I test headphones for a living; these are the only Black Friday over-ear headphones I'm recommending to friends

★★★★★ rating! Let's face it: despite the waves of newer headphones available today, this excellent set of wireless cans is a modern classic – and although the newer XM5s sound just that tiny bit better, it's a closely run race. These hugely popular over-ear headphones are sonically gifted, boast excellent ANC, and fold up for easier transportation in their included travel case, unlike their younger siblings. Oh, and this is a return to the cheapest they've ever been. If you need a bit of classy retro in your life (along with excellent audio quality), now is the time.

★★★★★ rating! I adore these headphones. Honestly, they are incredible value at their original MSRP thanks to their excellent sound quality, solid ANC, novel voice prompts (select 'Southwark' and you get Matt Berry to tell you whether you've deployed noise canceling) plus a modular design that means you'll even be able to switch out the battery when the time comes. They debuted on July 15, 2024, and frankly, they wowed me – and the wider TechRadar team. If you need more info, my Cambridge Audio Melomania P100 review will provide. Highly recommended at this new lowest-seen price.

★★★★★ rating! Quite simply the best in Sony's class-leading wireless over-ear lineup. The older XM4 headphones were outstanding, the XM3 cans before it were excellent, and it'll come as little surprise to know that Sony's XM5 over-ears are also incredibly hard to beat – especially with a whopping 26% off, which is a new lowest-seen price by $4! They don't fold up like the XM4, so they're just a little more bulky to carry around in their travel case (which comes with your purchase), but, as a quick glance at our Sony WH-100XM5 review proves, there's not much else to pick fault with. 

★★★★★ rating! Another stone-cold winner. While I've seen them selling for as little as $199.95 very briefly, this price is still 39% off the MSRP and well worth a mention – because they're really that good. Their 60-hour battery life and game-changing 'sound zones' are just two reasons they achieved a rare five-star review from me – most rival pairs simply don’t come close. It's a solid buy for this money, as my Sennheiser Momentum 4 Wireless review proves. Will they dip just a tiny bit lower, or back to that sub-$200 lowest-seen price? Time will tell. Watch this space!

Want seriously gorgeous-looking cans? These look even better in real life. And they sound it, too. The beautiful B&W over-ears you're looking at are barely a year old, and this is their lowest price ever. These September 2023 release over-ears (a minor update on the excellent June 2022 Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S2) feature ANC via a total of six mics and, as long as the 'cloud gray' or 'forest green' colorways suit (the other finishes are also on offer but for $279) it's an incredible saving from a revered name in hi-fi.