It's official: Amazon Prime Day will take place from 8th – 11th July. The four-day sale is twice as long as last year's, which means more time to snag a great deal.

Prime Day is one of the biggest sales of the year, along with Black Friday, and Amazon's spring and autumn sales. The deals are still under wraps, but we're promised that Bose and Sonos will be getting involved.

It's a safe bet that some of the best headphones, best TVs, best soundbars and more will also feature.

LG TVs are usually among some of the best deals, as are Sony headphones. Of course the sale spans the whole Amazon site, so will feature all sorts of products, but naturally we're only interested in the AV side of things.

Amazon is introducing a new feature this year. Today's Big Deals promises "daily themes curated exclusively for Prime members including time-limited 'New Deal Drop' deals launching at midnight every day during the shopping event." Intriguing.

You'll need to be a Prime member in order to be eligible for the deals. You can always sign up for a one-month free trial, and then cancel once you've done your shopping.

Prime costs costs £8.99 a month, or £95 if you pay yearly. It's half price for students.

In the run-up to the sale, and during it, we'll bring you all the best deals only on products worth buying. Why not have a look at these deals already live ahead of Prime Day to get you started?

MORE:

The best AirPods deals currently live

Best TV deals for your summer viewing

And the best hi-fi deals around

Amazon's next big sale is just days away. Amazon Spring Deal Days is essentially the site's spring version of Black Friday, and it lasts from 25-31 March.

We're promised "hundreds of thousands" of deals with up to 45 per cent off.

Deals will be on all sorts of products across the entire Amazon site. Though of course we're most interested in the audio-visual side of things.

Amazon's own devices always feature, so expect discounts on the Fire TV family of media streamers and Echo smart speakers.

But of course there will be deals on lots of other devices too.

Will we see new low prices on the Sony WF-C700N wireless headphones? The LG C4 OLED TV? The Sonos Arc soundbar?

All of these have been replaced recently or are rumoured to have successors launching soon.

And what about new products? Will the LG C5 OLED TV (which is due to be released late March to early April) see its first discount?

We'll be bringing you all the best deals as they go live – and telling you which ones to avoid – so stay tuned to What Hi-Fi? for the latest updates.

MORE:

Check out the best TV deals

The best headphone deals

And the best headphones for all budgets

Black Friday is still fresh in the memory, but Amazon has yet another sales event. Last Minute Deals is aimed at anyone looking to buy Christmas gifts – or a little something for themselves – and it's happening now.

The sale starts today, and lasts until 22nd December. Amazon's own devices feature heavily, of course, but it's also slashed 60 per cent off the price of certain Beats headphones.

Here are the best deals live right now.

MORE:

See the best headphones deals going

And the best speaker deals

Unsure which Amazon Echo you should buy? Consult our guide

We are just a week away from Christmas, devouring our chocolate advent calendars, listening to festive tunes, and panicking about last-minute gift shopping.

If, like many of us, you still have plenty of gifts left to buy for family and friends, don't worry – we're here to help. If you're buying for someone who loves their music, movies, games and tech, we've put together a curated list of the best gift ideas chosen by What Hi-Fi? editors. These are items we would all genuinely want to see under our tree, and we've kept most of these items well under £200 too.

We hope you find inspiration from the gift guide below but, if you're really stuck, there's always the ultimate life-savers when it comes to last-minute Christmas gift-giving: gift cards.

Enjoy shopping, and have a very Merry Christmas!

Gifts under £50

Sony WF-C510 wireless earbuds – £39

You know you’ll be asked for a pair of wireless earbuds, but you don’t need to break the bank to get a pair. Sony’s latest buds are affordable and sound great, have a long battery life, and offer terrific value for money.

See the Sony WF-C510 at Amazon

JBL Go 4 Bluetooth speaker – £30

This tiny, soap-sized Bluetooth speaker is a hit, surprising us with an organised and punchy sound for its size and price. Adorable and portable, rugged and waterproof – it’s the ultimate travel companion.

See the JBL Go 4 at Amazon

‘Now Playing’ light-up vinyl stand – £30

Whether your vinyl collection is bursting at the seams or your kid (or friend) has bought just the one record for popular concert tickets, this elegant stand with a plug-in light will put your favourite album on illuminated display.

See the ‘Now Playing’ light-up vinyl stand on Amazon

Smartphone stand – £18

We’re all multi-taskers these days, so whether you’re catching up on Bake Off while working (shh!) or following along to a recipe when making dinner, having your phone securely propped up nearby so you can see the screen clearly and it doesn’t slide or fall is crucial. This cute and compact wooden phone stand will add whimsy and stability to your life.

See the smartphone stand on Amazon

Pixel Art LED Bluetooth speaker – £35.19

We can’t speak to this device’s Bluetooth speaker talents, but we love the LED display screen that shows off colourful pixel art and animations. It can play internet radio and be used as an alarm clock, but the real fun is displaying pre-made pixel art or even creating your own for the customisable screen.

See the Pixel Art LED Bluetooth speaker at Amazon

Mini retro games console – £17

A great stocking filler for budding gamers or nostalgic ones, this pocket-sized retro console has a colour LCD and classic red buttons. But unlike the Nintendo one my dad had with just one game (called Egg), this version comes packed with 150 8-bit games.

See the Mini retro games console at Amazon

What Hi-Fi? magazine subscription

What could be a better gift than a subscription to the world’s best hi-fi and home cinema magazine? Do let us indulge in this annual act of shameless self-promotion, as we can’t help but suggest our print editions as the perfect gift for any audio-visual fan. Our yearly subscription brings you 13 issues, with new reviews on the latest products, round ups, insightful features and exhaustive buying guide from our dedicated editorial team.

Subscribe to What Hi-Fi? magazine here

Gifts under £100

Roberts Revival Petite 2 radio – £92

This adorable radio is a What Hi-Fi? team favourite. It is delightful to use and look at in any finish, has a tiny footprint and will pump out radio or Bluetooth tunes with a lively, punchy sound and a detailed, natural way with voices.

See the Roberts Revival Petite 2 at Amazon

Green Day's American Idiot 20th anniversary boxset – £70

Celebrating the album’s 20th anniversary, this snazzily designed special edition boxset comes with four CDs and two Blu-rays with a host of demo songs, live footage, an unreleased documentary, and a bunch of extra goodies. Perfect for the Green Day fan in your life.

See the Green Day American Idiot anniversary boxset at HMV

Sandisk Pokemon microSD cards – from £30

Who says microSD cards have to look boring? These colourful Pokemon-themed cards designed for the Nintendo Switch come in three sizes and designs: 1TB with Snorlax, 512GB with Gengar and 256GB with Pikachu on them. Catch ‘em all.

See Sandisk Pokemon microSD cards at Amazon

Gifts under £200

Apple AirPods 4 with ANC – £179

Chances are, you know someone who desperately wants a pair of AirPods. These new AirPods 4 are just the ticket: compact design, clean and neutral sound, good noise-cancelling and work seamlessly with iPhones.

See the AirPods 4 with ANC at Amazon

Bose QuietComfort Earbuds (2024) – £129.95

Not an Apple fan? These new Bose buds are the same money and offer a comfortable fit, superb noise-cancelling, and enjoyable, punchy sound. A talented wireless pair that offers a flagship experience for cheaper.

See the Bose QC Earbuds at Amazon

FiiO DM13 portable CD player – £140

Compact, stylish, retro: this portable FiiO CD player offers Bluetooth, an eight-hour battery life, a sleek metallic finish and a huge dose of nostalgia. CDs may not be as popular as the ongoing vinyl revival, but this player could appeal to those of us who dearly miss our old Discman.

See the FiiO D13 at Advanced MP3 Players

Gifts for music fans

Ruark Audio R1S smart radio – £299

Beautiful design, great usability and the kind of sound quality that popular wireless speakers could only dream of. Ruark’s gorgeous unit is packed with streaming talents alongside FM/DAB/internet radio, but it’s the stunningly insightful, richly detailed and sophisticated sound that will win you over.

See the Ruark Audio R1S at Sevenoaks or Peter Tyson

Bowers & Wilkins Px8 wireless headphones – £399

If you have a healthy headphones budget and want the best portable sound while on your commute or long-haul flights, B&W’s luxuriously made, superb-sounding wireless headphones will give you elevated sound as well as effective noise-cancelling.

