Bose QuietComfort Ultra 2nd Gen Headphones Rock Lossless USB-C Audio, Better ANC & More
Hot on the heels of launching its QuietComfort Ultra Earbunds (2nd Gen), which by the way we're in the processing of reviewing, Bose today announced a second-generation update to its QuietComfort Ultra headphones with a refreshed design, even better active noise cancellation, and a few other nifty upgrades. Chief among them is the option to plug in a USB-C cable for digital, lossless audio.
Make no mistake, this is a wireless headset and to that end, one of the touted improvements is longer battery life. Bose says you can jam to your tunes for up to 30 hours on a single charge, which is not quite as long as the Nothing Headphone (1) we reviewed (but close), or 45 hours if disabling the ANC feature. Yet another battery life claim is up to 23 hours with Bose's "Immersive Audio," which is basically spatial audio, this time in the form of a new Cinema mode.
"Bose Immersive Audio spatializes what you’re hearing by taking it out of
your head and placing it in front of you—and with the new Cinema mode, audio is spatialized with a wide, externalized
sound stage in front of you while crispening dialogue for clarity," Bose explains.
Should you run out of juice before getting through your playlist, Bose says a quick 15-minute charge yields three hours of music playback. And to help extend battery life, sleep mode automatically disconnects the headphones after 10 minutes of standby time.
So yes, this is still a wireless set of cans. However, new for the second-generation model is access wired USB-C audio, which Bose says can reveal great nuance in your tracks.
"USB-C lossless audio also enhances the experience with USB-C source devices and unlocks new ways to use the headphones, like taking advantage of low-latency audio for gaming on a desktop or mobile device," Bose says. "For critical listening sessions with lossless formats, audio signals are received at 16-biit, 44.1kHz, or 48kHz from compatible source files—preserving the full detail of the original recording for a playback experience as the artist intended."
If you're keeping score, we're so far at claims of better ANC by way of a new algorithm, improved battery life, a new lossless audio feature, and an added Cinema mode as part of the "suite of meaningful enhancements" to the company's flagship headphones.
Beyond all that, Bose says its 2nd gen headphones feature smarter on-head detection with a faster start-up time, automatic Bluetooth standby, an updated algorithm to improve the headphones' ActiveSense experience when in Aware Mode (which enable smoother changes in noise cancellation to help with sudden spikes in noise), more natural sounding highs, deeper bass at louder volumes, and a better ability to maintain clear audio as you increase the volume.
On paper, the QuietComfort Ultra (2nd Gen) sounds like a worthy follow-up act to the first-gen flagship. Of course, we'll know for sure when and if we get one in for review. We're also curious to see how the Bose's new cans compare to Sony's WH-1000XM6 that released earlier this year.
In the meantime, Bose says you can preorder the new headphones now for $449 in Black, White Smoke, Driftwood Sand, and Midnight Violet colorways, the last two of which are limited edition color options. The headset will release on October 2, 2025.
Alternatively, the first-gen Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones are now on sale for $379 at Amazon (12% off). And if you prefer earbuds to headphones, the new Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen) are available now for $299.
