Jabra’s rugged Elite 8 Active earbuds are on sale for the first time

At this point, it would be an understatement to say there are a lot of wireless earbuds to choose from. There is something to be said about a competent platform-agnostic pair that takes a more targeted approach to features instead of relying on ecosystem tricks, which is precisely what Jabra aims to do with the Elite 8 Active.

Like their lauded predecessor, Jabra’s Elite 8 Active are designed with fitness buffs in mind. They boast adaptive ANC and eight hours of playback per charge, along with Jabra’s ShakeGrip coating, which helps secure them during rigorous exercise without the need for wing tips. This time around, though, they also carry an above-average IP68 rating and meet the military spec standard for ruggedized electronics, which means they’ve passed a series of durability tests to ensure they hold up to extreme temperatures, impact, and a slew of other factors.

The Elite 8 Active check all the basics, too. They support multipoint, wireless charging, and a standalone mono mode that lets you use either earbud on its own, making them a pretty well-rounded pair overall.

Best Buy, like every retailer under the sun, is already gearing up for the holiday shopping season with a series of planned sales events, some of which will be running counter to Amazon’s Prime Day event in October. This year, however, the retailer is also introducing a handful of deals and discounts in the form of Best Buy Drops, which will be available in limited quantities on a weekly basis at 11AM ET via the My Best Buy app.

To kick off the new Drops program, Best Buy is selling the Apple Watch Ultra 2 with an indigo Alpine Loop strap for $729 ($70 off) — the first discount we’ve seen on Apple’s new smartwatch outside of Amazon’s $20 discount.

What’s more, if you subscribe to either the retailer’s premium membership plans, My Best Buy Plus or Total, you can get an additional $10 off. But to be prepared for today’s impending deal, you should open the Best Buy app and click on “Drops” in the bottom row, where you can opt in to a push notification alerting you when the Ultra 2 deal goes live. It’s only available while supplies last, so you may have to buy it promptly once the app alerts you of its availability.

If you haven’t had a chance to dig into our Ultra 2 review, know that this year’s model is more iterative than it is revolutionary. The second-gen Ultra packs a brighter screen and slightly more processing power in the form of Apple’s new S9 SiP, which allows for onboard Siri processing, more power savings, and Apple’s unique “double-tap” feature. It also ships with watchOS 10 and features a second-gen ultra wideband chip, allowing for more precise tracking should you happen to lose your watch.

Deals, discounts, and other savings

Update September 27th, 10:52AM ET: Added clarification around the timing of Best Buy Drops, including today’s Apple Watch Ultra 2 deal, which is set to begin at 11AM ET.