I love a multitasking device as much as the next person, so I found JBL's newest offering, the Soundgear Frames Audio Glasses, rather intriguing when I first heard of them—sunglasses that allow you to listen to music? Yes, please!
In practice, though, the Soundgear Frames are rather underwhelming. It's certainly a cool piece of tech, but as you'll read below, I didn't find it really practical for my day-to-day life. At RM999, it's not that cheap either.
Editor
Jennifer chevron_right
Table of Contents
Design & Build Quality
The JBL Soundgear Frames are available in three stylish colour options—Amber, Pearl, and Onyx. Our review unit was in Pearl, which is basically white and transparent and looks pretty cool. It does remind me somewhat of the Nothing phones design, which is neither here nor there.
They also come in round or square versions, with our unit being the latter. I do prefer squarish glasses, so that’s a plus for the Soundgear Frames on this aspect. Made with durable thermoplastic material, the Frames feel quite sturdy, and the plastic allows it to be relatively lightweight considering the electronics that JBL stuck into the arms.
That at least ticks off the “lightweight” that JBL claims on the box, but it’s really not slim. The frames are thick and bulky, which becomes pretty uncomfortable on the ears after extended use. The added weight and clunkiness make them feel more like a tech gadget strapped to your head than a stylish pair of sunglasses.
Plus, since I have astigmatism, I have to wear prescription glasses daily, which makes wearing sunglasses, even the regular ones, much of a hassle. The Soundgear Frames aren’t large enough (or slim enough) to fit over my regular glasses, so unless I’m willing to walk around half-blind, I’m stuck either going without or shelling out for prescription lenses to fit these frames. But let’s be honest—spending another few hundred bucks just to make these usable is hard to justify, especially when regular headphones do the job without any extra hassle.
Performance & Practicality
Unlike traditional headphones that cover your ears, the Soundgear Frames have ultra-thin 25mm x 9mm speakers discreetly integrated into the temples. These speakers are designed with a three-layer diaphragm and a proprietary algorithm for bass enhancement and frequency division processing.
Performance-wise, it’s decent for what it is. The sound quality is better than I expected from open-ear speakers, with clear highs and decent bass. The Frames are compatible with the JBL Headphones app, which enhances the user experience by offering a range of customisation options. Through the app, you can adjust sound settings, choose from six preset EQ curves, or create your own personalised sound profile.
However, the problem is that the audio experience is far from immersive. Since the speakers aren’t actually in your ears, there’s noticeable sound leakage when you crank up the volume. It’s not terrible, but anyone nearby will definitely catch snippets of your music, which really isn’t ideal.
And the issues go both ways—there’s zero passive noise cancellation. If you’re in a noisy environment like a bustling office or crowded cafe, good luck hearing your music clearly. I found it really hard to enjoy what I was listening to in the office when my coworkers were being extra chatty. The open-ear design might be good for situational awareness outdoors, but in reality, it means you’re constantly battling ambient noise.
I also have to question the practicality of wearing sunglasses indoors just to listen to music. Unless you’re in a very specific situation—maybe lounging by a pool or out for a sunny walk—it feels pretty awkward to be walking around with sunglasses on just to take calls or enjoy some tunes.
Battery & Charging
The Soundgear Frames offer up to 8 hours of continuous playback, which is more than enough for a full day of activities. Then again, you’re really not going to wear the Frames for the entire day unless you’re out for all 8 hours of it.
That said, it recharges quickly, allowing for close to two hours of playback on just 10 minutes of charging.
Charging the Soundgear Frames is both straightforward and a little strange. The Frames come with a splitter cable with two USB-C heads, because you have to charge both “arms” of the Frames. With the in-box cable, that’s not too much hassle, but woe betide if you lose that cable; you’ll have to charge the arms separately or use two cables for it.
Verdict
At the end of the day, the JBL Soundgear Frames feel like a product that’s more about fashion than actual, practical use. Yes, the sound quality is decent (but not tip-top), and yes, they’re an cool piece of gadget, but between the impracticality of prescription glasses and bulky frames, it’s hard to recommend them for regular use.
They’re interesting, sure—but unless you have a very specific need for sunglasses that play music, you might be better off sticking with traditional headphones or earphones.