Customer Ratings & Reviews

I’ve used a lot of higher-end wireless earbuds over the years. Noise cancelling has been a thing they’ve had and something I would always generally categorize as ‘fine’ - good at drowning out ambient background noise like fans, but not great at much else. The noise cancelling on the QuietComfort Ultra ear buds is the best I’ve ever heard on a pair of earbuds and is even better than a lot of full-size headphones I’ve used. Sound and comfort are also high points for these. The QC Ultra Gen 2 earbuds include 3 sets of ear tips and 3 sets of ‘stability bands’ (wingtips) to get a good fit. They are pre-fitted with the medium size ear tips and the smallest of the stability bands - I went up to the large ear tip and the largest stability band for my ears and was able to get a nice comfortable fit. The earbuds themselves are definitely on the chunkier side compared to other options out there, but they don’t protrude too much. The charging case, which supports wireless charging now, is also on the chunkier size, though it still slides easily into my small jeans pocket. I connected the QC Ultra’s to my Pixel 10 Pro via the Bose app. There was a firmware update that took about 30 minutes to complete, but after that I was up and running. The Bose app doesn’t offer a ton of customization, but it’s well laid out and easy to use. The earbuds can be controlled through tapping and swiping motions that I was overall happy with. I’ve had problems with other buds where the controls are either too sensitive or not sensitive enough and it seems like Bose has found a good balance with these. The sound quality on the QC Ultra Gen 2’s is excellent. I have heard other buds that slightly edge these out, but it’s not a difference I would ever notice unless I had them side-by-side. With the default EQ there’s a nice amount of bass and clarity. There is also an immersive audio setting that sounds sort of like a ‘concert hall’ sound preset you might find on an audio receiver, though the effect is more subtle. It definitely adds depth to certain types of content, but things like spoken word have a distracting echo when it’s enabled. In general I left it off, but it’s better than some of the other implementations I’ve heard. The QC Ultra Gen 2’s support the standard SBC and AAC audio codecs, but they also support AptX Adaptive for higher resolution audio. I know the Pixel series does not support AptX Adaptive, but they do support AptX HD and standard AptX and I was a little disappointed to not see them fall back onto those codecs and use AAC instead. In practice I don’t think I’m missing a lot using AAC, but it would have been nice to see something more universally compatible like LDAC. The noise cancelling is the real highlight of these earbuds. I was in our living room with the TV playing a fairly loud volume and our air purifier running a full blast behind me. As soon as I turned on the ‘Quiet’ mode, all of that almost completely disappeared. I could faintly hear some voices coming from the TV, but only with nothing else playing. I’ve never considered using earbuds for any sort of plane rides because I never really thought the noise cancelling could stand up to that sort of environment, but I’d take these on a trip. The transparency mode (or ‘Aware’ as Bose calls it) is also really good and it’s tough to hear the difference of wearing the earbuds versus not. Battery life is good, but not the best, with up to 6 hours of listening time with immersive audio disables. With immersive audio it’s taken down to 4 hours, which I’m guessing is probably due to the extra processing power and head-tracking characteristics of the immersive mode. If you’re on an extra-long flight, you may need to give them a break to charge inside of the case for a little while. Overall I’m really impressed with the QC Ultra Gen 2’s. From the perspective of noise cancelling alone I haven’t heard anything better and it’s a solid performer all around. They are expensive to be sure though, and if noise cancelling isn’t a priority there are lots of other choices out there. If you came for the noise cancelling though, you won’t be disappointed.

Ironically Comma I love my Bose QcC Ultra IIs -- when they work -- But the right earbud continues to malfunction- it won't charge. Best Buy was very accommodating in switching it out twice within weeks after the malfunction developed in the second pair. Again, Best Buy was great and switching these out twice with no hassle- - much easier than Amazon would have been.

