Gadget of the Week – Bose QuietComfort 25 Acoustic Noise Canceling Headphones

Published on December 2, 2015

Imagine you are flying cross-country on a business trip, Chicago to Los Angeles. In the seat in front of you sits a mother trying to comfort a crying child. To your left, a man is humming the new Adele song as he types away on his Macbook Pro. And somewhere in the back, another mother is trying to comfort another crying child by singing, of course, the new Adele song. All of this is underscored by the low, dull, drone of the plane engine.

Ugh.

Now imagine you have the power to turn off all that noise with the flick of a switch. That’s the power of the Bose Quietcomfort 25.

Let’s go over its physical features first. The body is made out of a premium, hard plastic with a headband made of alcantara, a synthetic suede normally found in luxury Italian automobiles. Che bello! Now, at first glance the ear cup pads seem too thin, not cozy enough for long term use. But after a five hour comfort test, we never once felt what users refer to as, “wearing fatigue” around the ears or top of the head. At times we forgot we were even wearing them altogether.

Bose headphones historically deliver a premium experience with sound quality and the Bose Quietcomfort 25 are no different. They provide a crisp sound for the music, audiobooks, and podcasts you love.

Where these headphones really shine is the noise canceling component. When the Active Noise Canceling feature is on and the music is playing around 70% volume, most external sounds are gone. No noise canceling or ear protection can make the world 100% silent, but the Bose Quietcomfort 25 have to be the closest you can get with consumer grade headphones. And paired with their ridiculous comfort, these headphones are ideal for long flights, train rides in the city, or watching movies in your own home.

A single AAA battery is used to power to the Active Noise Canceling feature. One battery will power the headphones for 35 hours, but even without a battery, the headphones will still provide a clean, powerful, high-quality sound experience without the noise cancellation.

These bad boys come in black, white, or "triple black" and are priced at $300.

So even if you’re on a nightmare flight full of Adele fanatics (not that there's anything wrong with that), you can rest assured knowing you have these top-shelf noise canceling headphones.