After discounting its QuietComfort 45 headphones earlier this week, Bose has launched a similar sale on its QuietComfort II headphones. The wireless headphones are now on sale for $249 at various retailers, matching the all-time low we previously saw around Black Friday. The pair has typically retailed at its MSRP of $299 since its release in September, though it has sold for $279 for most of this month. Either way, Bose’s product listing says this deal will last until January 1st.
At launch, we gave the QuietComfort Earbuds II a review score of 87, and we currently recommend them as “best noise canceling” in our Best Wireless Headphones guide. As that title suggests, Bose’s Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) is the main reason you’d buy this pair: it’s the most powerful ANC mode we’ve tested in a pair of wireless headphones, almost completely silencing low-end noise and silencing mid- and high-frequency sounds better than most. The headphones automatically tune their ANC to the acoustics of your ear canals as soon as you put them on, but you can also increase or decrease the intensity of the effect by creating custom listening modes in Bose’s companion app.
In terms of audio quality, the QuietComfort Earbuds II have a smooth sound with a slight but noticeable bass boost. It’s not world-class like ANC, but our review found the low-end to be richer than previous Bose headphones, and there’s a graphic equalization tool in Bose’s app that lets you fine-tune the sound more to your taste if necessary.
There are some tradeoffs worth noting here. The headphones themselves are soft and secure in the ear, but are on the larger side, which can be tiring for smaller ears over time. The included charging case is similarly bulky. Beyond that, the battery life is decent at around 6-7 hours, there is no wireless charging and the call quality is mediocre. You also can’t connect to multiple devices at once. Our guide recommends Sony’s WF-1000XM4 as a more comprehensive option for most. Still, if all you want is the most effective ANC possible in a pair of wireless headphones, the QuietComfort Earbuds II are the way to go, and this deal makes them at least a little more affordable.
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Originally published on December 14, 2022 at 3:52 pm