See the B&W Px8 at Amazon or Peter Tyson

LEGO retro radio – £90

If we can’t have the Ruark radio, we want this. Based on a classic 1970s transistor radio, this 906-piece LEGO set looks detailed and involving, and you can even turn the dial to see the tuner move There’s also a hidden section for your smartphone or small speaker so you can ‘play’ music through it.

See the LEGO retro radio at LEGO

The Colours of Taylor Swift print – £30

Chances are, there’s someone in your life who is a huge Swiftie. And they probably won’t ever have seen merch like this. This minimalist design displays all of Swift’s tracks as paint swatches, with the colours cleverly matched to the song names. A unique print for a mega fan.

See the Taylor Swift colours print at Dorothy

Denon D-M41DAB microsystem - £250

The long-standing compact microsystem with speakers is a tried-and-tested Christmas hi-fi present for parents and in-laws. This Award-winning Denon plays CDs, Bluetooth and radio, is easy to use, and sounds fantastic for its package price.

See the Denon D-M41DAB at Amazon or Currys

Gifts for vinyl fans

Drift Record of the Month Club – from £85 (3 months)

There are plenty of monthly vinyl subscriptions, with even independent stores offering up monthly subs as part of the continued craze for vinyl. The one we’ll highlight here is from Totnes-based Drift Records, whose staff handpicks one vinyl or CD (depending on the chosen subscription) for a monthly surprise to add to your music collection. And they always have good taste.

Subscribe to Drift Records

Booze and Vinyl: A Spirited Guide to Great Music and Mixed Drinks – £18.65

This coffee table book matches 70 of the biggest 1950s to 2000s albums with curated drinks and cocktails. There’s rhyme and reason (and ingredients) for each pairing, and makes for a great read even if you’re not in the mood for a tipple.

See the Boozer and Vinyl book at Amazon

Oasis' Definitely Maybe 30th anniversary box set – £58.49

Oasis getting back together was the biggest music news of the year, but we didn’t all get tickets for the big tour, did we? Instead, we can console ourselves by spinning this 30th-anniversary 4LP vinyl box set of their debut album Definitely Maybe.

See the Oasis Definitely Maybe anniversary boxset at Amazon

Aphex Twin's Selected Ambient Works Volume II 30th anniversary boxset – £55

Another seminal album celebrating its 30th anniversary this year comes from electronics/techno/ambient maestro Aphex Twin, and this expanded edition with four records features all the original tracks alongside new tracks released officially on physical formats for the first time.

See Aphex Twin's Selected Ambient Works Volume II boxset at HMV

Gifts for film fans

MUBI subscription – from £50 (3 months)

For the discerning film fan, a MUBI subscription is a must. It has cult classics, international films and new releases that you won’t find on the other popular video streaming services, such as 2024’s The Substance, Past Lives, My Life As A Courgette, The Florida Project and more. Three-month and one-year subscription gift cards are available.

Buy a MUBI gift subscription

Alien: Romulus 4K Blu-ray – £25

Director Fede Alvarez puts his spin on the Alien franchise, and this horror sci-fi film is one of the bigger blockbusters of the year. There are scares and twists aplenty aboard a claustrophobic ship, along with throwbacks to the originals. A thriller that deserves to be seen on a vivid screen that can handle deep, lush blacks and subtle but punchy contrasts.

See Alien: Romulus at HMV

Dune: Part Two 4K Blu-ray – £20

A glorious treat for your eyes and ears, the epic landscape, visuals, wider myth and storytelling scope of Dune is even more astounding in the second film, with a more action-heavy plot that puts a thrilling sandworm chase front and centre. Play it on a great big screen with a full surround system, and you’ll be left in awe.

See Dune: Part Two at HMV

Dune by Frank Herbert – The Folio Society edition – £105

We’ll stop talking about Dune, we promise. But any genre fan should check out the special Folio Society editions of their favourite books – there are stunning editions of Dune, Game of Thrones, Dracula, The Lord of the Rings, Howl’s Moving Castle and more available. The Folio editions are gorgeous hardcovers with beautiful new illustrations and are ultimate collector’s items.

See Frank Herbert's Dune at The Folio Society

Godzilla: The Showa Era Films 1954-1975 Limited Edition Blu-ray boxset

This beautifully packaged Criterion Collection box set features all 15 Godzilla films from Japan’s Showa era (1954-1975), along with a host of bonus features, interviews and commentaries in these Blu-ray transfers, and a stunning hardcover book of essays by cinema historians filled with a variety of new illustrations.

See Godzilla: The Showa Era Films Limited Edition at HMV

Gift cards

Apple

If you’re looking for a versatile gift card for someone obsessed with the Apple way of life, this is the place to be. Apple Gift Cards can be redeemed across a whole raft of products and services, so recipients can, among other things, use them to put money towards a new pair of AirPods, get themselves a subscription to Apple TV Plus or even boost their iCloud storage.

Cards come in £25, £50 and £100 denominations, or you can simply gift a custom amount if you’re feeling particularly generous. That Apple Vision Pro won’t pay for itself…

See Apple gift cards

Disney Plus

Disney Plus remains our favourite video streaming service for 2024, and for good reason. In terms of pure quality and variety, it’s unsurpassed, and while Netflix might offer new films more regularly, the House of Mouse is where you want to be if you prioritise quality over quantity. Boasting The Bear, Shōgun, The Simpsons, Bluey, What We Do in the Shadows and Only Murders in the Building, plus practically every Marvel and Star Wars property ever made (and a huge back catalogue of Fox shows, like The X Files), you could be watching until 2026 and not run out of stellar content.

A standard card lets you gift 12 months of Disney Plus for the price of 10, granting a year-long premium subscription for £129. Worth it for Bluey alone.

See Disney Plus gift card

Qobuz

Think you know Qobuz? Think again. The French music streaming service has always been a rather niche proposition compared with the likes of Tidal, Apple Music and Amazon Music, but boy has it improved over the years. We dubbed it ‘the best music streaming service for audiophiles’ in our updated five-star review for 2024, praising the sound quality, the strength of its high-res catalogue and download store, and the sheer effort that goes into the platform’s editorial curation. Many hi-fi products also natively support Qobuz alongside Tidal, giving users plenty of choice if they want to stream in high quality.

To see what the fuss it about, you can trial Qobuz or offer it as a present in the form of gift cards. You can give a Studio subscription, which offers over 100 million tracks and streaming in hi-res quality (24-bit up to 192kHz) for either three, six or 12 months at £39, £78 and £130 respectively. Gift cards for the download store (which also has DSD tracks) are also available.

See Qobuz gift cards

Nintendo

It’s been a stressful year, so what better way to forget about the turbulence of 2024 than by seeking virtual shelter with one of the most popular consoles ever made? The Nintendo Switch remains the third highest-selling console of all time by most counts, made legendary for its quality, portability and the inclusion of mammoth franchises such as Mario Kart, Animal Crossing and The Legend of Zelda.

Nintendo gift cards can be used to buy games and other content for the Switch, Wii U and Nintendo 3DS consoles, available in prices ranging from £15 to £100.

See Nintendo gift cards

Bandcamp

Bandcamp has become one of the team's favourite places to browse and buy music. The online community and music store is terrific for discovering and browsing music (you can drill down to some very specific genres), but its biggest draw is that you can support artists directly. About 82% of what you pay goes directly to the artist or record label; the catalogue is made up primarily of independent artists or those on indie record labels, and you can buy music either as downloads, vinyl, CDs or even cassettes. Many artists release tracks for as little as $1/£1 or let you choose your amount, making it flexible for fans to buy music and support artists directly.

You can buy digital gift cards in £10, £20, £50 and £100 amounts.

See Bandcamp gift cards

Folio Society

We've flagged The Folio Society already above, but did you know they also do gift cards? Amounts range from £25 to £200, letting the recipient choose whichever exquisite special edition they fancy, taking the agonising decision of whether to go for a Tolkien collection, Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy or a Marvel Silver Age Comics collaboration out of your hands. The Folio editions are always gorgeously illustrated and bound – and will make the bookworm in your life will be very happy.

See Folio Society gift cards

The Criterion Collection

If someone you know is a huge film buff, preferring cult classics and contemporary indies, or collections that are famed for their masterful digital restorations in Blu-ray or 4K, then they deserve to mine the libraries of the Criterion Collection. There are some beautiful editions here (like the Godzilla boxset listed above) along with titles such as Guillermo del Toro's Cronos, Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai and the Coen brothers' No Country For Old Men that are packed with extra features, interviews and more. Gift cards come in $25 to $250 options.

