Bose QC35 II Wireless Headphones Officially Announced With Google Assistant

Bose has officially announced the QuietComfort 25 II or the QC35 II, its first wireless headphones with Google Assistant support. The Bose QC35 II still comes with all the features included with last year’s model, including the same sound quality and noise cancelling technology.

“The QC35 is already the world’s most celebrated wireless headphone, and a survival tool for modern life,” Bose on-the-go products director Brian Maguire said. “We didn’t change anything that people already love – with the Google Assistant built in, and new choices for what you hear, we made it better.”

Bose says that the QC35 II wireless headphones still has the same noise cancellation feature and audio performance that’s on the original QC35. However, Bose has added a new way to control the noise cancellation software through its Bose Connect app.

By default, noise cancellation is activated once the QC35 II is turned on. With the Bose Connect app, users will be able to set the noise cancellation to high, low or turn it off completely.

Bose also says that users should expect the same 20-hour battery life that the original QuietComfort 35 offered last year. All of the buttons and controls from the original model are also on the new QC35 II, but it now comes with an Action button on the left earcup to activate Google Assistant.

Bose and Google actually collaborated together to bring Assistant on the QC35 II. This also makes the device the very first pair of wireless headphones deeply integrated with Google's artificial intelligence software. Users will simply have to press and hold the Action button on the QC35 II and give out a voice command to the digital assistant. This will work on Android devices, as well as iPhones that have the Google Assistant app.

“Just start talking, and your Assistant will help you manage your music and get things done – like play a playlist or a favorite song by a favorite artist, and add appointments to your Google calendar,” Bose said on its press release. “It can help you stay connected – from simple things like making a call, to notifying you about incoming messages, events and reminders, and reading them back to you.”

Like on the Android smartphones and the Google Home smart speaker, Assistant on the Bose QC35 II will also be able to answer questions and find information on the web. This includes checking sports scores, the latest news, weather and movie schedules. Bose says that the QC35 II comes with a proprietary microphone system that picks up the wearer’s voice accurately.

Users also have the option of changing the functionality of the Action button with the Bose Connect app. The Action button can be reprogrammed to toggle the different noise cancellation settings.

The Bose QC35 II will be available in black and silver color options, and will be available in the U.S., Australia, Canada, Germany, France and the U.K., Google Assistant product manager Tomer Amarillio confirmed on his blog post. The QC35 II should be available now from Bose’s website, retail stores and authorized Bose dealers for $349.95, the same price tag of the original model when it was first released last year.