{ "licence": { "name": "CC BY 4.0", "url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "attribution": "DataDesign (https://datadesign.one)" }, "url": "https://datadesign.one/wireless-earbuds/bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen/", "product": { "id": "bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "name": "Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen)", "brand": "bose", "category": "wireless-earbuds", "aliases": [ "QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds 2nd Gen", "QC Ultra Earbuds 2nd Gen", "QCUE2" ], "lifecycle": { "status": "current", "announced": { "value": "2025-06-12", "source": "bose-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen-announcement" }, "released": { "value": "2025-06-12", "source": "techradar-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "note": "TechRadar states 'Released on June 12, 2025', same as the announcement. Digital Trends instead says 'Released September 2025'; SoundGuys published its review July 11, 2025 after buying a retail unit. See spike-report.md." }, "predecessor": "bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds", "successor": null }, "msrp": [ { "currency": "USD", "amount": 299, "source": "bose-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen-announcement", "as_of": "2025-06-12", "note": "Bose's own launch press release. Every reviewed outlet (TechRadar, What Hi-Fi?, Tom's Guide, TechGearLab, Digital Trends) independently lists the same $299 US price. SoundGuys' product box lists MSRP $299.00 while its body text says the earbuds start at $299.99." } ], "specs": { "battery_life_hours": { "value": 6, "source": "bose-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen-specs", "note": "Immersive Audio off (4h on). TechRadar and Tom's Guide matched 6h in testing. RTINGS' verdict text cites a 'shorter 6.5-hour continuous battery life' as a con. SoundGuys measured 5h34m; TechGearLab measured 5.8h, both undershooting." }, "battery_life_case_hours": { "value": 18, "source": "bose-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen-specs", "note": "Case-alone reserve: Bose states 'Case with 100% charge: 18 hours' (three additional 6h charges). What Hi-Fi?, TechRadar, Digital Trends and Tom's Guide instead describe the combined system total as '24 hours' (6 + 18 = 24)." }, "weight_g": { "value": 7.09, "source": "techgearlab-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "note": "Per earbud, TechGearLab's own scale measurement. TechRadar's and What Hi-Fi?'s spec tables instead both list 7.7g, and Digital Trends lists 0.2oz (~5.7g) — a three-way disagreement. Bose publishes no per-earbud weight. See spike-report.md." }, "anc": { "value": true, "source": "bose-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen-announcement" }, "water_resistance": { "value": "IPX4", "source": "bose-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen-specs" }, "multipoint": { "value": true, "source": "bose-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen-announcement" }, "wireless_charging": { "value": true, "source": "bose-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen-announcement", "note": "New for this generation; the 1st-gen QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds lacked wireless charging, per Digital Trends and Tom's Guide." }, "driver_size_mm": { "value": 9.3, "source": "techradar-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "note": "From TechRadar's 'Specs' table ('9.3mm dynamic'). The same article's 'Also consider' table instead lists '10mm' for this product — an internal inconsistency. No other reviewed source gives a number. See spike-report.md." }, "codec_support": { "value": [ "SBC", "AAC", "aptX Adaptive" ], "source": "bose-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen-announcement", "note": "Bose's press release; confirmed by SoundGuys, What Hi-Fi? and Digital Trends. No LDAC support — TechRadar lists this as a con ('LDAC would've been a great addition this time around')." } }, "evidence": [ { "source": "rtings-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "pros": [ "Exceptional ANC.", "Great comfort and stability with three stabilizer sizes.", "Multi-device Bluetooth pairing." ], "cons": [ "Shorter 6.5-hour continuous battery life." ], "notes": [ "RTINGS structures its verdict by usage (Sports and Fitness, Travel, Office Work) rather than one overall pros/cons box; the pros/cons above are the deduplicated union of those sections, each bullet copied verbatim from its section.", "RTINGS calls noise isolation outstanding, saying the ANC system handily attenuates noise from airplane rumble to busy traffic to whirring PC fans and