Sony’s XM5 headphones and the latest Kindle round out this week’s best deals
If you’re feeling the stress of procrastinating on your holiday shopping — and missing Black Friday and Cyber Monday — we’ve got you covered. We found a variety of gadgets on sale that make great gifts, many of which will ship in time for the holidays. One of the highlights is the current promotion on Sony’s WH-1000XM5 noise-canceling headphones, which are on sale with a free pair of wireless headphones. Other deals you may have missed include deep discounts on Amazon’s latest entry-level Kindle and the new Echo Dot Max.
The latest generation of Sony WH-1000XM5 have always impressed us with their audio quality, active noise cancellation, and comfort. And right now, Amazon is giving them a free pair of Sony WF-C700N headphones for $248 ($152 off). The headphones have an updated design that includes a thinner headband, more memory foam in the ear cushions, and repositioned mics that reduce wind noise when taking calls. These changes haven’t added much weight and the earbuds still get 30 hours of playback with ANC enabled.
The XM5 sounded “more refined, detailed, and spacious” in our testing, but we noticed less punch when listening to bass-heavy EDM or hip-hop tracks. The headphones have eight microphones, four of which are for voice, and their excellent noise reduction during calls was immediately noticeable, even in noisier environments. The $89.99 WF-C700N, meanwhile, is a pair of mid-range noise-cancelling headphones with an IPX4 rating, up to seven and a half hours of battery life (with ANC enabled), and a slim design.
from Amazon 11th generation Kindle is our favorite budget e-reader, and you can get the ad-supported version for $89.99 ($20 off) at Amazon, Best Buy, and Target. The entry-level e-book reader features a six-inch, 300 ppi E Ink display that won’t show sun glare like your phone or tablet. It has enough storage space to hold thousands of books or dozens of Audible audiobooks, the latter of which can be played through headphones or Bluetooth speakers.
The Kindle’s built-in battery lasts up to six weeks, depending on daily reading time and your reliance on its backlight, and charges via USB-C. It has the same screen resolution and storage as the upgraded Kindle Paperwhite, but it’s not waterproof, which may matter if you like to read at the beach or in the bath.
Amazon’s last-minute “Super Saturday” sale is underway, however, we’d say some of the best deals are actually persistent discounts we’re seeing on Amazon’s own devices, many of which have been in effect for several weeks. Right now, for example, you can grab the new Echo Dot Max at Amazon, Best Buy, and Target for $79.99 ($20 off), which is the best price we’ve seen on the smart speaker since launch.
Despite its name, the Dot Max is less of a follow-up to the Echo Dot as it is 2020’s fourth-generation Echo. It has a compact knitted fabric design, simpler controls, a better processor, and more smart home sensors and radios than previous models (it supports Matter, Thread, and Zigbee protocols). However, it still sounds good for its size and, like previous models, it can function as a Wi-Fi extender if you’re looking to support an Eero mesh network. It’s also one of the first devices to feature Amazon’s AI-powered Alexa Plus, which, while still under development, is a step in the right direction.
