Motorola’s new $130 earbuds are a Bose collab

A new wooden Edge phone isn’t all that Motorola announced today. The company also introduced two pairs of earbuds: the higher-end set is called the Moto Buds Plus and costs $129.99, while the more basic Moto Buds will only be available in select markets. But the Plus standout as the more interesting product, and that’s because Motorola teamed up with Bose for the EQ tuning and active noise cancellation on these buds. There’s a “Sound by Bose” emblem right on the carrying case.

There isn’t a ton of detail on exactly how deep this collaboration was, but Motorola’s store page says the Moto Buds Plus “were certified by Bose to deliver an unprecedented audio experience.” Bose spokesperson Joanne Berthiaume told me “we worked closely with the Motorola engineering team to ensure they delivered a premium audio and ANC experience for the category and price-range they’re in.”

Remember that the price is $130, so you can’t realistically expect performance on par with Bose’s own QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds, which cost $170 more.

But that doesn’t mean the Moto Buds Plus slouch on features: they support wireless charging, Dolby Head Tracking (when used with Motorola’s phones and supported content), multipoint pairing, and have a “water-repellent design.” And there’s naturally a transparency mode available for those instances when you want the opposite of noise cancellation.

There’s not much unique about the stemmed design, but at least you’re getting a good spread of features for the money. Battery life is rated at up to eight hours (with ANC off) and a total of 38 hours including case recharges.