So the new Bose Sport Open earbuds are a very niche product made specifically for somebody that likes to work out but doesn’t like having in ear earbuds. And I get it, sometimes when you’re working out in ear ear buds can collect sweat inside your ear canals which doesn’t feel great. However like I mentioned in the full review, the Bose Sport Open earbuds feel more like a beta product and if you do decide to go with these earbuds you’re going to have to put up with lots of quirks.
But for those curious we’re going to directly compare Bose’s new earbuds to the Powerbeats Pro and we’re also going to see where the Powerbeats Pro stand in 2021. Cause even though the Powerbeats Pro are a decent pair of workout out earbuds… their feature set is a little lacking for 2021 and their price.
Now when it comes to pricing, the Bose’s earbuds retail for $200. And since I feel these are still a beta product at $200 these earbuds pretty hard to justify. Where as the Powerbeats pro have a retail price of $250, but they can routinely be found on sale for $200 these days. Now at $200 I think these earbuds are okay but like I said I feel they are lacking some key features. Nonetheless if you want to pick either of these earbuds up they’ll be linked down below.
Now first let's talk about these earbud’s cases cause their both very different from your more main stream options. Now both of these cases are way larger than your AirPods, AirPods Pro’s, Galaxy Buds Pro’s or Galaxy Buds Plus’s cases… and both of these cases are larger that the Bose QC earbud’s case. But since both of these earbuds are meant for working out I don’t think case size is as important. However I do want to point out that Bose’s case is significantly thinner than the Powerbeats Pro’s case. So you’ll might actually be able to cram this case into your pocket. However one very important thing to point out about Bose’s case is that this is a dumb case. This case does not charge the earbuds or extend their combined battery life and it doesn’t even have magnets in it to hold on to the earbuds. So the earbuds will effectively flop out of their case.
And in order to charge these earbuds you gotta use a separate charging base. But also from a quality of life stand point when you take these earbuds out of their case they don’t automatically power on, you gotta turn them on yourself. And when you put them back into their case you gotta manually power them off… or else they’re just going to connected to your phone. I don’t know, I feel that bose just straight up skipped out on the case here… and I feel this case should have at least had magnets in it so that I can tell the earbuds its time to power on and time to go to sleep.
Where as the Powerbeats pro’s case will power the earbuds on and off, and the case will charge the earbuds up as well. Pretty basic stuff for 2021. However, this huge case doesn’t have wireless charging which I feel is a feature that is lacking… and for me at least it has been a very common issue where ill put these earbuds into their case but they won’t power off and disconnect from my iPhone. So either stuff will keep playing on the earbuds or when come back the earbuds are either severely drained or dead.
Now iv gotten these earbuds replaced, and these are actually my third pair or Powerbeats and they’ve all had this issue for me. So I feel thats definitely something to keep an eye on concerning the longevity of these earbuds.
Now when it comes to battery life, since Bose’s case doesn’t actually charge the earbuds you’re solely reliant on the batteries found in the earbuds themselves. Now bose claims that these earbuds have an advertised battery life of 8 hours which I think is okay. Where as the Powerbeats pro have an advertised combined battery life of 24 hours, the earbuds themselves can go for 9 hours and the case can supply an additional full charge and a half.
But now lets talk about the fit of these earbuds cuase this is the biggest difference between these two earbuds. The Powerbeats Pro are your standard fitting in ear earbuds. Now these earbuds being in ear earbuds with ear hooks is good for a secure fit and they also passively block out a decent amount of noise. However, some people don’t like in ear earbuds and I completely get it. And thats where the Bose Sport open earbuds come in. These earbuds rest on the cartilage of your ears and they just shoot sound down to your eardrums. So this way you can hear your music and still be aware of your surroundings. However when it comes to over all long term comfort… the Powerbeats easily take the win. So the Powerbeats weigh in at 9 grams, and since they evenly distribute their weight between your ear canal, the bowl of your ear, and your ear cartilage they offer a more secure fit and you barley feel them shifting around when you’re moving with them on. And then there’s also the fact that the ear hooks on the Powerbeats are made out of silicon and they’re adjustable. So you can get a fit thats right for you. Where as with bose, these ear hooks out made out of plastic. So you can’t adjust them. Now I can make these ear hooks work… but I feel that people with thicker ear cartilage will have a harder time getting these things on. But also, since these earbuds weigh in at 13 grams and since they’re resting all of their weight on your ear cartilage, you can feel these earbuds shifting around quite a bit when you’re moving around. So combined with all of these earbuds shifting around and them clamping down on your ear cartilage… your ears do get tender after a while, and they feel super tender when you actually take these earbuds off. So even though Bose managed to solve one problem… they developed another problem which I think is worse than the initial problem they set out to solve. Personally I think what bose should do is just come out with a pair of earbuds that fit like their Bose QC earbuds… are pretty comfy, but instead of having ear fins, just have ear hooks. So this way they have the potential to be more comfortable than in ear earbuds, but feel as secure as Powerbeats.
