Bose Ultra Open Earbuds review

Bose is without doubt one of the greatest gamers within the headphone market and is understood for its very spectacular noise cancelling cans. Nonetheless, the model goes for one thing a bit totally different with its newest launch, the Ulta Open earbuds.  

The Bose Extremely Open earbuds are designed to depart your ear canal free so you’ll be able to concentrate on your environment with out compromising on the audio. Nonetheless, they don’t use bone conduction or a hooked construct as we’ve seen on earlier gadgets of this nature just like the H2O Audio Tri Professional Multi-Sport. They’re stylish but distinctive, and the audio is vastly extra spectacular than I anticipated – however they’re definitely not flawless.  

Disclaimer: Throughout testing I encountered some software program bugs with app connection and audio popping, which I’ve reported to Bose. As these components have an effect on the general rating, we’ve made the choice to not rating the Bose Extremely Open Earbuds till this difficulty is fastened.

Design & Construct  

• Revolutionary cuffed form
• Comfy for all-day put on
• Two colors out there

The Bose Extremely Open has what the corporate dubs a ‘cuff-design’, however you would possibly name them ‘clip-on’. The battery barrel sits behind your ear, with the entrance speaker catching in your decrease lobe. That sounds extra sophisticated than it’s – I had no points placing on the buds, even on the primary strive. 

Bose guarantees all-day consolation with the buds, and I’ve to agree with that sentiment. Whereas they act like a pair of clip-on earrings in observe, there’s no pinching or discomfort, even after sporting them for a number of hours.

The shocking 10g weight of every bud definitely helps with this, too.  

They’re probably the most comfy pair of open-ear buds I’ve used, and don’t give me that sore feeling in my cheeks that I get with headphones that use bone conduction know-how. I wore them with glasses and with a hood up and encountered no interference in any way.

They’re additionally sturdy and safe. I examined them throughout a pilates HIIT exercise the place I did rotating facet planks, mountain climbers and leaping jacks, they usually stayed on my ears with no issues. The IPX4 score signifies that they’re protected towards sweat and splashes of water.  

Throughout my briefing, a Bose mentioned that somebody within the group unintentionally wore them within the bathe with no points, although I’m not courageous sufficient to check this out. They held up simply wonderful throughout a wet stroll.  

The Bose Extremely Open Earbuds are available both Black or White Smoke. I examined the latter which is extra of a creamy impartial versus brilliant white. The arm is made with gentle silicone, with brushed metallic silver finishes on the buttons and arms. 

There’s additionally a particular version model made in collaboration with style and way of life model Kith, which characteristic the black color end and Kith lettering in basic model of Bose’s brand.

The accompanying plastic case is sufficiently small to suit right into a jean pocket and contains USB-C charging on the rear, together with a button for pairing, – although there’s no waterproofing on the case. Neither this nor the buds simply choose up fingerprints or different marks.  

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Sensible Options  

• Button controls 
• Bose Music app 
• 30ft Bluetooth vary

Pairing the Bose Extremely Open with my smartphone was initially simple. All I needed to do was press the button on the again of the case, open Bluetooth on my telephone after which the buds confirmed up. The Bose Extremely Open Earbuds additionally assist Google Quick Pair. 

After this, I had a number of events the place the buds had bother connecting within the app, even once they had been taking part in music from my telephone. I’m hoping that’s as a consequence of them being an early manufacturing unit, however Wired reported the same difficulty.

For full configuration over the Bose Extremely Open, you’ll need the Bose Music app, which is out there on iOS and Android. The homepage contains the battery life of every bud in 10% increments and has sections for audio changes, tutorials and connections.  

Hannah Cowton / Foundry

The bud buttons are situated on the underside of every battery barrel – there aren’t any touch-sensitive controls as there are on many rivals. They can be utilized to regulate playback, quantity, reply calls and swap between audio modes, with the precise configurations all changeable inside the app. Clicks are responsive and don’t really feel too agency on the underside of the ear. 

There are 4 preset EQ modes within the app: Bass Booster, Treble Booster, Bass Reducer and Treble Reducer.

Alternatively, you’ll be able to tweak the sliders to fit your preferences. Some rivals provide devoted modes for sure audio, similar to music, cinema or sports activities, however Bose has opted to let the person select their very own preferences for content material.  

Like Shokz, Bose has a clear and easy structure for the app, with loads of guides for controlling the buds. You may change between the varied Immersive Audio modes right here, and toggle on auto quantity.  

You may swap between gadgets within the app, however there’s no multipoint connectivity on the time of writing. Bose has mentioned {that a} software program replace will rectify this later within the 12 months.

With a 30ft Bluetooth vary, these buds are usable in a special storey of your home to your telephone with out a hitch.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Sound High quality  

• aptX Adaptive assist
• 4 preset EQ modes
• Bose Immersion audio out there

The Bose Extremely Open buds provide surprisingly spectacular audio for a completely open-ear machine. They’ve 12mm drivers, with assist for Qualcomm’s aptX Adaptive codec, however not LDAC.

Impress by The Chemical Brothers has a fair steadiness of lows, strings and vocals. Bass is evident, however not fairly the thumping that you simply’ll get with sealed earphones or over ear headphones. 