UNBOXING The earbuds are packaged with a decorative light cardboard outer box with a heavier cardboard inner box containing the product. I had a lot of trouble getting the inner box out with ripping the outer container, but maybe I was just going about it in the wrong way. It gave me a bad first impression that was quickly forgotten once I saw how well these buds work. Typical of small electronics these days, the included documentation (other than the obligatory multi-language legalese booklet) consist of a panel of hieroglyphics on the box and a QR code that takes you to the Bose app on the applicable store (Google Play in my case). The app has enough help in it to get you familiar with everything, but for people like me who want to read all the details there is a PDF guide available on the Bose support site. CHARGING Like most earbuds, these come in a case that has its own battery and charges the earbuds while they’re stored. There is a USB-C connector for charging. Wireless charging is also supported but you have to make sure that the case is positioned so that the button on the back is approximately centered on the charging pad (the light on the front will start blinking). FIT The buds themselves look rather strange at first glance and my initial thought was “How are these supposed to fit in my ear?” However, a closer look revealed that they are double-sealing in having not only a conventional tip that goes into your ear canal but also a larger ring that seals around the innermost part of your outer ear. They provide 3 sets of tips and 3 sets of outer rings. That’s like 9 different combinations but fortunately they seemed to fit me well with the pre-installed parts and a “seal test” run from the Bose app confirmed that I was getting a good seal. They feel very secure and are comfortable as well. Wearing them outside I had no concerns that one of them might drop out. PAIRING The buds are ready to pair as soon as you open the case – no need to remove them – and it was the easiest pairing that I’ve had. They support the BLE protocol (Bluetooth Low Energy), which makes them discoverable from a device supporting BLE without having to go to the regular Bluetooth settings. So as soon as they were activated, my Pixel 8 phone recognized them and gave me the option to go ahead and do the regular BT pairing. If BLE is not an option, they can always be paired via the Bose app or using the standard BT settings screens. I connected them to a Pixel 8 smartphone, Samsung tablet, and Garmin Venu 2 Plus watch. They support two simultaneous connections and will play on whichever connected device starts an audio stream. CONTROLS These earbuds use touch control with no difference in function for left vs right. They recognize single, double, and triple taps for standard functions, swipe up and down for volume, and long-tap to control special features. I ran into some problems with it not always recognizing the taps, and doing something unintended such as advancing to the next song instead of pausing. This might be a matter of getting more used to how they respond and is a problem common to most touch controls of this type. I ran into some minor control issues when playing music from my Garmin smartwatch, but to be honest it sometimes has problems with other earbuds as well and I was able to find a workaround. SOUND AND NOISE CANCELLATION The sound that these produce is impeccable and the noise cancellation as good as any that I’ve experienced. In general, it’s as close to an over-ear headphone experience that you’ll find in the earbud form factor. Their “Immersive” sound mode is a case in point: it’s the closest I’ve heard to surround sound from any wearable. Instead of the general stereo effect where the sound seems to be centered between your ears, they somehow project the sound so that it seems to come from somewhere in front of you. If you put it into what they call “Still” mode while looking straight ahead and turn your head to the left, the sound shifts to the right so that it appears to be coming from where you were previously looking! Turn your head to the right and it shifts to come into your left ear. Downright spooky the first time I tried it and a bit of a parlor trick, but an impressive way to show off the technology. The Bose app also provides access to an “equalizer” function that lets you boost or reduce bass and treble response. As an example of just how good the new 2nd-gen ANC is, I wore the earbuds while going for a walk and listening to a podcast. It was a breezy day and, like most earbuds, there was a lot of wind noise. I put the ANC into “Quiet” mode and I was instantly walking in a “Cone of Silence.” Not only did the wind noise disappear but also pretty much all ambient sound: my footfalls, a barking dog, people mowing the lawn. When a couple of cars passed me coming from behind and I had no idea they were there until I saw them go by, quieter even than EVs, I knew that it was a good idea to put the earbuds back into “Aware” mode and accept a bit of wind noise. I look forward to using these at a noisy gym. Needless to say, making or taking voice calls on these is also a much better experience with outside noise being eliminated. I doubt you could have better noise cancellation even with over-the-ear headphones. CONCLUSION For audio performance and noise cancellation this product is 5 stars all the way and I highly recommend it. I’ve certainly not seen anything better.