background conversations, and that the earbuds don't leak much audio.", "RTINGS calls the microphone merely 'okay': voices are reproduced cleanly and naturally, but higher registers can lack airiness and the mic struggles against overwhelming, sustained loud sounds like an arriving subway train.", "Frequency response consistency is rated great, though RTINGS notes the proprietary CustomTune feature adjusts sound to the listener's own ear-canal shape, so an individual's experience may differ from RTINGS' measured frequency response.", "RTINGS says some software improvements once exclusive to the 2nd Gen are being rolled out to the original QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds, which may narrow the gap between generations.", "RTINGS' comparison notes say the Sony WF-1000XM6 has longer battery life (8.6h vs the Bose's 6.5h) and broader codec support (LC3, LDAC) than the Bose, while the Bose are more comfortable and stable with slightly better mic recording quality.", "Numeric test scores and most measurement tables are member-only; this record cites only the openly published usage-based verdict text." ] }, { "source": "soundguys-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "pros": [], "cons": [], "notes": [ "SoundGuys measured 5 hours 34 minutes of battery life in its standardized playback test, calling it slightly below average for modern wireless earbuds but only about a 7% undershoot from Bose's advertised figure.", "SoundGuys measured the ANC reducing the loudness of external noise by 85%, which it calls among the best of any wireless earbuds it has tested, crediting the concha-fin stabilizers and ovoid nozzle for a good seal.", "A Bose representative told SoundGuys that a faint noise-floor sound audible during ANC operation in quiet environments is a byproduct common to ANC devices generally, and that the 2nd-gen earbuds run a new algorithm intended to mitigate it when it's most noticeable.", "MDAQS listening-panel scores (1.0-5.0 scale) in the earbuds' default mode: Timbre 4.9, Distortion 3.2, Immersiveness 4.2, Overall 4.8.", "An August 2025 firmware update enabled bone-conduction mic pickups, using skull vibrations to help distinguish voice from background noise; SoundGuys says this rejects noise better than digital noise reduction, but complicated its own mic testing.", "No top-level pros/cons list or overall numeric score is published on the page as fetched; SoundGuys instead tags the earbuds 'Great ANC - Decent features - Comfortable' and lists MSRP as $299.00.", "SoundGuys says the nozzle and nine tip/wing combinations suit larger ears better, and small-eared listeners should avoid it; it also suggests buying the 1st-gen QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds instead to save money, since the two sound very similar." ] }, { "source": "techgearlab-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "rating": { "value": 78, "scale": 100 }, "pros": [], "cons": [], "notes": [ "Scored by category (weighted): Sound Quality 8.7/10 (35%), Comfort & Fit 6.2/10 (25%), Noise Cancellation 8.4/10 (20%), App Features 7.0/10 (10%), Call Quality 8.0/10 (10%), tested alongside the Apple AirPods Pro 3, Samsung Galaxy Buds4 Pro, Google Pixel Buds 2a, and Nothing Ear Wireless.", "TechGearLab's Expert Panel Sound Quality Ratings table: Bose scored Bass 8.7, Mid-Range 8.4, Treble 9.0 (out of 10); table rows Best 8.7/9.0/8.9 and Average 6.9/7.0/6.5. TechGearLab does not state which products the Best/Average/Worst rows cover.", "TechGearLab's ANC Performance by Frequency Range table: Bose scored 26.0 (low), 31.2 (mid), 30.6 (high); table rows Best 32.6/27.3/36.7 and Average 17.9/21.7/27.4. TechGearLab does not state the unit or which products the Best/Average/Worst rows cover.", "Testers found the fit uncomfortable for extended wear, managing only about five hours before wanting to remove them, and said the touch controls are oversensitive, causing accidental track skips and volume changes when adjusting the fit.", "Live outdoor calls (wind, traffic, coffee shop) sounded clear to the other party, but the same buds did only middlingly on TechGearLab's prerecorded lab call test; it scored call quality on real-world experience, suspecting its non-moving test rig doesn't suit the earbuds' bone-conduction mic tech.", "TechGearLab calls the difference from the 1st-gen QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds minimal, likening it to 'shifting from HD to UHD' — better but only marginally so in practice — and says the earbud shape and battery life, the two weakest points of the original, remain largely unaddressed.", "TechGearLab recommends the Apple AirPods Pro 3 instead for iOS users