Optus Mobile Review ALDI Mobile Review Amaysim Mobile Review Belong Mobile Review Circles.Life Review Vodafone Mobile Review Woolworths Mobile Review Felix Mobile Review Best iPhone Plans Best Family Mobile Plans Best Budget Smartphones Best Prepaid Plans Best SIM-Only Plans Best Plans For Kids And Teens Best Cheap Mobile Plans Telstra vs Optus Mobile Optus NBN Review Belong NBN Review Vodafone NBN Review Superloop NBN Review Aussie BB NBN Review iiNet NBN Review MyRepublic NBN Review TPG NBN Review Best NBN Satellite Plans Best NBN Alternatives Best NBN Providers Best Home Wireless Plans What is a Good NBN Speed? Test NBN Speed How to speed up your internet Optus vs Telstra Broadband ExpressVPN Review CyberGhost VPN Review NordVPN Review PureVPN Review Norton Secure VPN Review IPVanish VPN Review Windscribe VPN Review Hotspot Shield VPN Review Best cheap VPN services Best VPN for streaming Best VPNs for gaming What is a VPN? VPNs for ad-blocking With the QuietComfort 45s (henceforth, QC45s), Bose continues to excel at its strengths. They’re long-lasting headphones with great noise-cancelling and cushy design, but they’re also stuck in the past. Bose may be synonymous with noise cancellation, but it’s not the only game in town anymore. Sony has made incredible strides in the field, Apple has entered the arena with AirPods Max, and other manufacturers like Sennheiser and Bowers & Wilkins are rapidly catching up. Given the increased competition, it’s surprising how small an upgrade the QC45s are over their predecessors. Bose has made improvements to battery and noise-cancellation, but hasn’t added many of the modern conveniences rivals are now offering. The treble emphasis can also detract from the clarity on some songs. I found myself completely losing the kick drum during the psychedelic freakouts in Radiohead’s “The National Anthem”. Microphone quality is perfectly fine, but nowhere near as clear as what Bose achieved on the more premium yet older NCH 700. They’re also a step below the AirPods Max, but about on par with the last generation Sony WH-1000XM4s. The implementation is a little weird, however. You can’t switch off noise cancellation entirely, unless you’re using your QC45s as wired headphones with the included 3.5mm cable. You can either have it on, or use the transparency mode that mixes in the real world. The transparency mode sounds pretty natural, but it would have been nice to be able to switch it off to get extra battery life in a pinch. You’re also missing out on variable noise cancellation options. While other headphones - including Bose’s NCH 700s - give you the option to pick the level of noise you want to block out, this isn’t the case here. I don’t mind the omission personally, but it’s a bit of a weird one. Where the Bose QC45 really feel dated is a lack of functionality that’s becoming increasingly standard. The lack of auto-pause is my biggest frustration; if you take them off, the QC45s will keep playing whatever audio you’re listening to. There are also no fast pairing options, and you can’t listen to them while charging. I do however like that the QC45s still have physical controls rather than touch, and multipoint for connecting two devices at once is a useful perk. While I understand Bose not wanting to deviate from the formula that makes the QC45s beloved, this iteration could have used just a little more love. Even auto-pause would help make the QC45s feel more era-appropriate and solve a big frustration. The QC45s are still a great option if you’re after a comfortable pair of noise-cancelling headphones, especially if you value a compact form factor. It’s just hard to think of them as the default.
Sound: Do they sound good? Audio quality is pretty important for headphones, after all. Comfort & Design: Are they comfortable to wear over extended periods of time? Features: How long does the battery last? Is the connectivity reliable? Is the noise-cancelling good? Vibe: What’s the overall experience? Value: Are they good for the money?
While audio products can be quite subjective for many reasons, we have standardised testing procedures across the team designed to help us look at the category in a consistent way. You can read more about how we review over-ear headphones here.
