Bose
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| Basic information | |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1964 |
| Legal Structure | Private |
| Industry | Audio Equipment |
| Also known as | Bose Corporation |
| Official website | https://www.bose.com |
Bose Corporation is an American manufacturing company that mostly sells audio equipment. It was founded in 1964.
Consumer-impact summary
[edit | edit source]
Incidents
[edit | edit source]This is a list of all consumer-protection incidents this company is involved in. Any incidents not mentioned here can be found in the Bose category.
Bose SoundTouch end of life treatment (2025-26)
[edit | edit source]- Main article: Bose SoundTouch end of life treatment
In October 2025, Bose Corporation announced that it would end cloud support for its entire SoundTouch product line on February 18, 2026. The decision sparked widespread consumer backlash, as owners of the smart multiroom audio systems, sold between 2013 and 2020, would lose access to streaming services, app control, and multiroom functionality that formed the products' core value proposition.
On January 7, 2026, Bose emailed their customers with a revised end-of-life plan, including three more months of cloud support, one final app update to allow some continued functionality without cloud support, and publicly available API documentation. With the new end of service date becoming May 6, 2026.[1]
During and after May 6, most SoundTouch features became fully unusable, which for some models include up to six physical buttons on the devices.
Bose QuietComfort Sleepbuds doesn't allow purchasing new case (date)
[edit | edit source]Bose shipped the original QuietComfort Earbuds (2020) and Sport Earbuds with a restriction that binds each pair of earbuds to its factory-issued charging case.[2][3] If the case is lost or broken, the earbuds can't enter Bluetooth pairing mode and are rendered useless. Bose declined to sell replacement cases for these models, instead offering trade-in programs at $126 to $180 that required consumers to surrender their functional earbuds and pay for a new set.[3] The practice turned a $279 product into e-waste over a lost battery case. Bose reversed the policy for models released from 2022 onward, but owners of the original QC Earbuds and Sport Earbuds remain affected.
Products
[edit | edit source]Aviation Headsets
[edit | edit source]- Bose A10 (1998-2010): Discontinued by the manufacturer and no parts are available leaving consumers to figure out their own solutions for repair[4]. Authorized repair centers do not offer repair service[5].
- Bose A20 (2010-2023): Features a user-replaceable microphone and headset cable including a Bluetooth link-box inline. Approximate cost of the microphone for example is $50 based on similar headsets[6], but Bose will not make the parts available to users. Must use Bose authorized repair centers, and their authorized repair centers state "all parts requiring replacement will be evaluated and replaced as necessary"[7]. The user has no choice but to pay for a "refresh" if the repair center deems it necessary, regardless of what the problem was with the headset. This may include simply cosmetic wear on the headset "including but not limited to ear cushions, mic windscreens, and batteries". Authorized repair centers caution "Unauthorized [repair] work can void your Bose warranty".[7]
- Bose A30 (2023): Similar design and repair issues to A20 as above, some retailers stock cable assemblies but many replacement parts can't be purchased direct-to-consumer.
See also
[edit | edit source]References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ https://www.bose.com/soundtouch-end-of-life
- ↑ Disastrous_Invite_70 (2024-09-14). "No way this is fair from Bose". r/righttorepair. Reddit. Archived from the original on 7 Apr 2026. Retrieved 2026-03-26.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Bose QuietComfort Earbuds case replacement?". r/bose. Reddit. 2021-02-13. Archived from the original on 7 Apr 2026. Retrieved 2026-03-26.
- ↑ "Bose A10 Not Dead Yet: How Hobbs Flyer Is Keeping It Flying with an A20 Retrofit Controller". Hobbs Flyer. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
- ↑ "Service and Repair". Bose Aviation. Retrieved 2026-09-08.
- ↑ "David Clark Electret Mic M - 7A". Aircraft Spruce. Retrieved 2026-09-08.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Bose Aviation Headset Repairs at Brant Aero". Brant Aero. Retrieved 2026-09-08.