seeking better overall performance, the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4 for outright best sound quality, and the Samsung Galaxy Buds4 Pro for Android users wanting similar sound and ANC for less money." ], "verdict_quote": "With a less impressive fit and battery life, these buds still shine thanks to immersive sound and superb noise cancellation" }, { "source": "techradar-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "pros": [ "Bose's noise cancellation is still top of the class", "Tailored immersive profiles add value", "Excellent device agnostic spatial audio with head tracking" ], "cons": [ "Earbuds are still a touch big", "No guided hearing tests", "EQ tweaks limited to three tabs" ], "notes": [ "Scored by section: Features 4.5/5, Sound quality 5/5, Design 5/5, Value 5/5.", "TechRadar's reviewer matched Bose's promised six hours of battery life in testing, using the 'Work' custom mode (75% ANC, Immersive Audio 'Still') at just under 45% volume.", "Says the driver is unchanged from the 1st-gen QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds bar a new embedded ear-wax guard on the nozzle, and that Bose confirmed the audio tuning itself received only subtle changes aimed at bass response and smoother high-end frequencies.", "Calls out the lack of LDAC support as a missed opportunity, especially since Snapdragon Sound / aptX Adaptive and aptX Lossless still require a compatible non-Samsung Android device with a suitable Qualcomm chip.", "For detail and neutrality, TechRadar says the Technics EAH-AZ100 edges out the Bose, but that the Bose take it for bass impact and 'zeal'." ], "verdict_quote": "Bose's second-gen Ultra earbuds are going to be incredibly tough to beat in 2025, if noise-nixing is your priority." }, { "source": "whathifi-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "rating": { "value": 5, "scale": 5, "note": "Overall verdict rating; section scores Sound 5/5, Features 5/5, Comfort 5/5." }, "pros": [ "Punchy, full-bodied sound", "Typically excellent noise cancelling", "Secure and comfortable design", "Excellent voice-call clarity" ], "cons": [ "Immersive Audio mode drains battery life", "Outstanding competition at this level", "Only three ear tip sizes" ], "notes": [ "What Hi-Fi? says Bose confirmed the driver is unchanged from the 1st-gen QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds, with subtle tuning changes instead aimed at bass response and smoother high-end frequencies.", "Calls the choice of only three ear-tip sizes 'a bit miserly for a pair of premium wireless earbuds' given the price, though it says the stability bands largely offset fit concerns.", "Says Immersive Audio cuts battery life from six hours to four when enabled, and that the team remains split on whether the spatial-audio effect itself is a net positive, benefiting some tracks (citing Ramin Djawadi's 'Across the Oceans of Time') while making others sound disorganized.", "Notes the Bose carries over the same $299/£299/AU$450 launch price as the 1st-gen QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds from two years earlier, with no price increase.", "What Hi-Fi?'s tech-specs box lists 7.7g per earbud, one of two tier-2 reviews giving that figure; see the weight_g spec note for the disagreement with TechGearLab's and Digital Trends' figures." ], "verdict_quote": "Bose's second-gen flagship earbuds are a pleasing improvement on their predecessors." }, { "source": "digitaltrends-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "pros": [ "Benchmark ANC", "Leading comfort levels", "Entertaining and informative sound", "Immersive (spatial) Audio isn't bad", "aptX Adaptive Bluetooth support" ], "cons": [ "Battery life is only okay", "No Auracast" ], "notes": [ "Scored by section: Design 9/10, Noise-canceling 10/10, Sound 9/10, Battery life 7/10.", "Named a Digital Trends Editors' Choice.", "Calls comfort and secure fit standout strengths, crediting the earbud shape (a middle ground between the Sony WF-1000XM5's bulbous body and the Apple AirPods Pro 2's stem) plus the light per-earbud weight and three sizes each of eartips and stability bands.", "Rates Bose's Immersive Audio spatial-audio implementation as one of the best available, second only to Apple's, while noting the Sony WF-1000XM5 and Technics EAH-AZ100 both offer around two extra hours of earbud battery life.", "Says call quality was clearly improved via a new AI-powered noise suppression system, with callers reporting clear voice pickup even in windy conditions.", "Recommends the Technics EAH-AZ100 as an alternative at the same price, saying it edges the Bose on sound quality and battery life though it is not quite