Now when it comes to connectivity, each earbud on the Powerbeats pro each establishes a connection with your phone. So if you want to use one earbud a time you can use either one it doesn’t matter. And this is going to work whether you’re using an iPhone or android device. And for 2021, this is the type of connection set up that we expect to see from premium brands.
Where as Bose’s earbuds are using a hero and sidekick set up so if you just want to use one earbud at a time you gotta use the correct earbud. In this case the right earbud, the hero earbud. And like ive said in past video’s there are some earbuds out there that justify their use of a hero and sidekick set up, like the Jabra Elite 85T’s… but for the most part we want to see earbuds earbud establish a connection with your phone.
But from a performance standpoint, both of these earbud have zero latency across the board when watching movies or videos on your phone whether you’re using and iPhone or android device… and when it comes to audio codecs, both of these earbuds are strictly using SBC and AAC.
But now lest talk about listening to music with these earbuds. Since the Powerbeats pro are in ear earbuds these things are going to passively block out a decent amount of noise. And when it comes to sound the Powerbeats pro deliver a dynamic listening experience with strong vocals and punchy bass. Over all, these earbuds get the job more than done. But then there’s Bose’s earbuds. These things only sound good enough to distract you while you’re working out. They sound a little shallow, their bass is flat, and the main focus here are the vocals. And unfortunately Bose’s app doesn’t allow you to change their EQ. But more importantly since these earbuds don’t actually go into your ear canals, they don’t block out any ambient noise. So if you’re considering getting these to workout with while are your gym then what ever your gym is playing is going to over power your music. Or if you're in a quieter environment then everybody is going to be able to hear exactly what you’re listening to.
But like I said in the full review, I feel these Bose earbuds would be a good option for people who workout outside that want to still be aware of their surroundings like joggers, cyclists, or hikers but also don’t like wearing in ear earbuds. Cause if in ear earbuds weren’t an issue, then there are plenty of earbud out there with decent ambient modes that allow you to listen to your music but still be aware of your surroundings.
But this now leads us to another major feature thats missing on the Powerbeats pro. These things don’t have an ambient mode. Which is a very standard feature for earbuds these days and the AirPods Pro’s have them. I was really hoping that these earbuds would get a software update and get a transparency mode but it never came. So for the Powerbeats pro 2’s I really hope apple decides to throw in a transparency mode, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they also added active noise cancelation.
However, one thing that I will admit that apple got right on the Powerbeats pro are their media controls. With either earbud you can skip through your music and still be able to adjust your volume using the physical buttons on these earbuds. So whether you’re a lefty or a righty, or even if you’re just using one earbud at a time youre going to be able to easily adjust your media playback all from the earbuds them selves. Where as with Boses earbuds… they’re also using physical buttons but the placement of this button is a little awkward. And the right earbud is dedicated to skipping through your media, and the left earbud is only good for getting a battery read out and activating your voice assistant. And you can’t use these earbuds to adjust your volume.
But with all that being said, even though I think its cool and all that bose is experimenting with new product ideas… the new Bose Sport Open earbuds feel very much like a beta product and its very hard to justify their $200 price tag. For starters it feels like bose skipped out on their case… and from a comfort standpoint these earbuds aren’t the greatest cause they are a little heavy and their unadjustable ear hooks can lead to tender ears. And then their use of a hero and side kick set up and the use of an external charging cradle just make its feel like these things are straight out of 2018 when the truly wireless earbuds craze was just starting and companies were just putting out anything. But then there are the Powerbeats pro over all these things are decent, they have decent battery life, and they fit very well and secure. But for 2021 the Powerbeats pro are starting to fall behind. The fact that their huge case doesn’t have wireless charging is a little weird… and these things are severely missing a transparency mode which I feel is a crucial feature for the runners, hikers, and cyclists these earbuds are specifically targeted at. Now I feel the these earbuds should have had a transparency mode from the get go but I wouldn’t be shocked to finally see it on the Powerbeats pro 2 along side active noise cancellation.