We find it strange that Bose, which prides itself in its active noise cancellation, took such a long time to put that feature in one of their true wireless earbuds. Truth be told, we expected it to come with their very first product in the category. At any rate, they’ve finally gotten around to it in the form of the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds.
Billed as “the world’s most effective noise cancelling earbuds,” the device uses a mix of active and passive noise cancellation to eliminate as much ambient noise as possible, so you can listen to your playlists without the chatter of pedestrians, the rumbling of car engines, and a whole load of other noises going on around your vicinity. How good is the noise cancellation on this thing compared to the AirPods Pro? We don’t know. Given the quality of noise cancellation on Bose’s other headphones, though, we imagine this will be pretty capable on that end.
The Bose QuietComfort Earbuds gets a soft ear nozzle that conforms to the contours of the ear to facilitate a gentle but secure seal for passive noise cancellation, while internal and external microphones power the active noise cancellation, picking up unwanted noise from both outside the earbuds and in your ear canals, which it cancels by producing an opposite signal. With those active and passive elements engaged, which is based on the noise cancelling on their over-ear headphones, Bose claims you can hear all kinds of details that will otherwise get lost. The active noise cancellation is adjustable, too, so you can dial it down if you’re walking outdoors (you don’t want to get hit by a car), shut everything out if you’re chilling at home, or turn it off completely, so you can have a quick conversation.
It pairs a patented acoustic port with high-efficiency drivers that, the outfit claims, will produce immersive sound and deep lows, while an active equalizer enhances sound clarity throughout the entire spectrum, so the sound remains balanced, regardless of volume. According to the outfit, it also has a low noise floor that minimizes the electronic hiss not uncommon in most noise-reducing earbuds.
The Bose QuietComfort Earbuds pairs with your phone using Bluetooth 5.1, so this should create a strong and reliable connection, so long as you stay within 30 feet of the music source, while a built-in four mic array lets you use it for both hands-free calls and voice commands alike. Touch gestures on the earbuds allow you to control playback, take calls, customize the noise-cancelling, and more, while built-in sensors detect whenever it’s removed from your ears, at which point, it automatically pauses whatever’s playing.
The integrated batteries can keep the earbuds working for up to six hours of playback between charges, with the charging case holding another 12 hours’ worth of charge, so you can use it for most of the day, provided you put it in the case whenever it’s not in use. Other features include IPX4 water-resistance rating, three sets of silicone ear tips, a Qi-compatible wireless charging case, and a USB-C charging cable for those times a wireless charging pad isn’t available.
The Bose QuietComfort Earbuds are available now, priced at $279.95.