See Criterion Collection gift cards

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It's Black Friday! You made it. It's been a week (or longer, if you ask Amazon) of Black Friday deals but now it's the day itself – and time to assess the best deals that are genuinely worth your money.

I've covered every Black Friday sale since the shopping day moved online, growing from a niche US sale to a global deals phenomenon. With the help of the trusted team of What Hi-Fi? experts, I've collated my pick of the best deals on our top-rated products.

I'm only recommending products that our test team has reviewed and rated, which means you can truly trust these recommendations. We track deals throughout the year, not just for Black Friday, which means we know when products are at their lowest-ever price (and when 'deals' aren't really deals at all).

We specialise in everything audio and video, so my pick of the top Black Friday tech deals includes headphones, speakers, TVs, soundbars, and a few more besides.

Black Friday quick deals

• Amazon: browse all of today's best deals
• B&W speakers: save up to £2200
• Bluetooth speaker: 28% off five-star JBL
• Bose QC Ultra Earbuds: save over £100
• Bravia 8 TV: save 32% on 55in TV
• Cheap TV: 55-inch Fire TV £330 off
• Deals under £15: up to 63% off
• Denon AV receiver: save £450
• Fire TV Stick 4K: now £34.99 (save £25)
• iPad: now £289 at Amazon (save £210)
• John Lewis: lowest price ever on selected TVs
• OLED TV: save £500 on LG C4
• PS5 console: 21% off Black Friday deal
• Richer Sounds: save £1250 on OLED TVs
• Samsung: up to £600 off soundbars
• Sevenoaks: £70 off Award-winning speakers
• Sonos soundbar: save 50% on Ray
• Sony WF-1000XM5: save 31% on wireless earbuds

My pick of the best deals

• View our pick of the best Black Friday hi-fi deals
• Our live blog of the best Black Friday headphone deals
• All our recommended Black Friday TV deals

You don't have to spend a fortune this Prime Day to snag a deal. Some seriously great AV and hi-fi gear is on sale for well under £50, meaning you can get in on the Big Deal Days fun without breaking the bank.

Whether it's a new pair of wireless earbuds, a streaming stick to enhance your TV with smart functionality, or perhaps you want to put your AV setup through its paces with one of our favourite test discs – Amazon's Big Deal Days has you covered. Of course, there is a lot to sift through, and not everything is worth your hard-earned cash; so we've identified the ones that are worth paying attention to.

• Browse all the Prime Day deals under £50

There are plenty of top-notch TV, headphone and speaker deals to be found but many exceed the price limit we've set here. So if you want to bag a bargain rather than breaking the bank, read on for our AV bargains.

The best Amazon Prime Day deals under £50

MORE:

Prime Day in October: the best TV, hi-fi, home cinema and audio deals

Find the best Prime Day wireless earbuds deals

Is this the best Amazon Prime Day streaming deal?: Turn your "dumb TV" into a smart TV for just £17

Prime Day is coming. Prime Big Deal Days (the official name for October's Prime Day) takes place from 8-9th October, and should see deals on all manner of products, from wireless headphones to TVs, to games consoles to Bluetooth speakers, turntables and beyond. But how do you sort the deals wheat from the discount chaff?

We'll be on hand throughout the event to highlight which deals are worth your attention, but we thought it would be helpful to give you a heads-up first. Forewarned is forearmed, after all.

Below are the products most likely to see a decent discount (of course, all of them are highly rated by yours truly). We'll tell you a bit about them, how much they usually cost, as well as what would be a good price to pay. This should help you get your ducks in a row come the big day, so you can spend less time trawling through pages and pages of Amazon search results and more time basking in the knowledge that you got a good deal.

Sony WH-1000XM5

• Reviewed at £380
• Now £259
• Lowest ever price £239
• Prime Day target £239

Even two years after launch, the Sony WH-1000XM5 are still the best wireless headphones you can buy. Why? They're the best all-rounders, combining a sleek design, superb noise-cancelling and excellent sound quality for a very reasonable price. They launched at £380 but have dropped as low as £239 in the January sales. Annoyingly they haven't dropped that low since, but here's hoping Prime Day comes good.

LG C4 OLED TV (42-inch)

• Reviewed at £1400
• Now £879
• Lowest ever price £849
• Prime Day target £849

LG's C-series is back on top. After last year's disappointing C3, the C4 has scored five stars in its 42-, 48- and 65-inch sizes (every size we have reviewed, in other words). The smallest model is currently an absolute bargain – in recent weeks it has even dropped to be cheaper than the same size C3! We are predicting that it will equal its best ever price, or even undercut it...

JBL Charge 5

• Reviewed at £160
• Now £140
• Lowest ever price £99
• Prime Day target £95

We are sticking our neck out here and saying that the JBL Charge 5 could fall to its lowest price ever. It fell to a new low of £99 just last month, and considering it has been around since 2021, we wouldn't be surprised to see another price cut. The Award-winner offers a clearer, more detailed sound over its predecessor, and updated dust-proofing, making it one of the best portable speakers around. It can also juice up your phone when you're out and about. Lifesaver.

Sony WF-C500

• Reviewed at £89
• Now £37
• Lowest ever price £37
• Prime Day target £35

Again, we're angling for a new low price on these. The C500 won a What Hi-Fi? Award, and that was when they were priced at £89! Now they're less than half price they are an absolute steal – and now that their successors have launched, the price could fall even lower. The C510 offer a longer battery life and ambient mode, but the C500 are not much compromise at all for this price. We're hoping for a new price of £35, but for the sake of a few quid you should really snap them up now.

LG G4 OLED TV (65-inch)

• Reviewed at £3299
• Now £2249
• Lowest ever price £2249
• Prime Day target £2200

The LG G4 has been at its lowest ever price for a few days now, but we think it might drop a bit lower. The 55-inch model has fallen to £1619 in recent weeks, so we think the 65-incher should nudge a little closer to the two grand mark. It's a five-star TV – its brilliantly bright picture is full of contrast, the motion handling is very good indeed, and its gaming specs are typically excellent. One of the best OLED TVs of the year so far.

Apple AirPods Max

• Reviewed at £549
• Now £499
• Lowest ever price £400
• Prime Day target £400

The Apple AirPods Max are an interesting one. Believe it or not, they launched back in December 2020 for £549. Apple prices don't tend to fall too dramatically, but these did hit £400 during Black Friday 2022. And they have fluctuated around £450-£500 since. The second-gen model launched recently – though it's a minor refresh, with just USB-C and different colour schemes – at the cheaper price of £449, and will become the default once old stock has sold out. Which could mean discounts on the Lightning model. If you can put up with the old connection and the more aged colour schemes, you might bag yourself a bargain...

JBL Flip 6

• Reviewed at 130
• Now £91
• Lowest ever price £86
• Prime Day target £86

Currently sitting around the £90 mark, the JBL Flip 6 has dipped lower before, and we are confident it will again. Its lowest ever price would be a great amount to pay for such an excellent speaker – with spades of sonic clarity and punchy bass, it delivers a sound far bigger than you might expect, and never at the expense of quality. Its toughest competition comes from its Charge 5 stablemate, which just shows how much JBL dominates the Bluetooth speaker category.

Sony A80L OLED TV (55-inch)

• Reviewed at £2399
• Now £1499
• Lowest ever price £1229
• Prime Day target £1229

The Award-winning A80L was one of the best OLED TVs we saw last year; it has since been succeeded by the Bravia 8. That means deals, deals, deals. It previously dropped to its lowest ever price over the summer, and with it closing in on 18 months on sale, we predict it will reach that bargain level again this Prime Day.

Sony WF-C700N

• Reviewed at £100
• Now £78
• Lowest ever price £67
• Prime Day target £67

We awarded the Sony WF-C700N a Product of the Year gong at the What Hi-Fi? Awards 2023 so this should show you how highly we rate them. They are a step up in sound quality from the WF-C500 and add active noise-cancelling to the equation. We saw the price drop to £67 back at the start of the year and would like to think they might return to this level during Prime Day. If they drop to around £70 or less, consider them a no-brainer.

Sony WF-1000XM5

• Reviewed at £259
• Now £189
• Lowest ever price £189
• Prime Day target £189

Sony's five-star, flagship WF-1000XM5 have just hit a new low price, so you should really consider snapping them up right now. This is a great price for these class-leading wireless earbuds – they have been around a while, so the XM6 could follow sooner rather than later, but this is still a quality pair of buds, and winner of multiple What Hi-Fi? Awards.

