearing aids as it does with all of Jabra’s products, and buyers who opt for the $1,195 version of the product gain 3 years of Jabra’s top-notch audiology access and warranty coverage. (The $995 version drops doctor access and cuts the warranty to 1 year.) The product is also available in the same five colors as other Jabra hearing aid models.
Jabra’s Enhance Select 300, our top overall hearing aid pick, runs $1,695, and the Jabra 500 is $1,995 (both with the three-year warranty option). Those are significant price differentials, and it’s tempting to suggest that it’s worth saving $500 and dropping a few features you may not miss. While the 50R is a solid product, I still feel like most users will be better served—and more future-proofed—by upgrading to the midrange Jabra 300. The features lost and the slightly lower audio quality of the 50R may not be noticeable on day one, but I suspect they will hit you eventually.
Source: Wired
