Jabra Finalizes Production of Premium Elite and Talk-Enabled Wireless Headphones

Jabra has been in the audio industry for a long time, and in recent years, the company has competed more directly in the earbuds and headphones market. Even though its Elite and Talk devices are impressive, the company is exiting the consumer market.

GN Store Nord A/S, the Danish parent company of Jabra (also the owner of SteelSeries and Beltone), announced today that it will “gradually wind-down” Jabra’s Elite and Talk product lines. That includes most of the wireless earbuds and headsets currently sold by Jabra, leaving just conference cameras, Evolve2 Buds , other business-focused devices.

GN said in a press release, “the investment required for future innovation and growth in this very competitive space is deemed unjustified in the long-term given associated risks. The Talk product line follows a similar logic and is positioned in the declining mono Bluetooth market. Consequently, following a thorough business review the decision has been taken to gradually wind-down both the Elite and Talk product lines.”

The wireless earbuds market has exploded over the past few years, so it’s not surprising that Jabra is calling it quits. In the United States alone, the market is dominated by Apple’s AirPods lineup and Beats products, Samsung’s Galaxy Buds devices, and products from more traditional audio brands like JBL, Sony, Sennheiser, and Bose. OnePlus, Google, and other large tech companies have also tried breaking into the market over the past few years.

The timing here isn’t great, as Jabra just announced the Elite 10 Gen 2 and Elite Active Gen 2 wireless earbuds today. We reviewed the Jabra Elite 10 Gen 2 earbuds and found it to have excellent sound quality and connectivity options, but it isn’t a worthwhile upgrade for people that already have the original model.

A spokesperson for Jabra provided the following statement to How-To Geek:

This announcement by GN is in an effort to concentrate resources and efforts on Jabra’s enterprise products within audio - including enterprise-grade true wireless earbuds - as well as video and OTC hearing devices. While this puts a stop to the long-term development of the Elite and Talk product lines, it does not mean product names will cease to exist and the existing products will continue to be available. The Elite line of products still has a highly attractive place in the market and the existing products – including the new Elite 8 Active and Elite 10 Generation 2 – will continue to be available and supported during 2024 and beyond. Customers will be able to buy them in the usual online and retail channels, as well as Jabra.com, and products will be supported throughout their lifetime, as normal.

True wireless innovation is still at the core of many of Jabra’s products, so the company will remain in the earbuds market through other product lines. Jabra believes true wireless earbuds will be a relevant form factor for professionals in the future for both work and life, so it remains the intention to continue to develop enterprise-grade true wireless earbuds like the Evolve2 Buds that consumers can use for work and beyond.

GN confirmed the Elite 10 Gen 2 and Elite Active Gen 2 will be the last Jabra consumer earbuds, but the company plans to “continue to service and support customers for several years.” There’s no reason to avoid buying the Elite 10 Gen 2 or Elite Active Gen 2, or any other Jabra devices, but there won’t be any new models in the future.

Source: GN