Customer Ratings & Reviews

PROS + Excellent sounding out of the box, with minimal tuning required + Can be used standalone, in a stereo pair, in a multi-room set-up, or as rear speakers in a home theater setup with the Lifestyle Ultra Soundbar + 3.5mm Aux input for devices like turntables + Supports Alexa+ for a better Alexa assistant experience + Bose app is largely consistent and easy to use + EQ controls in the app available to help dial speakers in + Work really well as rear speakers to complete a 7.1.4 set-up + Supports Airplay, Google Cast, and Spotify Connect CONS - No Dolby Atmos music support when used on their own, despite having an upward firing driver - Could use more low-end extension OTHER THINGS OF NOTE * Tidal Connect is not currently supported but should be coming later with a firmware update * Design kind of reminds me of a coffee mug when looking at them in person * Really benefits from adding the optional wireless subwoofer * Height effects and vertical spatialness doesn't extend all the way to my ceiling in my spaces, but still adds solid 3-dimensionality to the soundstage THE LONG AND SHORT OF IT If you are looking for high-quality wireless speakers to round out a home theater or just for standalone listening, the Bose Lifestyle Ultra Speakers are a very strong contender that mostly hit the mark. They sound excellent right out of the box with a neutral profile that requires very little tuning, though you do have solid EQ controls in the app if you want to dial them in. I really appreciate the flexibility they offer; you can use them as a stereo pair, in a multi-room setup, or as rear channels to complete a full 7.1.4 Atmos system, which is how I primarily used them. They also include a 3.5mm aux input for turntables and support for AirPlay, Google Cast, and Spotify Connect, making them very versatile for modern setups. They compete well in the space, with Tidal Connect being the one bigger omission for me as a Tidal user, although it should be coming with a firmware update in the future. The Bose app remains consistent and responsive, and having Alexa+ support built-in is a nice touch for a better voice assistant experience, which is a big deal as I don’t think I have seen any other devices, beyond 1st-party amazon speakers, which support Alexa+, and is a game changer if you use Alexa in your house. Expanding on the sound quality a bit, I think the speakers sound largely flat from a tuning perspective, with a bit of a peak in the treble. You can EQ then, but vocal clarity in the mid-range was excellent, especially when used as a stereo pair. As a pair of rear speakers, which is how they were mostly used in my house, they were excellent, and provided a necessary addition to really fill out the Dolby Atmos bubble in my home. Excellent sound all around and definitely competitive in the space. However, there are a few quirks that keep these from being perfect. The most glaring omission is the lack of Dolby Atmos music support when the speakers are used standalone, which is strange given they have upward-firing drivers. You can use them as part of the home theater set-up which means Atmos music from a device like an Apply TV will play Atmos to the rear speakers, but you can’t decode Atmos on the speakers directly, which is a bit of an omission in my opinion, even if Atmos music isn’t always my preferred way of listening to tracks. Also, the only mark I would make on sound quality is that, on their own, they could also use a bit more low-end extension, though adding the optional wireless subwoofer solves this and really helps them sing. You can only do so much with how relatively compact they are. On the design front, I can’t help but feel they look a bit like a coffee mug in person, which isn’t bad, but once you see it, it is just kinda funny. It has to do with the textured cover only stretching the first half of the speaker, with the rear being uncovered, like the handle of a mug. On top of the speakers you get touch controls, which are nice if you don’t want to go into the app to mess with the audio settings for the speakers. Overall, these are great speakers that deliver a premium experience, and while they have a couple of limitations and a unique look, they are easy to recommend for anyone already in or looking to join the Bose ecosystem. If you have the Bose Lifestyle Ultra Soundbar, then I would go so far as to say they are a must add for a full Atmos experience.

The software glitches killed the experience for me. I spent close to 8 hours trying to create a 'stereo' pair with two Bose Lifestyle Ultra Wireless speakers. It irked me. Great audio if you use them individually, google cast works great. BE prepared to struggle with the stereo pairing. I tried multiple times - reset to factory settings, updated firmware, unplugged and plugged - it took about four hours to get them to pair. 10 minutes in, audio disconnects from one speaker, then it restores, then it disconnects.... SHEESH! At $299 per speaker, the software experience sucked. This dissuaded me from getting the soundbar and the sub woofer. Also, it only has Alexa available as a voice assistant. There is no option to enable Google Gemini. It has the option to Google Cast.