European audio brand Jabra has removed key features from their new Elite 3, Elite 7 Pro and Elite 7 Active buds in an effort to cut costs, they have also been slammed for their poor audio quality.

The Company, who does not like their products being criticised, has removed multipoint Bluetooth support that in the past allowed users to take a call and continue watching a video, questions are also being raised about the way that they handle background noise.

Jabra has offered multipoint with its previous Elite 65t, 75t, and 85t earbuds but not with their new offerings.

The move comes as the business tries to compete with popular buds from the likes of JBL, Samsung Apple and Sony.

At the entry level, you’ve got the Elite 3 a no-frills set of earbuds that’s selling for $99 at JB Hi Fi, the audio is patchy at best.

Manufactured in China, the buds are designed to compete with several popular brands in the audio market including Marley whose buds are proving popular in the youth market.

The $279 Elite 7 Pros lack any big draw that might lure people away from the competition claims the Verge who has reviewed the latest Jabra offering.

The new offerings are not seen as being better than offerings from JBL Apple and Samsung and don’t really separate the Jabra’s from the pack currently on shelves at retailers claim observers.

Unfortunately, the Elite 7 Pros and their ear tips aren’t as good of a match for my ears as the older 75t and 65t buds claims the Verge reviewer.

Questions are also being raised about the fit of the buds with reviewers claiming that when the earbuds are fully inserted into one’s ears, the sound can be thin and passive noise isolation suffer.

“Jabra still has room for improvement when it comes to active noise cancellation, however. At their price point, the 7 Pros disappoint in this category and don’t get rid of as much background noise as I expected. The company says its Elite 85t earbuds continue to offer the best ANC performance of the whole line-up. But the HearThrough transparency mode also trails the AirPods Pro and Bose with a less natural sound” claims the Verge.

See Verge review here.