Apple AirPods Pro 2

• Reviewed at £249
• Now £229
• Lowest ever price £189
• Prime Day target £189

It can be hard to find deals on Apple products at the best of times and the AirPods Pro 2 are no exception. Apple’s excellent wireless earbuds have come down a little since their launch in September 2022, but we are talking only around £30. More recently, they have dropped to as low as £189, but this has been the exception rather than the rule and whether we’ll see them return to this level during Prime Day remains to be seen. You can find the older Lightning (as opposed to USB-C) model for around £200, though.

Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds

• Reviewed at £300
• Now £212
• Lowest ever price £212
• Prime Day target £210

Arguably the best noise-cancelling earbuds currently on the market, the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds do demand a price premium. But we think their stunning sound quality and ANC skills are worth every penny. The price has just dropped to £212, which is a huge saving for these impressive buds. Our advice? Wait for Prime Day, and if they don't drop any further, snap them up.

MORE:

All the best early Prime Day deals

The best early Prime Day OLED TV deals

And the best early Prime Day hi-fi deals

Prime Day is in its second day and if like many hi-fi and home cinema fans you’re struggling to keep up with the frenzy of hundreds, if not thousands of deals being pumped out by Amazon and its rivals – you’re in the right place.

Our team of experts has been on hand checking stores to find the best hi-fi and home cinema discounts that are actually worth your time and money. Doing so we’ve made sure the deals are on products we’ve tested and know are good and run thorough price checks to make sure they weren’t cheaper at an earlier point.

And from that already narrow shortlist of deals we decided were good enough to recommend to you, we've decided to go one step further and create this guide detailing the six deals our team are personally excited about. 

As an added bonus we’ve also made sure they’re still live, so you can get in on the action if you share our excitement.

KEF LSX II

LG C4

Sony PS-LX310BT 

Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S2e 

Wharfedale DX-2 

Sonos Ray

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These are the top Prime Day OLED TV deals we’ve spotted

Our picks of the best Prime Day turntable deals

We rate the best Prime Day hi-fi deals

Prime Day 2024's opening salvo of deals is just about over, and boy did it bring a lot of ammunition to the event.

Over the past 24 hours our team of hi-fi and home cinema experts have trawled through hundreds, if not thousands of store pages and deals spreadsheets hunting for the best discounts to recommend to you, our lovely readers. 

But from this heavily culled shortlist of deals our experts recommend, which number in the mere dozens, three in particular stood out to What Hi-Fi?’s crack team of editors. 

Cambridge Audio’s five star amp gets a hefty discount

The LG C4 gets its price slashed

A lovely saving on a reader-favourite streamer

MORE:

Check out our picks of the best Prime Day hi-fi deals

We rate the best Prime Day OLED TV deals

We rate the best Prime Day soundbar deals

Prime Day 2024 is all but here and it has brought with it more hi-fi and home cinema deals than can easily be counted.

And while this is in many ways awesome, it’s also tricky for a couple of reasons. First, because the sheer volume of discounts is all but impossible for any one person to stay on top of. 

That’s why the team of experts at What Hi-Fi? spends time trawling through them to find the top discounts actually worth your time and showcase them in pages including our best hi-fi deals and best TV deals guides every year.

Second, because Amazon is huge for a reason. The retailer is incredibly smart in the way it goes about pushing you to click the purchase button and breeds a sense of urgency during the event. This makes Prime a very dangerous time to shop, if you don’t go in prepared.

Here to help you avoid these potential problems, we’ve penned a handy survival guide, where our team details three key bits of advice they recommend any hi-fi or home cinema shopper follow if they want to make the most of Prime Day 2024.

• Browse all of today's best Amazon dealst

1. Check the product’s price history before buying 

Amazon, and retailers in general, are always a little tricky during sales events. This is because most of the discounts compare the current price to the product's launch RRP. Over the numerous Prime Days and Black Fridays, our team found this is problematic as we’ve seen retailers push “deals” during the events where the product was actually cheaper a few months or weeks earlier – so the deal’s not actually that great.

This is particularly prone to happening on products with long shelf lives, where a new model doesn’t come out for over half a decade – like hi-fi separates, AVRs and surround-sound systems. 

As an added layer of complexity, we’ve also seen stores raise the price of a product it wants to push a few weeks, or even months, before a big shopping event like Prime Day, in a bid to make the deal look better. 

This is why we recommend always using a tool such as Keepa or CamelCamelCamel which let you check the products’ price history. Both are available as standalone tools or Chrome extensions, making it quick and easy to spot bogus, fake deals, quickly and easily.

2. Have a hi-fi and home cinema hitlist – and stick to it

Knowing a product’s price history is great, but trust us when we say, just because something is cheaper than ever before doesn’t mean it’s worth your money. Having reviewed hi-fi and home cinema hardware since the late 1970s, our team of experts can safely confirm that there are plenty of products in both categories that aren’t worth your money or time, no matter how heavily they’ve been discounted.

This is especially true in certain categories. Take cheap TVs as an example. Jump over to our guide on which TVs to watch this Prime Day, and you’ll see that despite the category being one of the biggest when it comes to volume of discounts, a very small number are actually worth buying. 

This is because there’s an ongoing issue in the lower end of the TV market where, thanks to companies' overt focus on the top end, there are very few "good" cheap TVs. This is evidenced by the fact that, even in our best cheap TV guide, only a very small number performed well enough to earn five star ratings when our reviewers got them in for testing.

Because of this we recommend doing your research before you start shopping and going in with a hit list of products you’ve already approved and know will 100 per cent meet your needs. As an added bonus, it will also help you avoid two key, easy mistakes even members of the What Hi-Fi? team have made. 

First, it’ll help you avoid making impulse purchases – our editor (me) still has metres worth of unneeded Chord Company RumourX cable and a superfluous Chromecast with Google TV after impulse purchases during last year's Prime Day.

In the world of separates we always recommend doing your research and matching products when building a hi-fi set-up. This is especially important as simply bolting together a bunch of five-star products isn’t a surefire way to get the best results. 

For the best results, parts need to have complementary sonic characters. That’s why we recommend checking out our system guides, or doing the legwork yourself and demoing how the product you’re considering works with your other hardware at your local hi-fi shop before making a purchase.

3. Keep tabs on the specialists

Speaking of hi-fi shops, our third and final piece of advice is a simple one: keep an eye on specialist retailers as well as Amazon.

Amazon’s huge, but in the world of hi-fi and home cinema it’s not always the best place to get a great deal. Specialist retailers exist for a reason, especially if you're shopping for high-end hi-fi or a less mainstream category. That’s why our experts always check what’s available in specialist shops, such as Richer Sounds, Sevenoaks Audio and Peter Tyson in the UK, or Audio Advice in the US. 

Often, these stores not only have better selections of specific categories, they also offer equally as good, if not better, discounts than those you’ll find on Amazon in many instances. Which is why we always recommend checking them out as well as Amazon, even during Prime Day.

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Looking for a new OLED TV? Then you’ll want to keep an eye on our best OLED TV deals guide this Prime Day

Deal hunters, listen up. I've found a little-known way to save even more money this Amazon Prime Day. Where Amazon sells a device in multiple colour options, there's often a rather large price difference between finishes. And Amazon has a tendency to hide the lowest price by not presenting it as the default option on the product page, or within the search results.

That's why when a product comes in multiple finishes, you should check the price of each individual one. I was amazed at how much you could save...

This way for extra savings

The prices can vary wildly – there's nearly £50 difference, in some cases. The B&W Px7 S2 (rated five stars in our review) are currently £284 on Amazon if you opt for the white finish, but £236 in black. Sure, the other finishes might be more stylish, but I wouldn't say they are worth £48 more.

It's a similar story in the US, where the AirPods Max have fallen to an all-time low price of $398. Unless, that is, you buy the silver model, in which case you will be charged a whopping $111 more ($509). 

(In the UK, there is just a £20 difference between colours, but the £479 price is still £70 off the RRP.)

In the course of my deal hunting, I have found that headphones seem to be the best place to look for this. The five-star Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 3 recently fell to $139 in silver, but was $174 in graphite (a $35 difference). In the UK, meanwhile, the white finish is £155; the black? A whopping £207 (a difference of £52). The Shure Aonic 50 are currently $232 in white, but $299 in brown or black (a $67 difference). And the Panasonic RZ-S500W are $127 in light grey, but $179 in black (a difference of $52).

Sometimes the differences are less pronounced. The Award-winning Sony WH-1000XM5 are currently £298 in black or midnight blue, but £299 in silver, while the five-star Sony WH-CH520 are £39 in beige or white, but £38 in black or blue. Still, small savings do add up.

