Save $110: As of Sept. 8, you can grab the Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones for $289.99 at Amazon, saving you 28% on their $399.99 list price.
As someone who tests headphones for a living, I'm lucky enough to have first-hand knowledge of how my own personal headphones match up to what's on the market, and as an owner of the Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones, I'm pretty satisfied.
While most back to school headphones sales have come and gone, you can still grab the Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones for $289.99 at Amazon, saving you $110 off their list price. Though it's not their best price ever or their best recent price — within the past week they dropped to $264.99 — it is better than the $299 price point they've been hovering around.
This sale price is also much more affordable than the $450 Sony WH-1000XM6 that released earlier this year. Sure, those headphones come with improved ANC and sound quality, plus folding ear cups, but in my head to head comparison of the XM5 and XM6s, I didn't find a huge difference in performance. While I could see the XM6s being better for anyone who wants the best possible sound quality, or for someone who travels frequently (the folding ear cups do really make a difference), the difference in noise cancellation and sound quality was relatively minimal, making the two headphones pretty comparable for using while working, studying, or commuting.
With the same 30 hour battery life and relative comfort level, the choice between these two headphones rests heavily on price. If you're okay with an older gen, the $160 difference here is well worth it in my opinion.
