Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Audio / Video
  3. News

Bose pulls the plug on its audio-based augmented reality platform

Simon Cohen
By

Two years after debuting its prototype augmented reality glasses, Bose is stepping away from its efforts to bring augmented reality to your ears. Key Bose AR employees have left the company, according to a report by Protocol, and Bose’s AR partners have been informed that their apps will stop working in the coming weeks.

The decision comes six months after the company announced it would close all of its U.S. retail store locations and move its entire sales operation online.

It’s disappointing news, but not entirely surprising.  As a technology category, AR has had a lot of challenges finding a strong foothold, especially within the non-enterprise space. Bose’s concept of audio-based AR, which it promoted through its AR glasses that eventually came to stores in 2019 as the Bose Frames Alto, also made its way into the company’s popular line of noise-canceling headphones like the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700.

Related

Bose’s failure to excite people’s imaginations with audio AR certainly wasn’t for lack of trying. When we reviewed the Bose Frames Alto, we were impressed by just how successful Bose had been in its mission to imbue a stylish set of Wayfarer-esque sunglasses with high-quality speakers that didn’t require a dedicated set of earbuds.

At $200, the Frames Alto weren’t cheap, but when you consider that Snap’s third-generation Snapchat Spectacles cost $380 and are arguably way less practical on a day-to-day basis, the Frames Alto seemed like a good value.

Unfortunately, despite having surprisingly good audio quality and decent call quality, the AR glasses failed to impress in the one area they needed to excel at the most: Augmented reality.

The AR functionality was only compatible with Apple’s iOS software and finding useful AR apps to test proved a real challenge. So much so, that AR essentially became a footnote in our review which focused almost entirely on the experience of having speakers embedded in the limbs of a pair of sunglasses.

Bose says the time and effort spent developing its audio AR platform wasn’t entirely in vain. “Bose AR didn’t become what we envisioned,” a Bose spokesperson told Protocol. “It’s not the first time our technology couldn’t be commercialized the way we planned, but components of it will be used to help Bose owners in a different way. We’re good with that. Because our research is for them, not us.”

Bose’s development partners may not be feeling as upbeat. All in, 32 AR apps were developed for the platform, partly as the result of a $50 million fund Bose established to kick-start its AR app ecosystem. Soon, none of these apps will work.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Pioneer Elite’s latest flagship AVR is jammed with new audio tech
Pioneer Elite VSX-LX805 AVR with a TV.

Pioneer electronics makes some of the best AV receivers money can buy, and its flagship Pioneer Elite brand is about to push that envelope further with the announcement of its latest AVR (audio video receiver), the Elite VSX-LX805. The 11.2.4-channel network receiver will be available this Spring for a premium $2,999, but that big price gets you big power at 150 watts per channel, a new 32-bit digital audio converter, some AI-driven room calibration, and some audiophile upgrades.

The Pioneer Elite VSX-LX805 is the first Pioneer receiver to be designed in cooperation with Premium Audio Company since its licensing agreement with Pioneer/Pioneer Elite in 2021, which put them in charge of marketing and selling the brands' AVR business globally (except in China). PAC is a powerhouse of home audio gear, with huge brands under its umbrella, including Klipsch, Onkyo, Teac, and Energy, so expectations are high for its new arrivals. 

Read more
I used two of the year’s oddest tech gadgets so you don’t have to
The open Nokia 5710 XpressAudio and Huawei Watch Buds

If you’re intent on not keeping your true wireless earbuds in a normal charging case, and want to hide them inside a different gadget, now is your time. The Huawei Watch Buds is a smartwatch with a pair of true wireless headphones inside, and the Nokia 5710 XpressAudio is a 4G phone that stores a pair of earbuds in the back.

It’s a bizarre niche that I’m surprised contains two products. I’ve used them, so it's my duty to report that both are a bit silly — and I don’t want to use any more of them, thank you very much. However, for the few people out there thinking they want to buy one, this is what they're like. For everyone else, you get to marvel at two of the oddest tech products seen in a while.
Phone or smartwatch?

Read more
What is Dolby Vision? The dynamic HDR format fully explained
An example of the difference between Dolby Vision and regular HDR.

Of all the new TV technologies to emerge over the last few years, it's arguable that none has had as big an impact on overall picture quality as High Dynamic Range, or HDR. When properly implemented, HDR makes everything pop, while enhancing details and improving color. We think it has been more impactful than the move from Full HD (1080p) to 4K Ultra HD or even 8K resolution.

But not all HDR is created equal; in fact, HDR is a catch-all term that refers to several distinct and competing technologies. The one with the biggest brand recognition is Dolby Vision. Dolby Labs has done such a good job of marketing Dolby Vision as its own platform, many consumers aren't even aware that it's an HDR format.  That shouldn't be a surprise: TVs that have Dolby Vision technology are often labeled as "4K HDR TV with Dolby Vision," making it seem as though the two terms aren't related.

Read more