Bose QuietComfort 20 Acoustic Noise Cancelling Headphones, Apple Devices (White)

I'll start by saying that I have never been a Bose fan. I generally think their products are overpriced and not always better than brands you can find for much less. They advertise A LOT which always makes me suspect of a brand...if they are so good, the products shouldn't need so much advertisement. With that said, these are fantastic and worth every penny. I actually bought these for my wife but I've had a pair for over a year. She wasn't really interested in having a pair no matter how good I said they were.So I bought her a pair for our anniversary and she is SUPER happy with them and wishes she had gotten them sooner (I was right for once!) These are the best headphone purchase I've ever made and I have bought quite a few - not all of them have been cheapies (several pricey Etymotic and Shure models). The active noise canceling is superb and works great on a plane, in a car, at the office, etc. Even if you aren't playing music, it gives you utter silence from background noise unless it's really loud. Sound quality is great as well and the battery has lasted at least 6 hours continuous and would likely go longer but I've never used them for longer periods than that without charging. The ear tips are very comfy and do not come off in your ear or accidentally fall off and roll under something like some other brands. They fit on securely so you never have to worry about losing them. This has long been an issue for me with other brands...I'd arrive at my destination and pull the headphone out to use them and voila, one of the buds is mussing. I don't miss those days at all! They seem to be very durable. I carry them back and forth to work, on trips, etc and no issues with wires fraying, or coming loose, or anything like that. Can't say the same for some of the aforementioned expensive models I've had in the past. Every last one of those broke down in some fashion after less than a year of use. I only have 2 small nitpicks so my rating would actually be 4.5 stars since there's room for improvement: 1) the on/off switch is raised (as opposed to recessed) which makes it easy to slide on and off which is a good thing. However, it also seems to get turned on accidentally while in my bag every once and a while so I go to use them and they are dead :( It would be better it it were recessed with a small raised bar in the center that was only as high as the unit itself so it would still be easy to switch but not be as susceptible to accidental movement. The good new is, even when the battery is dead, you can still use them. There is just no active noise reduction and the sound quality diminishes greatly. 2) the unit on the cord which houses the battery and the switch is kinda clunky and gets in the way sometimes. It also makes it tough to wear for any kind of physical activity. I understand they have to put the battery somewhere so it can't really be helped but maybe it can be streamlined into a cylinder shape to make it less obtrusive. I guess I could complain that they are little spendy and rarely go on sale but as I said, I really feel like they are good enough to justify the price. My only worry now is that the new iPhones are supposed to be coming out without the tradition headphone jack which means I won't be able to use them with my iPhone unless there is some sort of adapter. :(

I wanted a more portable noise cancelling headphone that was not as bulky as the QC15. QC15 cannot be beat for its comfort and ability to cancel all the airplane noise. I have grown weary of having to accommodate the QC15 case in my briefcase. My 20 hr. international flights have been comfortable because of QC15 but wanted to acquire an alternative without having to compromise Bose's NC quality. After trying the new QC20 several times, I finally grew satisfied with it and it will be going with me on my next international trip in a few weeks. When I first tried QC20, I used the original earplugs (medium size) and thought it was too big so I replaced it with a small one. That felt more comfortable. I used it for a few hours and became dissatisfied with it NC quality - too much noise bled in and I thought this won't work for me. It worked relatively well overall but I felt like I was compromising too much. After thinking about it, I replaced the earbud tips back to the medium size thinking that might be the problem - initially too snug but then voila, its NC quality worked almost as well as my QC15. Overtime, I became very satisfied. All the external noises in my house disappeared! It is a keeper! One big negative: the little "box" that controls the NC function awkwardly hangs on my iPhone. I can't see that working out well if I am walking around with this unless it is in my jacket or I am sitting down. For its portability and its superior noise cancelling function, I highly recommend this. Looking forward to my trip with this without the bulky QC15 case! I bought the white one for the full price. Not convinced it should cost that much.

Oh my gosh - these really are amazing! I had a pair of $300 over-the-ear Sony noise cancelling headphones. I thought those set an unbeatable bar for noise cancelling headphones. But they finally gave up the ghost and stopped working (they were at least 5 years old). We're leaving on an overseas trip soon, and I wanted to make sure I have some jet-noise cancelling capability. Those Sony phones can't hold a candle to these Bose buds. Here's why: 1) Comfort. The buds are so comfortable and natural feeling. Other reviews have mentioned that you can leave them in for hours with no discomfort. I thought they must be exaggerating. They aren't. They fit like they were made for my ear. 2. Noise Cancelling Prowess. Um - only wear these if you don't need to be tuned into your environment at all. You can barely hear anything with these babies powered up, and that's with no audio on. If you fire up some music or an audiobook, forget it. If someone is trying to get your attention they better be right I front of you waving their arms, because you WON'T be able to hear them. 3) Sound Quality. This was the most surprising aspect. The sound quality is freaking awesome! Clear, defined bass lines. Detailed treble that isn't too bright or tinny. Overall it's a very pleasing sound. I'm listening to The Beatles' Magical Mystery Tour as I write this. I forgot what it was like to be so transported by music. As I said at the beginning - it's an amazing experience. Last word - I really hesitated buying these. $300 for ear buds? Seriously? But I'm so glad I did. Surpassed all my expectations, and right out of the box.

