Bose Ultra Open Earbuds Review: Hear the World Around You, But Also Your Podcast

I’ve been a long time fan of Bose, thanks to my boyfriend showing me they’re the ultimate choice. Three years ago, I asked for AirPods for Christmas, but after some advice from him and research, I decided noise-canceling headphones would be a game changer for my travel journalist lifestyle. I’m always trying to sleep in cars, on planes, trains, buses, etc. The Bose noise-canceling headphones changed my life. I sat next to twin one and a half-year-olds on a 13-hour flight to Rwanda, and I slept like a baby with those in.

That said, as useful as I find the Bose noise-canceling headphones, sometimes they can almost be debilitating in situations where you need to be aware of your surroundings. It’s nice to have another option on hand. Enter the Bose Ultra Open Earbuds. You can still hear what’s going on around you clear as day, while listening to your music, a podcast, audio books, movies, a meeting, or phone call.

Unboxing and first impressions

First impressions were good, but as I mentioned, I’m used to Bose products and I suspected that these headphones were going to make a solid first impression based on previous experience.

Inside the box are two Bose Ultra Open Earbuds, a manual, the charging case (I chose black), and a USB-C® (A to C) cable (12 inches).

Pros and cons

Every product will have its ups and downs, so it’s important to weigh the pros and cons before purchasing.

Pros

As much as I love my noise-canceling headphones, they can block out important announcements in the airport, or even be a safety concern if you’re unaware of potential threats around you. Adding the Ultra Open Earbuds gives you options when it comes to wireless earbuds. With quality speakers, you hear your music quite clearly, while still being able to pick up on the chatter around you.

Cons

It can be a little bit confusing as to where the placement goes on your ear, so take a look at the manual. It takes a little playing around, depending on your ear size. When you put the earbud in, make sure the barrel-shaped piece has the button on top before hooking it behind your ear. Bose suggests positioning the earbud at an angle to give you the best sound quality, but you can slide it around to see what’s comfortable for you.

Price

The Bose Ultra Open Earbuds will cost you $299. Personally, I think the price is very reasonable for the product. Bose headphones are great quality, and when properly cared for are meant to last you many years.

Specifications

• Drivers: 12 mm
• Active noise cancellation: No (but that’s the point!)
• Battery life: Up to 7 hours of play time
• Weight: 6 grams per earbud
• Connectivity: Bluetooth, wireless connectivity
• Frequency range: Frequency response is 20Hz-20kHz
• Waterproofing: IPX4 rating for water resistance

Key features

It’s important to look at the key features before making a decision as to which headphones are right for you. Five colorways are available, including White Smoke, black, and Diamond 60th Edition (white). They charge quickly, within about an hour, and give you about seven hours of play time whether you’re using them for relaxing by the pool, or using your earbuds for running.

Safety

In situations when you’re going for a walk, exploring a new city, out and about, or even sitting in the airport where you need to hear announcements or be aware of your surroundings, these can be a great option. It’s so important to be aware of your surroundings, especially if you’re exploring alone. Wearing headphones that don’t block out your surrounding noise can be helpful, and they can keep you safe in certain situations.

Water resistant

If you tend to sweat or workout outdoors, worried about getting hit with rain from time to time, having earbuds that are water-resistant is important. You don’t want to risk flooding your earbuds with moisture if they can’t handle it.

Comfort

When you’re shopping for earbuds, the obvious comes into play: good price, crisp audio, battery life, etc. One thing you should never overlook is comfort. If you’re wearing these earbuds for hours at a time, you won’t want them rubbing on your ear or pinching. These earbuds are comfortable and easy to slide around and adjust, based on your comfort.

Is it for you?

Definitely! As I’ve mentioned a few times in this article, I’ve been a long-time fan of Bose and know I enjoy their products in general, but I didn’t see until personally using them how beneficial they are. As someone who travels solo the majority of the time for work, it can be unsafe to have the noise around me completely blocked out. I definitely see the benefits of the Ultra Open Earbuds.

Also, the fact that they stay secure on your ear is a great feature. They really don't slip or move, something that I don’t always love about the noise-canceling earbuds. Those tend to slip out of my ears a lot, but the Ultra Opens don’t because they’re hooked on quite tightly, but are still comfortable.

Performance

You’re going to get better sound quality with over-the-ear headphones or noise-canceling headphones, but these aren’t meant to drown out your surroundings.

Sound performance

The music is clear, filling my ears with my favorite jams. They might not be ideal for noisy locations or surroundings. They’re meant to give the vibe that you’re listening to the radio in your bedroom. The sound quality is not going to be as powerful as some of the other earbuds on the market, but the point is to have your bearings.