as strong on ANC or spatial audio, or the cheaper Sony WF-1000XM5 for 9/10 or 10/10 performance across the board for less money." ], "verdict_quote": "Meaningful upgrades over the originals make this sequel a noise-canceling force to be reckoned with." }, { "source": "tomsguide-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "pros": [ "No price increase", "Still extremely comfortable", "Epic noise canceling", "Clear call quality", "Wireless charging" ], "cons": [ "Still quite large", "No battery improvements" ], "notes": [ "Says owners of the 1st-gen QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds have no real reason to upgrade, since sound is unchanged and the ANC and comfort gains, while real, are incremental.", "Calls the ANC improvement 'not just incremental' relative to the (Tom's Guide-designated) best-noise-canceling-earbuds-around 1st-gen model, citing better blocking of bus engines, train brakes and mechanical-keyboard clatter.", "In its own testing, battery life 'matched the claims that Bose prints on the side of the box, but it doesn't exceed them' — 6 hours from the earbuds, dropping to about 3 hours with Immersive Audio enabled, and 24 hours total with the case's roughly 4 additional charges.", "Says Sony's buds remain slightly more spacious and detailed sounding than the Bose, a gap it says persists in this generation, though it still calls the Bose's sound excellent in isolation.", "States a 10Hz-22kHz frequency response and 2.5 x 2.3 x 1.0 inch case dimensions in its spec box." ] } ], "consensus": { "score": 82, "confidence": "low", "n_sources": 2, "breakdown": [ { "source": "whathifi-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "normalized": 1, "weight": 0.4622 }, { "source": "techgearlab-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "normalized": 0.78, "weight": 0.4 } ], "computed_at": "2026-09-28" } }, "sources": [ { "id": "bose-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen-specs", "url": "https://support.bose.com/s/article/quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen-specifications?language=en_US", "publisher": "bose", "type": "manufacturer", "title": "Product Specification | Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen)", "author": null, "published": null, "updated": null, "accessed": "2026-09-28", "products": [ "bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen" ], "note": "No publish or update date shown. States battery life as 'Immersive Audio Off: 6 hours; Immersive Audio On: 4 hours; Case with 100% charge: 18 hours' but does not publish a per-earbud weight, driver size, or full codec list (aptX/LDAC/LC3 support isn't mentioned on this page at all)." }, { "id": "techgearlab-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "url": "https://www.techgearlab.com/reviews/audio/wireless-earbuds/bose-quietcomfort-ultra-gen-2-earbuds", "publisher": "techgearlab", "type": "lab-measurement", "title": "Bose QuietComfort Ultra (Gen 2) Earbuds Review", "author": null, "published": null, "updated": null, "accessed": "2026-09-28", "products": [ "bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen" ], "note": "No publish or update date visible on the page as fetched. Comparison table and measurements (weight, battery life, ANC attenuation by frequency, expert-panel sound-quality scores) run against the Apple AirPods Pro 3, Samsung Galaxy Buds4 Pro, Google Pixel Buds 2a, and Nothing Ear Wireless. Award badges shown at the top of the page (Editors' Choice, Best Buy) are not clearly attributed to a single product in the fetched text, so they aren't cited here." }, { "id": "bose-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen-announcement", "url": "https://www.bose.com/pressroom/bose-announces-the-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "publisher": "bose", "type": "manufacturer", "title": "Bose Unveils QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen) with Enhanced AI Noise Cancellation and Wireless Charging", "author": null, "published": "2025-06-12", "updated": null, "accessed": "2026-09-28", "products": [ "bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen" ], "note": "Bose's own launch press release, dated June 12, 2025. States a $299 US price and 'later this summer' availability without an exact release date; states Bluetooth Core 5.3, multipoint, and SBC/AAC/aptX Adaptive codec support (Snapdragon Sound), but does not give weight or driver size." }, { "id": "techradar-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "url": "https://techradar.com/audio/earbuds-airpods/bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen-review", "publisher": "techradar", "type": "expert-review", "title": "Whose