This is the 2nd Generation of the Bose’s Quiet Comfort 2 Ear Buds. I never had the original ones so I can’t really compare old to new versions but I have several other high-end competitors compared to. I can say that these are amazing. When it comes to design, these are very sleek, easy to fit into ear. They do have multiple size ear tips to accommodate ear size. I did notice that I do have to adjust several times to get what I feel is a solid and secure insertion into my ear. Overall, case is very smooth and easy to throw into your pocket and does not feel like it’s too much to carry there. Charging, if you deplete the ear buds, inserting them back into the case will charge them back in 20 min. I also love that you can throw the case onto my charging stand and wirelessly charge but also charge via USBC cable as well. Overall battery life is listed as 6 hours, I have experienced very similar, but I go back and forth between teams calls and Spotify. Performance and usage, this is where the Bose 2nd Gen Ultra’s shine. It comes with a vast number of configuration options that really make it functional for all scenarios. I particularly like the Modes feature. It comes with several configured modes. Each of which can be tweaked and adjusted to fit your individual needs. For example, within each mode, you can adjust things like Noise Cancellation and Immersive Audio. Like In the “Music” mode, you can adjust the noise cancellation based which primary environment that you are listening in. Turn it up in loud environments, turn in back in quiet environments. Now, lets get into the “Immersive Audio”. I have to say, this is probably one of the most innovative features I have seen in all my high-end ear buds. You basically have three options, Off/Still/Motion. When turned on, holy cow, my wife was looking at me like I was crazy when I was trying this for the first time. Not only does it feel like immersive surround sound, but the music follows you! Turn your head and you “lean into” the music on either ear you turn into. It’s cool and kind of hard to explain but once you listen to it in action, wow! ..you will understand. EQ settings can also be customized with quick selections for Bass Boost, Treble Boost, Base Reducer and Treble Reducer. Customization is also possible through shortcuts. You can customize each ears shortcuts such as cycling through modes, making changes to your immersive audio selections, switching your Bluetooth device, accessing your voice assistant or resuming Spotify. Keep in mind that you can only have one option for each ear. I would highly recommend these and have no reason to give them less than 5 stars. I know I need to play with the different ear options to improve the comfort a bit but it’s really a minor thing.

Coming from having many earbuds and over ear headphones from the higher tier brands, I knew that Bose would not disappoint, and they definitely didn't! Let's start with the positives: - App experience: The app is very easy to understand and use. You can choose from premade or create your own preset, which controls the noise cancellation and EQ. It's simple and functional. You can also set/change the swipe controls on the earbuds, as well as perform tests to check for a good seal as well as set the spatial audio modes. - Case: The case is a good size and looks nice. It isn't super huge or heavy, and now can charge wirelessly. Has two LEDs, one visible on the outside, another on the inside, to let you know the status. - Buds: The earbuds themselves are nice - they are not huge, but they're not tiny either. They are a little larger than I thought that they would be, but they fit very nicely into my ears, and remain comfortable even after 6+ hours of listening all day. I appreciate the strips of grippy silicone on the edges of the buds to help secure them inside the ear. Both sides offer the typical controls for play/pause/forward/back via touch, and they respond quickly and accurately. Soundwise is the typical 'V' curve, so modern pop music sounds punchy with good soundstage. The noise-cancelling is legendary - I was on an 8 hour flight and these blocked out everything, from the engine noise to screaming babies! Minor nitpicks: - Qi2 compatibility: I understand that this probably was due to timing, but it would have been nice to incorporate magnets into the charging case such that any Qi2 charger could hold the case more securely, versus needing to lay flat on a charging pad. - The EQ adjustment is limited to just bass / mid / treble as a 3 band. Other brands offer much more granularity for adjustment. - Gloss plastic inside the case I am sure was a design/aesthetic decision, but will definitely look scratched/dirty quickly.

The Bose QuietComfort (or QC) Ultra 2s are a decent set of ear buds. These are earbuds designed more for people that aren't going to be as active as opposed to athletes. If you're looking for ear buds that are going to be just right for sitting down, relaxing listening to an audio book or simply to mute out those around you while reading, these are perfect. Though if you're going to up moving around in a fast paced environment or doing sports, these aren't going to be for you. When it comes to build quality, these fall in line with other high end ear buds. They are light, with a unique long design. While the ear buds themselves didn't feel low quality, the case was definitely on the line with it being a more hollow feeling case with a more flimsy lid. The case is also bigger than I expected, making it feel awkward in my pocket compared to other cases. The biggest drawback of these ear buds for me is the battery life. I believe its tied more to the noise cancellation than anything, but I couldn't get more than 3 hours out of these before they had to be charged. There were times when they were dead in an hour and a half. The case also doesn't appear to charge them to 100% either, at least according to the app. The case does seem to charge them back to full 2 times at least, so you can get almost a full days use out of them. I was hoping with the bigger case you'd get more charges out of it, but that isn't the case. Sound quality on these is pretty good. They distort a bit at the higher levels but where these things impressed me was the imitation of bass you can get from them. I say imitation because there is no real shake or vibration with them, but you can definitely hear the lows really well, in typical bose fashion. These are probably the best ear buds I've owned for bass. They don't get very loud though unfortunately. Even with the bass down and the mid/treble high, they aren't that loud, which is probably fine for your own ear health. The longer body on these translates into really easy to use touch controls. I never had a problem using the controls on these once I learned the shortcuts for them. They are responsive to touch and different shortcuts can be assigned based on the side. One issue I had with them was with the noise cancellation though. On previous ear buds I've used, I had no issue with noise cancellation outside of maybe the fan sound getting past them. With these, anytime there was a loud sound nearby (such as a door shutting) it would create the feeling of your ear about to pop on that side, then go away. It does a good job cancelling the noise, but it also makes sure you notice when there is a louder sound going on around. Overall, these are very good ear buds for relaxing. There are shortcomings though, but I feel they are of a nature that a firmware update should be able to take care of them

