Sony’s excellent WH-1000XM4 headphones are back down to their lowest price

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Today's Dealmaster is headlined by a good discount on Sony's WH-1000XM4, as the wireless noise-canceling headphones are currently down to $278 at various retailers. That's roughly $70 off Sony's MSRP, about $45 off the average street price we've tracked online, and it's tied for the largest price drop we've seen from a reputable retailer. We've seen this deal a few times since the headphones launched last August, including during the most recent set of Black Friday sales.

Clunky name aside, the WH-1000XM4 is our recommend pick for noise-canceling headphones for most people. The phones do a tremendous job of blocking outside noise, with a design that's comfortable enough to wear for hours at a time, a strong 30+ hours of battery life, USB-C charging, and multidevice pairing, among other useful features. In terms of audio quality, they have a more bass-focused, consumer-friendly sound by default, but Sony's convenient companion app includes an EQ tool that lets you create a more neutral sound if you'd like.

Competitors like Bose's Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 (which are also on sale today) offer clearer call quality and the ability to adjust the strength of its noise cancellation, while Apple's AirPods Max is one of the few wireless pairs that can approach the XM4 in terms of pure noise-canceling strength. Those are both strong choices, but for most people in search of a premium set of wireless headphones, we think Sony's pair has the best blend of comfort, features, performance, and, especially at this price, value.

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