The pads themselves swivel and fold to help them fit into the included carrying case, which makes them easy to throw in your carryon bag when they’re not around your neck. The exterior of the headphones looks sleek and feels comfortable thanks to its padded foam bridge and faux-leatherette ear pads. The WH-1000XM4 have a few features the QC45 do not – like the DSEE Extreme audio upscaler and support for the LDAC codec – while the NC700 offer adjustable noise cancellation, one major missing feature on the QuietComfort 45.īose has kept a consistent design with its flagship headphones for the better part of the last decade, and that hasn’t changed with the QC45. That’s on the expensive side for noise cancelling headphones – as some can be had for as little as $100 / £100 / AU$200 – but this isn’t unreasonable for Bose as the QuietComfort 35 II cost $350 / £330 / AU$500.Īt this price point, the biggest competition for the Bose QC45 is the similarly spec’d Sony WH-1000XM4, which we currently consider to be the best noise-cancelling headphones, and Bose’s own Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 that aren’t much more expensive.

The Bose QuietComfort 45 became available on Septemand cost $329 / £329 / AU$499.95, depending on where you live. Bose QuietComfort 45 at Amazon for $249 (opens in new tab).If you're in the US, check out Sam's Club and Costco if you want to pick up a pair. The Bose QuietComfort SE are expected to launch in the US soon (in a few days) at $330 and sometime later in Europe for €350 – those are the same prices that the QC 45 were at launch (though they are down to $250/€270 right now on and can be found for less elsewhere). The retail package includes a carrying case, the headphones themselves, a USB A-to-C cable and a 3.5mm to 2.5mm audio cable if you want to forgo the Bluetooth 5.1 wireless connection and plug in.Īs is typical for the series, these are lightweight and comfortable headphones that can be folded flat for better portability. Of course, there is a mobile app that lets you tune settings like an equalizer. It and other functions like Aware Mode (Bose’s name for ambient mode) are operated using hardware buttons instead of touch controls. Owners of the 35 II will be pleased to hear that microUSB is nowhere to be seen, the SE use USB-C instead (just like the 45).Īs with previous models, there is high quality Active Noise Cancellation on board. A quick 15 minute top-up is enough for a 3 hour stint. The Bose QuietComfort SE promise 24 hour play time on a single charge (up from 20 hours on the 35 II and matching the 45) and need 2.5 hours to recharge. This was a silent launch, so it almost flew under the radar, but they are already listed in several US stores (and should be coming to Europe soon as well). Now there is an SE model out, which seems to be a rebrand of the 45. The Bose QuietComfort 35 II were getting pretty long in the tooth when they were replaced last year by the QuietComfort 45.

Bose qc35 iii release date