Bose QuietComfort 45 Noise-Cancelling Headphones debut at $329

AppleInsider

A successor to Bose's popular QC35, the highly anticipated QuietComfort 45 headphones offer enhanced acoustic noise-canceling technology and USB-C charging.

The headphones were first spotted at Adorama on Aug. 31, with a retail price tag of $329. At press time, shoppers can preorder the QuietComfort 45 headphones at the Bose dealer, with no official ship date included on the company's product page. According to Adorama, orders are shipped on a first-come, first-served basis, with free shipping on orders delivered within the contiguous U.S.

New to the QuietComfort 45 is USB-C charging, with up to 24 hours of play time on a single charge. The QC45 also offer improved voice pickup with the addition of a fourth microphone.

The synthetic leather earcup cushions and headband are designed to provide a premium feel in a competitive space that includes the popular Sony XM4 headphones and AirPods Max.

Two modes allow users to select between full noise-canceling (Quiet Mode) and hearing your environment and music at the same time (Aware Mode).

Stay tuned to AppleInsider for additional details once the Bose QuietComfort 45 headphones hit store shelves. If you want to get your hands on a pair of the QC45, Adorama is accepting preorders in both Black and White Smoke for $329.

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outdoorappdeveloper

Let's hope they fix their Bluetooth connectivity which is a complete mess in the QC 35 and 700 headphones. Constant disconnections. Hard to connect even to a Samsung TV. Terrible battery life. However when plugged into a PS5 controller, they are still pretty great.

pmh

OutdoorAppDeveloper said:

Let's hope they fix their Bluetooth connectivity which is a complete mess in the QC 35 and 700 headphones. Constant disconnections. Hard to connect even to a Samsung TV. Terrible battery life. However when plugged into a PS5 controller, they are still pretty great.

Yeah, agree. the poor connectivity is the biggest problem with QC35s. I've got both QC35 and AirPods Pros. The QC's antenna appears to be in the right earphone and cut out if I'm a few feet from the Bluetooth source and turn my head so the signal has to go through my head. Unless I have clear line of sight and am within feet the QC35s crap out. The AirPods Pro for all their small size work much better and can go through multiple walls.

When wearing the AirPods, I can walk around wearing them. With the QC35s unless you're listening to your paired phone that you carry around with you, no walking around.

charlesn

Confusing Bose lineup. The 2-year-old 700s are priced $50 higher than the newest QC45s because why? 

dnykjprfc6fnbs

OutdoorAppDeveloper said:

Let's hope they fix their Bluetooth connectivity which is a complete mess in the QC 35 and 700 headphones. Constant disconnections. Hard to connect even to a Samsung TV. Terrible battery life. However when plugged into a PS5 controller, they are still pretty great.

It also is an absolute mess with the qc anc ear buds. I love them, when they work, which honestly more often than not but to have earbuds that don’t play even after it tells you connected to your iPhone but no sound then you put them back in case repair and then the left earbud has no sound so back in the case they go they pair up so you go into the Bose music app to fine tune say the ANC and all it is is sit there  and tell you, after it tells you that you’re connected, but yet their own app says they aren’t. I bought a pair of AirPod Pros and though not quite the power house of the Bose, they at least connect all the time. I hear Klipsch has a new ANC earbud set out so I may give them a go. 

payeco

charlesn said:

Confusing Bose lineup. The 2-year-old 700s are priced $50 higher than the newest QC45s because why? 

The NC-700s were considered higher end than the QC-35s. My guess is we’re going to see a NC-800, or something like that, soon to slot that model back about the QC45s. I had the QC35s and have the NC-700s. Noise canceling on the 700s is a bit better. There are some additional features the 700s have over the 35s and the construction is a bit more premium. 

That being said, I recently picked up the AirPods Max and I’m probably going to sell the 700s or give them to my nephew. 

charlesn

payeco said:

charlesn said:

Confusing Bose lineup. The 2-year-old 700s are priced $50 higher than the newest QC45s because why? 

The NC-700s were considered higher end than the QC-35s. My guess is we’re going to see a NC-800, or something like that, soon to slot that model back about the QC45s. I had the QC35s and have the NC-700s. Noise canceling on the 700s is a bit better. There are some additional features the 700s have over the 35s and the construction is a bit more premium. 

That being said, I recently picked up the AirPods Max and I’m probably going to sell the 700s or give them to my nephew. 

Yes, I understood the 700s being more expensive than the QC35s--new model, new design, latest audio and sound cancelling upgrades, etc. But now? And I can't see Bose dropping the 800s soon after the QC45s... the 700s dropped a year after the QC35 II went on sale. 

I also wouldn't rush to sell or give away those 700s until you've lived with AirPods Max for a while. My take: I love the sound of my APMs--the best-sounding bluetooth headphones out there, IMO. But they never leave the house. They're not 'phones I'd think of wearing around town, on public transit, at the gym, etc., or that I'd casually throw into a bag on the go. They're too heavy, too easy to damage... and I don't like the idea of have expensive electronics on my head that scream Steal Me! So I ended up keeping my Sony XM4s that I intended to sell. 

payeco

charlesn said:

payeco said:

charlesn said:

Confusing Bose lineup. The 2-year-old 700s are priced $50 higher than the newest QC45s because why? 

The NC-700s were considered higher end than the QC-35s. My guess is we’re going to see a NC-800, or something like that, soon to slot that model back about the QC45s. I had the QC35s and have the NC-700s. Noise canceling on the 700s is a bit better. There are some additional features the 700s have over the 35s and the construction is a bit more premium. 

That being said, I recently picked up the AirPods Max and I’m probably going to sell the 700s or give them to my nephew. 

Yes, I understood the 700s being more expensive than the QC35s--new model, new design, latest audio and sound cancelling upgrades, etc. But now? And I can't see Bose dropping the 800s soon after the QC45s... the 700s dropped a year after the QC35 II went on sale. 

I also wouldn't rush to sell or give away those 700s until you've lived with AirPods Max for a while. My take: I love the sound of my APMs--the best-sounding bluetooth headphones out there, IMO. But they never leave the house. They're not 'phones I'd think of wearing around town, on public transit, at the gym, etc., or that I'd casually throw into a bag on the go. They're too heavy, too easy to damage... and I don't like the idea of have expensive electronics on my head that scream Steal Me! So I ended up keeping my Sony XM4s that I intended to sell. 

That’s basically how I use my 700s already. I use them every night at home watching TV after my wife goes to bed so I don’t bother her or the neighbors, and I use them on the 10 to 15 flights I take each year (well, before COVID). Sometimes I’ll take them on Amtrak when visiting family a few states away. When I’m on the subway or just walking around I use my AirPods Pro. When I’m on the go like that I don’t want to deal with a big set of cans, especially since I usually don’t even have a backpack I could store them in so I’d have to just wear them around my neck. The Pros are perfect in that sense. Small with a small case I can throw in my pocket when I’m done using them but good enough sound quality and really good noise canceling to block out annoying people/music on the subway or the general noise of the city when I’m walking around.