Bose’s open-ear headphones: anything but ordinary
25.9.2025
Translation: Patrik Stainbrook
Pictures: Siri Schubert
Open-ear headphones have long stopped being exotic. Nevertheless, the Ultra Open from audio specialist Bose comes with real innovations – and won me over.
As soon as I unpacked them, I knew they weren't your average open-ear headphones. Two small futuristic looking gadgets emerged from the compact case – Ultra Open. From the off: while these things certainly look special, you’ll have to shell out quite some cash for them.
The Bose Open Ultra are so different from other brands’ models that I first had to peruse the packaging to see how I’d clip the mini speakers to my ears. Ah, OK, the part with the gentle curve and speaker head goes in your ear. And the part that looks like a small barrel houses the battery, sitting behind the ear. The flexible silicone bridge that connects these two ends ensures that the headphones stay in place.
An unusual look, but suitable for everyday use
After open-ear pioneer Shokz successfully expanded the niche of open-ear buds, several manufacturers now offer these types of headphones. Their key advantage? You place them close to your ear canal, almost like tiny loudspeakers. This allows you to listen to music and still take in ambient noise. In other words, exactly the opposite of noise cancelling.
Hearing the road while jogging or cycling is certainly an advantage. Even in the office, many people appreciate being able to hear what’s going on around them while still wearing headphones. It appears open-ear headphones have left the niche of pure sports headphones behind to some extent.
And the Ultra Open model picks up on the trend towards sports headphones suitable for everyday use. Since they come without a neckband, you won’t look like you’ve just come back from a run or bike ride when wearing them. Style-wise, the Ultra Open is now available in various colours, from subtle black to blue and beige to a dazzling sunset look.
Fit like a glove
Out of all the open-ear headphones from Shokz, Philips and Huawei that I’ve tested so far, Bose’s Ultra Open are by far the most comfortable. I regularly forgot I was wearing them since they don’t pinch or cling. And I like how they look to boot.
They’re reliable during workouts: no wobbling or slips while jogging, trampolining, in the home gym or while cycling. Another plus: you can wear these headphones comfortably with glasses since they don’t have a headband fixed over the ear. I also appreciated them during long running sessions since they’re very light at 6.4 grammes. And thanks to their IPX4 rating, they’re protected against splashing water, i.e. light rain and sweat.
Easy to use and an all-round sound
A lot of earbuds rely on touch controls. This was always a drawback for me when using sports headphones due to my lack of necessary fine motor skills. Thankfully, these are different: they have buttons. Even when I move around, they’re easy to use with a simple control scheme.
And the sound? In short: impressive. These open-ear buds still don’t quite come close to the sound of in-ear headphones, and they’re certainly not for audiophiles looking for maximum acoustic enjoyment. Nevertheless, Bose’s headphones come very close to in-ears. The sound is balanced and the bass is much more powerful than on other models. All the while, you can still hear your surroundings. Like other open-ears, the Bose Ultra Open reach their limits on busy roads, but they still work well in windy conditions and rural areas with little traffic.
No Roots, by Alice Merton, the testing song I chose because of its bass, sounded really good and balanced overall on Bose’s headphones. Listening to viral hit Anxiety by Doechii, my ears heard highs and lows without any strain.
The Ultra Open also impressed me with their natural sound for podcasts and audiobooks. Anything else would’ve disappointed me, it’s Bose after all. The brand’s famous for its high sound quality.
An app with detailed settings
In the app, you can adjust the sound to your preference using presets or an equaliser.
An additional feature is immersive mode, basically stereo on steroids. Turning it on makes you feel virtually surrounded by sound. There are two options here: either sound follows you or you move around in a sound space. However, immersive audio also requires quite a lot of power and reduces battery performance, so I didn’t use it when I went jogging.
Battery life and connectivity
The battery lasts around seven hours and, according to the manufacturer, only 4.5 hours if you use immersive audio. With the charging case, you get another 19 hours. Thanks to a quick-charging function, you can get two hours of use after just 10 minutes plugged in.
Connections with my iPhone, iPad and laptop worked flawlessly too. When the Ultra Open came onto the market, they still didn’t have multipoint pairing. Luckily, Bose has now rectified this. Thank goodness! Now you can switch back and forth between a YouTube video on your laptop and a call. A crucial feature for me personally. It makes the headphones suitable for everyday use.
The microphone: its one weak point
But my main criticism concerns the microphone. Its quality during audio and video calls is mediocre at best. And since the microphone doesn’t have noise cancelling, wind and other background audio are easy to hear.
This is in clear contrast to the excellent sound quality of the headphones themselves. Too bad, otherwise they’d have been even better suited for workouts, office use and everyday life. In turn, this would’ve justified the steep price to a certain extent.
In a nutshell
Excellent sound and a comfortable fit for sports and everyday use
In terms of sound and comfort, Bose’s Ultra Open are the best open-ear headphones I’ve ever tested. Their unusual design, which allows them to work for sports as well as in the office, also impressed me.
With decent battery life and multipoint pairing too, they’ll work great in almost any situation. Open-ear headphones with a wonderful sound that perform exceptionally well in various settings would usually justify their high price. If only it weren’t for that microphone, which falls short of my expectations.
Pro
- Great sound for open-ear headphones
- Lightweight and barely noticeable thanks to innovative design
- Stay in place during workouts
- Simple button controls
- Allow for multi-device connections
- Additional features such as immersive audio
- Solid battery life and quick charge function
- Nice design and available in different colours
Contra
- Microphone sounds mediocre
Header image: Siri Schubert
Siri Schubert
Senior Editor
Siri.Schubert@digitecgalaxus.chResearch diver, outdoor guide and SUP instructor – I love being in, on and around water. Lakes, rivers and the ocean are my playgrounds. For a change of perspective, I look at the world from above while trail running or flying drones.
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