I love my AirPods Max but the Sony WH-1000XM4 are a much better buy today

By Carrie Marshall
published

I've seen some AirPods Max deals but they're still twice the price of these spectacular Sonys

Sony WH-1000XM4 deal
(Image credit: Sony)

There are tons of Prime Day deals on headphones, and that means it's a brilliant time to treat yourself: headphones that were previously located in the "HOW MUCH?" category are now much more affordable, and that means you get much more music for your money. But while my favourite headphones are Apple's AirPods Max, I don't think you should buy them today: this Sony deal is so much better. Instead of paying north of £400 for Apple's offering – and that's a discounted price that's significantly lower than the RRP – you can get Sony's multi-award-winning WH-1000XM4 noise cancelling headphones for £209 (was £350). 

The reason for such a big discount is simple: there's a newer model on sale now, the Sony H-1000XM5. But while the newer model has some improvements, it's not so massively different from the Sony WH-1000XM4 that it's worth paying almost twice the price for. This Sony deal gives you a truly exceptional pair of headphones for roughly half the price of my AirPods Max – and unlike the Apple headphones, you don't need to have Apple hardware to make the most of it.

Today's best Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones deal

Sony WH-1000MX4 noise cancelling wireless headphones: £350

Sony WH-1000MX4 noise cancelling wireless headphones: £350 £209 at Amazon
Save £141 on these stellar Sonys with first-class active noise cancellation, a supremely comfortable fit and typically great Sony sound quality. Until very recently, pretty much everyone agreed that these were the best noise cancelling headphones you could buy; the only reason they're not number one any more is because Sony made a newer model that's very slightly better.

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The reviews of the WH-1000XM4 were unanimous: Sony absolutely nailed the noise cancelling without sacrificing sound quality. That's important: sometimes noise cancelling makes an audible difference to what you're hearing, losing detail and low-end clarity. Not here. These have one of the best noise cancelling systems around, with a powerful processor dedicated to removing unwanted audio without getting rid of the good bits.

The downsides? These headphones aren't splash-proof, let alone rain- or sweat-proof, so if you need running headphones these aren't the ones for you. And of course if you'd rather have earbuds then these won't be in your shortlist. But if you're looking for the very best value over-ears with noise cancelling for listening at home or while you travel, these already exceptional headphones are even better value today.

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Carrie Marshall
Carrie Marshall
Contributor

Writer, broadcaster, musician and kitchen gadget obsessive Carrie Marshall (Twitter) has been writing about tech since 1998, contributing sage advice and odd opinions to all kinds of magazines and websites as well as writing more than a dozen books. Her memoir, Carrie Kills A Man, is on sale now. She is the singer in Glaswegian rock band HAVR.