Are Bose's Ultra Open Earbuds Better than AirPods?

The thing about wireless earbuds is that they all pretty much look and perform the same. Your AirPods Pro look like the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro and so on and so forth. It’s a sea of stems and buds and sameness. Bose said fuck that; it’s time for something different. Instead of sitting in your ear canal, the Ultra Open Earbuds feature an unconventional design that attaches to the side of your ear, almost like a piece of jewelry.

Open-ear headphones have started to become a thing for a few reasons. They don’t plug your ear canal, so there’s no weird pressure sensation, and they allow you to hear your surroundings at all times. That may sound antithetical in an age of noise cancellation, but this awareness is crucial for safety, especially for runners and cyclists who need to remain alert to traffic and other potential hazards. The Bose Ultra Open excels in these situations, providing clear, high-quality audio without isolating you from what's around you.

Bose Ultra Open Earbuds

Pros

• Comfortable design you can wear all day
• Allows for environmental awareness
• Great for all types of workouts

Cons

• No wireless charging support
• Bass performance lacking due to open-ear design

But the unique open-ear design doesn’t come without compromises. After testing them on runs, workouts, and in coffee shops, I found that what you gain in comfort and awareness, you sacrifice in bass response and noise cancellation. It’s a similar story to our experience with the Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 (our favorite running headphones for long distances). Still, even with its shortcomings, the Open Ultra Earbuds delivers one of the most unique experience available.

Do you find yourself frequently taking your headphones off to give your ears a break? Same. I’ve used dozens of headphones over the years, and my ears always start to hurt after a while. The Ultra Open Earbuds solve this with a clip-on design that completely avoids putting any pressure on your ear canal. Instead of jamming plastic into your ears, these earbuds rest against the outer portion of your ear using a flexible hook mechanism. The rounded battery barrel sits behind your ear, while the earbud part sits inside your ear. Both components are connected by a silicone band that provides enough tension to keep them from falling out.

Yes, it’s a bit weird. The process of putting them on and removing them off takes some getting used to. You intuitively know how to use standard earbuds and headphones, whereas the Ultra Open Earbuds require a short demonstration. I handed these to my buddy and he couldn’t figure out how to put them on until I showed him. However, once you know how to do it, it’s easy—and once they’re on, they’re on. They won’t dislodge or fall out while you’re running or jumping. I’ve always had a problem with my right earbud not fitting quite right, but I had no issues with the Ultra Open Earbuds.

I also had no issue wearing them all day, with battery life to match. You’d think clipping something to your ear for hours and hours would get annoying, but that wasn’t the case. The buds hardly weigh anything, and the design distributes what little weight there is across multiple contact points, so no single part of your ear bears too much pressure. I put them on the moment I sat down for work and didn’t take them off until it was time to clock out.

Let’s acknowledge this upfront: open-ear buds don’t offer the same rich sound as in-ear models. Without creating a seal in your ear canal, you lose the deeper bass, and you can forget about blocking out your chatty office neighbor. Honestly, it’s not something I mind all that much. With my AirPods 4, I generally use one earbud anyway, because I don’t like the feeling of something in my ear canal.

Despite lacking the bass performance of other models, the Ultra Open Earbuds still deliver great sound. MIKE’s new album Showbiz! comes through with impressive clarity, the rapper’s lyrics floating clearly over his mellow, languid beats. The mid-range and vocal presence remain intact, preserving the album’s soulful sound. For everyday use, the sound quality is more than adequate. Yes, bass-heavy tracks don’t thump like they do with premium earbuds, and you’ll still hear the subway announcement over your music. But that’s the point. The Ultra Open Earbuds are designed to integrate your audio with your surroundings.

Speaking of your surroundings: If you’re the type of person who listens to music with the sound turned way up, well, you may want to reconsider your listening habits. That’s because open-ear buds are notorious for leaking sound, and these are no different. While the earbuds use Bose’s OpenAudio technology to minimize audio leakage, it can only do so much. If you’re in a quiet place and your volume is high, people will know what you’re listening to.

The Ultra Open Earbuds aren’t exactly cheap. At $299, they’re more expensive than popular alternatives like the AirPods Pro 2 and Beats Powerbeats Pro 2. With that in mind, you’d expect the Ultra Open Earbuds to offer features like wireless charging and wear detection, which can automatically play and pause audio when you put on or take off the earbuds. But none of those features are supported. These features are commonly found in wireless earbuds, so it's disappointing they’re not available here.

That said, the Ultra Open Earbuds do offer its share of premium features, including compatibility with the Bose Music app, which allows you to adjust EQ settings and create custom listening modes. There’s also an Auto Volume feature that does exactly what the name suggests: automatically adjust the volume based on your environment. If you step out of your quiet apartment onto loud city streets, the volume will compensate accordingly. Meanwhile, a multipoint connection feature allows you to connect the earbuds to two devices simultaneously (like your phone and computer).

Additionally, the earbuds also support Bose’s Immersive Audio, a spatial audio feature that promises a more three-dimensional sound. While the feature can provide a more dynamic listening experience, it drains the battery quicker. I mostly kept the feature off so I could eke out as much battery life as possible. The Ultra Open Earbuds also features IPX4 water resistance, so you can workout without worrying about your sweat messing them up.

Bose Ultra Open Earbuds

The Bose Ultra Open Earbuds aren’t for everyone. Audiophiles craving thunderous bass and complete isolation should look elsewhere. However, for those who value all-day comfort, situational awareness, and a unique design that breaks from the earbud monotony, they provide something different. The comfort factor alone justifies their existence, though they also deliver great sound (with the caveat of lackluster bass). I don’t live in a big city, so blocking out traffic and horns isn’t my main priority. I want comfort. On that front, the Ultra Open Earbuds delivers.