Bose QuietComfort Earbuds 2 owners are getting an amazing free audio upgrade

(Image credit: Bose)

published 16 November 2022

I've rarely been as impressed by in-ear wireless headphones as Bose's second-gen QuietComfort Earbuds. Having already netted a lucrative five-star review on this very site, owners are about to receive a cool free upgrade in early 2023.

At the Qualcomm Snapdragon Summit 2022 – where the company revealed its flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor – Bose's SVP of strategy and business development, Nick Smith, dialled into the keynote to deliver a pre-recorded video of the good news for Bose QC Earbuds II owners.

So just what can you expect? Smith confirmed that the QC Earbuds 2 will receive over-the-air upgrades to deliver aptX Lossless and new low-latency capabilities, part of the Snapdragon Sound suite of features that the chip-maker bakes into its products.

That means the already stellar sound quality of the QuietComfort Buds will step up a grade if you're listening to the correct source material. Qualcomm's aptX Lossless can deliver signals up to 16-bit/44.1kHz, which is a big upgrade (although not top-drawer 24-bit/192kHz, which I'm sure will be featured in future products and platforms' wireless capabilities – just not quite yet).

Exactly when to expect this update to roll out is as-yet unknown, only that it's a 2023 benefit to Bose's QC Earbuds 2 owners. Smith did also confirm that the audio company will be using Snapdragon Sound in its future products, so expect heightened quality from Bose to become the norm.

Editor's note: this article has been edited to clarify that aptX Lossless is lossless to 16-bit/44.1kHz.

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Mike is T3's Tech Editor. He's been writing about consumer technology for 15 years and his beat covers phones – of which he's seen hundreds of handsets over the years – laptops, gaming, TV & audio, and more. There's little consumer tech he's not had a hand at trying, and with extensive commissioning and editing experience, he knows the industry inside out. As the former Reviews Editor at Pocket-lint for 10 years where he furthered his knowledge and expertise, whilst writing about literally thousands of products, he's also provided work for publications such as Wired, The Guardian, Metro, and more.