The buds appear somewhat chunky, but when they’re in-ear, they feel incredibly light and minimal. The angled, oval-shaped ear tips differentiate themselves from the wide, completely round tips that a lot of other earbuds have, resulting in a secure but comfortable fit.
That being said, there seems to be one single way that these earbuds go into the ear: there’s a single optimal angle where they “click” into place, and if you don’t get it right, they don’t feel secure. I took the QuietComfort buds to the gym with me for a week, and a rushed placement one day resulted in not one, but both earbuds falling out of my ears onto the floor.
So let’s talk about the sound. As you’d expect from Bose, the audio quality on these earbuds is rich and booming. The bass is fat and all-encompassing, the mids are distinct, and the highs allow for a textured, dynamic soundstage. There is a good deal of separation between sound elements, and the sound quality is virtually indistinguishable whether the active noise-cancellation (ANC) is on or not.
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I found the custom EQ settings to provide the best sound profile, bringing up the mids and highs to compete with the hefty bass these earbuds are capable of. On my custom setting, the buzzing, bone-shattering low end in Aïsha Devi’s “The Seventh Element” pairs seamlessly with lighter tones, giving life to the airy flute that rides atop the abyss.
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The touch controls on the buds are very sensitive, recognizing even the lightest taps, and allow for a high degree of customization with one-, two-, and three-tap controls or a tap-and-hold associated with any action you can think of. These, I found to be reliable and straightforward for the most part, although if you’re in motion (running, for example), you might need to be extra deliberate about how you tap.
Swapping between the different noise control settings is best done with voice commands, but these also need to be spoken correctly. You have to say “Aware on” to turn on the pass-through aware mode if you want to hear your surroundings, and “Quiet on” to turn on the ANC. The app has a list of acceptable commands you can use, so I recommend reading through that list and just memorizing those commands before trying to use the voice control features.
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Bose’s ANC is pretty solid, though. I wore these earbuds over the course of a week commuting to and from the office in New York, and they hold their own on the subway, on the street, and in a loud office. With the ANC on, it will still pick up sounds on the higher end of the spectrum, particularly voices, but these earbuds do a fantastic job at eradicating ambient noise and chatter.
Luckily, the battery life on these is pretty good. You’re looking at over eight hours of use time on the buds with a full charge and over 30 hours with a fully charged case. You also have a few ways to charge, including USB-C on the case itself and Qi2 wireless charging, which couldn’t be more convenient. Do note that the case tends to heat up after sitting on your wireless charger.
ZDNET’s buying advice
Bose’s latest QuietComfort Earbuds
The bold, expansive level of sound these earbuds provide is matched by how good the ANC is, making them shine in urban environments. The voice commands can be finicky, but once you get the feel for them, become second nature. Additionally, if you like a high degree of customization with touch controls, these are about as granular as you can get.
This article was originally published on September 23, 2024, and was updated on November 16, 2024.