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I wanted noise cancelling earbuds to wear at the gym to defeat the obnoxious, raucous noise the management insists on pumping through their PA system, telling me most clients love this "music." My word, music it most assuredly is not. What's on my iPod is music. And that's what I want to hear. But I couldn't with the simple earbuds I had. The noise pollution at the gym is so intrusive, there's no way I can enjoy my own music. Why do these people think it's conducive to exercise to inundate the space with that noise at an ear-splitting volume? No attempts on my part get them to change, not even to turn the volume down to a reasonable level. So . . .
I went shopping for active noise cancelling units. Every review (more or less) contains the comment, "Well, these aren't Bose, but for the price, these aren't awful." I took people at their word . . . as I went through 3 other sets trying to find one that worked. Invariably, the other units made my iPod sound like it was in another room at the bottom of fish tank. There was sometimes a button I could push that would improve the sound a little, but the button sprang back as soon as I let go of it, returning me to their underwater environment. One unit didn't even include a charging cable. I didn't even plug them in before I returned them. Sure, these units were only in the $30 price range, but what good were they if they didn't work?
I decided maybe there's a reason the Bose ones are the price they are. Maybe there's a reason people keep comparing every other unit on the market to Bose. I decided to find out for myself. I decided to break down & let the moths out of my wallet & spring for these.
I don't do very well with earbuds. They tend to fall our of my ears easily. The Bose earbuds have little extenders that fit in the crevices of the ear & hold them securely in place without any discomfort, no matter how long I wear them. Score 1 for Bose.
The first time I stuck these in my ears, I was astonished at how much the background noise was blocked out. This is without even turning on the active noise cancelling. I'd say the ear pieces by themselves block a good 80% of ambient noise. Score another 1 for Bose.
And then I turned on the active noise cancelling. It was like an out-of-body experience. There's you & the music, & whoever might be around you simply isn't there. Score another 1 . . . no 1,000 for Bose.
Try wearing them in the car while you're driving. You'll feel like Luke Skywalker. Suddenly your car becomes even quieter than an electric car, more like a nuclear-powered aircraft. No engine noise, no noise from other vehicles, not even any tire noise from your own car. Simply extraordinary. There's no point in even bothering to still keep score. There's no competition.
The instruction manual for these says they're compatible with iPhones. There's no mention of any other brand. I recently acquired an Android phone & thought I'd give them a shot. My expectations were low. I should have known better. Plug them in. They work. Period. I don't know if the buttons do fancy things like skipping around in playlists or stop music so you can take a phone call. But for basic phone calls, they just work. You hear the other party on the line just fine. The other party hears you just fine. This is without turning on the noise cancelling. Turning on the noise cancelling has no effect on how the other party hears you, but of course it transports you to that other sound world I described above. I don't make it a habit to use the active noise cancelling for phone calls because I haven't used the unit to talk on the phone in a noisy environment. Maybe somebody else can comment on that. I would imagine if it's noisy, the other party won't hear you all that well over the background noise. Maybe the microphone is noise cancelling, too. I just can't comment on that. My take is it's more polite toward the party you're calling if you make the phone call in a quiet place.
My only complaint is the carrying case. For an item this expensive, they sure give you a cheap carrying case. It's soft & about the only good thing I can say about it is it would keep the unit dust-free. Protect them it will not. I happen to have a steel-shell glasses case that I wasn't using. That is a far more appropriate place for my earbuds to live when they're hibernating. That's what Bose should have included with these: something made of steel. And they should have done that without adding to the price. These are expensive enough to warrant the inclusion of a steel carrying case.
These earbuds live up to the hype. They prove you get what you pay for. My voice is not being added to the chorus of, "Well, these aren't Bose, but . . ." These ARE Bose & there's no buts about it.
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Bose QuietComfort 20 Acoustic Noise Cancelling Headphones, Compatible with Apple Devices, Black (Renewed) $179.89 & FREE Shipping. Details
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From the manufacturer
In the box
Included items
- QuietComfort 20 headphones
- 3 pairs StayHear+ tips (S, M, L)
- Clothing clip
- Rechargeable lithium-ion battery (built-in)
- USB charging cable
- Carrying case
What you hear is up to you
Shut out the world and lose yourself in your music--or let the world in. It’s your choice with the first in-ear noise cancelling headphones from Bose. The QuietComfort 20 Acoustic Noise Cancelling headphones let you enjoy better sound every day, everywhere you go. Turn on noise cancelling to reduce surrounding distractions and focus on your music. Or, at the touch of a button, activate Aware mode to hear what’s happening around you. Proprietary StayHear+ tips provide a soft, secure fit. The inline microphone and remote let you switch easily between calls and music on your iPhone.
