I tried these stylish, futuristic-looking open earbuds, and although they boast sound by Bose, they’re not as harsh on your wallet — here’s everything you need to know | Daily Reports Online
Indian tech brand Noise has teamed up with Bose for a brand new pair of open earbuds, the Noise Master Buds Open.
These clip-on buds are a first for Noise in the open ear segment, but join its existing Master series lineup, that includes over-ear headphones and in-ear buds — which were also built alongside Bose.
And lucky me — I’ve already tried the Master Buds Open for myself. I got hands on with the brand new open earbuds at IFA Berlin 2026, and spoke with Noise about its collaboration with Bose and the fancy features crammed into its latest creation.
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Bose sound at an affordable price… kinda
Allow me to start with something of a disclaimer. The Master Buds Open aren’t a fully fledged Bose product, they simply feature ‘Sound by Bose’ technology. This means that the audio giant helped to tune the sound on the Master Buds Open, and there’s a specific Sound by Bose EQ option for the model.
We’ve seen other brands use Sound by Bose tech in the last year or so, with Baseus making use of a partnership in its Inspire line (including the XH1 headphones), and Skullcandy teaming up with the ANC giant for products including the Method 360 ANC (which we rated very highly).
However, Noise has a closer relationship with Bose than most, as the latter has invested in the Indian company across recent years, and the pair have already developed a number of audio products together, including the Noise Master Buds 2 and Master Buds Max.
Although the new Master Buds Open don’t quite offer the exceptional build and sound quality we’ve come to expect from products like the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds Gen 2, this collaboration certainly heightens the perceived value of Noise’s affordable audio gear, and helps it to stand out as a relatively recent entrant in competitive markets like the US, UK, and EU.
Getting hands on
Anyway, let’s talk about my time getting hands-on with the Noise Master Buds Open.
I have to say, when the buds were brought over to me, they made an excellent first impression. They come in a beautiful case with appealing metallic details, and the buds themselves look incredibly sleek and almost futuristic — especially in the slick Silver colorway.
In use, the Master Buds Open also felt supremely comfortable. I find that some clip-on earbuds have the tendency to either feel a bit tight, or almost too loose, but in my short time with the Master Buds Open they seemed to master the clip-on feel, with a secure yet comfortable fit and almost weightless on-ear sensation.
Sonically, the Master Buds Open performed about as well as I expected, although I should preface my thoughts by noting that the unit I tried was a prototype, and so the Master Buds Open may sound a little different at launch.
Naturally, I made use of the Sound by Bose EQ option, and I’d say the earbuds performed decently overall. A representative played me a bit of I’m Alive by Céline Dion, and I was treated to clear vocals, with fairly prominent bass (as far as open ears go), and well-separated guitars in the mid-range.
I also had the chance to play some songs of my choosing, and switched over to Can’t Resist by Jamback. In this house track, I realized that treble was pretty forward, meaning that drums higher in the frequency range were particularly prominent. Bass was also decently weighted, although you won’t get the pounding low-end that some of the best wireless earbuds can provide.
Was I blown away by the audio on offer from the Master Buds Open? Perhaps not — at least not at this stage. But they did perform pretty well overall, especially when you consider their price. I was told that the Master Buds Open will release for about €119 (around $140 / £100), which is relatively affordable — especially when you consider that Bose’s Ultra Open Earbuds have a list price of $299 / £299 / AU$449.95.
A surprising highlight
While the Master Buds Open will undoubtedly face stiff competition from similarly priced rivals like the Anker Soundcore AeroClip, they did impress me with their comfort and looks.
But one thing struck me more than any other: their surprisingly feature-rich companion app. Not only did I find Noise’s app to be incredibly easy to use and navigate, but I also couldn’t believe how much functionality it had to offer.
There’s a spatial audio setting, designed to offer “dynamic and realistic” audio, as well as a Gaming Mode if you need low-latency audio — a nice touch for keen mobile gamers.
On top of this, the Master Buds Open have customizable touch controls, multi-point, Find My Device capabilities, and a Focus Mode, which locks the buds’ controls when you just want to zone in on your tunes and avoid accidental touch commands. Of course, there are also EQ settings, including a fully customizable equalizer, and mics built in for taking calls on the go.
Noise was also keen to show me that the Master Buds have a built-in AI assistant. This enables you to ask questions with your voice, read chat history, and transcribe meetings or discussions. That’s quite a lot of functionality for buds in this price-range.
While there’s no specific launch date for the Master Buds Open just yet, Noise has said that they’re set to launch on their website and with some major online retailers from late September 2026.
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