This phenomenon isn't unique to headphones – Bluetooth speakers can benefit too. The blue UE Wonderboom 3 is currently £99 – £10 more than most other finishes – while the pink model is the cheapest, at £81. The pink finish of JBL Flip 6 is also the cheapest, at £96 – that's £33 cheaper than the £129 green option, for which you will have to wait one to two months for it to be dispatched.

Home cinema products have fewer colour options, but that doesn't mean they are exempt. The Award-winning Sonos Beam Gen 2 is often cheaper in white than black, though at present, the white model is £1 more expensive (at £449, it's still £50 cheaper than the RRP though, so I'll forgive it).

Choose wisely

There are some things to look out for. The same product is often sold by different retailers through the same Amazon page (that's the case with the different colours of Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 3 mentioned earlier). Your statutory rights should be protected as long as you are buying through Amazon, but it's something to be aware of.

I have found that very similar products can appear on the same page too, such as the Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 3 and Wonderboom 4. That's because some finishes are only available for certain products. This can be confusing, especially when the products look identical and you are frantically trying to bag a bargain before stock sells out; so make sure to double check you have added the correct device to your basket before you check out. And also do check whether it's second-hand – Amazon isn't great at flagging this.

There you have it. Don't be too picky on which finish your new device sports, and you could save a small fortune. Happy bargain hunting!

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Amazon Prime Day 2024: the best early deals on TVs, speakers, headphones and more

The best early Prime Day wireless earbuds deals and cheapest UK prices

Check out the best early Prime Day Bluetooth speaker deals

Amazon has revealed the official dates for Amazon Prime Day. The two-day sale will take place 16-17th July 2024 – that's three weeks today.

Prime Day is one of the biggest sales of the year, besides Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Amazon spearheads the annual bonanza, but other retailers usually join in the bunfight so as not to miss out. 

This year's event will be the 10th annual Prime Day in the UK. It should be a rare chance to grab a bargain during the otherwise slower summer months.

Though Amazon is staying tight-lipped on what deals will be available, it has mentioned Bose and Samsung as among those taking part. Last year saw discounts on Bose's QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds, despite them only being weeks old. Samsung is rumoured to launch its Galaxy Buds 3 the week before – could they receive a discount too?

Amazon has also announced some early deals, including 45 per cent off Amazon Fire TV Omni QLED smart TVs and five months' free Amazon Music Unlimited.

For all the up to date info on the best deals around, stay tuned to our Prime Day page which we'll be updating in the run up to and during the event.

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Browse all of today's best Amazon deals

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January has certainly been an eventful month, with all the news coming from CES giving us an insight into what we can expect for the rest of 2024. However, with all the excitement of new TV, hi-fi and home cinema announcements, there have been plenty of tempting offers in the January sales that might have slipped by unnoticed. 

Fear not, as we've found the best deals on OLED TVs, five-star hi-fi and practically every component you'd need for your home cinema set-up. Practically every product on this list has been tested by our team of experts, with full reviews of each product available. 

Be quick though, as the sales are set to end tomorrow, so don't hesitate.

January's best TV deals

With loads of the latest 2024 TVs announced from the likes of Samsung, LG, Panasonic, Philips, Hisense and TCL, now is the ideal time to start looking at 2023 models, as they will begin to get heavily discounted. We've found deals on some of the very best OLED TVs, including sets that use the latest brightness-boosting MLA and QD-OLED panels. 

With the upcoming 2024 models from Samsung and LG looking eerily similar to the current versions, we'd recommend jumping on one of these deals if you don't need a TV with the latest model number. 

January's best audio and hi-fi deals

It's not just TVs that are enjoying some major discounts as January heads to its climactic close. There are audio and hi-fi deals aplenty from major retailers such as Sevenoaks, Richer Sounds and Peter Tyson, and we've scoured the internet to find you the ones we think you'll love the most. 

Almost every one of these products has been tried and tested by our team of reviewers, so you can trust that we're not simply selling low-quality items with which we have very little first-hand experience. Let's get to it!  

January's best home cinema deals

Rounding things off with home cinema deals, there are some great savings to be found on projectors, AVRs, speaker packages and even soundbars. Richer Sounds, Hugh's and Sevenoaks are home to some excellent sales right now, meaning you can kit your home cinema out for less.

We've tested each and every product featured here too, with full reviews carried out by our expert team. This means you'll get the benefit of getting the What Hi-Fi? seal of approval on all of these key components of your home cinema.

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Check out our picks for the best TV deals

As well as the best hi-fi deals available now

And the very best home cinema deals too

It may be just a few days until Christmas, but if you're anything like us, you may still have a few last-minute presents on your to-buy list. And if by "a few" you mean most of your family and friends, well, you're in good company here.

The good news is, we've been putting in the legwork to pick out some top gifts for the hi-fi fan in your life, that won't break the bank. In the world of hi-fi, that phrase can be a little subjective, but we've tried to keep most things under the £200 mark as a guide.

The best part to all this is that every suggestion that follows has picked up the full five stars in our reviews, and even an Award or two in the process too, meaning there’ll be no need for groans of oh lovely, another scarf around the Christmas tree this year.

Be quick if you want delivery in time for Christmas, though if you do miss the cut off, don’t forget your local hi-fi dealer is always ready to help too.

Pro-Ject Primary E

For any hi-fi fan looking to add a turntable to their setup, the Pro-Ject Primary E is an outstanding entry-level player that will easily outperform any cutesy-looking deck in a briefcase.

Serving up an even tonal balance and a spacious and clean delivery, this deck impresses with its drive and energy, combined with admirable depth and detail across the frequency range.

Considering its price, there are predictably few frills here. That means you won't find features like record ripping or automatic operation, but it's easy to set up and the performance speaks for itself. You won't beat it for the money.

Elac Debut B5.2

You don’t have to spend a fortune to get great speakers, and the Elac Debut B5.2's exist to prove that point wholeheartedly.

 So much so, that they’re the first product that springs to mind whenever we are asked to recommend a great budget speaker. Considering the level of competition it’s up against, that’s no mean feat.

 They're dynamic and expressive performers, and are as flexible in their placement as they are in their handling of genres. They're well balanced and deliver a precise and cohesive sound that we know we can’t necessarily expect at this level. For the price, they’re nothing short of exceptional.

iFi Zen DAC V2

Give the gift of an immediate sonic upgrade to any humble desktop setup, with this Award-winning DAC and headphone amp.

Now in its second iteration, the iFi Zen DAC V2 packs in new processing and circuitry improvements, and is one of the easiest ways to take a laptop’s audio quality from good to great.

It’s well specified too, with a USB Type B input and RCA line level and two balanced 4.4mm Pentaconn outputs, plus a standard 6.3mm headphone jack to boot. With a switch to move between fixed and variable outputs too, the Zen can even operate as a digital preamp if your recipient should so wish.

Røde NTH-100

If your recipient likes to listen to music at home, or uses a portable music player when out and about, a pair of top-notch wired headphones would be a great gift on Christmas morning – and these have knocked our socks off.

Not only are they traditional wired headphones in an industry that has been bowled over by Bluetooth,  but they are the first proper headphones from an Australian company more commonly known for their microphones. And what an achievement they are.

Whether your recipient is listening to music for entertainment or needs more critically focused headphones for monitoring, the Røde NTH-100 manage to adjust themselves appropriately – and that’s no easy task, particularly at this price.

In a sound-per-pound showdown, you'll find it hard to beat these – and we gave them a What Hi-Fi? Award for that very reason.

WiiM Pro Plus

Ok, so the WiiM Pro Plus music streamer might push the £200 budget just a little, but we're used to streamers this good costing at least double the price. That means this little box of tricks is insanely good value if your budget can stretch.

It's packed with all the features that it’s pricier competition boast, including AirPlay 2, Google Chromecast, Tidal Connect and Spotify Connect, with both wi-fi and hardwired connection via ethernet up for grabs.

There's also line level RCA, coaxial and optical connections, alongside the ability to playback audio files up to 32-bit/768kHz and DSD512. That's incredibly versatile for £220, and means your recipient can immediately bring an older hi-fi setup into the digital era.

Of course, as a 2023 What Hi-Fi? Award winner, it sounds fantastic too, and is easy to use to boot, making it a superb all-rounder at an excellent price.

Tidal subscription

If your recipient cares about audio quality, a subscription to our favourite streaming service, Tidal, is a gift that will keep on giving throughout the year. 

