Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen) Review

Who it’s for

The Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen) target listeners who put noise cancellation and daily comfort ahead of outright sound detail or battery runtime. Digital Trends names them an Editors’ Choice, listing benchmark ANC and leading comfort levels among its pros and scoring noise cancelling a perfect 10 out of 10; it credits the comfort to a shape it describes as a middle ground between Sony’s bulbous WF-1000XM5 and Apple’s stemmed AirPods Pro 2, plus their light weight and three sizes each of eartips and stability bands 1. RTINGS likewise rates comfort and stability highly, pointing to the earbuds’ three stabilizer-fin sizes 2. Buyers who need to pair with multiple devices through the day also get multipoint Bluetooth, confirmed by both Bose’s own announcement and RTINGS’ testing 32.

People chasing the most detailed sound should look elsewhere. Tom’s Guide says Sony’s buds are “slightly more spacious and offer up a little more detail” than the Bose 4. It says that gap persists into this generation, even though it still calls the Bose’s sound excellent on its own terms. SoundGuys adds that the nozzle and stabilizer combinations suit larger ears better, and recommends small-eared listeners avoid the earbuds altogether 5. Owners of the first-generation QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds might also pause: Tom’s Guide tells them there’s no reason to upgrade 4, and TechGearLab calls the difference minimal, comparing it to “shifting from HD to UHD” rather than a meaningful leap 6 — though Digital Trends and What Hi-Fi? both describe the new generation as a real improvement, and Tom’s Guide’s own ANC section rates that specific gain as more than incremental 174.

What reviewers praise

Noise cancellation draws the most consistent praise for the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen). RTINGS says the ANC system easily handles noise ranging from airplane rumble and busy traffic to whirring PC fans and background conversation, and that the earbuds don’t leak much audio 2. SoundGuys backs that up with a measurement: its testing found the ANC cut the loudness of external noise by 85%, among the best results it has recorded for any wireless earbuds, crediting the concha-fin stabilizers and ovoid nozzle for a tight seal 5. TechGearLab’s own ANC performance-by-frequency test recorded 26.0 at low frequencies, 31.2 at mid frequencies and 30.6 at high frequencies — above the table’s Best row at mid frequencies but below it at low and high, and above the table’s Average row at every frequency 6. TechRadar lists noise cancellation as its top pro, calling it class-leading, and Digital Trends scores noise cancelling a perfect 10 out of 10 81.

Sound quality and spatial audio also score well. TechGearLab’s expert listening panel rated bass 8.7, mid-range 8.4 and treble 9.0 out of 10 — matching the table’s Best row on bass, below it on mid-range, and above it on treble, and above the table’s Average row of 6.9/7.0/6.5 on all three; TechGearLab itself says the Bose earned one of the highest sound-quality scores in its test group while missing the mark for absolute best 6. What Hi-Fi? describes the sound as punchy and full-bodied and awards a perfect 5-out-of-5 sound score 7. TechRadar praises the Immersive Audio spatial mode’s head tracking and device-agnostic operation, and Digital Trends separately rates the same feature as one of the best implementations available, behind only Apple’s 81. Call quality earns similar marks: What Hi-Fi? lists excellent voice-call clarity among its pros, and Digital Trends says a new AI-powered noise-suppression system produced clear voice pickup even in windy conditions 71.

Common criticisms

Battery life is the most repeated complaint about the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen). Bose rates them at 6 hours with Immersive Audio off, 4 hours with it on 9, plus roughly three additional full charges from the case 3. TechRadar and Tom’s Guide both matched that 6-hour figure in their own testing 84, but other outlets measured less: SoundGuys’ standardized playback test returned 5 hours 34 minutes, which it calls slightly below average for modern wireless earbuds, and TechGearLab measured 5.8 hours 56. RTINGS’ verdict text lists “Shorter 6.5-hour continuous battery life” as a con 2. That figure actually runs longer than Bose’s own spec, adding another data point to the spread rather than resolving it. What Hi-Fi? and Tom’s Guide both point out that the battery figures are unchanged from the first generation. What Hi-Fi? calls that disappointing, and adds that Immersive Audio cuts a charge from six hours to four, though it still judges the 24-hour total level with the AirPods Pro 2 and Sony XM5 7. Tom’s Guide lists “No battery improvements” among its cons 4.

Fit and controls draw criticism too. TechGearLab’s testers found the fit uncomfortable for extended wear, managing a wear time of about five hours and still wanting the fit to be more comfortable and secure than the first generation’s, and said the touch controls are oversensitive, causing accidental track skips and volume changes when adjusting fit 6. What Hi-Fi? calls the choice of only three ear-tip sizes “a bit miserly for a pair of premium wireless earbuds,” though it says the stability bands largely offset fit concerns 7. TechRadar’s cons list echoes the size complaint, saying “Earbuds are still a touch big” 8. It separately calls the lack of LDAC codec support a missed opportunity 8. Digital Trends’ only real complaints are battery life it calls merely okay and the absence of Auracast broadcast support 1.

Where reviewers disagree

Reviewers don’t agree on several points about the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen), starting with per-earbud weight. TechGearLab put a single earbud on its own scale and measured 7.09 grams, while TechRadar and What Hi-Fi? both list 7.7 grams in their spec tables, and Digital Trends states 0.2 ounces — about 5.7 grams 6871. Bose’s own spec page doesn’t publish a per-earbud weight, so there’s no manufacturer figure to settle the three-way split 9.

When the earbuds actually reached buyers isn’t settled either. Bose announced them on June 12, 2025, and TechRadar’s review states the same date as the release 38. Digital Trends instead states “an early September 2025” release window 1. That conflicts with SoundGuys, whose review states it published on July 11, 2025 after buying a retail unit — weeks before Digital Trends’ stated release window 5.

Opinions on the Immersive Audio spatial mode also split. Digital Trends rates the feature as one of the best implementations available, behind only Apple’s 1. What Hi-Fi?, by contrast, says its own team remains split on whether the effect is a net positive, helping some tracks while making others sound disorganized 7.

Alternatives

Reviewers point to several alternatives to the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen) depending on what a buyer values most. For iPhone owners who want the best all-around performance, TechGearLab recommends the Apple AirPods Pro 3 instead, suggests the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4 for listeners who prioritize sound quality above all else, and points Android owners on a budget to the Samsung Galaxy Buds4 Pro for similar sound and ANC at a lower price 6. Digital Trends offers three suggestions: the Technics EAH-AZ100 at the same price, which it says edges the Bose on sound quality and battery life though it is not quite as strong on ANC or spatial audio; the AirPods Pro 2, which it says have the only spatial-audio implementation it has heard beat the Bose’s Immersive Audio effect; or the cheaper Sony WF-1000XM5, which it says delivers 9/10 or 10/10 performance across the board for less money 1. TechRadar reaches a similar conclusion about the Technics model, saying it edges out the Bose on detail and neutrality, though the Bose still wins on bass impact 8.

One recurring suggestion is to skip this generation altogether. SoundGuys says the new and first-generation QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds sound very similar, and recommends buying the older, cheaper model instead 5. RTINGS’ own comparison against the Sony WF-1000XM6 splits the difference: it credits the Sony with longer battery life (8.6 hours versus 6.5) and broader codec support, including LDAC, while giving the Bose the edge on comfort, stability and microphone recording quality 2. Even so, TechRadar’s overall take is that the Bose will be very hard to beat in 2025 for buyers whose priority is noise cancellation 8.