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

Product Information

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. This could also be why the Frames are so incredibly light though, with both styles weighing around 45g. Another thing you’ll need to get used to is not flipping the Frames upside down while they’re still connected to your phone. Doing so will disconnect Bluetooth and you’ll need to re-pair by pressing that little gold button. Where we did genuinely enjoy using the Frames Tenor was poolside. It’s great to be able to have music chiming in your ears while wearing sunglasses and not having to balance headphones as well. Mind you, the Frames Tenor and Soprano are only rated as IPX2 water resistant, so while they’ll survive a light splash, don’t let them fall into water. Bose Tenor sunglasses have a refined square frame and a distinctive keyhole bridge design, offering ultimate levels of style and comfort for wearers.

Bose—Classic Bluetooth® audio sunglasses Wearables by Bose—Classic Bluetooth® audio sunglasses

The Bose Frames’ headline feature is that they're also a pair of wireless headphones, and for speakers that don’t actually sit in or on your ears, these sunglasses are rather impressive. Sound quality is surprisingly good, albeit not as full or bassy as you’ll get from a dedicated pair of cans. The Bose Frames Tempo also benefit from IPX4 rating, making them water- and sweat-resistant, while the Tenor and Soprano only have an IPX2 rating.

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. Put simply this means Bose has included headphone functionality inside the body of a range of stylish sunglasses. Their compact and lightweight designs mean the average person wouldn’t even realize these glasses are smart audio wear at all. Just know the Bose Frames are unlikely to replace even average headphones anytime soon, as they simply aren't versatile enough. We've tried two different apps with the glasses, and these are currently only available when connected to iOS devices. We've been told by Bose that support for Android devices is coming in July 2019, but there's no specific date yet.

Bose Frames review: smart audio sunglasses are a blast Bose Frames review: smart audio sunglasses are a blast

That said, it’s important we remain realistic with our expectations of the Frames. They are certainly not designed to isolate the outside world, or even replace standard headphones. So they’re not the best mix for noisy environments – you’ll want to keep to regular noise cancelling cans instead. On public transport they produce mixed results – we could hear announcements being made, but we couldn’t listen to our normal podcast over the chatter in the carriage. Even in a relatively empty bus, the sound of the engine was enough to drown out the Soprano at full volume. For charging the Tenor and Soprano use a custom magnetic pogo-pin USB charger but the Tempo goes with USB-C charging, which is nice because you don't have to worry about losing that proprietary adapter. 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 The arm design may not be to everyone’s liking, as these are quite bulky on both designs. It's a necessary compromise as that’s where all the tech is housed, including the batteries, motion sensors, microphone, speakers and Bluetooth circuitry.A single button under the arm takes care of power and play controls. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian To adjust the volume, press and hold the button while turning your head. To increase, turn to the right. To decrease, turn to the left. Once you find the right volume level, let go of the button. When there is an incoming call, pressing the multi-function button will answer the call, and pressing and holding it will reject the call. During an active call, pressing the button will end the call. With an extensive range of tints, colours, mirrors, and gradients, we can create your desired lens with any prescription, or non-prescription, requirements. 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.

Sunglasses | Bose Bluetooth Audio Sunglasses | Bose

Designed for athletes, the Tempo also comes with different sized nose clamps to adjust fit, but we found that none of the provided options helped. On the other hand, this reviewer found the Soprano to be a great fit, but others found it too tight. Moral of the story – try these on first before you decide to buy a pair. Like their predecessors, the three new Frames are great if you want to lie by the beach or pool and listen to music, or enjoy your tunes while on a walk, run or hike. While Bose has done a lot to improve sound quality, the new Frames don't quite cut it in louder environments like train stations or public transport. 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. 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. 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 lifeThe Bose Frames look similar to many ordinary pairs of plastic-framed sunglasses fitted with polarized lenses. Once you ditch the idea that ‘augmented reality’ must equate to ‘augmented vision’ you start to understand the Frames’ potential – and it really is the AR features that make the Frames an impressive piece of hardware. The charging cable clips in place with little effort thanks to some fairly strong magnets. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian