Bose Frames Audio Sunglasses, Alto (S/M), Black

Product Information

But between the two of them, the Bose Frames really demonstrate that augmented reality can go beyond vision, and we hope to see more apps take advantage of this. It should be easy to find compatible AR apps when more are added, as the Bose Connect app highlights them almost instantly. Battery life Polarised lenses have an odd tendency to distort the pavement, making it look less flat than it really is While neat however, even this doesn’t really show the true joy of using the device. A very robotic voice telling you it’s “220 meters to the green” is handy, but not especially fun. Bose Bluetooth® sunglasses offer a unique listening experience without the need for traditional over-ear headphones or wireless earbuds. These cutting-edge accessories redefine the way you experience sound, seamlessly integrating your audio into stylish eyewear. The open-ear design, coupled with high-quality speakers, delivers exceptional sound while allowing you to stay aware of your surroundings. Enjoy the freedom of wireless audio, perfect for both making phone calls and listening to music on-the-go, with headphone sunglasses. Don’t expect incredible battery life from the Bose Frames, and this is one of the reasons that it’s such a shame the company hasn’t seen fit to include a charging case.

The smart bit of the Frames is support for the firm’s audio augmented reality platform, Bose AR, which is also available on the Bose’s popular QC35 II headphones, and on the upcoming Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700. So the Frames will never be the only set of headphones you need, and they could do with a battery in the case, volume controls and a few more styles, not to mention prescription lenses and some killer Bose AR apps.The Bose Frames are delightful – a set of premium sunglasses that also act as your personal music system. Kept to 50% or lower those next to you can’t hear your music, but because your ears are open you can hear the world around you. A single button under the arm takes care of power and play controls. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian These are the kind of innovations Bose clearly had in mind when it decided to combine designer quality sunglasses with audio capabilities. In the case of these beauties, the relevant electronics and speakers are worked into the temple part of the frame, ensuring that sound emitted is within close enough range of the listener’s ears. The concept, simply called “Bose Frames”, has hit the market with an initial pair of models. There’s the “Alto”, which takes its aesthetic influences from the signature Wayfarer style of brands like Ray-Ban, as well as the ‘Rondo”, which offers a more rounded frame style. It’s the first model variant, the Alto, that’ll be testing here in this review. Integrated technology and functionality is identical across both models, as is the RRP. However, there’s a noticeable size difference between the two. The Alto, with its key frame measurements of 51mm/18mm/162mm, is the larger of the two versions. The slightly smaller Rondo’s measurements come in at 49.5mm/15.5mm/154mm. The Bose Alto is best suited for music and audio content that makes little use of bass frequencies. Acoustic recordings, smaller ensembles, instrumental recordings, audiobooks and podcasts should all do well with these. In addition, this device delivers an amazingly wide stereo field, with the feeling that the audio is playing around you, rather than funnelled into your ear. In Practice

The lenses are also interchangeable and can easily be popped out for a different color, although choices are currently limited to a mirrored silver for the Alto and a rose gold set for the Rondo. Crank them up beyond 85% volume and you start to hear distortion, but they pretty loud by that point. Most of my listening was about at 60% on the street or about 30% in quieter spots. The USB cable comes in a small microfibre bag lose in the case with the Frames, which makes getting them out a bit clumsyThe original Frames were pretty good about not leaking that much sound. Unless someone was standing pretty close to you, as long as you weren't cranking the volume all the way up, people couldn't even tell you were listening to something. With these new models, you'll get more sound leakage, particularly from the Tempo, and in quieter environments people will hear whatever audio you're playing if you have the volume high. But the majority of people will use these outdoors and sound disperses better outside, so you're probably not going to bother anyone. There’s also no great way of monitoring the battery life on the glasses. When you turn them on and off, you’ll be greeted with the battery amount in audio form, but it doesn’t offer a way to monitor how much charge is left over visually from the glasses themselves. Listening to your tunes while still being able to hear the great outdoors while sitting in the garden or park in brilliant sunshine is thoroughly enjoyable. Trying to listen to a podcast while travelling on London’s noisy Piccadilly line, not so much.

The Frames know which way you’re facing and your location from the GPS on your phone, so you can use audio to feed information about the real world into your ears. It’s worth noting how much bigger the Alto glasses are than the Rondo. Some people we handed them to with smaller heads found they wouldn’t sit on their face, so the size difference is something to consider here if you buy some. We were recommended another app called Komrad AR, which is a game that lets you chat with a 'Soviet AI' from 1985, and we’re hoping to test that out further for future updates to this review.

Much more than just premium sunglasses

That would have been a handy addition, but instead the glasses are charged via a proprietary cable that connects to a part inside the right arm of the product. Audio quality They’re both IPX2 water-resistance rated which, for a product meant for outdoor use, is lower than we’d like. They’ll be able to take a few drops of rain, but you’ll likely need to keep them out of a downpour. Then again, wearing sunglasses in the rain is a whole new world of looking like a fool.

It’s unlikely you’ll be listening to these in too many loud locations, but when your ears are free to hear roadworks, vehicles, and even other people’s voices, it can make listening to any sort of audio too difficult to work with. AR Features The Bose Rondo’s arms are 154mm long while the front of the glasses comes in at 142mm. The Alto are quite a bit bigger at 162mm arm length and 148mm across the front. Along with the glasses you get a carry case, which doesn’t feel particularly high-end considering how much the glasses cost. It also doesn’t charge up the product in a similar way to how wireless earbuds like Apple AirPods or Samsung Galaxy Buds work. Bose had to design tiny speakers to fit into the arms of the Frames from scratch, along with some proprietary tech that, Bose promises, directs 99% of the sound to the wearer’s ears, with only 1% leaked.Though if you’re listening at full volume, you’ll find the leakage seems much worse than that.There’s no microfibre bag for the Frames included, which would make using them and keeping them clean while out and about a bit easier One of the apps is a golfing one. It points you to the green and tells you the distance to the tee or which club to use. We found that so impressive it almost felt like we were cheating. In the real world if you have the volume below 50% people sitting right next to you won’t hear it. In fact I took delight in the look of surprise on people’s faces when I gave them the Frames and they suddenly heard my tunes blasting out as they put them on. It’s really very impressive.