I've been waffling back and forth between 4 and 5 stars for days now. I don't feel this is a perfect product, which had me leaning toward 4 stars. But, at the same time, Amazon.com defines 4 stars as "I like it" and 5 stars as "I love it." And, by these definitions, I finally opted for giving this 5 stars. Because I do love these headphones. They aren't perfect. They are more of a work in progress. But every time I put them on, they delight me, they make me smile, they make me think "Wow, I actually own these things! Me! How luxurious!"
Okay, so let's get two things settled right off the bat. First, these are noise cancelling headphones first, and good sounding headphones second. They excel at the task of noise cancelling and manage to sound great doing so. But they are not audiophile headphones. They are meant to be used in environments where you want to create your own space, your own sanctuary. Airplanes, noisy public transit, that sort of thing. If the primary environment that you are looking for headphones to use in is a quiet office space or home, there are certainly much cheaper options that sound excellent. Plenty of headphones do a fantastic job of isolating you off from a good deal of environmental noise passively, so if your environment isn't loud, you can do just fine without the active noise cancelling feature.
Second, these are Bose headphones. Which means you are going to find forums full of self-professed audiophiles who will tell you they are garbage, they are a marketing gimmick, they are overpriced and only a fool would buy them. And then there will be a lot of people who will tell you that everything Bose makes is gold. I think of it a lot like the iPhone versus Android debate. Ultimately, those of us who aren't interested in brand allegiance and just want the product that does what we want it to do for our usage model have the task of wading through all the irrelevant brand proselytizing to find actually useful information. So, all of this is to say, if you hate Bose as a matter of principle, don't buy these. And if you love Bose as a matter of principle, you're going to buy these regardless of the reviews. For everyone else, what follows is a report of my experience with these headphones.
My usage model for headphones has changed over the years. Back in college, when I lived in a dingy, poorly insulated apartment with 3 other people and their various significant others, headphones were a constant must for anything audio related. That was my "big can" era. I primarily used my headphones at home, so I invested in good cans (a pair of Sennheisers). I only had a 10 minute walk to campus and work, so inexpensive, lightweight earbuds were fine for out and about, when I didn't want to lug around a heavy set of full cans. But now I'm out of college, I live on my own in a "grownup" apartment, and my building actually spent money so as to provide excellent sound insulation between units. As such, at home, I never need headphones. I can watch an action flick at 3am with regular speakers and my neighbors don't hear a thing. What I have now is much more commuting. Loud subways, busy downtown streets, and much more flying. And honestly, commuting gets exhausting. I had been using a pair of Klipsch Image S4 noise isolating headphones for the commuting (which are excellent value headphones in my humblest of opinions), but there was still lots of background noise that would bleed through and I would arrive at my destination exhausted from the commute. This led me to start looking into active noise cancelling headphones. But the market didn't have anything for me. The Bose QuietComfort 15s (which many would argue are the gold standard for active noise cancelling consumer headphones) were always fun to try on, but I didn't want huge cans on the subway. And earbud options were just lackluster. Then Bose released these QuietComfort 20 phones. I was intrigued, so I figured I'd check them out.
When I first tried these headphones on, I was absolutely stunned. I hadn't plugged them into a music player yet, I just wanted to see how they did at taking care of background noise with the active noise cancellation engaged. I tried them on in an office environment with a loud AC unit, a fan, an air purifier, and a fridge. Everything just faded to become a barely audible, gentle breeze in the background. Wow. I was expecting them to work, but I guess I wasn't expecting them to work as well as they do. I then put on some music. I started with Dave Brubeck's "Take 5." It sounded fantastic. Wide stereo space, good definition for all the instruments, lots of space and resonance for the drums (I actually held my breath during Joe Morello's 5/4 drum solo, I felt like I was right there in the room with him). I then moved to "Rope" by the Foo Fighters and leaned into the crunch of good, solid rock. Next up, "Giorgio by Moroder) off of Daft Punk's Random Access Memories. Solid bass response, great balance, made me want to dance. I could go on, but, needless to say, I was happy with how everything sounded. I find the sound far fuller, warmer, and wider than my old Klipsch Image S4s and my Sennheiser cans. And what I really love is, on the subway, on noisy city streets, on airplanes, these phones push all the noise to the far background. They create a space that is mine. There are days where I've just turned them on with no music, just to give me my own bubble in a busy, hectic world. And they do so with great comfort. That alone is worth the price of admission.
Okay, so what could be better about these headphones? Like I said, they aren't perfect. To me, the elephant in the room is the external battery bar. It is very lightweight. But it is still in the way. I plug these into my phone in my pocket. But then I don't know what to do with the battery pack. It really has to go in the pocket with my phone. That's a bit cramped though. And, while the bar is covered in very soft, gentle rubber, I do worry about whether it should be rubbing up against my phone in my pocket (maybe I'm just being neurotic though). Now, this is the limit of current technology. These are earbuds, so there wasn't room for Bose to stick a big enough battery into the earpieces like they do on the QC 15s. So I can't fault Bose for this. But their marketing material clearly tries to NOT focus on how the battery pack works. And I know why they do this. It is a bit of a nuisance. Not a deal breaker, but still, a nuisance.
What is perhaps more of a potential issue is durability. The cable is of decent thickness. But with how it has to sit in a pocket next to a phone, I'm worried about the cord getting crimped in the places where it goes into the battery pack. It doesn't appear that this cord is replaceable, so that could lead to expensive repairs if things break. And Bose only provides a 1 year warranty. Which was a bit of a tough sell for me on a $299 pair of phones. I'm gentle with my technology and don't have a history of wearing technology out, so I'm hoping these phones will last too. But I do want to note my concern.
