The noise-reducing earphones of niche products can be touted as the out-of-the-box hardware designed exclusively for enthusiasts. They can also be deemed as the artifacts of tech giants, which are unique from the rest of the products available in the market today. “Three-piece in the air.”
As a brand that spearheads the noise reduction segment, the Bose QC series has been the easiest to search Bluetooth device at high altitude. The brand also continues to wrap the several numerous heads of the two cabins of the Beijing-Shanghai line.
Regrettably, the QC35 (QuietComfort 35) wireless smart headphones have experienced noteworthy iterations in the past three years, and this has given Sony a chance to compete with it. Much to the delight of those who have restlessly been waiting for noisy headphones, aside from the Bose QC35 and Sony 1000X, there’s a new arrival in the market – the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 (referred to as Bose 700), which retails for $2,999.
Perhaps the name QuietComfort is too subtle, and the new series has such a long but straightforward name.
Apparently, the QuietComfort moniker is kind of subtle, but the new series carries a long and straightforward name. The Bose 700 boasts a revamped design that comprises a telescoping structure with the head beam connection fixed in a groove with a rotating structure that allows the ear cup to rotate to a horizontal mode. This change eliminates the use of screws, making the head beam more slender, stronger and aesthetically pleasing.
The head beam of the Bose 700 is made using high-quality silicone material, which is easier to clean than the QC 35’s fleece.
The real machine offers a superior experience. The different material, seams, and buttons on the QC35 ooze simplicity.
On the downside, simple design makes the device easily foldable, and it requires a storage box which is larger than the QC35. Thankfully, the storage box is flatter, and the mezzanine located in front of the airplane seat most probably will not be very tight.
In terms of interface, the Bose 700 features a USB-C charging port and a 2.5mm interface, but the headphone adapter on the aircraft is not included.
Just like the QC35, the Bose 700 is comfortable to wear. It uses the same gasket material and has an identical space of the earmuffs found on the QC35. There is no pressure even with the biggest head with a five-kilometer radius.
Bose made a FaceTime video chat on the launch site. When a Bose staff member who was at a nearby cafe using the QC35, switched to the Bose 700, there was an immediate improvement in terms of clarity. The ambient sounds and vocals at the cafe also reduced drastically.
The call noise reduction is a new feature available on the Bose 700. In other words, this feature reduces the noise of the other party. Bose has managed to achieve two-way noise reduction since then.
Ai Faner figured out that two of Bose’s eight microphone systems are combined with another pair of microphones for an improved sound pickup effect. A microphone array capable of producing beamforming can efficiently pick up the user’s voice while reducing the vocals around the other part. The second microphone array produces a suppression signal for identifying and blocking residual noise.
“Communication is two-way.” Bose’s product manager told Ai Fan that, except that you can’t hear the noise, the other party can now clearly hear you.
The Bose 700 eliminates the traditional three-speed noise reduction adjustment, allowing the user to switch freely between the 0-10 level. Arbitrarily preset three files in the app, you need to short press the button placed on the left side of the headset in order to switch.
The 0 level represents closed noise reduction. There are two noteworthy changes including a significant reduction in the wind noise and the weakened feeling of the earmuffs. This allows the user to keep the headphones on even during the conversation. The level 0 noise reduction mode is accurately dubbed as “clear mode.”
It is worth noting that the 10-level noise reduction mode completely killed the QC35. In comparison to the Sony 1000X, a colleague compared the trial and noted that the Bose is better.
In my opinion, the QC35 does not deliver a satisfactory sound quality. If you compare, it is easy to understand that the Bose 700 produces clearer sound, and delivers better vocal and background layering than the QC35.
There are three buttons placed on the fuselage, and they are used to switch on and off, activate the voice assistant, and adjust the noise reduction level. Other tasks can be performed via touch operation. The right earmuff Bose logo features a small area that you can single click, and move up and down, and Slide left and right to complete tasks like adjusting the volume, switching songs, and starting a pause. I think the touch is not sensitive enough, though.
The unopened touch design is currently the trend of industrial design, for headphones that use blind operation; however, I prefer physical toggle switch on the QC35, which can be used to switch the headset off and on. Long pressing the button to perform the same task on the Bose 700 is relatively more inconvenient.
The Bose 700 reaps the benefits of the Bose multi-device connection as it can simultaneously connect two devices, and automatically switch to the last sounded device without requiring any sort of manual operation. The feeling of effortlessly switching between the computer and the mobile phone is worse than that of AirPods powered by the H1 chip.
Backed by a robust battery, the Bose 700 has a battery life of 20 hours. The wearing headphone shows the remaining usage time.
The Bose 700 needs to be paired with Bose Music, and you can set the level presets for the noise reduction here. The Bose Connect app did not match.
The overwhelming overthrow of the design of the QC35, Bose re-stands on the commanding heights of the head-mounted noise-canceling headphones. Aside from increasing the consistent noise reduction performance, the Bose 700 compensates for the sound quality.
Equipped with call noise reduction and the enhancement of voice assistants, Bose refuses to be identified as a pure noise reduction peripheral. It is gearing up to become a close-knit smart companion in the smartphone bonus.
The demand for air noise reduction on AirPods shows the kind of potential this market has to offer. It remains to be seen how long Bose can lead to the noise reduction segment.
Source: ifanr
