And while the design might be polarizing to some, the price has me up in arms.
Meanwhile, the cylindrical battery barrel rests along the back of the ear.
The USB-C port sits at the bottom of the case.
Photo: Sherri L. Smith
The earbuds ship with a USB-A to USB-C cable for when its time to charge.
fire up the case and see a glossy plastic seat with gold connector pins.
I felt totally at ease wearing the Ultra Open during the initial demo.
But, I have to admit my anxiety level started rising when I started wearing them.
The Bose Ultra Open earbuds didnt budge even when I was a sweat-covered mess.
I barely felt the Ultra Open for the 40 hours I wore them; theyre just that light.
What I like most about the Ultra Open is the unobtrusiveness.
The Bose stayed in place despite being buffeted by my medium-sized braids.
How do you control these things?
Look no further than the silvery button at the top of the battery barrel.
This proper multifunction button handles play/pause, answer/end calls, skip forwards/backward, Immersive Audio, and even volume.
But I couldnt raise the volume.
Bose Ultra Open Earbuds Sound
The soundtrack of your life.
Its just accentuated with ambient noise.
I live in New York City, where carving out some quiet can sometimes seem impossible.
Thats why I prefer closed-ear headphones with powerful active noise cancellations.
TheBose QuietComfort Ultraheadphones currently sit in my top five noise-canceling headphones picks.
I even listened in on a bad date recap while riding the subway.
Nosiness aside, the openness came in handy when talking to my boyfriend.
I didnt have to remove or turn down the music to engage in conversation.
Speaking of audio quality, Im happy that Bose didnt hold back.
The 808s were a bit light, but the salacious vocals from both rappers were strong.
Thats true to a certain extent.
At 50% volume, the Ultra Open blocked out most of the NYC subway din.
In case youre worried about audio bleed from the Open, I can put those fears to rest.
It took cranking the earbuds to 100% for me to hear any bleeding in a completely silent room.
Although I could listen to every word of Janelle Monaes Phenomenal, it was still very faint.
It would be difficult to pick up the bleeding in a noisier setting.
These days, its not a premium pair of buds without the inclusion of some spatial audio.
When engaged, Immersion Audio creates a wider soundstage that gives the impression of a three-dimensional listening experience.
Both ensure youre always in the sweet spot of whatever you listen to.
Bose Ultra Open Earbuds Battery and Mic
The battery life lives up to the hype.
I called my mom and held a quick conversation.
I heard everything, including the bass and vocals on Lil Waynes A Milli.
My mothers voice was loud and clear as we discussed upcoming dinner plans.
She said she could hear me clearly and the explosions from the movie I had playing in the background.
Bose estimates that the Open can last 7.5 hours with Immersion Audio disabled and 4.5 with it on.
And in terms of design, nothing on the market looks anything like the Ultra Open.
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