Bose has unveiled its new SoundLink Around-Ear Wireless Headphones II, the newest addition to its SoundLink headphone lineup. The American speaker specialists claim that the II (that’s what we are going to refer to it as, for brevity’s sake) offers both the best wireless audio quality available and introduces a host of new features, included among them being 15 hours of run time on a charge. In addition to the longer battery life, the new SoundLink headphones can connect two devices, feature NFC for fast pairing, voice prompts, and more.
The design of the SoundLink Around-Ear Wireless Headphones II is based on the company’s QC25 noise-cancelling headphones released last year. Unlike that pair of headphones, which relies on an AA battery, these use the more common built-in rechargeable battery, which offers up to 15 hours of playtime. A 15-minute rapid charge will get you up to two hours of playtime, so it’s easy to charge up before heading out as well.
While sound quality for music and other media is obviously a top priority here, Bose has added a number of features to improve the quality of calls made using the headphones. HD voice is supported, and built-in microphones allow the volume of calls to be changed depending on the level of noise in the environment around you.
As for performance, the headphones boast some DSP designed to optimize the listening experience, including “active equalization,” and “volume-optimized equalization” the latter of which is designed to provide clear detail even at low volume levels. One thing the wireless cans don’t have is noise-cancellation, something increasingly common in wireless cans these days, and a staple for the Bose brand. Perhaps we’ll see that added in the next evolution.
“We believe when you give up wires, you shouldn’t have to compromise audio performance or convenience,” said Bernice Cramer, general manager of Bose Wireless Headphones. “So, we did more than make the SoundLink II the best-sounding wireless headphones out there. We made them the most hassle-free wireless headphones, too. You’ll notice how great your music sounds first, and then you’ll notice that we solved all the little and big problems that no one else has. That’s the power of great engineering — it makes the entire streaming music experience that much better.”
The Bose SoundLink wireless headphones II go on sale in major retail outlets in India today for INR 21,150.
