How We Research
We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
If you want true wireless earbuds with active noise cancellation, multipoint Bluetooth and a customizable sound app, choose EarFun Air Pro 3; if you need a travel adapter that turns a plane's 3.5mm seatback jack into a two-headphone Bluetooth party, choose Avantree Relay & SoundJet. These two products share one important thread — aptX Adaptive — but they solve completely different problems. One goes in your ears. The other goes in your carry-on.
• EarFun Air Pro 3 — biggest strength: a full personal listening package in one box: Qualcomm QCC3071 with aptX Adaptive, 11mm wool composite dynamic drivers, Hybrid ANC rated to cut noise by up to 43dB, 6 mics with cVc 8.0, Bluetooth 5.3 multipoint, 45 hours total playtime and an app with a 10-band EQ.
• EarFun Air Pro 3 — biggest trade-off: aptX Adaptive only works on compatible Android-side hardware; iOS devices don't support it, so iPhone owners lose the headline codec. It's also in-ear only, so there's no way to share audio with a seatmate.
• Avantree Relay & SoundJet — biggest strength: it's the only one of the two that connects two Bluetooth headphones to a single 3.5mm AUX source at once, with aptX Adaptive and up to 25 hours of playtime — built for airplane seatback entertainment.
• Avantree Relay & SoundJet — biggest trade-off: it is a transmitter only. It doesn't pair with phones, tablets, TVs, hearing aids or musical instruments, and it makes no sound on its own — you need your own headphones.
• Who each pick is for: EarFun Air Pro 3 is for one person who wants ANC, calls and music everywhere. Avantree Relay & SoundJet is for travelers (couples, families, seatmates) who want to share in-flight audio wirelessly.
EarFun Air Pro 3 is a self-contained listening device. Everything happens inside the earbuds: the QCC3071 chipset handles aptX Adaptive audio, the 11mm wool composite drivers handle the sound, and QuietSmart 2.0 hybrid ANC handles the outside world — EarFun rates it at reducing noise by up to 43dB. There are three microphones in each earbud, six in total, paired with Qualcomm cVc 8.0 ENC, which is the part that matters if you take calls in windy or crowded places. You can switch noise-cancelling modes and adjust a 10-band EQ in the EarFun Audio App, and firmware updates come through the same app.
Buy it if you want one pair of earbuds to cover commuting, calls, workouts-adjacent listening and travel — and you're on an Android device or a source that supports aptX Adaptive. Skip it if you're deep in the iPhone ecosystem and specifically want aptX Adaptive, since iOS doesn't support that codec, or if your real need is sharing audio with another person on a plane.
Avantree Relay & SoundJet: Who It's For
Avantree Relay & SoundJet R1 is not a headphone. It's an airplane Bluetooth adapter, and its whole reason to exist is the 3.5mm AUX jack you find on seatback entertainment systems. You plug the adapter into that jack, pair your Bluetooth headphones to it, and suddenly you're watching the in-flight movie without a tethered cable. The feature that separates it from a generic transmitter is two-headphone support: you can pair two Bluetooth headphones or AirPods at once, so two people can watch the same screen side by side. That's a genuinely thoughtful design choice for couples and travel partners.
It runs on Qualcomm's chipset with aptX Adaptive for balanced sound and dependable wireless performance, and it's rated for up to 25 hours of playtime on a charge — which covers a long international flight and then some. The input is 3.5mm AUX, the output is Bluetooth, and that's the entire signal path.
The limitations are just as clear, and Avantree states them plainly: it's not for TVs, phones, tablets, hearing aids or musical instruments. It's a transmitter, not a receiver, so it won't make a wired pair of headphones wireless for your laptop. Buy it if you fly often and want to use your own headphones on the seatback screen — especially if you're traveling with someone. Skip it if you want something that actually produces sound, or you're hoping to use it as a general-purpose Bluetooth hub at home.
Side-by-Side: Which Should You Choose?
• Best for noise cancellation → EarFun Air Pro 3. Hybrid ANC rated to reduce noise up to 43dB, with selectable modes in the app.
• Best for battery life → EarFun Air Pro 3. 9 hours per charge and 45 hours total with the case, versus up to 25 hours for the adapter.
• Best for in-flight seatback screens → Avantree Relay & SoundJet. That's literally what it's built for; the EarFun earbuds can't touch a 3.5mm jack.
• Best for calls and meetings → EarFun Air Pro 3. 6 mics with Qualcomm cVc 8.0 ENC, plus multipoint so you can hop between two devices.
• Best for sound tuning → EarFun Air Pro 3. The EarFun Audio App gives you a 10-band EQ and noise-mode control.
• Best for people who already own good headphones → Avantree Relay & SoundJet. It adds wireless freedom to the headphones you already like, without replacing them.
• Best value depends on your gap: if you have no wireless earbuds, EarFun Air Pro 3 fills a bigger hole; if you have headphones and a long flight booked, Avantree Relay & SoundJet solves a problem nothing else in your bag will.
If I had to pick one, I'd buy the EarFun Air Pro 3. In my opinion it's the more versatile purchase, because it's a complete audio product — ANC, six mics, multipoint, 45 hours of total playtime, an app with a real EQ — rather than an accessory that only works in one very specific situation. The Avantree Relay & SoundJet is excellent at exactly one job, and if you fly long-haul with a partner who also brings Bluetooth headphones, that job is worth having a dedicated tool for. But for most people reading this, the earbuds will earn their place in your bag every single day, not just at 35,000 feet.
what is aptx adaptive headphones
aptX Adaptive is a Qualcomm audio codec that adjusts its bitrate and latency based on what you're doing — favouring stability for video and higher quality for music. In the EarFun Air Pro 3, it's delivered through the Qualcomm QCC3071 chipset; in the Avantree Relay & SoundJet, the same codec family is used to transmit audio from a 3.5mm source to your Bluetooth headphones. Note that Apple's iOS devices don't support aptX Adaptive, so iPhone users won't get the benefit on the earbuds.
Can I use the Avantree Relay & SoundJet with my phone or TV?
Yes. It supports multipoint connection over Bluetooth 5.3, so it can stay connected to two devices simultaneously and switch between them — handy if you're taking a call on your phone while watching something on a laptop.
The Avantree Relay & SoundJet. It plugs into the seatback 3.5mm jack, supports aptX Adaptive, runs up to 25 hours per charge, and can pair two Bluetooth headphones so you and a travel companion can watch together.
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