I am a college student who uses the train to get back and forth to school which is about a seven hour trip. I thought it would be a great investment to get a pair of headphones that would not only allow me to enjoy my trip back and forth to school without having to hear the conversations of the people sitting around me, but would also allow me to focus on my assignments on an incredibly loud train. At first, these headphones worked incredibly well. With the noise cancelling function on, I was able to be completely immersed in my music and my assignments. With the aware mode, I was able to easily switch off the noise cancelling aspect in order to hear important announcements regarding my train. As I said, at first, these headphones did their job incredibly well. Now, about six months later, the batter no longer holds a complete charge I can fully charge the battery but it will only last for about 6 hours as opposed to the 16 hours Bose says it should last. Also, there is no warning or low battery indicator light anymore. At all times, the battery pack will show two solid green lights (one indicating it is on and the other indicating that I have plenty of battery left) and then after about six hours, it will just switch off. I am extremely disappointed in this product. I own many other Bose products that have lasted for years without any issues and for $300 I expected a lot more from Bose. Now I am left with an extremely expensive pair of ordinary earphones that are no better than the ones that came with my phone.

I have used these earbuds for a year and a half. I just recently purchased the QuietComfort 35. I can now say without a doubt that the QuietComfort 20 are WAY better for those who wish to use the product for conference calls. The microphone on the 20 is much better at filtering out nearby noise than the 35s. So much so that the people I'm talking to literally can't tell if I'm in the car, or poolside with screaming kids. The 20 is also much better at noise canceling in my opinion...but I think that's because you shove the buds in your ear vs the 35, which is simply over the whole ear. The only downside to the 20 is that, in my experience, the connection points on the cords eventually fall apart. This is happening to me currently. I can still use them, but the wires are exposed on nearly all the connection points. Also, the plastic cover on the on/off box has come apart, and one of the earbuds has broken in half. This may be normal wear, or it may be to my particular usage, I don't know. I wear them daily, so they get heavy use. Also, I'm not very concerned about sound quality and probably wouldn't know the different. For me, the sound on both he 20 and 35 is great, and does the job.

I have used these for over 1.5 years now, and they have been a lifesaver for me in terms of blocking out noise as I study (think of rowdy college students or talkers in the library!) and have been especially helpful for bedtimes in my college dorms; I'd put these on when I went to sleep nearly every night to drown out the noises from my roommates (i'm a sensitive sleeper). In terms of functionalities, i'd say a 5/5. Kudos to customer service because my earphones stopped working about a few week into getting them, and customer service responded quickly and efficiently and exchanged my earphones! I'm taking off one star because of the design. I would have returned or sold these in a heartbeat for a comparable set of earphones due to the annoyance that I experience on a daily basis from the heavy and bulky rectangular box that is adjacent to the jack. My earphones have constantly cut off because of that bulky box. Like i've said, i've been using the QC20 for over 1.5 years now and my small (ear) tips have finally given in and ripped. ;( I'd say that's not bad for using them almost everyday through my studies, sleep, and travels! I'll have to somehow replace my small tips though since the mediums are too large for me. So in summary, this is an amazing product and it does the job well! But if I could do it again, I'm not sure that I would have bought this because of the bulky box and how it keep disconnecting the earphone jack from my devices; I think that for my purposes I would have bought something else for sleeping in and then the Bose QuietControl 30 Neckband for studying and lifestyle.

For $300 I would expect these to be perfect. It is a high price to pay when other option for about $100 are available. I think it's fair to say that Apple have it down when it comes to design and the feel in ones hand, we pay a premium for Apple products too. Consequently I'm comparing these Bose headphones to something I might have got from Apple if it were possible: 1) package is clumsy and more like something you get at an airport accessories shop 2) the instructions are the printed on a huge folded paper with every language in the world but totally impractical for any long term use. It needs a credit card size EZ guide 3) the wires are made in a twisted manner and looks as if they need straightening out. This looks cheap and doesn't feel good in the hands 4) the finish of the volume controller is poor. Honestly this is the worst part. The cracks where the pieces of plastic have been assembled are uneven and look cheap. I wonder how long this will last. The + and - on the volume button is almost impossible to see and the way the buttons "click" doesn't give me confidence they will stay put in the controller for long. 5) the actual ear pieces are good and look well made and come with S M L ear fittings. 6) the unit that holds the rechargeable battery again looks cheap and feels like a $2.00 item. I wonder how cool and sleek Apple would have made it? It should look more like the Apple TV remote in my opinion. This is unfortunate as it feels cheap. The cord from this unit to the device's ear phone 3.5 mm socket is too short meaning the Bose unit has to be virtually fixed to your iPhone. It would be much better to have a long cord so that the iPhone can stay on a tray or desk and the Bose unit can be by ones hand or chest (as would be the case on a airplane seat) 7) lastly do they work? Yes and very well. But so do other manufacturers too. For the quality not worth the $300 in my opinion. I'd look at other options first.

If I could give these 6+ stars, I would. Purchased to silence a snoring spouse traveling with me on business. I never thought anything could work, but these are amazing!!!! Sometimes a little sound can get by with just the headphones, but add the Sleepy Fan app, and I could sleep through a freight train. Best money I've ever spent!!! They sound great with music and audio books as well. They don't completely drown out airplane noise, which is weird, but def take away most of that noise as well. Very comfortable to wear as well. You will NOT be disappointed if you're looking to silence a snore.