Bose Quietcomfort Earbuds

Our new best buddies?

£250 / stuff.tv/qce

■ Without being rude, the QC Earbuds resemble a boiled sweet attached to a tadpole. With a matt plastic finish and subtle accents, they’re not unattractive and don’t feel particularly heavy, but there’s no denying the bulk.

■ Wingtips lock into your ear for a cosy fit, lending itself to passive noise-killing before you get to the tech-aided part. There are no buttons, just touch-sensitive controls: double-tap the right to play/pause or long-press to wake a voice assistant; double-tap the left to cycle between ANC levels.

■ Multiple mics pick up external noise and send it to a new chip that pings back the opposite signal to cancel any unwanted racket. The results are magnificent. On the maximum setting they eliminate the outside world better than any in-ears we’ve tested. They also support wear-detection, so pulling one out pauses the music.

■ We’ve often said the signature Bose sound doesn’t quite match Sony’s, but the QC Earbuds are a fun listen. They’re bassier than you might expect, but the low end is nicely rounded with lots of detail.

■ You get six hours of listening time from a full charge, with a further two charges provided by the charging case, which happily charges via USB-C. If you need to dash out, 15 minutes plugged in should be enough for two hours of battery life. We’ve seen better, we’ve seen worse.

Tech specs

Connectivity Bluetooth 5, USB-C Battery life Up to 6hrs (buds); up to 18hrs with case Dimensions 39x27x26mm, 8.5g each (buds); 89x51x32mm, 76g (case)

Bose’s new in-ears promise regal tones on the move… plus ultimate protection from the harsh sounds of reality

Matt Tate

Touch me I’m sticky An IPX4 rating means the buds are gym-ready. There’s no volume rocker, but touch controls can be customised in the Bose app.

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