I’m a fan of Bose audio. In recent memory, I’ve tried Bose’s SoundLink Plus, a portable Bluetooth speaker with big sound and a great (grassy) look; the second-gen QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds with their ridiculously good ANC; and its Ultra Open Earbuds, probably the best pair of open earbuds I’ve used to date. That being said, there’s one thing that I don’t love about Bose products, and that’s the premium pricing. Nearly $300 for a Bluetooth speaker is a lot, and so is $300 for a pair of wireless earbuds, even if the active noise cancellation (ANC) is next level. If you love Bose’s sound and you don’t want to pay the premium, there are ways to get your fix, and Baseus now has one of the most appealing options.
At IFA 2025, Baseus unveiled its $150 Inspire XH1, a pair of ANC headphones that should be on the radar for anyone on a budget. There are two things that turned my head right away. One of those things is the fact that these headphones are tuned by Bose, which is great if, like me, you enjoy Bose sound tuning. Bose sound isn’t the best in the world, but it’s reliable in my experience and above average in the pantheon of wireless audio. And getting that quality of sound from headphones that cost just $150 (the same price as a lot of midrange wireless earbuds) is an enticing proposition.
See Inspire XH1 at Amazon
But that’s not the only thing that caught my attention. Baesus is also advertising some wild battery life. According to Baesus, the Inspire XH1 headphones get 100 hours of battery life with ANC off and an impressive 65 hours with ANC on. To put that in perspective, Bose’s QuietComfort Ultra headphones have 24 hours of battery life with ANC on.
Having not listened to the XH1 myself, I still have some questions. One of them is whether noise-canceling compares to higher-end headphones—both active and passive—especially because Bose’s QuietComfort Ultra headphones and wireless earbuds are so performant on that metric. Another question is whether the XH1 are as comfortable and durable compared to a pair of headphones made by Bose, Sony, or even Nothing and its Headphone 1. Oftentimes, build quality is one of the biggest differences between headphones in the high and midrange, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Baseus’ XH1 weren’t the exception to that rule.
I have similar questions about Baseus’s Inspire XC1, too, which are the first pair of open-ear wireless earbuds with two drivers (again, another Bose competitor), but the fact that they’re also tuned by Bose and could have even more output than Bose’s Ultra Open is enough to turn my head. And even with some compromises, a beastly battery and Bose-level audio make the XH1 hard to ignore, especially if you don’t feel like spending $500 or more on a pair of headphones, even if Bose justifies its premium. Both the XH1 and XC1 are available for purchase right now.
See Inspire XH1 at Amazon
See Inspire XC1 at Amazon
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