I got these because they supposedly had decent noise canceling, and they were light weight.The noise cancelling is pretty good, and you can't really hear much at all if you have music on, but you can still hear everything (just muffled) with no sound playing. Which is ideal for me, and something I really like about this product.They are also not that heavy, and don't give me awful headaches like a lot of headphones do.The sound quality is also GREAT.The only downsides are that the mic is a little quiet, and you won't be able to be heard over the phone on a windy day. And they aren't super tight on my head, so they do fall off easy if you're doing even light jogging.They also connect to your devices pretty quickly, especially if you use the same device over and over. The only problem is when someone decides to borrow them, and then it has to test that connection first the next time you pick them up. Even WORSE if they're in the room because they will constantly connect to that device haha.That being said, I use these at my desk, and to walk to class all the time. The battery lasts ages (although it does take a little while to charge), and they're super comfortable. The case also keeps them nicely packed, and they are much sturdier than they look. I usually just put them around my neck to leave the house, and honestly I have had no problems with that in terms of wear.I've had them for a little over a year now, and I use them just about every day, and they are showing ZERO signs of wear or tear. I would HIGHLY recommend these.

These are my second Bose noise cancelling headphones.

The good:

Comfort

The fact they are foldable

Sound

Noise cancelling

The bad:

The really terrible and intrusive start up sounds. They are various noises and sounds they make which makes for a worse experience overall. For eg, the really aggressive start up sound, i have to place to headphones at the back of my ear first to let it play out, then i put them over my ears. Because if i allowed the headphones on my ear during that sound it is incredibly stressful and far too loud. Terrible design choice.

The volume buttons are badly designed and don't work when you place your finger over them.

The battery life is worse than anticipated, although not terrible.

The automatic power off doesn't appear to work. I've it set to power off after i think it's 15 mins, but they are still connected to Bluetooth after this time and are consuming battery.

The worst of it all, the ability to have two Bluetooth connections, ie, multipoint connection doesn't work. I've been advised by Bose to have this switched off in the app, as it was causing constant stuttering and impossible to listen to music.

For this price point, they can be a lot better.

Purchased the Bose Q45s two months ago because my partner has the Q35 II which I loved and would borrow often. I figured the Q45s would be significantly better in terms of noise cancelling and audio performance but these really fall short. Certain music sounds great once you fiddle with the equalizer (e.g Golden Hour- JVKE), and I like the fit and comfort of them, love that they still have buttons for control (touch buttons never work properly so I hope Bose never changes this), and i appreciate the upgrade to USB-C.

Where these headphones fall short for me is:
1. You can’t turn off the noise canceling and just listen to music? I loved this feature with Q35 and I’m honestly shocked they only have ‘aware’ mode which is annoying and loud and sounds horrible! I don’t want ANC on all the time, and the aware mode makes noise sharp and loud (can’t hear music).

2. The ANC sharpens/amplifies abrupt noise. What I’ve come to learn is the ANC (active noise cancelling) picks up abrupt noises SO much more than the Q35s. I feel like the headphones amplify or sharpen certain frequencies and I have to yank my headphones off due to keep them from damaging my ears. For example, weights clashing around, dishes being moved, conversations from people around you, music in the background of a store, really any loud sudden sound etc are all amplified and make me jump. These are all sounds I wanted to cancel… not amplify. This is the primary reason I want to return these and try the Sony set- I am super sensitive to jarring sounds like this and the fact that the headphones sharpen these noises even more is super upsetting. I don’t notice the same sharpening of abrupt noise with the bose Q35 II. I know that ANC is designed to cut out more consistent droning noises (e.g air conditioner, planes), but it’s a super unfortunate result of better ANC perhaps? Anyways I find it extremely jarring and the Q35II never had this issue…

I personally wouldn’t recommend these to anyone- but may be OK for people who want to use them for online meetings or for people working in fields where they need ear protection?

It's been a year since I bought these headphones and I can say its one of the most intelligent purchases I've made ever. Many aspects fulfill my review. First of all, Quality of overall materials, they are top tier for its price. Design, Comfort and experience is superior aswell. Although åt first having to download an app to link them to my smartphone seemed far fetched I later saw the value. The sound is crystal clear. You get crisp trebles and deep bass. Noise cancellation system is amazing both for listening and speaking. When you're in a meeting they really clear up the ambient noise so that's valuable for a home office setup.
Right now my only concern is finding out whether I can replace the leather from the sponges because they're starting to wear off. Nothing horrible, it's just that I'm a heavy User and it tells.