JLab’s newest earbuds are barely bigger than your camera's SD card

Jul 23, 2023

The new JBuds Mini live up to their name without sacrificing performance

JLab is a popular brand in many markets, making compact, feature-rich wireless earbuds at affordable prices. In fact, the pocketable JLab JBuds Air ANC are our go-to budget wireless earbuds. Now, the company has announced one of its tiniest models yet, called the JBuds Mini, and they live up to their name without compromising performance, battery life, features, or anything else you may typically associate with the size of the buds.

Late last year, we learned of JLab’s plans for the JBuds Mini in 2023. The design hasn’t changed much since then, and undoubtedly, the biggest attraction of the JBuds Mini is its size, which is in the same league as Skullcandy’s Dime earbuds. Compared to other JLab products, the JBuds Mini earbuds are 30% smaller than the sleek Go Air Pop, making them the perfect earbuds to try if most other models feel uncomfortably large. The charging case is also 50% smaller than that of the Go Air Pop, measuring just 2.08 × 1.38 × 0.94 inches. The small size makes the earbud case ideal for use as a keychain, and a suitable loop is available as well.

Despite the small size, each earbud of the JBuds Mini weighs just 3.3g while the case tips the scales at 18.5g. Thanks to high-density Lithium Polymer batteries, shedding weight doesn’t affect battery life. JLab has packed a 25mAh battery in each earbud, capable of delivering more than five hours of playback on a single charge. The case packs a 250mAh cell, bringing the total battery life to 20 hours.

JLab has also crammed in all the features one expects from modern wireless earbuds, like Google Fast Pair support, IP55 sweat and dust resistance for the buds, and touch controls. The JBuds Mini also features multipoint connectivity, so you can pair them with multiple devices simultaneously. You can also use either earbud independently.

While we cannot remark on the sound quality without trying the buds firsthand, JLab says each earbud has a 6mm dynamic driver, and mics for environmental noise cancelation or passthrough. At least on paper, that’s the norm for earbuds this size around the $40-50 price range, so the sound quality probably won’t blow you away. The connection over Bluetooth v5.3 should be reliable.

The JBuds Mini goes on sale starting September 1, 2023, in all markets where other JLab earbuds are available. At launch, you can pick from mint, sage, pink, aqua, and black colors. With an affordable $40 sticker price and their size advantage, these could become the ultimate everyday companion for minimalists and those who prefer lightweight everyday carry (EDC) gear. With how light these are, we just worry you’ll be checking your pockets way too often to make sure you didn’t misplace them. Lest we forget, a two-year warranty comes standard.

The JLab JBuds Mini is one of the smallest budget wireless earbuds on the market with an attractive $40 sticker price. The size makes them pocketable and convenient to use, but JLab didn’t cut corners in terms of software features. You get Bluetooth v5.3 with multipoint support and a respectable five-hour playback time per charge on the earbuds.

Chandraveer is a mechanical design engineer with a passion for all things Android including devices, launchers, theming, apps, and photography. When he isn't typing away on his mechanical keyboard’s heavy linear switches, he enjoys discovering new music, improving his keyboard, and rowing through his hatchback’s gears on twisty roads.