Bose debuts open-ear sports buds alongside new Ultra model

The rise of open-ear headphones continues, with Bose launching two new earbuds in Australia: the Sport Open Earbuds and the second-gen Ultra Open Earbuds.

Recent research indicated that open-ear headphones are quickly growing in popularity, taking market share from over-ear and in-ear variants. It’s a trend that headphone makers are capitalising on, with more brands debuting different types of open-ear buds, including clip-on headphones from Sennheiser and even Hisense.

Both of Bose’s new buds are the clip-on variety, gently clasping onto the bottom of wearers’ ears. As the name suggests, the $349.95 Bose Sport Open Earbuds are designed for workouts, with a sweat-resistant IP54 rating. Even with the open-ear design, which avoids sitting deep in one’s ear, Bose says the buds are made to stay in place, even during rigorous exercise.

Thankfully, with all the moving around expected while wearing these, the Sport Open Earbuds have physical buttons for playback control. Gesture-based controls are a nightmare with sweaty hands, so it’s a smart move. Bose also claims up to seven hours of music playback on a single charge. When combined with the included charging case, the Sport Open Earbuds get an extra 22 hours of total use.

Both sets of buds have an “Auto Volume” feature that adjusts playback volume based on ambient noise. Without touching any controls, the volume increases in noisy environments, and ducks in quieter surrounds.

Louder and stronger

Now in its second iteration, the $449.95 Bose Ultra Open Earbuds (2nd Gen) have better audio and call quality, according to the brand. Bose claims that a new driver produces deeper bass and louder volume than the first model. These buds also get a new “Cinema Mode”, which aims to produce a more expansive sound when paired with videos or podcasts.

Bose advertises the flagship buds with up to nine hours of audio playback per bud. An extra 19.5 hours comes courtesy of the included charging case. Each set of buds connects wirelessly using Bluetooth 5.4, with Multipoint support enabling two simultaneous device connections.

Launching on 1 October, pre-orders for the Ultra Open Earbuds and Sport Open Earbuds begin on 19 September via Bose’s website and audio retailers. Black and White Smoke colours are available across both models, with the sports pair getting a limited-edition Eucalyptus Green finish. Meanwhile, the Ultra gets additional Cherry Chocolate, Olive Green, and Sky Pink colours.

Bose also confirmed a firmware release following the 1 October launch, which will add Google Find Hub, Alexa+, and Apple Music shortcut support.

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