What is going on everybody! Today we are doing a full review on the Bose 700 Wireless Noise-Cancelling Headphones. The price point on these is $149, and in this review, I am going to walk you through some things I like about them, some things I do not like about them, and by the end, I will let you know if I think they are worth that $149 price tag. So let’s get right into it.
Table of Contents
What’s in the Box
The Bose 700 comes in black, silver, and white, giving you a few solid color options to choose from. Inside the box, you are going to get a carrying case, a USB Type-C charging cable, and an audio or aux cable so you can connect the headphones manually to whatever device you are listening from.
In terms of battery, these take about two and a half hours to fully charge, and on a full charge, you will get 20 hours of listening time. They also feature quick charge, so if you are short on time, just 15 minutes will get you about three and a half hours of playback. On top of that, the Bose 700 allows you to connect to up to two devices at the same time, which is a pretty cool feature to have.
Design and Build Quality
The Bose 700 definitely goes with a modern design, and honestly, I am not mad at it. It looks great, especially when you put them on. On the top side of the ear cups, you can spot one of the microphones, and if you flip them over to the bottom side, there are two additional microphones, along with the charging port, the audio port, and three buttons.
Those three buttons handle power and Bluetooth, the action button which you can program for Google Assistant or Alexa, and the noise cancellation button.
One design element that really stood out to me is how you adjust the fit. With most headphones, the headband stretches out to adjust the size. With the Bose 700, the ear cups actually slide up and down along the headband instead. It is a different approach that I have not seen before, and I thought it was a pretty cool touch.
Touch Controls
The Bose 700 features touch-sensitive controls, which is an upgrade over the older Bose QC series. The touch controls are located on the front half of the right ear cup only. They do not work on the left side or on the rear of the right ear cup. To play or pause your music, you tap twice.
To skip to the next song, you slide forward, and to go back to the previous song, you slide backward. Sliding up increases the volume, and sliding down decreases it. Managing calls, including answering, hanging up, muting, and declining, is all handled through that same front portion of the right ear cup.
Also Read: Bose QuietComfort 35 II Review
Comfort and Fit
The fit on the Bose 700 is very comfortable. They do a great job of fitting snugly and securely around your ears without feeling too tight. They provide a nice seal around the ears, which actually helps create a solid environment for the noise cancellation to work, even before you turn the headphones on. That is definitely a plus, and I genuinely liked how these felt during use.
Noise Cancellation
With these being Bose headphones, it really comes as no surprise that the noise cancellation is excellent. One thing they improved compared to the older QC series is the level of control they give you over the noise cancellation. With the older QC headphones, you got an off setting, a low setting, and a high setting.
With the Bose 700, you can control the noise cancellation on a scale from zero all the way to ten, adjusting it to wherever you want in between. If you travel a lot and frequently take long flights, train rides, or bus rides, these headphones will absolutely do the job when it comes to blocking out background noise.
Sound Quality
Now this is where things get a little disappointing. At a $149 price point, I was honestly expecting a lot more from the sound quality. The Bose 700 does well in terms of clarity, so if you are listening to something that is primarily vocal-focused, like a podcast, these will handle that just fine.
However, if you listen to a wide variety of music, these headphones lack bass, lack overall depth, and lack dynamic range. The sound feels relatively flat. I did not feel immersed when listening to music, and that is something I expect at this price level.
When you compare the Bose 700 to the Sony 1000XM3s, the difference in sound quality is night and day. Sony knocks it out of the park in that department, and it is hard to ignore that comparison when both headphones are sitting in a similar price range.
To make matters a bit more frustrating, the Bose Music app does not offer any EQ controls. Sony provides EQ controls within their app, so the fact that Bose does not include this option is a missed opportunity. Given how flat the sound can feel, having some EQ settings to tailor the audio to your preferences would have gone a long way.
You can play around with EQ settings through platforms like Spotify or Google Play depending on what you are using, but at $149, Bose should be giving you everything you need right out of the box.
Call Quality
Moving on to call quality, there are really no issues here at all. With multiple microphones surrounding the ear cups, the Bose 700 will likely give you some of the best call quality available in this category. Voices come through clearly, and picking up your sound does not seem to be a problem.
Specifications Table
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Color Options | Black, Silver, White |
| Battery Life | 20 Hours (Full Charge) |
| Charging Time | 2.5 Hours |
| Quick Charge | 15 Minutes = 3.5 Hours |
| Charging Port | USB Type-C |
| Audio Connection | Aux / Audio Cable |
| Noise Cancellation | Adjustable (0 to 10 Scale) |
| Touch Controls | Front Half of Right Ear Cup |
| Multi-Device Pairing | Up to 2 Devices Simultaneously |
| Microphones | Multiple (Top and Bottom of Ear Cups) |
| App Support | Bose Music App |
| EQ Controls | Not Available |
| Voice Assistant Support | Google Assistant / Amazon Alexa |
| Carrying Case | Included |
Overall Verdict
Honestly, if I am spending $149 on a pair of headphones, it would not be the Bose 700. I would go with the Sony 1000XM3s before I went with these. The Sony headphones offer better sound quality, a more functional app with EQ controls and surround sound settings, and overall just more to offer at that price point.
If I had to give Bose some free advice, and I am putting them on game here, they need to take the modern look and the touch controls of the Bose 700 and combine them with the sound quality and comfort of the Bose QC25. If they did that, it would be game over, and they would likely have the best noise-cancelling headphones on the market.
Read More: Sony WH-1000XM3 Review
