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The Bose Ultra Open Earbuds take a sharp turn from the brand’s usual noise-canceling dominance. Instead of sealing you off from the world, they sit outside your ears, letting in ambient sound while still delivering rich, detailed audio. Priced at $199 (down from its original $299), this is their lowest price yet (according to price trackers), and they cater to people who prefer awareness over isolation. Think cyclists, runners, or anyone who doesn’t want to miss the honk of a car while listening to music.
The fit takes a minute to figure out. The silicone band adds just enough tension to keep them in place, but how you clip them changes the sound more than you’d expect. Too high and it gets tinny; too low and you lose stereo balance. Once you find the alignment, though, they stay put through walks or light workouts and handle sweat or drizzle without a fuss, thanks to their IPX4 rating.
Sound-wise, Bose mostly nails what’s hard to get right in open audio: clarity. The Ultra Opens avoid the hollow sound that plagues similar models, keeping vocals crisp and highs bright. The low mids have a pleasing warmth, though the deep bass doesn’t hit with much punch. You’ll notice that most in EDM or hip-hop, where the kick feels restrained. Still, for casual listening, podcasts, and calls, the balanced tuning works. Also, they use Bluetooth 5.3 and support AAC, AptX Adaptive, and SBC codecs, which means Android users get slightly better audio quality than iPhone users.
What do you think so far?
Volume holds steady even outdoors, and there’s minimal distortion at full blast—per this PCMag review, the earbuds sound their best around 70 percent volume, delivering a full, detailed mix while still keeping you aware of what’s happening around you. If you prefer a more low-end presence, the adjustable EQ in the Bose app lets you tweak the sound. Battery life holds up nicely, too, around 7.5 hours on a charge and about 27 hours with the case. That said, wireless charging isn’t built in, though there’s a separate case for that if you prefer it over the USB-C setup.
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