With its offering of 24-bit/192kHz FLAC streams at its highest subscription tier, Tidal is without a doubt the best-sounding streaming service on the market. It's a hi-fi fan's streaming staple.

At £20/$20 a month for this Hi-Fi Plus tier, you can gift as many months as your budget allows — the only issue is doing that is not as straightforward as we'd like.

If you're in the US,  you can buy gift vouchers that your recipient can redeem online. But if you're anywhere else in the world, you'll either need to set up an account for them with your payment details, or offer to pick up their bill for a couple of months. If they're not a subscriber yet, you'll even get 30 days free.

A great last-minute option if you're really short for time.

Chord Company C-Line

Unwrapping cables on Christmas morning might not be everyone's idea of fun, but hi-fi fans looking to make sonic tweaks to their carefully built system will be thrilled with the difference this cable can make. 

The Chord Company C-Line is the best RCA cable we've heard on a budget, and will help any system's musicality shine all the brighter, enhancing detail levels for a more entertaining and informative listen.

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Want more gift ideas? Here's our Christmas Gift Guide 2023 for music, film and tech fans

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As Andrea Bocelli says, it's time to say goodbye... to Black Friday for another year in Australia. In 2025, we saw some incredible discounts on a wide range of AV kit, including headphones, amplifiers, streamers and TVs.

Many of those fantastic deals have now ended, but a thorough check has revealed some are still available to shop. For how much longer, we're not quite sure, but we're confident in saying they won't last forever.

That means this your final chance to snap up some discounted gear for less. The good news is that many of our 2025 What Hi-Fi? Award winners remain on sale, ensuring you're getting the best of the best at a more attractive price.

You'll want to hurry though, because as mentioned, we don't expect these deals to last forever.

Best Black Friday retailers for AV deals

• Bose: save on headphones and earbuds
• The Good Guys: Price Beat on OLED, QLED and LCD TVs and CYBER25 code
• Kogan: up to 65% off in the Black Friday sale
• Samsung: sign up for Flash Sale codes
• Amazon AU: today's best electronics deals
• Appliances Online: save on Samsung OLEDs and big-screen TCLs
• Appliance Central: low prices on TVs and soundbars
• The Audio Tailor: Hi-fi deals on plenty of 5-star kit and 2025 What Hi-Fi? Award winners
• Sonos: up to 33% off headphones, speakers and Award-winning soundbars

Black Friday Australia headphone deals

Black Friday speaker deals

Black Friday hi-fi deals

Black Friday home cinema deals

Black Friday FAQ

When is Black Friday 2025?

Black Friday always takes place on the Friday after the Thanksgiving holiday in the US, which means in 2025 it fell on Friday November 28. The sales period concluded with Cyber Monday on Monday December 1.

As we expected, in 2025, most Australian retailers that run Black Friday sales started discounting well in advance of the official weekend, and so we started seeing deals from mid-November.

What is Black Friday?

Black Friday sales started life in the US, but has since become a global shopping phenomenon and has proven to be particularly popular here in Australia. It's regarded (and backed up by stats) as the busiest shopping day of the year – both online and in-store – having overtaken Boxing Day several years ago.

Why is it called Black Friday? The date was traditionally the start of the Christmas shopping season when retailers hoped to move out of the "red" (loss) and into the "black" (profit), hence Black Friday.

What is Cyber Monday?

The term 'Cyber Monday', meanwhile, was coined by the US National Retail Federation in a bid to encourage people to take their shopping online during the Black Friday event. That was back in 2005, when people needed such encouragement! It's always the Monday after Black Friday.

When is Cyber Monday?

Cyber Monday always falls on the Monday after Thanksgiving weekend in the US. This year, it's Monday December 1.

How long will Black Friday last?

Technically, Black Friday itself is just 24 hours long and it's the same for Cyber Monday. But, as with other major sales event, there is always a deluge of deals during the entire shopping weekend, and usually at least a week or two prior.

Are Black Friday deals any good?

Usually, yes. However, we have found in our experience of covering more Black Friday shopping weekends that we care to admit that some retailers may end previous discounts so that it looks as though you're getting a good deal come the end of November. In reality, you're sometimes just getting the same discounted price that had been available throughout other sales periods during the year.

There are no doubt exceptions to this rule, and Black Friday can certainly be the shopping event that delivers the biggest and best discounts. And that's where we come in, as we have the experience to know if the prices being offered throughout the weekend are actually any good.

If there are any products you're going to be paying particularly close attention to, whether it be a shiny new TV or a pair of headphones, you may already have a good idea of the maximum price you'd be willing to pay.

Where do you get the best Black Friday deals?

A good number of 4K TVs, smart and Bluetooth speakers and wireless headphones will almost certainly be on offer at pretty much every electronics retailer, while soundbars and hi-fi components are also likely to make an appearance in sales across the board (albeit perhaps in lesser quantities).

The likes of JB Hi-Fi and eBay often go big on games console bundles ahead of the holiday season, and as OLED continues its dominance in the premium TV market, some cheaper OLED TV deals are likely on the cards too.

Even though Amazon Australia has its fun with Prime Day and various other sale events throughout the year, the online retail giant always participates in Black Friday sales. In fact, to compete with all the other Australian retailers, it is often a go-to destination for choice deals and lowest prices during Black Friday. Those looking to buy into or build upon an Amazon Alexa ecosystem will be able to save money on the Echo speaker range, as pretty much every Echo and Fire TV device gets generously discounted that weekend.

Big AV brands such as Sony and LG will also likely host Black Friday and Cyber Monday discounts on their own official stores, too, so they could undercut third-party retailers prices for OLED TVs and soundbars.

• Back to top

You could reasonably think that today is Black Friday, what with the many Black Friday sales live already and the inevitable hoards of emails in your inbox telling you as much. But the biggest shopping day of the year is actually next Friday – the 24th November.

Black Friday deals seem to launch earlier and earlier each year, and that's definitely been the case this year as retailers fight for your hard-earned cash and Christmas present generosity before it's all used up. Often we see retailers run 'early' discounts and teasers of what's to come in the fortnight prior to the official day, but we are seeing retailers kickstarting their official deals already. Hell, some began in October. And even Amazon's Black Friday Week sale is, as of yesterday, up and running. 

The deals may get better during the official weekend – who knows! – but looking at the quality of some of them in the consumer electronics space, there doesn't seem to be room for many more price plummets. It's a risky game – something you may buy now might be slightly less next week, but if you wait on something you want now it could go out of stock. Our advice? If you see something you're after at a good price (and have checked it's a good price!), then it's always going to be a good buy regardless of whether its price fluctuates a little.

We have spent the past fortnight digging through the tech deals to find the best prices on the best kit to help prevent you from buying a dud, and these are the very best 21 live right now, including cheap five-star TVs, heavily discounted hi-fi, and half-price headphones, not to mention knockdown prices on several newly crowned Award winners.

• Amazon: 66% off headphones, TVs, smart speakers
• Argos: 50-inch QLED TV for £299
• AV.com: Denon turntable for £99
• Currys: £1000 off Samsung TVs
• Echo speakers: 62% off Alexa devices
• Fire TV: 42% off Fire TV sticks
• John Lewis: up to £50 off Apple
• Peter Tyson: save £200+ on Denon AVRs
• Richer Sounds: £200 off 5-star Cambridge Audio
• Samsung: £500 off Neo 4K QLED and OLED TVs
• Sevenoaks: save up to £250 on Naim and Sonos
• Very: save £100 on PS5 console

7 best headphones deals

• See the long list of the best Black Friday headphones deals

6 best TV & soundbar deals

• See the long list of the best Black Friday TV deals and soundbar deals

8 best hi-fi & audio deals

• See our long list of the best Black Friday hi-fi deals and Bluetooth speaker deals

The hardest part of choosing your next shiny new piece of tech is often narrowing down your decision. We live in an age of abundance, certainly regarding tech products, and knowing exactly which one is right for you can be a tough decision. That's where we come in, of course, and now we have enlisted the help of AI to supercharge our recommendations. 

Behold, our new DealBot. The DealBot will deliver deals and product recommendations based on your search queries, and not just from What Hi-Fi? buying advice and articles, but also from our sister sites, here at Future Publishing. This includes Techradar, LaptopMag, Tom's Hardware, Digital Camera World, plus many more. All told, Dealbot will not only harvest its answers from our great hi-fi and home cinema advice but also the knowledge of experts on all things PC, laptop, gaming, cameras and beyond.

You can search for any specific product ('LG OLED'), or ask for a more general recommendation ('headphone deals'), but really... you should try it for yourself. 

