Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Video: AirPods Pro 2 vs. Bose QuietComfort II
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Is it a game changer though? I can count on quite a bit less than one hand how often I’ve used it. It’s cool, don’t get me wrong, but ultimately I prefer a tighter audio stream.
I know that no one who is an audiophile buys Bose. Bose is one tier above Beats in the audio department. These new earbuds are the same, they are top tier for ANC but not for anything else.
Bose has very specific applications where their ANC tech shines. They also have great microphones, which is crucial for applications like aviation or sports with lots of crowd noise (like I mentioned before).
For example, their QC 35 II is super comfortable, great noise canceling, but it has subpar audio quality.
This has to be the best summary of the two headsets. Not sure if the article reviewer is tone deaf or hard at hearing. All you need to do it get both headsets on an airplane ride, then you ask yourself which ANC is better. As for sound quality, Bose QC II is absolutely better and it easily blows the silly AirPods (pro 2 or not) out of the water. Please do not just be an Apple fan when you are writing the review now. Apparently you didn’t really use these headsets. The one thing Bose headset is not good is the earbuds are a bit harder to get out of the case (and you failed to mention).
Seems like both are good options. Would have been nice if AirPods came in more colors.
An audiophile would never consider any of these wireless earbuds in the first place. Bose and Apple sound good enough for mass market and have equally impressive tech inside, especially in their form factors.
I remember hearing some 901s for the first time or a wave radio, or even their OG 5.1 setups with those tiny satellite speakers. They rarely matched the quality when I properly built a system, even with similar price, but were amazing for the majority that didn't want to fuss around all of the nonsense that the niche audiophile market is willing to.
For me, it feels like a gimmick, but I'm probably not the target for the feature. I use one at a time for conferences calls, music when walking the dog, or sometimes on an airplane (but my Bose are far better, and wired, so they last the entire flight). None of those benefit from it (and the dog walking is downright weird when the sound seems like it comes from my pocket). Neat tech, but just don't get the why of it.
Yup, but at 30k feet next to a bulkhead on a 757 with the engine outside, there's nothing better (Well, the Sony over the ear are close). Their wired earbuds are good enough at 1/20th the size...and don't make my ears sweat! But the 35s are in a whole different class from any earbud.
Last edited:
I hope you are not the driver! Driving with headphones is a recipe for disaster and should be banned!
I haven't tested the Bose. But I am very weary of their headphones. My experience with them is that they sound OK when NC is off, but as soon as NC is turned on the audio quality gets muddy and muted. I have the feeling they are sacrificing audio quality through over aggressive NC. So yes, perhaps their NC is better but I'd rather have a little less NC and top audio quality!
Spatial audio is a tchotchke. Almost like Samsungs eye scrolling. It will be dead within a year or so.
At MARKETING noise cancellation. Sony had had better solutions for far longer, though many of their earlier products in this space were only sold in Japan. Sennheiser also had a series of very capable NC headphones dating to the early 90’s.
I've just returned the Air Pods Pro 2 to the Apple Store as I found them nothing special unfortunately. I'll order the Bose ones for comparison though, otherwise it's back to the plain Air Pods 3 I already own that are ok-ish for its price.
There seems to be little evolution with the Air Pod 2, maybe they've hit its design limitations? The lack of high-res codecs is ridiculous IMO for a product that calls itself "Pro".
There seems to be little evolution with the Air Pod 2, maybe they've hit its design limitations? The lack of high-res codecs is ridiculous IMO for a product that calls itself "Pro".
Um… i said nothing about driving with them on.
You mean, the same EQ that you need to put on "Late Night" to make them sound better?
lolYou should write those clickbait ad headlines for a living
I was going to be more specific, but I couldn’t remember which buds they were comparing the AirPods Pro (1) to, and didn’t feel like looking.
It would be nice if they could make the hamburger size case smaller since earbuds are supposed to be portable (that thing isn’t fitting in a pocket), and added ANC. Otherwise I prefer them to the AirPod Pros.
They're not "reviews" as such, but extremely biased, merely throwing in a few compliments of <insert competitor product> to avoid it being stupidly obvious.
I do think that it's important to keep privacy in mind. While Apple has a corporate policy recognizing privacy as a human right, Bose does not. Bose has a history, in their Bose Connect app, of trying to glean extra data off of folks which they can then sell.
I'm not keen on having earphones which are going to report back to Bose on where I'm located, and when I listen to what. I know that there's money in violating user privacy, but we don't have to pay extra for less privacy.
I'm not keen on having earphones which are going to report back to Bose on where I'm located, and when I listen to what. I know that there's money in violating user privacy, but we don't have to pay extra for less privacy.
You are indisputably correct- additionally, the APP series is faster for device switching, while the WF-XM4 is far more flexible for tip selection- potentially even more of an NC edge- and has USB-C. Both have their places in my bag.
I stand with you, I agree with this except I didn't return the AirPods II Pro, with all the hassle to connect the BOSE I think I am keeping AirPods this time. Not to mention that my frist gen QC earbuds died out of nowhere and I am waiting a replacement (thanks to Bose great customer service).
No because they are better than the first Gen and I like how it integrates with the apple eco system...use both happily