Our Verdict
Decent for neutral listening. They're comfortable for long listening sessions and have a well-balanced sound that delivers a good amount of bass that isn't overpowering. They have an even and neutral sounding mid-range and good treble that caters well to all music genres. Unfortunately, they do not have the most spacious stage since they have a closed back design bit they should sound good enough for most and even more neutral listeners.
- Above-average audio reproduction.
- Lightweight and comfortable design.
- Stable and wireless design.
- Poor noise isolation.
- Plasticky build quality.
- High leakage.
Decent for commuting. The Bose SoundLink II don't isolate enough for loud environments and may struggle to block the noise of a train or bus. On the upside, they are comfortable, easy to use with a simple and straightforward control scheme. They're also fairly lightweight and come with a decent case to carry them in while traveling, although they won't be the easiest headphones to carry around on your person without a bag.
- Above-average audio reproduction.
- Lightweight and comfortable design.
- Stable and wireless design.
- Poor noise isolation.
- Plasticky build quality.
- High leakage.
Decent for sports use. They have a comfortable and lightweight wireless design. They're also fairly easy to use with an efficient control scheme. Unfortunately, they are slightly too unstable for intense exercises.
- Above-average audio reproduction.
- Lightweight and comfortable design.
- Stable and wireless design.
- Poor noise isolation.
- Plasticky build quality.
- High leakage.
Above-average for office use. They are comfortable headphones you can wear for long periods of time. They also have a well-balanced sound and a great battery life. Unfortunately, they do not block as much noise which means you may be able to hear the ambient noise in a noisy office environment and they leak a bit at high volumes so they may be slightly distracting to those around you.
- Above-average audio reproduction.
- Lightweight and comfortable design.
- Stable and wireless design.
- Poor noise isolation.
- Plasticky build quality.
- High leakage.
Subpar for gaming. The Bose SoundLink 2 have too much latency, they're not compatible with consoles via Bluetooth and cannot be customized to the extent of other gaming headphones. They also have a mediocre integrated microphone and do not have chat support when connected to your console controllers via their audio cable.
- Above-average audio reproduction.
- Lightweight and comfortable design.
- Stable and wireless design.
- Poor noise isolation.
- Plasticky build quality.
- High leakage.
- Above-average audio reproduction.
- Lightweight and comfortable design.
- Stable and wireless design.
- Poor noise isolation.
- Plasticky build quality.
- High leakage.
Changelog
- Updated Oct 18, 2021: Converted to Test Bench 1.5.
- Updated Feb 12, 2020: Converted to Test Bench 1.4.
- Updated Nov 21, 2019: Converted to Test Bench 1.3.1.
- Updated Nov 21, 2019: Converted to Test Bench 1.3.
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Popular Headphones Comparisons
The Bose SoundLink Around-Ear II are above-average wireless headphones with a decent audio reproduction. They are incredibly comfortable and deliver an ergonomic design that's decently stable but won't be ideal for sports (check our recommendations for the best over-ear headphones for working out). Unfortunately, they're a little plasticky for their price range and won't be your go-to headphones for commuting since they do not block that much noise. On the upside, they have a long battery life, a good wireless range and come with a standard audio cable to use with your phone or console controllers. This makes them decent for most use cases although they do feel a little pricey for what they have to offer when compared to some of the wireless options below. See our recommendations for the best wireless headphones and the best closed-back headphones.
The Bose QuietComfort 25/QC25 are the wired and noise cancelling variant of the Bose SoundLink 2 Wireless. If you need a wired headset and noise cancellation for your busy commutes, the QC25 are a better choice. On the other hand, the SoundLink are wireless, which makes them a bit more practical for day to day use, but worse for watching videos and gaming since all Bluetooth headphones have a bit of latency. Other than that, they have a fairly similar design and sound quality.
The Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2 Wireless 2016 are a more feature-packed and a slightly better headset than the Bose SoundLink 2 Wireless since they're also noise cancelling. The Plantronics have a much better battery life and a much greater wireless range, which makes them suitable for pairing to fixed sources like a TV or a PC. They're also a bit more versatile since they support multiple codecs, and their ANC makes them a good option to use for your noisy commutes. On the other hand, the Bose have a more comfortable over-ear fit and a better-balanced sound that caters well to all genres and won't be as bass-heavy as the Plantronics.
The Bose SoundLink 2 Wireless are slightly better wireless headphones than the Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC. The Bose are much more comfortable and have a better-balanced sound profile. On the other hand, the Sennheiser block out more background noise thanks to their ANC feature, feel more stable on the head, and have a slightly longer battery.
The Bose SoundLink 2 Wireless and the Bose QuietComfort 35 II/QC 35 II Wireless 2018 are almost identical headphones, but the QC35 II are more versatile thanks to their ANC feature, which the SoundLink 2 lack. If you need active noise cancellation for commuting, then go for the Bose QuietComfort 35 II. However, if you don't need the added isolation, then the Bose SoundLink 2 have the same design without the ANC. The QC 35 II also have a slightly more pronounced bass and feel a tiny bit more durable and well-made. On the other hand, the SoundLink 2 offer better value if you don't need ANC, have even easier-to-use controls, and are a bit lighter, so they might be a tad more comfortable for some during longer listening sessions.
Our How We Test Headphones article takes you behind the scenes in our lab. You'll learn how we choose and purchase products and dive into the details of our review philosophy, from testing and scoring to writing and editing.
You can also discover how we produce recommendations like this one so that you can find the best headphones (or earbuds!) for your needs.
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