I’m a big fan of Bose. I have many of their products including the 1st Gen Quietcomfort Ultra Earbuds, I have nothing but great things to say about those. These 2nd Gen Quietconfort Ultra Noise Canceling Earbuds in my opinion are the single greatest Earbuds I have ever had the pleasure of reviewing. They are now my favorite Earbuds no matter the price or brand. Sure they have touch controls on the sides of the earbuds themselves, you can control the volume up and down, skip to the next song, pause etc. thats great but nothing new. What makes these great is the sound and Superb noise canceling capabilities. They are loud at full volume, no distortion, best bass in the industry, very comfortable to wear and even have different size gummy inserts for different ear canal sizes. There’s also different size gaskets that go around the earbuds so that they fit better not just in your ear canal but in your ear Well, while maximizing noise cancellation. They look and feel premium, the case is very well designed, Worth every penny. Its Bose so you know that the quality and great reputation is there. I highly recommend you download the app, you can easily adjust a few things like the volume, EQ settings, noise canceling AND new this year “immersive audio.” This one is hard to explain and make differ between users. The way I explained this is, in the normal amount, you feel the music in your ear canal, but with immersive audio, it’s like you’re hearing music from your surround sound system in your living room, the only difference is you can walk around with this music following you around. If you are reading my review, get these. You will not be disappointed. They look good, they feel good, they sound great.

From the moment I first popped in the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen), I could tell these were something special. The comfort is superb — the fit is so secure and gentle that I nearly forget I'm wearing them, even after hours of use. The sound is rich and balanced, with deep, clean bass and crystal-clear mids and highs that let every detail come through. What really blew me away, though, was the noise cancelling. It feels like a quiet bubble around me — traffic, conversations, ambient noise, all pushed far into the background. When I answer calls, my voice sounds natural and clear; even in windy, busy places there’s minimal distortion. Battery life is solid; it easily lasts through a long day of commuting, work, and calls. And when I do have to charge, the fast charge is pretty handy. The design is sleek, refined, and premium-feeling—just what you expect from Bose.

I was looking for a replacement for my Jabra Elite 10 Gen 2 earbuds because the battery life is starting to wane after 100s of hours of use. I tried JBL LiveBuds 3s, Sony LinkBuds Fits, and Skull Candy Method 360s before trying these Bose earbuds. In a word- WOW. The Bose are by far the best when compared to these and my Jabras (which I think are awesome) in almost every catagory: ANC- The Bose have 4 sound modes. In "Immersive" and "Quiet", almost no outside sound can be heard. I mean NO outside noise, Even on riding mowers and tractors, you can listen to music at low volume. This is due in part because the earbuds have a rubber gasket around the outside that both secures them to your ear and blocks sound. Switch to "Aware" mode and you can listen to music while still being able to hear what's happening around you. They have a "Cinema" mode, but I haven't tried using it. SOUND QUALITY- In "Immersive" mode and with the EQ set to your preferences, the sound is incredible. Extremely crisp and huge bass. I thought my Jabras had great sound, but these Bose are even better. Maybe the best feature they offer. CONTROLS- This is the only area that I think the Bose fall short. In particular, the sound adjustment. Instead of a positive tap (or taps) as with other earbuds, you have to gently slide your finger up or down along the earbud to adjust the volume up or down. The challenge is to do this without the earbud perceiving your touch as a tap, which turns off whatever your listening to. Plus, there's no way to do this when wearing gloves. After going through this exercise for a couple of weeks, I've gotten better, but it's still not easy. Not sure why the designers thought this was a better option than the tap method, but it's a small trade-off for the other great features of these earbuds. I highly recommend them.