Slower tracks similar to Mercy by Rachel Platten are vibrant, with the piano, organ, drums and vocals all balanced satisfyingly. Heavier tracks similar to ONLAP’s Rock Ain’t Useless sound highly effective, with detailed guitar solos. Once more, you’ll lose a few of that thrum if you happen to go into noisy environments  

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

The earbuds are spectacular sufficient that podcasts are nonetheless comparatively clear over the roar of the underground. Some buds with correct noise isolating ideas don’t even cross this check, in order that’s an enormous win for Bose. There’s minimal leakage, so that you needn’t fear about utilizing the Extremely Open Earbuds in a busy atmosphere, similar to an workplace. 

With the quantity on low, I may simply speak to a barista in a espresso store and listen to them clearly. Certain, it feels a bit impolite doing it nevertheless it’s doable. The higher use case is being conscious of your environment, similar to if you happen to’re operating (couldn’t be me) or if you happen to’re crossing a highway and wish to hear visitors.  

Immersive Audio is Bose’s devoted spatial mode, and provides two choices: Nonetheless and Movement. One is designed for if you’re sitting and listening to the buds, similar to working at your desk, or enjoyable on the couch. The opposite is for if you’re bustling about, similar to in your commute.  

I’d suggest utilizing it on dwell music performances, and when listening to high-action films. For traditional audio, it’s hit or miss – generally it provides further depth to a monitor, whereas different occasions it will probably sound a bit echoey and muddle some devices, like synths, into the background. If you happen to’re an audio purist, I’d keep away from this characteristic altogether.  

There’s an auto quantity characteristic, which dials the sound up or down relying in your ambient environment. I discovered this to be easy when exiting my flat onto a busy highway, with my podcast dialing as much as an appropriate quantity. That mentioned, later in my stroll (when switching to music), a gust of wind despatched the monitor belting up, which was an disagreeable expertise. 

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

I’d advise simply sticking to the quantity you favor, as this will come right down to style and the kind of content material you’re listening to anyway.  

Sadly, my evaluation unit had some popping on Spotify and Amazon Music, notably when both Immersive Audio or auto quantity was on. I’ve reached out to Bose for touch upon this and can replace my evaluation after I know extra. I didn’t discover it on my iMac, so it could possibly be a compatibility difficulty with my telephone. 

There are twin microphones on every bud, and in accordance with family and friends calls sound clear on the buds when in quiet environments, although louder ones similar to streets appear to select up ambient noise as there’s no wind discount know-how out there. I used to be in a position to hear the callees simply wonderful.  

If the design of the buds doesn’t make this apparent, there aren’t any ANC or talkthrough choices out there.

Battery Life & Charging  

Bose claims that the Extremely Open can final for 7.5 hours when immersion mode is turned off, and that appears in keeping with my testing.

Half that point dropped the cost by roughly 50%. The immersion modes solely present 4.5 hours of listening time on a single cost, which is unimpressive in comparison with rivals.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

The case offers as much as an extra 19.5 hours of listening time on stereo mode, and 12 hours on the immersion modes. I used to be in a position to make use of these for commuting and dealing on and off for a couple of days with out worrying about charging, which is a aid.  

There’s a USB-C cable included within the field, and a ten-minute cost will get you as much as one hour of listening time. Nonetheless, no wi-fi charging is included which is a disgrace.  

Value & Availability  

The Bose Extremely Open Earbuds price £299/$299.

You should buy them from Bose, Amazon and Greatest Purchase within the US, and Bose, Amazon and John Lewis within the UK. That’s not at all low-cost, so that you would possibly wish to weigh up your options.  

If consciousness of your environment is vital to you, then the Jabra Elite 10 provide a semi-open design with the choice of ANC and head monitoring. For extra health fanatics the Shokz OpenFit provide a completely open design, however the audio isn’t the very best because of the restricted frequency vary.  

Each opponents are cheaper than the Bose Extremely Open, which is certainly on the premium finish of the spectrum. You may see how they evaluate to others in our chart of the very best earbuds chart.  

The restricted version Kith mannequin is bought out on the time of writing, however you’ll be able to join notifications on the Bose and Kith web sites. They’re barely extra, £305/$300, for the privilege.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Do you have to purchase the Bose Extremely Open Earbuds?

The Bose Extremely Open Earbuds provide the very best open-ear design I’ve seen. They’re comfy and safe, and at first look appear to be a novel style accent fairly than a bit of tech. The audio can be a deal with for many issues, although bass followers gained’t get the identical expertise as they might on closed earbuds or full headphones.  

In fact, there are catches. They price a reasonably penny, and while the battery life is sufficient for a day’s listening in stereo, the Immersive mode sturdiness isn’t that spectacular in any respect. I additionally hope that the software program points I encountered aren’t extra widespread.

All in all, if you’d like the very best audio you’ll find on a pair of open-ear earbuds and cash is not any object, then it’s nonetheless value contemplating the Bose Extremely Open. In any other case, there are different choices out there.

Specs

• Cuff design
• 12mm drivers
• Bluetooth 5.3
• AAC, aptX Adaptive, and SBC
• Button controls
• 4 microphones
• Helps Bose Immersive Audio
• Battery life: As much as 7.5 hours playback on 1 cost (4.5hr with Immersion modes), 31hr playback with charging case
• USB-C
• Dimensions: 18.5 x 17 x 27.2 mm (per earbud)
• Dimensions: 41.9 x 65 x 26.4mm (charging case)
• Weight: About 10g (per earbud), About 40g (charging case)
• IPX4
• Black, White Smoke