Let us know in the comments below if DealBot has helped you find a good deal or anything you think we could do to improve it. Do you prefer entirely human curation? You can head over to our hub page and see our entirely human picks of the best Black Friday deals.

Sennheiser is giving away prizes, including its latest Momentum wireless headphones and earbuds and new Ambeo Mini soundbar, every Thursday for three weeks. But you have to work play for it...

In Australia and New Zealand, Sennheiser is now running a 'treasure hunt', giving you the chance to find hidden secret codes across participating sites (including Amazon, Sennheiser and – yes – What Hi-Fi?) and register them as entries into the competition. Sennheiser says that the more codes you submit, the better your chances are of winning, though note that each code can only be entered once per person. 

If the opportunity to win five-star headphones and soundbars wasn't a big enough pull, how about an "ultra-exclusive", custom-made, black-and-gold version of the HD 820 audiophile headphones and HDV 820 amplifier? Indeed, that AU$7000 combo is the grandest of grand prizes being offered.

The hunt is live now, with winners being announced every Thursday until 22nd November. So what are you waiting for?

Want to start strong? You should probably take a read of our Sennheiser Ambeo Soundbar Plus review and new Inside the Sennheiser factory feature (hint: codes look like this – ‘HUNT1A2B3').

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Black Friday 2023 in Australia: time, start date and the best early tech deals

What Hi-Fi? Awards 2023 winners revealed! The best in every product category

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Sony's sweep of our yearly Awards is impressive, to say the least. Scooping up commendations in the TV, AVR, projector, soundbar, wireless headphones and smartphones categories, Sony has had nothing short of a stellar year of new releases. Naturally, you'll want to get your hands on all of this five-star tech; lucky for you it's also the Amazon Prime Big Deal Days event, and Sony has gone all out with slashing prices on its top-notch kit. 

Below you'll find discounts on a lot of the best Award-winning Sony tech including the best budget phone for an even cheaper price as well as our favourite OLED TV of the year at a tasty discount. But you'll have to act fast, as these deals cease at midnight.

Award-winning Sony headphone deals

Whether it's true wireless in-ears or Bluetooth over-ear headphones, Sony has cleared out the wireless headphones Award; in fact its the only brand on that list. From the budget WF-C500 buds all the way up to the flagship WH-1000XM5, Sony's headphone lineup has arguably never been stronger and with these Prime Day deals, they're all available at a great price.

An anti-Prime Day deal on the Award-winning A80L OLED TV

Technically speaking, this isn't a Prime Day deal, but it's a great price nonetheless. The 55-inch Sony A80L takes home the best premium TV at 55 inches or above, and for good reason too – this is a stunning OLED from Sony. While the price has dropped everywhere since launch, Sevenoaks is throwing in an additional £50 off with voucher code GDSAVE50, as well as giving you a chance to win the Award-winning WH-1000XM5 wireless headphones.  

Save on this serial Award-winning Dolby Atmos soundbar

Sony's HT-A7000 Dolby Atmos soundbar has been our Product of the Year winning soundbar for the last two year's running, and 2023 marks the third year its taken home a Best Soundbar Award – only time will tell if it makes the Product of the Year hat trick. Either way, this is a fantastic soundbar, and at £300 off the asking price, it's a great deal too.

Sony's Award-winning AV amplifier for less

After a lengthy hiatus from the AVR scene, Sony returned in the Spring of 2023 with a stellar home cinema amplifier. The TA-AN1000 was showered with praise for its detailed sound, punchy dynamics and excellent precision, and it can now be snapped up for just shy of £850.

Our favourite budget smartphone, now even cheaper

Sony has once again delivered portable AV excellence for well under the price of many of its Samsung, Google and Apple competitors. The Xperia 10 V is this year's version of last year's Award-winning Mark IV budget Xperia phone, and no surprises here, it's just as good, if not better in the audio department. With this Prime Day deal, you can get it for well under £300, making it the biggest smartphone bargain we've seen.

MORE:

Check out the best Amazon Prime Big Deal Days deals

As well as the full list of Award winners

And read our Sony WH-1000XM5 review

People, we have a date. The next big Amazon sale is scheduled for 10-11th October – that's just three weeks away.

It's called Prime Big Deal Days, and is basically another name for Prime Day. Last autumn's event went by the name Prime Early Early Access Sale, but it's essentially the same deal – an Amazon Prime Day 48-hour sale ahead of the madness of Black Friday.

Amazon had previously announced it was happening, but it's only now confirmed the date.

As with previous events, the deals are exclusive to Prime members. Don't have Prime? Here's how to sign up and benefit without paying a penny.

We're promised "more deeply discounted deals across top brands than during last year’s event." Though we'll reserve judgement until we've actually seen the deals.

The sale will take place across 19 countries, including Australia, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, the US, and UK.

Amazon is staying tight-lipped on what deals will be available, though it has said Amazon Music Unlimited will have a free four-month trial. Prime Day 2023 saw the lowest-ever price on Bose's QuietComfort II wireless earbuds, and the lowest price on Sony's classic WH-1000XM4 wireless over-ears. Hi-fi kit was also discounted, including £200 off KEF's outstanding LSX II wireless speaker system and a whopping £550 off the Marantz PM7000N just-add-speakers streamer. And in TVs, we saw £1300 slashed off LG's 65-inch C2 OLED TV.

We'll bring you coverage of all the best deals when they go live.

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Find out more about Prime Big Deal Days and see more previous deals

Expect price drops on some of the best headphones and best wireless speakers

Check out the best TV deals

We've had Christmas in July, now get ready for Prime Day in October. Amazon has another sale happening soon, and while it may have a different name, it sounds very much like a Prime Day event to us.

Amazon Prime Big Deal Days will take place in October across 19 countries: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, the US, and the UK.

There's no word on what kind of products will be on offer, but expect all manner of headphones, TVs and Bluetooth speakers to be among them. Like Prime Day, the event will be exclusively for members of Amazon Prime – here's how to sign up for a free trial.

Could we see some tasty deals on the new, five-star Sony WF-1000XM5? Maybe big-screen OLEDs like the Samsung S95C and LG G3 will see their prices slashed? And what of Amazon's own devices, like the Echo Dot (5th Gen) speaker (pictured)? They're usually first in line for a discount come sale time.

Apple's iPhone 15 should launch in September, ahead of Prime Big Deal Days, so we might even see a few bucks off that. One thing's for sure – it's bound to be a busy time in the run-up to Christmas.

Amazon has promised to provide more info nearer the time. Stay tuned!

MORE:

Here are the best wireless earbuds: budget and premium

Check out the best headphone deals

And the best TV deals

Fresh research from What Hi-Fi?’s sister site TechRadar has revealed TVs are set to be the third hottest purchase this Black Friday.

Ahead of Prime Day, the research revealed that a staggering 22 per cent of the thousands of readers surveyed said they are most likely to hunt for TV deals during Black Friday and Cyber Monday this year.

That puts TVs in joint place with games as the third most desired purchase this Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

Smartphones topped the polls with 34 per cent of respondents reporting plans to look for phone deals. Below it, laptops took second place with 23 per cent reporting plans to look for deals related to the category.

Headphones took fourth place with 21 per cent of people reporting plans to look for related deals. 

Interestingly, home cinema and speakers sat near the bottom of the list. Only 13 per cent of respondents plan to look for speaker deals, while 11 per cent will hunt for home cinema discounts this Black Friday.

The research is part of a wider poll by Future about consumer spending habits. As well as Black Friday purchase plans, it also revealed the current cost of living crisis as a primary concern in most tech fans’ minds. 

Specifically, the survey revealed 89% of respondents were "concerned" and exactly half (50%) were "very concerned" about the cost of living crisis in March.

Over a third (36 per cent) of readers reported making “significant” cutbacks to their spending habits. Exactly half the respondents in both the US and the UK reported plans to cut back on entertainment subscription services like Disney+, Spotify and Prime Video. 

The survey was conducted as part of TechRadar’s 15th-anniversary relaunch. As well as a completely new homepage and fresh layout across the site, readers should also look out for a raft of new recurring features. 

Marc McLaren, UK Editor-in-Chief of TechRadar, said the redesign is heavily informed by the new research and aims to help cement the brand’s place as a trustworthy source of information for buyers.

“The new TechRadar is all about helping our readers buy, use and enjoy the best technology, so we needed a website that works just as seamlessly to take them where they needed to go,” he said.

