The Bose QC Earbuds are the entry-level QuietComfort in-ear headphones in the brands range, but still offer excellent sound quality and ANC, and the fit is both comfortable and secure for running as well. Nick has been testing the headphones out during his marathon training, here’s his verdict on how they are for runners.
JUMP STRAIGHT IN:
00:00 – Intro
00:14 – Design & Fit
02:52 – Sound Quality
03:59 – ANC & Awareness
04:58 – Controls
06:17 – Battery Life
07:17 – Verdict & Alternatives
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Hello welcome to run testers my name is Nick and this is our review of the Bose Quiet Comfort [Music] Earbuds so the both quiet Comfort Earbuds are the latest generation of Bose's entrylevel quiet Comfort Headphones sitting below the QC Ultra They are fair bit cheaper at that model Costing $179.95 in the UK and $179 in the US so That price puts them notably cheaper Than some big rivals in the kind of Premium earbuds realm things like the Airpods Pro 2 or the new beats Power Beats Pro 2 are coming you know well Above that price and they've got a Slightly different design to past Bose Models in the QC earbuds range they Don't have the stem that kind of hangs a Little bit below the ear I haven't Tested the latest quiet Comfort buds Ultra but I have tested a previous Version of the QC earbuds the naming is A little bit tricky I think these are Also known as the QC earbud second gen Or 2023 T 2024 but either way they are The entry level model in the range and I've been really impressed with them During my runs and general use over the Past few weeks so they come in three Colors white black and lilac you get Three sets of ear tips and three sets of Wings in the Box to try and customize
The fit I'm going for the largest wing On mine with a medium ear tip to create As secure a fit as possible with them The buds are ipx4 rated so they're sweat And water resistant that rating has Always been high enough for me as a Runner even when running in very wet Conditions or sweating a lot so although They're not fully waterproof or is water Resistant as some other options I think They'll be fine for runners in general The buds offer multipoint connectivity With Bluetooth 5.3 battery life is Pretty good at 8 and 1/2 hours on a Charge and 31 1/2 hours in total Including the case and in general they Have got a slightly more lightweight Design than I've experienced with Bose's In earbuds in the past like I said I've Tested one model of the QC earbuds in The past and also the sport earbuds that They had and I'd say the fit on the new QC earbuds is the best I've come across Inose headphones just CU they sit a Little bit more comfortably and close to The ear they don't hang down if you put The largest wing on as I have you do get A really nice secure fit but it's still A really comfortable one so that wing Tip is a very soft and flex silicon you Can tuck it into the ear I found the Best way to get a good fit was to turn The earbuds in almost and Tuck that flap In under the fold in the top of my inner
Ear there and it's being reliable on the Run for sure like I don't always get on That well within earbuds myself things Like the airpods pro would often fall Out of my ears and that kind of thing so Having a wing usually helps me out and This has been a pretty secure fit all Around for sure I've used these buds for Several long runs of marathon training Although I've had to occasionally adjust The fit a little bit on the run it's not Been that much and they've been very Comfortable for we for hours at a time Both when running and not running I took Them away traveling over the weekend and Wall them for the entire trip there you To get the benefits of the noise Cancelling on the plane and that kind of Thing and all around I think the fit is Really excellent like it's not Absolutely perfect it's not as secure as Maybe something with an ear hook but I Had no problems with it really on the Run I think you're getting a rare Combination of security and comfort here With these headphones because in buds With wings like this can sometimes Irritate my ear and I haven't had that Problem with the QC [Music] Earbuds moving on to controls and you Have touch controls on these headphones Via the panel on the side of the buds And also voice controls you can
Customize both of these in the Bose app And you know really customize them you Can have pretty much options for Anything on both buds including volume Up and down and switching between sound Modes on there touch panels work pretty Well they are quite reliable you do get A little bit of feedback on them from Them when you do click a control so you Know what you selected they're a little Bit sensitive if you're adjusting the Headphones on the run I found so if I Did have to you know move the fit around A little bit I'd nearly always play or Pause my music or change their sound Mode you know inadvertently which is a Little bit annoying and the one thing You certainly don't get with touch Controls I had a problem with with the Bose at the moment testing them in the Winter is trying to use them with gloves On the Run where even if you've got Quite thin gloves it's not very reliable When you're clicking the control so That'll be something for runners lookout For running in the winter The Voice Controlers also can be a little bit Annoying I've ended up turning those off Because yeah they just get provoked by Things that I didn't want them to get Turned on by and things like that so the Touch P controls are fine I tend to Prefer a button something like the Beats Power Beats Pro to come with a button
Which is just much more reliable on the Run I think but for touch panels they're Pretty good they worked quite well During my testing On to sound quality then and the first Thing we usually say in these reviews is That while we all appreciate good sound We're not necessarily the reviewers youd Go to if you just want to focus on sound In your review there are definitely Really good audio Publications out there That will give you more of an insight Into this but I found that the bud Sounded really good to me on the run and Outside of my runs as well getting nice Loud clear sound especially in the upper Ranges you know really nice amount of Clarity there I tend to listen to more Indie alternative music I do also like You know throwing on some more base Heavy stuff on on the run as well and Although these aren't the most base Forward headphones out there compared to Things like beats they you know have Plenty of power in that range you can Customize the EQ as well in the partner W with a few presets or a customizable EQ using five bars which is what I've Used mostly throughout my testing and Overall i' say that the sound quality is Certainly a strong point for the B QC a But especially at their price point you They're coming in a fair bit cheaper Than some premium pods and offering I
