Bose ANC headphones are somewhat of an archetype, and for good reason: they’re very good at providing comfort and ease of use for most people. The Bose QuietComfort 45 is no different. If there’s one major positive about the QC 45 being almost identical to its predecessors, it’s that it doesn’t hold any major surprises. The earpieces are a reasonable size and the headset weighs 240 grams. It distributes its weight in a way that doesn’t cause fatigue over long periods of time. The synthetic leather ear cushions are dense enough to provide decent isolation, and the band also offers some padding on top. The Bose QuietComfort 45’s packaging includes a travel case, a 3.5mm to 2.5mm TRS cable, a USB Type A to C cable, and assorted documentation. One of the biggest updates to the new Bose QuietComfort 45 design is the switch from the obsolete microUSB port to USB-C. Of course, this is mainly for charging your headphones, but it’s nice not to have to bother with the microUSB anymore. Speaking of upgrades, the Bose QuietComfort 45 is slightly different from the Bose QuietComfort 35 II that it replaces. All the little holes on the back of the earcups are gone, and the outer plastic is smooth. The Bose QuietComfort 45 connects to your smartphone or source via the Bluetooth 5.1 hardware nestled in the earcups, or you can wire it up via the 2.5 to 3.5 mm TRS cable included in the package. When you go wireless, you can get up to nine meters away from your source device before connection issues arise. If you were hoping for a high-end Bluetooth codec on Bose’s latest model, you’ll be disappointed: the QC 45 doesn’t support aptX or high-speed Bluetooth codecs. While this may be disappointing to some, SBC and AAC implementations have improved over the years.