My last 2 sets of earbuds were my wife’s hand me downs. I got her first gen apple earbuds because they didn’t have noise cancellation and then I got her ear pod pros because of fit. Neither fit well but I put up with them. The recent ear bud pros started getting a buzz in them so I started looking for a new set of ear buds. She has a pair of beats fit so I decided to try them. The sound was decent but they are the most uncomfortable ear buds I’ve ever used. My ears would be in so much pain after 30 minutes of use. After some research I decided to try these Bose and I’m glad I did. They fit so well that I never feel like they are going to fall out and they are extremely uncomfortable. The sounds quality is great and so far I haven’t had them run out of batter on me. My only complaint is minor. Sometimes when I put them on I have to close and reopen Spotify to get them to work. Seems to only happen when I’ve taken them off for a few minutes then put them back on. I’m not sure if that’s a Spotify issue or the ear buds, either way it’s a minor issue

The earbuds must’ve come pre charged because within about an hour they were fully charged. They charge in their case, the case is compact , it could fit in a purse. I have the Bose app already so it was easy to connect them to the app. There aren’t a whole lot of settings in the app but I tried the treble boost & bass boost, I left the bass boost on, the sound was amazing & I have a wide range of music I like & it sounded great for all genres from Dua Lipa to Foo Fighters. I had the volume only halfway & it was quite loud! The controls are on the right side, tap to stop/start & slide to skip song or go back. Noise cancellation is pretty good , I could hear very light noise in the background. Range is fairly good too, I lost connection the first time I went outside & left my phone inside, I didn’t get very far before it cut out completely. I left my device outside & walked to the end of my driveway, which is pretty far from my house & stayed connected. Battery power dropped to 90% after 3 songs but remained at 90% after 10 songs. I connected to my iPhone instantly & thought I’d try connecting to my old iPod , nothing seems to want to pair with this anymore so I thought I’d give it a shot, it actually connected! I was very impressed! Happy I can use it with both devices. These are great but come with a hefty price tag. I also have small ears & with the small earpiece in , (they also come with medium & large), I found them a little bulky & they started to hurt my ears after about 20 minutes. Other than that they are awesome!

I've had these for a little less than a month, so I can't speak to endurance. I was looking to replace some beloved Jabras. I tried a Sony pair before this and they were fine, but there was a lot I didn't like. These are like an entirely different category of equipment from the Sonys and probably even better than the Jabras. Battery life exceeded my expectation (especially for the case-- I rarely have to charge it). Sound is as good as I expected from Bose. The immersion mode is easily the most complete noise cancelling I've ever experienced. Wow. These sync up beautifully with ipad, iphone and Dell laptop. They are a little clunky to get in and out of the case, but this is very minor. They are bigger in the ear than other earbuds but for me, this means they stay in better-- even at the gym. They also cost a lot, but so far, I can see they'll be worth it, assuming they last.

I had the gen 1 and then got the gen 2. Both sound great, however my only gripe with the ANC is when a loud sound occurs, such as weights being dropped in the gym, the anc doesn’t know how to function and “pops”. Very strange. The other downside is the need to use the Bose app to eq the headphones.

The noise cancelation on these is really amazing. I thought the noise cancellation on my Bose QuietComforts was good, as I finally used those on a flight recently and was happy because I was trying to pack very lightly. I usually take over ear headphones, which are pretty bulky in comparison. Unfortunately I didn’t get these QuietComfort Ultra 2nd generation earbuds until very recently. I wear these QuietComfort Ultra 2nd gens while working out but when I used them for an in-home spin ride I noticed that I couldn’t hear the fan, which is placed right in front of me because I need it. I live in Texas, enough said. I don’t go outside to exercise in the summer here. So external sounds and noise can be blocked out enough so that you can’t hear them. I have several different sets of wireless earbuds and these are by far the most noise blocking. When you put the earbud into your ear, there is a whoosh sound, and a voice that tells you which devices you are now connected to. These were easy to connect to my iPhone and iPad. While using the active noise cancelling you get 6 hours of use, and with the immersive audio you get 4 hours. It is easy to switch through the modes by pressing/ tapping the left earbud. A voice will tell you which mode you are in. Bose has an app that has equalizer adjustments for the earbuds, which is pretty cool. Sometimes I’m listening to a podcast, other times I’m listening to music and you want to be able to adjust as needed. I would recommend downloading the app because there are a lot of functionalities in it like earbud updates, which you can only do if you have the app. I really like this earbud seal test that I found on the app. I noticed that my left ear might be a little smaller than my right, so I had to screw it in a little bit better for an optimal seal. These earbuds are water resistant, and I haven’t had any issues with sweat. These come with the medium size ear tips and bands installed, and the small and large in the box. I really like the shape of the case. It’s a compact and flatter shape that is easy to hold in the hand. The earbuds are not super easy to get out of the case, but it’s fine, and not a negative for me. These earbuds come in three colors, white, black, and deep plum. I would really like the deep plum, that is a very pretty color, however I don’t know if Best Buy sells that color. I have the black, which is always fine.