Think equally good sound quality to Things like the airpods pro you at a Lower price as you'd expect from any Bose audio product really the sound Quality is a strength On the& and awareness modes on the bud Which is called quiet mode and aware Modes I think on the Bose buds Bose is Obviously very well known for itsc and It's certainly a standout feature on These headphones for General use like When I was traveling on planes and Trains and even just trying to find a Bit of peace and quiet walking around It's a really good mode it's very Impressive it FS out a lot of sound more Than buds that cost a lot more like the Beats Power Beats Pro too I would say You got a better ANC on these B buds However it's not the most useful on the Run it does bring in a lot of wind noise I found thec to the point where if it's A windy day at all I just basically Didn't really use thec for r i was Nearly always using the off mode or the Aware mode on the aware mode is good Though it doesn't just sound like wind You know the wind is there you'd hear it As you would normally if you have any Headphones in and you do get a better Sense of your surroundings things like Cars people around you if you are Running in busy areas and the off Mode's Quite a nice little balance actually
Because I didn't have a lot of wind in That mode because the mics obviously Weren't activated trying to work out External sounds and it still you get a Bit of passive noise cancellation from That so I'd use that quite a lot in Places like the track where it was too Windy for the ANC so yeah NC is a Massive plus outside your ones for sure Does make them very good crossover Liv To headphones because it is such a high Quality VNC aware Mode's pretty useful When places like the office as well as On the run and having that off mode is Quite handy as well sometimes on the run When you can't really use the ant Because of the wind but you don't really Want to be that aware of your [Music] Surroundings the battery life is pretty Good on the buds for sure 8 and 1 half Hours is pretty impressive given that They are in buds they are quite large Buds though and the case is quite large I would have liked to see a little bit More battery life in the case in Particular I would say but 8 and 1 half Hours is very good you're not going to Have any real concerns there I think Immersive audio is due to be brought to These buds both's other audio mode which Might bring the battery life down a Little bit more as well although when I've tested that on other headphones I
Haven't always used it that much so Battery life I'd say overall goes down As a strong point for the headphones Something like the gabra elite active Offer truly incredible battery L I think For even smaller earbuds but you are Outlasting things like the airpods pro Two here again the Beats Power Beats Pro Two will have slightly longer battery Life on the buds themselves but it's a Bit of a wash all around during my Testing I have seen the battery life Draining at the rate suggested by BOS Other thing to know is there is a quick Charge feature as well if you plug the Headphones in for 20 minutes you will Get three hours of playback that's not The quickest Quick Charge it's quite a Long period 20 minutes but then you do Get a longer period of playback from That so I'm sure if you plug them in for A little bit less you might get enough To last you through a 1 hour [Music] Run onto verdict then and I think the Both QC earbuds are a very strong option For runners who are looking for one set Of high-end headphones to use throughout Their daily life as well as on the Run You really are getting exceptional sound Quality andc here for the price and then You are getting a really reliable and Comfortable fit for the run as well so Although I didn't find the ANC the best
On the run I think in general it's a Very nice thing to have on your Headphones it really does block out the Noise of traveling very well in Particular transparency mode is also Useful in the office and then on the run You can just easily turn it off using The controls which are pretty good for Touch panel controls and enjoy you know A nice comptable fit that you can then Just carry on wearing for the rest of Your day without irritating the ears or Finding the headphones come loose so They are a really good option and the Price is really good especially at the Moment I think they're reduced to 130 at The moment in the UK and that's very Competitive because I do think you're Hitting a similar standard here to Things like the airports Pro two beats Power Beats Pro two and you're getting It at a lower price but it's in line With the Jabra Elite 8 actives price Especially as that's those headphones Are often in sales as well they're Another really strong option for sure But I think the fit of the Bose is maybe A little bit more secure and it's really Comfortable fit as well and thec I think Is a little bit better than you get on The jabas so unless you don't want any Kind of wing on your headphone at all Because the Jabra headphones don't have Any wing while still delivering you know
Very secure fit they're very small Impressive headphones I think the both Probably the ones I'd pick out of those Two the airpods Pro 2 are really good Headphones they're very comfortable very Small don't stay in my ears that well on The Run although you can buy third party Silicon Wings very cheaply on places Like Amazon and then they become much Better on the Run obviously but you are Getting a cheaper set of headphones here That have a better fit out of the box Beats Power Beats Pro too I think you're Getting better sound ATC on these both Headphones at a lower price you do get The ear hook on the beats and that does Deliver the most reliable fit for Running that you can get your also get Physical controls they're really Exceptional headphones I really lik Using the Beats Power Beat Pro too but These are cheaper and if you don't Really want an ear hook there on your Headphones for General use I think it's Slightly preferable to not have that Then you have got this as an option I'd Also say don't buy the beat Power Beats Pro two for the heart rate monitoring Because we didn't have the best Experience with that in our testing at Least not yet it's a feature that might Improve over time but it's not one that We found particularly useful for runners Just yet so that wouldn't be a reason to
Look at those ahead of the boat you Could also look at some cheaper jabber Options though if you're not so Concerned about sound andc things like The elite 7 active the Elite 4 Active Are really good headphones in a buds That have a pretty reliable fit for me I Found on the run and sound pretty good Pretty okay andc that kind of thing You're going get an upgrade with these Both buds but you can find those Headphones very cheaply now and they're Really good in a buds that cross over From Sports to General use very well or Around enjoyed them in the run test I Think they're really good headphones for People who want that top-notch sound Quality in a ANC in buds that they can Use on the run you know without worrying About it because there's no real Concerns about the fit for me on the run Here even someone with quite fiddly ears Who tends to find inar buds are a bit of A problem or do irritate my ears didn't Have those concerns with the B so yeah Really good headphones and worth looking At as one set of headphones to do it [Music] All that's our review of the Bose QC Earbuds 2 let us know what you think in The comments below please like And Subscribe ring the little bell and we'll See you next time
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