The Jabra Elite 7 Active are well-made sports earbuds with a secure fit and an IP57 dust and water resistance rating. Jabra also claims that they are made of a proprietary material called ‘ShakeGrip,’ which aids in the stability of the fit. As a result, they have a similarly stable fit to the 7 Pro and most other Jabra earbuds we’ve tested that don’t have ‘ShakeGrip’. In their companion app, you can customize their slightly bass-heavy sound profile. The app also allows you to remap most controls and adjust features such as the auto-off timer. While their active noise cancellation (ANC) feature isn’t very effective, they do a good job of isolating you from background noises like gym conversations.
The rubberized coating on the interior of each earbud is the main advantage of the Elite 7 Active over its Pro counterpart (aside from the lower price). When worn casually, we didn’t notice much of a difference between the two models – the Active gives the impression of being’sticky’ to the touch – but there’s no doubt they’re more secure during vigorous head movements, especially if sweat is involved.
[content-egg-block template=offers_logo hide=price]Jabra claims that this coating (dubbed ShakeGrip) eliminates the need for wings found on many competing sports earbuds, and while that is a possibility, it will very much depend on how snugly these buds seal in your ear. Thankfully, the fit has been flawless for us, thanks in large part to the compact size, light weight, and sculpted interior surface of the buds. With a fit this snug, we believe Jabra’s claim that it used data from 62,000 ear scans to design the curved shape of the earbud interior.
In terms of durability, the Elite 7 Active shares the Pro’s IP57 waterproofing and feels just as well-made, leaving little doubt about their toughness. The charging case is also identical, with its squat pill-like shape, though, as with the Pro, it lacks the waterproofing of the buds. While the Navy and Black color options are as understated and unremarkable as you’d expect, we’re drawn to the Mint option’s light blue-green hue. The Elite 7 Pro had a distinct trim of different colors on the earbuds themselves, whereas the Active has a single contiguous tone.
The buttons require only a light press to activate, avoiding any additional pressure in the ear canal, and are less likely to be accidentally pressed than capacitive touch controls. The Jabra MySound+ app provides excellent control over these buttons and voice assistant functionality, as well as useful features such as the ability to mute media when the transparency mode is activated.