In context: If you're going to pay $250 for a pair of headphones, you'd probably expect them to provide a high-quality music experience. But Bose's Sleepbuds aren't designed for that---they don't even play audio from external devices. What they do provide is a great night's sleep, thanks to their noise-masking technology.
An Indiegogo campaign last year showed that people were definitely interested in Bose's Sleepbuds. They sold out in six days and almost 3,000 backers raised over $450,000, smashing the $50,000 goal. That success meant that Bose has now made them available from its stores, bose.com, and other retailers such as Amazon and Best Buy.
Bose says the noise-blocking technology used in these buds is better than active noise cancellation. They might not be able to stream your favorite Spotify tracks, which would have cut down the 16-hour battery life, but they do come with 10 preloaded white noise sleeptracks---some for noise masking and some for relaxation. They feature sounds such as running streams and wind, as well as urban white noises like traffic and dehumidifiers. Bose says more audio tracks will be added at a later date.
"By adjusting the volume [using the sleep app], you can balance how loud you want the soothing sound to play with how undetectable you'd like the offending noise to be," writes Bose.
Other features include the ability to set an alarm and an aluminum charging case that holds an extra 16 hours of power. While $250 is a lot of money for headphones that can't play music, they could be a dream product for those who have trouble falling asleep.