noise cancelling earbuds are better than Bose Ultra Earbuds? Annoyingly, it's Bose again", "author": "Becky Scarrott", "published": null, "updated": null, "accessed": "2026-09-28", "products": [ "bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen" ], "note": "Byline says 'First reviewed in July 2025' with no exact day; body separately states the product was 'Released on June 12, 2025'. The article's own 'Specs' table lists Drivers as '9.3mm dynamic', but its separate 'Also consider' comparison table lists Drivers as '10mm' for the same product — an internal inconsistency; see spike-report.md." }, { "id": "rtings-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "url": "https://www.rtings.com/headphones/reviews/bose/quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "publisher": "rtings", "type": "lab-measurement", "title": "Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen) Review", "author": null, "published": null, "updated": "2026-07-28", "accessed": "2026-09-28", "products": [ "bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen" ], "note": "Numeric test scores and most measurement tables (weight, driver/transducer type, isolation attenuation in dB, etc.) are locked behind an RTINGS membership; only the published usage-based verdict text (Sports and Fitness, Travel, Office Work) is readable and cited here. No overall publish date is shown; the changelog's most recent entry is dated Jul 28, 2026." }, { "id": "soundguys-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "url": "https://www.soundguys.com/bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen-review-140812/", "publisher": "soundguys", "type": "lab-measurement", "title": "Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen) review: boring updates aren't necessarily bad ones", "author": null, "published": "2025-07-11", "updated": "2026-02-13", "accessed": "2026-09-28", "products": [ "bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen" ], "note": "Page states 'This article was published on July 11, 2025' and 'updated on February 13, 2026, to add more representative microphone samples'. No named byline; photo credits read 'Harley Maranan / SoundGuys'. No top-level pros/cons list or overall numeric score is published on the page as fetched, only MDAQS sound-quality sub-scores and prose." }, { "id": "whathifi-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "url": "https://www.whathifi.com/headphones/wireless-earbuds/bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "publisher": "whathifi", "type": "expert-review", "title": "Bose's 2nd-Gen premium wireless earbuds deliver outstanding noise-cancelling quality", "author": "Harry McKerrell", "published": "2025-07-22", "updated": null, "accessed": "2026-09-28", "products": [ "bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen" ], "note": "Page footer states 'Review published: 22nd July 2025' with no separate update date shown." }, { "id": "digitaltrends-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "url": "https://www.digitaltrends.com/home-theater/bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen-review/", "publisher": "digitaltrends", "type": "expert-review", "title": "Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds 2nd Gen review: raising the noise-canceling bar yet again", "author": null, "published": null, "updated": null, "accessed": "2026-09-28", "products": [ "bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen" ], "note": "No exact publish date visible on the page as fetched; a spec box instead states 'Released September 2025' and body text says 'an early September 2025 release', both of which conflict with the June 12, 2025 announcement date and with SoundGuys' review (published July 11, 2025 after purchasing and testing a retail unit). See spike-report.md. No named byline found in the fetched text." }, { "id": "tomsguide-bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen", "url": "https://www.tomsguide.com/audio/earbuds/bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2-review", "publisher": "tomsguide", "type": "expert-review", "title": "Bose's updated QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds iron out most of the first-gen's pain points, but they do look awfully familiar", "author": "Tammy Rogers", "published": null, "updated": null, "accessed": "2026-09-28", "products": [ "bose-quietcomfort-ultra-earbuds-2nd-gen" ], "note": "No publish or update date visible on the page as fetched. Its own spec box lists 'Weight 2.1oz', which (compared with Digital Trends' separate case weight of 2.2oz) reads as a case weight rather than a per-earbud figure, so it isn't used for the weight_g spec." } ] }