One last thing for the "cons" side of the product: it's a small issue, but the cord is short. I am around 5'10" and the cord is long enough to go from the pocket in my pants to my ears just fine, but there isn't much more length than that. It would have been nice if Bose had added maybe an extra 12 inches or so to offer some more freedom.
Finally, I've seen in other reviews that people have complained of hearing loud pops when doors slam, and of generally hearing a hiss. I have tried to recreate the popping with my headphones but have been unable to do so. I've slammed doors, windows, cabinets, banged on tables, run coffee grinders, and dropped pots on the floor (this last one was accidentally), and I have yet to get a loud pop in my headphones following these events. I wonder if the reviewers who posted about this issue might have had a bad pair of phones. As for the hiss, I don't hear a hiss, so much as I hear something that sounds like very faint, distant radio static. I don't notice it at all if music is playing. And, if there is no music, the faint background sound is still far quieter than the sound of the environment without the phones on, assuming there is noise in the environment. But if the environment is totally quiet, then active noise cancellation really isn't warranted anyway. I should note, I don't experience any pressure on my eardrum when using these phones, versus when I've tried on other noise cancelling headphones (such as the Bose QC15s), I have definitely felt the pressure.
So, the final question. Are these worth $299? Well... that depends on your budget I suppose. But there was one reviewer who made the point that, if you're a daily commuter, how much is it worth to you to be able to create your own sense of space and peace? If you commute a lot (I figure I spend over 330 hours per year on noisy public transit, not including flying), and start thinking of the "per commute" price of these phones, they might start sounding a lot more affordable. I guess ultimately their worth is a function of your budget, how much time you spend in noisy public locations where it is socially acceptable to not be engaged, and how exhausting you find these situations. For me, $300 for headphones is definitely spendy. But I have no regrets. I consider this money well spent.
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This Item  Bose QuietComfort 20i Acoustic Noise Cancelling Headphones |  |  |  |  |  | |
| Price | $354.95 | -36% $159.99 List: $249.95 | -8% $44.43 Typical price: $48.70 | -33% $25.99 List: $38.99 | -16% $57.00 List: $67.99 | -5% $17.98 List: $19.00 |
| Delivery | Get it Feb 15 - 22 | Get it as soon as Wednesday, Feb 14 | — | Get it as soon as Wednesday, Feb 14 | — | Get it as soon as Wednesday, Feb 14 |
| Customer Ratings | ||||||
| Sound quality | ||||||
| Noise cancellation | ||||||
| For working out | ||||||
| Battery life | ||||||
| Comfort | ||||||
| Sold By | Mostly Pre-Owned Audio | Amazon.com | Gadget Replay | MINDBEAST audio | 1MORE USA Inc | Amazon.com |
| connectivity tech | Wired | Bluetooth, NFC, Wireless | Wired | Wired | Bluetooth, NFC | Wired |
| headphones form factor | In Ear | In Ear | In Ear | In Ear | In Ear | In Ear |
| connector type | 3.5mm Jack | USB Type A, Lightning | 3.5mm Jack | 3.5mm Jack | 3.5mm Jack | — |
| noise control | active noise cancellation | sound isolation | sound isolation | sound isolation | sound isolation | — |
| headphones jack | 3.5 mm Jack | ✗ | 3.5 mm Jack | 3.5 mm Jack | 3.5 mm Jack | — |
| cable feature | Retractable | Without Cable | Tangle Free | Retractable | Tangle Free | Retractable |
Reviews with images
May be worth it if you ARE NOT tough on your headphones...
I don't often write product reviews, but in this particular case I wanted to try and write something pertinent for people deciding if this product is worth the money. A few notes before I dive into this review.1) I am extremely tough on headphones. The most durable headphones I ever owned were actually Beats headphones (the $100 in-ears) and they lasted me 2 years. Every other pair I've owned have typically died within 1 year of purchase.2) I am not an audiophile. I love a good balance of lows, mids and highs, but don't necessarily have an acute sense of when something is too "bassy" or too "tinny". I just know when I like what I hear.That said, here are the pro's and cons of these headphones.ProsGreat noise cancellation (when the headset is charged)Great sound (when the noise cancellation is on)Very comfortable fit with the right size ear piecesConsNoise cancellation is mediocre when the active cancellation feature is offThe balance of sound is sub-par when noise cancellation isn't onThe active noise cancellation "box" at the end of the cable is HORRIBLE (see inconvenient)As I mentioned in my notes above, I am extremely tough on my headphones. It's not that I don't try to take care of them, but with as often as I travel and am active (working in the yard on projects, working out, etc...) I have a tendency to not want to care about my headphones and instead focus on the activity I'm doing. That said, I was extremely disappointed that after spending $300 on a pair of headphones, they last less than 18 months. After the amount of usage they got, a few things went wrong.1) The tip of the headphones (the piece that inserts into the phone / player) bent.2) The microphone stopped working altogetherNow, I feel that it's absolutely worth mentioning (and hence the 4 star rating), is that my experience with Bose customer service was fantastic. I called the support line to get a replacement pair sent (at a highly discounted rate I might add), and while on the phone, I was given an additional percentage off because of the experience I had with the headphones not lasting. The support person I talked to was top notch, and made the experience very pleasant. That is what being a world-class company is all about.OVERALL EXPERIENCEIf you are as tough on headphones as I am, it MAY be worth looking elsewhere as some of the design flaws (active noise placement) can significantly reduce the life of these headphones. But, not many companies out there take care of their customers like Bose did for me, so IF you have issues, you can be assured you will be taken care of.
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Reviewed in the United States on August 20, 2013
Style: with microphone for iPhone and iPodProduct Packaging: Standard PackagingVerified Purchase
Reviewed in the United States on July 16, 2015
Style: with microphone for iPhone and iPodProduct Packaging: Standard PackagingVerified Purchase