Battery life

They advertise that the battery life is up to seven hours of play time, but I find sometimes Bose products tend to underpromise and overdeliver, often lasting a little bit longer than the advertised time frame.

Bluetooth range

The headphones connect through Bluetooth wireless connectivity and the range is about 33 feet, or 10 meters. Keep in mind, though, sometimes this can be slightly warped by potential hurdles like other devices or walls from room to room.

Microphone

The Bose Ultra Open Earbuds can be used for phone calls like the other Bose earbuds and headphones. However, you’ll notice that the clarity is not great. It’ll do the trick, but definitely sounds a little muffled compared to other earbuds.

Voice calling performance

To reiterate what I said under the microphone section above, the Bose Ultra Open Earbuds can certainly be used for voice calling, but they won’t be as crisp and clear as if you were using your phone. It’s not that you’ll have trouble hearing calls—just in comparison to other earbuds out there, these are not the clearest.

Quality

In some aspects, the quality is there, you just have to really understand what you’re buying. As mentioned briefly above, Bose says these earbuds are meant to be like you’re listening to the radio in your room, but in earbud form.

Size and weight

The Bose Ultra Open Earbuds measure in at 0.73 inches x 0.67 inches x 1.07 inches and the case as a whole is 1.65 inches x 2.56 inches x 1.04 inches (0.0966 pounds). Each earbud weighs 6 grams, so they’re nice and light to throw in your pocket or your purse on the go.

Frequency response

The frequency response is 20Hz to 20kHz, which is good. This refers to how much sound headphones can create, and this range is typically the standard.

Drivers

The driver refers to the piece inside the earbud that produces the sound. The Bose Ultra Open Earbuds have a 12 mm driver, good in comparison to the 9.4 mm driver other Bose earbuds have.

Water resistance

Don’t confuse water resistant with waterproof. These are not waterproof, but water resistant with an IPX4 rating. If water or sweat is splashed onto the earbuds, they’re built to resist any potential damage from that.

Design and build quality

The earbuds have a unique design and allow a lot of room to slide around on your ear to feel comfortable. My first impression when opening them was “wow, these are cool,” and the second thought that rolled in was “how do I wear these?” The design is meant to be sleek, comfortable, and discreet, allowing you to wear them all day and forget you even have them on.

Style

I love the style of these earbuds. Not only do they work well, but they look stylish, and are fairly discrete.

Comfort

If you have bigger ears, like my boyfriend, you might have to move them around a little bit to find a comfortable spot, but they fit nicely on my ears and have a bit of stretch in the back. I find them quite comfortable, and once he figured out where to place them on his ears, he agreed. They’re meant to be comfortable, and wearable throughout the entire day and I like that they’re not wedged into my ears.

Controls

I found the controls easy to use and understand. A button at the top of the barrel piece hooks behind your ear and essentially does it all. You can press the button once to either answer a call, pause, or start playing again on the left ear or right ear, press twice on the button on either the left or right barrel to skip to the next track or end a call, click three times to go to a previous song (either ear), press down once and hold for a shortcut (either ear), and press twice and hold to adjust the volume down in the left ear or up in the right ear. It’s recommended that you download the Bose Music app to make any necessary adjustments, as well.

Portability

They’re tiny and lightweight; easy to throw in your pocket. Just try not to lose them!

Build quality

The build quality is certainly there. They feel strong and sturdy, but the great thing you can always keep in the back of your mind with Bose is that the company has excellent customer service. If you have an issue or something breaks prematurely, I wouldn’t put it past Bose to look into replacing it for you.

Case

The case is quite sturdy, charges the earbuds, and keeps them safe. It locks in the earbuds and clicks shut, securely protecting them when they’re not in use.

Stability

They are quite stable, a disadvantage of some of the other earbuds I’ve tried. It’s no secret that I love my noise-canceling earbuds from Bose, but they tend to slip out of my ears, which can get annoying at times. This happens especially when I try to sleep with them in. I love how the Ultra Open Earbuds wrap around my ear and stay put.

What should you get instead of the Bose Ultra Open Earbuds?

If you’ve decided after reading this article that the Bose Ultra Open Earbuds are not a good option for you, I can’t recommend Bose’s noise-canceling earbuds enough. If you’re looking for a cheap version of open earbuds, there are other options out there. However, I believe it’s worth the investment to just go with a loyal company.

Final verdict

I see the value in these for sure, but I don’t know if I would want them to be my only pair of earbuds. I’d want to have a second pair at least for situations where I wanted to block out the noise. That said, it still offers a great option for those times where you need to stay safe or listen to your surroundings.