What price would you put on a good night's rest? $100? $200? More?
This is a question that mattress and sheet companies have always posed to potential customers, but it's one that tech companies are increasingly asking, too, as they roll out digitally-enhanced products to battle the so-called sleep epidemic sweeping the nation. (It's a bit ironic: The sleep tech industry exists to sell you electronics that combat problems many people blame on being caused by tech in the first place.)
There are LED sleep lights, Bluetooth snore detectors, and smart sleep masks specifically designed to maximize the quality of the precious hours you spend between the sheets. More recently, audio company Bose released its own hyped sleep device, Sleepbuds. Earbuds for sleep? If that sounds a little counterintuitive, it is: The $250 pair of noise-masking, wireless earbuds are only to be used when sleeping. Unlike every other Bose product, you can't use them to stream music.
Still, statistics show that sleep is a continuing issue and if logging offline an hour before hitting the pillow isn't working (or isn't possible), Sleepbuds seem like as worthy an attempt as any other. We put them to test over a summer weekend full of noisy air conditioning units, honking in the street, and creaking floorboards.
Charge On
Sleepbuds come in a small, sleek charging case that fits in the palm of your hand. The top slides open easily, revealing one magnetized spot for each bud. The case can hold one full charge when it isn't plugged in, meaning you can charge it before an overnight camping trip and still have battery to spare.
Using the earbuds for nine hours over the course of a night still left me with 54% of the battery remaining. This fit with the 16-hour battery life Bose promises for the earbuds on a single charge.
Bose Sleepbuds™, $249.95, available at Bose
The Set Up
Setting up the earbuds is easy and only takes about five minutes: Simply download the Bose Sleep app, remove the earbuds from the case, and wait for the app to recognize and pair with the earbuds.
I did, somewhat annoyingly, need to reconnect the earbuds with the app during my second night of using them. That's not ideal when you want to put them in and go right to sleep, but the process was so quick that it was only a minor hiccup.
Bose Sleepbuds™, $249.95, available at Bose
Wake Me Up, Please
As someone who chronically sleeps through their alarms — I currently set five, all on different devices, to be on the safe side — I was worried about how the Sleepbuds might impact my wake-up time.
Fortunately, you can set an alarm (or multiple) within the Bose Sleep app, in the same way you might set an alarm on your iPhone. You can choose to turn on Snooze and pick your alarm sound of choice. It rings — though not in an alarming, jolt-you-awake kind of way —when it's time to get up and out.
Bose Sleepbuds™, $249.95, available at Bose
White Noise
The app is also where you'll find the 10 pre-recorded tracks — Downstream, Campfire, Tranquility, Rustle, Warm Static, Circulate, Cascade, Altitude, Swell, and Shower — meant to cover up common nighttime sounds and play until the morning. If you've ever tried a white noise app before, many of these will sound familiar. Swell gives you the ocean sounds you might be used to, while Shower is full of rain gently falling to the forest floor.
I didn't notice a huge difference between listening to Bose's tracks and the ones I've tried elsewhere. The main difference is, of course, that you are actually hearing them in your ear as opposed to on the iPhone next to your bed. However, the downside is that you need to be on your phone briefly before bed to turn on the track you want and adjust the volume.
I preferred the water sounds — Cascade, Swell, Downstream, and Shower — at a low to medium volume. While I usually have trouble falling asleep or am awoken by my air conditioner, creaky floorboards, and street sounds (ah, the joys of living in the city), I slept peacefully through the night once I was able to doze off.
Bose Sleepbuds™, $249.95, available at Bose
The Fit
There are obvious reasons you want the earbuds to fit perfectly — they're pointless if they don't stay in your ears — but there are less obvious reasons too. Bose emphasizes that the StayHear+ Sleep tips, which are soft and bendable, need to fit properly in order to seal out noise.
The first night I slept with the earbuds, I awoke the next morning to find one had fallen out. I later discovered it towards the end of the bed, where I seemed to have kicked it in my sleep. After that, I sized up on one of the earbud tips (you're provided three different sizes) and didn't have a problem again.
I'm a side sleeper and while the earbuds are very small, I definitely did feel them in my ears as I lay on the pillow. This is something I got used to, but it took a night or two before I paid less attention to them.
Bose Sleepbuds™, $249.95, available at Bose
The Final Verdict
If you're an incredibly light sleeper or sleep with someone who snores, Bose's Sleepbuds are a smart buy that should help ensure you get your REM sleep. They successfully mask noises and, unlike ear plugs (which never seem to say in place) and other headphones (which are too bulky and uncomfortable to sleep in), you can get used to wearing Sleepbuds.
However, $250 is a lot to pay for earbuds that can only be used when you head to bed. As someone who sleeps well enough most of the time, I don't know that I could justify that price point for myself. Red Eye flights are the only situation that could cause me to seriously reconsider: I would pay anything if it would help me get even one hour of sitting-upright sleep.
Bose Sleepbuds™, $249.95, available at Bose
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