It’s no secret that Bose knows how to make quality products with great sound and unbeatable noise cancellation. I got these and they fit perfect, right out of the box. And I am not kidding when I say they blocked out all noise. My daughter was talking normally and I couldn’t hear her at all. I had her keep raising her voice until she was almost yelling and only then I could barely make out what she was saying. I turned on a fan and couldn’t hear it at all. The sound is as good as you could expect from Bose. I am not an audiophile, so take that how you will but to me they sound really good. The fit is also good and they don’t stick too far out of the ears. I highly recommend these for anyone looking for premium earbuds.

As a person who has used Sony headphones and earbuds for years I was nervous to make the switch to Bose. I knew they were a quality product but I was so used to the Sony sound and style. I was shocked at how great these earbuds are. The fit, sound, noise cancellation, controls, and app are all amazing. I am not an audiophile but I do appreciate great sound quality which these earbuds provide. The noise cancellation is on par with some of the best headphones on the market and blows any earbud competition out of the water. The only problem I have is the case is a little bigger than what I am used to but it holds 2-3 extra charges and lasts a total of 24 hours so you have plenty of listening time. Overall these are hands down the best earbuds I’ve ever owned and I am very happy I made the Sony to Bose Switch in the earbud department!

Love these earbuds! Easy to connect to the Bose app and my phone. Comes with 3 different size ear tips. Noise cancellation is adjustable and cancels noise amazingly! Sleek look and comfortable in the ear. Highly recommend!

These have to be one of the best, if not the best, noise canceling earbuds out there! I commute via the loud local transit system daily and I absolutely cannot do that commute without these. Active noise canceling works extremely well and blocks out 99% of the screeching train ride. Then there's the "Aware" mode when you need to hear your surroundings. The battery life is really great, the earbuds are extremely comfortable and stay in place with a great fit. I'm not audiophile, but the audio quality is great in my experience, even though it's Bluetooth. Speaking of Bluetooth there are rarely any hiccups or oddities in that front. I've used Sony and Google earbuds and both would have stutters and connection issues, but those are non existent with these Bose earbuds! 5/5

The Bose QCU 2nd gen are an awesome pair of bluetooth buds. I've had so many different brands of wireless buds and have liked most of them, but I've only loved a few, and these are in that few group. The Bose QCU is their premium buds set for a reason and when you hear your favorite music or videos through them you'll fall in love with them too. Off the bat its Bose so you're getting their premium sound quality and drivers. This is amplified with customized audio tuning to your hearing specifications and spatial immersive audio for a 360° surround sound experience. The sound quality is just so good and only comparable to another set I loved, the Sony XM5. The strongest feature is the noise canceling, its the best I've experienced so far, I mean I've tried Samsung, Sennheiser, Beats, Jabra, Sony, and the Bose QCU 2nd generation are the absolute best when it comes to noise canceling. Once activated I couldn't hear anything, which was excellent for when I wanted to lock in and focus while listening to my music. Connecting is easy and all your customization settings are handled through the new Bose app. In box is a USB-c charge cable and different size fitment buds. The set is rated IPX4 so its good for light rain sweat protection. I never had the 1st generation of the QCU so I can't say how much they've improved over a gen but I can say they are the same dimensions and Bose offers a silicon protection case, but you can also use 1st gen cases as well. Overall, I absolutely love the Bose QCU 2nd gen wireless set and I absolutely recommend them if you want the best music listening experience.

Bose mever disappoints me. And these earbuds are no exception. Souns quality is superb, extremely comfortable, you don't notice them in your ear like other ear buds. Nor do they fall out easily.