AirPods Pro Just Put My Bose QC35IIs Out of Business
…and why they’ll soon become even better
I love my Bose QC35IIs. I really do. The noise canceling is fantastic, they fit my ears comfortably, and the double pairing feature is incredibly handy. As a student, I find them to be an invaluable tool for a productive study session.
I’ve been using a pair of first-gen AirPods since October 2017, and when I got my QC35IIs the two headphones complemented each other perfectly; Bose for studying and focusing, and AirPods for light chores, commutes, and other activities that didn’t require the noise canceling of the QC35IIs.
Apple products are like basilisks, but instead of turning you to stone they turn you financially irresponsible.
A few months ago, after accidentally forgetting my beloved first-generation AirPods in some pants that I threw into the washing machine, the microphone started acting up, only working in phone calls about half the time. When Apple released the AirPods Pro in October 2019 — two years after I got my first pair of AirPods — it piqued my interest, but I looked at the price tag with a Michael Scott look on my face.
But, as with many Apple products, the longer you look at it, the easier it gets to justify spending your hard-earned money on that shiny new piece of tech. Apple products are like basilisks, but instead of turning you to stone, they turn you financially irresponsible.
I finally gave in, justifying the purchase with me passing my first-gen AirPods onto my girlfriend. With my credit card in hand, I watched the money drain from my account. But I had them in my hand — the holy grail of wireless headphones…
When I came home and tried them on, they exceeded my expectations by miles. I quickly realized that many of the features that made my QC35IIs so great could be replaced by my new AirPods Pro. I decided to make a list comparing the two.
Noise cancelling
The Bose QC35IIs have the arguably best noise canceling in the industry, up there with Sony WH-1000XM3. The noise-canceling of the AirPods isn’t as good, but it’s good enough. By far.
Comfort
I usually end up spending extended periods of time wearing headphones when I’m studying, doing chores, or commuting. The QC35IIs are really comfortable; at first. They quickly become really warm to wear and start to itch ever so slightly, which usually ends up with me switching to my AirPods.
The AirPods Pro are incredibly comfortable (some people find them uncomfortable, I don’t), and I very quickly forget I’m even wearing any headphones at all.
Portability
The AirPods Pro win this one by far. The QC35IIs are bulky and not very portable (if not worn), while the AirPods Pro case is tiny.
Battery
I’m on the fence about this one, as I feel the AirPods get an unfair advantage by having a case in which they are charged. The battery life on the QC35IIs is fantastic, and will easily last 2–3 days when fully charged (in my use case). The AirPods Pro get about the same battery life when put in the case every time I don’t use them. Without the case, the AirPods battery life is supposed to be around 4–5 hours, which I find to be a little optimistic.
The reason AirPods Pro win in the “battery” category is when it comes to charging. The wireless charging case makes it so easy to always stay topped up, where charging the QC35II isn’t nearly as easy (the good ol’ micro USB cable that comes with them is ridiculously short, for one).
Ease of use
This is the category I find to be most interesting, as new features in headphones is a bit of a rarity. The QC35IIs have the fantastic feature of being connected to two devices at the same time. I usually end up being connected to my MacBook Pro and my iPhone, and switching is as easy as pausing audio on one device and playing on the other.
As of WWDC (World Wide Developer Conference) 2020 on June 23, Apple announced the second-generation AirPods and AirPods Pro will be getting automatic switching between devices logged into the same iCloud account. Bose blew my AirPods out of the water when it came to usability on multiple devices, until now. The ability to automatically switch between your devices is much welcomed, as the current manual switching can easily get tedious.
If Apple can execute the idea of automatic switching smoothly, that’ll be yet another win for the AirPods Pro.
AirPods also have the feature of ear detection, which is perfect if you have other people around you. Simply take one of the buds out and the audio pauses. Something like that would’ve been great in the QC35IIs.
Sound quality
I’m no audiophile, but I appreciate some good quality headphones. The QC35II sound is more sophisticated and a little richer, while the AirPods Pro have a little more low end. They’re still both fantastic, and from a sound quality perspective, they seem to be on an even playing field.
Summary
When taking all of the above factors into account, the AirPods Pro clearly come out the winner. It appears Apple successfully tapped into the market of noise-canceling headphones and rendered my Bose QC35IIs more or less obsolete. With Apple continuing to push updates to the AirPods as of WWDC 2020, the AirPods will continue to rapidly grow into the market of wireless headphones.
I’ll be keeping my Bose headphones around for those moments when I need to shut absolutely everything out and use that slightly superior noise-canceling for maximum focus. Other than that, it seems my AirPods Pro are going to be my main drivers for the foreseeable future.
I hope you enjoyed this article comparing the AirPods Pro with the Bose QC35IIs. If you did, please consider giving this article a few claps, and comment with your thoughts on the AirPods Pro!
Cheers ❤