- Bose noise cancelling technology reduces noise so you can focus on your music
- Aware mode lets you hear what’s around you at the press of a button
- Deep, clear sound from Active EQ and TriPort technology
- Control your music and calls on Apple devices with inline mic/remote
- StayHear+ tips provide a comfortable, secure fit for hours and hours
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For Apple devicesEngineered to work optimally with most iPod, iPhone and iPad models. Talk on your phone hands-free and control various music functions with the inline mic/remote. |
Lose yourself in your musicEnjoy your music on the go while the noise around you is diminished--from the comfort and convenience of an in-ear headphone. |
Tune into your environmentWhen you need to hear what’s around you--crossing busy streets, listening for airline announcements--just switch on Aware mode. |
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Engaging soundEnjoy lifelike, digital-quality sound you wouldn’t expect from in-ear headphones, thanks to Bose Active EQ and TriPort technology. |
Advanced ear tipsProprietary StayHear+ tips create a soft, secure fit. Cone shape spreads contact evenly for maximum comfort and forms a gentle seal contributing to full-spectrum noise reduction. |
Convenient controlAll functions are right at your fingertips: on/off on the slim control module, calling, Aware mode and music functions on the inline remote. |
Compare with similar items
This Item  Bose QuietComfort 20 Acoustic Noise Cancelling Headphones, Apple Devices, Black |  |  | ![Wired headphones with [four speakers], high-fidelity noise-cancelling stereo subwoofer earbuds with microphone,universal 3.5mm plug earphones with volume adjustment,cnc processing metal back shell](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41YgQrlSsqS._AC_.jpg) |  |  | |
| Price | $329.99 | $115.00 | $144.89 | $29.99 | $319.99 | $139.99 |
| Delivery | Get it May 16 - 21 | — | Get it as soon as Thursday, May 16 | Get it as soon as Thursday, May 16 | Get it as soon as Thursday, May 16 | Get it as soon as Thursday, May 16 |
| Customer Ratings | ||||||
| Sound quality | ||||||
| Noise cancellation | ||||||
| Value for money | ||||||
| Battery life | ||||||
| Comfort | ||||||
| Sold By | K and M Enterprise | Pro Wireless | AUDIO EQUIP | suyuz | SHENZHENAUDIO | FiiODirect |
| connectivity tech | 3.5mm AUX Cable | Wireless | Wired | Wired | Wired | Wired |
| headphones form factor | In Ear | In Ear | In Ear | In Ear | In Ear | In Ear |
| connector type | usb | 3.5mm Jack | Wired | 3.5mm Jack | 3.5mm Jack | 2.5mm Jack |
| noise control | active noise cancellation | — | sound isolation | sound isolation | — | — |
| headphones jack | 3.5 mm Jack | — | 3.5 mm Jack | 3.5 mm Jack | 3.5 mm Jack | 3.5 mm Jack |
| cable feature | Retractable | Without Cable | Detachable | Retractable | Retractable | Detachable |
Videos
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Bose QC20 | Comfortable Earbuds with Great Noise Canceling
Josh & Kat
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Bose QuietComfort 20 Acoustic Noise Cancelling Headphones
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Customer Review: Caution! Poor quality... Huge price.
Curtis Hickman
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Reviews with images
... pros -Good noise cancellation for distant street noose and excellent when combined with a white noise track -long battery ...
Major pros-Good noise cancellation for distant street noose and excellent when combined with a white noise track-long battery lifeMajor cons-No Bluetooth-Cosmetically starts to fall apart after a year of heavy use-short charging cable-area beyond the silicone ear buds gets dirty and is hard to cleanNoise cancellation:When enabled during playback it sounds wonderful.When used with just the noise cancellation feature and no music it depends on what you’re trying to block out. On planes it will block out the white noise of the plane but you can still hear overhead announcements, voices, and crying only minimally muffled. Blocks distant street noise and distant voices extremely well. If you’re trying to block out bass, motorcycles, or ambulances you will need to listen to some white noise or music on top of the noise cancellation. In fact adding white noise to noise cancellation eliminates most sounds pretty wellBatteryAwesome. I can get though 2 nights of sleep with noise cancellation on a single charge. Recharges fully in about an hour. Wish it had a usb c rather than a micro usb connection to make it more compatible with other chargers. The charging cable is extremely short, only a couple of inches. Recommend getting a separate charging cableWear and tearI’ve had it for about a year and a half and after about a year it still works like when I first bought it but cosmetically it’s very damaged. The rubber casing on the batter pack has peeled off and trying to add it back on with tortilla glue just made it worse. Also one of the earbuds opened up like a clamshell. It was heralded but a very high pitched whistling sound for a day before the glue gave way and it opened up revealing all the internal hardware. I easily fixed it with gorilla glue and it looks and sounds good as new. However I’m disappointed that a Bose product broke down so easily. To be fair I do sleep with them on every single night and I know they’re not designed for that and it must have added a lot of tug to the earbuds. I still think a unibody design would have been more durable.Cleaning:The silicone portions on the ear buds pop off easily and are very easy to clean. But some ear wax does get into the plastic tunnel leading into the housing. When I tried to clean that plastic canal I punctured the thin mesh that’s kind of like an eardrum separating the canal from the internal hardware and couldn’t repair it. I didn’t notice a change in audio quality though.Controls/designButtons depress easily and the noise cancellation button is easily accessible with the regular controls on the wires. 2 indicators clearly show when the device is on and noise cancellation is enabled. The buds never fell out of my ears and the medium buds fit me the best. The wire is long enough. The battery pack isn’t heavy but it is kind of bulky and I’m surprised that they couldn’t add a Bluetooth feature into its housing. Overall it definitely does what it’s supper to do and I’ll hold onto it until there are truly wireless earbuds with comparable noise cancellation and battery life on the market.