“To that end, we’ve completely overhauled the homepage, basing it around the product categories people really care about – from phones to laptops to TVs and all points in between."

MORE:

These are the best TV deals available right now

Need new audio kit? These are the best hi-fi deals we've seen so far

Check out our picks of the best TVs money can buy

Amazon Prime Day actually takes place over two days this year. It started on Tuesday the 11th July and ends today, Wednesday the 12th July. We've seen tech deals aplenty on everything from 4K OLED TVs to wireless headphones and stereo speakers, but they won't last forever. If you're wondering when they end, this is the page for you.

Prime Day is set to end at 11.59pm on 12th July (i.e. tonight).

These are the exact start and finish times given by Amazon wherever you are in the world...

• Our pick of the best Prime Day tech deals
• I've found the 12 best Prime Day deals on What Hi-Fi? Award winners

When Prime Day 2023 ends

• UK (BST): 11th July 00:01am to 23:59pm 12th July
• US (ET/PT): 11th July 3am (ET) / 00:00am (PT) to 2:59am (ET) / 23:59pm (PT) 12th July
• Australia (AEST): 11th July 00:00am to 17:00pm on 13th July

Essentially, Prime Day deals run until the end of Wednesday (or seep into the next day if you live in Australia or the east coast of America).

Remember, to be eligible for the Prime Day deals, you have to be an Amazon Prime member. But if you aren't part of the Prime family already, don't sweat, there's still time – you can sign up for a 30-day free trial now. You can even cancel before your first billing period and pay nothing.

And if you are already a member and ready to look through the best deals, you don't have to endlessly trawl Amazon to find something decent. We've done all the browsing on your behalf and have picked out the very best deals.

Some deals might continue into Thursday the 13th, but why take that gamble? If the prices go back up you might have to wait until November and Black Friday for them to drop down as low again.

We have got the best Prime Day TV deals, Prime Day headphones deals, Prime Day AirPods deals and much, much more.

Check out our ultimate Prime Day deals guide for more. Or you can check out the quick links below. Happy bargain hunting!

Amazon Prime Day quick links

• Amazon Prime Day: deals on TVs, soundbars, speakers and more
• Prime Day deals under £15 - bag yourself a bargain
• Alcohol: Up to 33% off whisky, rum and vodka
• Up to 60% off Amazon devices - Alexa, Echo, Fire TV, Fire Tablet
• TVs: up to 39% off Samsung, Sony and Hisense
• Headphones: up to 43% off wired and wireless
• Up to 22% off Apple and Beats - headphones, accessories, wearables
• Richer Sounds: VIP deals on speakers, TVs, AVRs and projectors
• Sevenoaks: save on OLED TVs, speakers and soundbars
• John Lewis: Summer Sale on TVs, phones, computers and speakers
• Currys: 'Epic Deals' on laptops, TVs, phones and monitors

MORE:

Act fast: the awesome LG G2 OLED TV is at its lowest-ever price for Amazon Prime Day

Wow! Sony's classic WH-1000XM4 headphones drop to lowest ever price with this Prime Day deal

Hurry! Our favourite LG OLED is nearly half price thanks to this stellar Prime Day TV deal

Amazon has announced the dates of Prime Day 2023, one of the biggest online sales of the year.

This year, Amazon Prime Day – essentially the retailer’s take on Black Friday – will take place on Tuesday 11th and Wednesday 12th July, meaning we have less than a month to wait for bargains galore.

The 48-hour sale event will start at 00:01 BST & AEST / 3am EDT on the Tuesday and go right through to the end of Wednesday. During this time, Amazon will be dropping new deals both on the website and on the Amazon app (the latter gives Prime members an early heads-up on the deals) – as regularly as every 30 minutes in some periods.

As is par for the course, Amazon has given us a sneak peek at some of the early Prime Day deals live now and happening in the run-up to Prime Day, and we have listed them below. But what’s far less routine is Amazon’s new-for-2023 Prime Experiences initiative in the UK, which will present customers with the opportunity to buy “limited edition, once-in-a-lifetime experiences” so that they, like an Oral-B toothbrush discounted by 76 per cent, can too ‘Feel Like a Big Deal this Prime Day’. 

Presumably, Amazon will offer a number of diverse Prime Experiences, but right now it has confirmed just one – a trip to the set of Neighbours in Australia. “One lucky Prime member will have the opportunity to take a trip to Erinsborough with a friend, meet their new Neighbours and stroll through world-famous sets as seen on TV. The full list of Prime Experiences and famous faces taking part will be announced in the run-up to Prime Day. Each experience will be paired with a great value Prime Day product and available as a limited, one-off purchase during Prime Day,” reads the Amazon press release.

• Prime Day dates: Tuesday 11th and Wednesday 12th July
• Everything you need to know about Amazon Prime Day 2023
• Not a Prime member? Sign up for an Amazon Prime 30-day free trial

As for the early Prime Day deals starting today, they include:

Discounts of up to 60 per cent on Prime Video TV show and movie rentals and purchases, with titles including Scream VI, Top Gun: Maverick, and The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.

Prime members who are yet to try Amazon’s fully-fledged, Spotify-rivalling music service, Amazon Music Unlimited, can now get four months free, while existing subscribers can upgrade to a Family Plan (allowing up to six people to use the same account) for free.

There are also cracking deals and freebies for other Amazon services – £15 credit when a Prime member downloads the Amazon Photos app and uploads their first photo (until 7th July); three months of Kindle Unlimited for no extra charge; three months of free Audible (until 13th July); and 20 per cent off grocery shopping at Amazon.

As likely as night following day are Amazon audio and video products being discounted in the lead-up to every Prime Day, and sure enough from next Thursday (29th June), Amazon will start knocking up to 58 per cent off devices such as the all-new Echo Pop, Echo Show 5, Fire TV Stick 4K Max and Fire Max 11 tablet.

But remember, in order to take advantage of the Prime Day deals live now and over the two-day sales event in July, you’ll need an Amazon Prime subscription. If you don’t have one and haven’t subscribed before, you can sign up for a 30-day free trial today and be covered for this year’s Prime Day(s). 

Amazon quick links

Can't wait for Prime Day 2023? Check out the best Amazon deals right now below.

• Amazon daily deals – today's Amazon deals
• Amazon electronics store – the home of all Amazon electricals
• Amazon devices – Alexa, Echo, Fire TV; all of Amazon's smart devices 
• Amazon TV and home cinema – TVs, projectors, set-top boxes and more 
• Amazon audio and hi-fi – record players, radios, speakers
• Amazon headphones and earphones – wired, wireless, noise-cancelling
• Amazon phones and accessories – cables, SIM cards, phone adapters

It's time to say goodbye to another Amazon Prime Day sale in Australia. The previous seven days of deals have included some of the best I've ever seen, and while many of them have now come to an end, there are still a few savings still live and ready to shop.

It's primarily headphones and Bluetooth speakers that continue to get the discount treatment. If you were hoping for savings on the likes of KEF active speaker systems or WiiM hi-fi components, then I'm afraid you're out of luck. Your next best bet would be the Black Friday sales in November.

Do note that the deals still live could expire at any moment, so if you see a price you like, be sure to snap it up while you still can.

Amazon Prime Day 2026: best deals still live

Headphones

Speakers

Hi-Fi components

Home cinema

Amazon Prime Day Australia FAQ

What is Amazon Prime Day?

Amazon Prime Day is Amazon's bi-annual sales event, conceived in response to other major sales such as Black Friday. It began in 2015 as a celebration of the retail giant's 20th anniversary. While other online retailers get involved in the Black Friday bargain bun fight, Prime Day is generally all about Amazon, though you might see other retailers lowering prices at the same time in order to jump on the sales frenzy bandwagon and stay competitive during that period.

Prime Day is a big sale that encompasses most areas of the Amazon site – as well as audiovisual gear, you'll find discounts on toasters, books, clothes, and pretty much anything that Amazon sells. And that's a lot!

You'll need to be a Prime member to take advantage of the best offers. Not yet a member? Amazon’s free 30-day Prime trial gives you the option to sign up, bag a few bargains during the sale, and cancel your membership without paying a cent. Go you.

Prime Day 2026 dates: when is Prime Day in Australia?

The Big Smile Sale was the first Amazon sale of the year, and it showed up in March, running for seven days in 2026 from Monday, March 16 until Sunday, March 22.

The main Prime Day is set to kick off on Tuesday, July 7 and will run for seven days, coming to an end on Monday, July 13.

What Prime Day 2026 deals can I expect?

It's always tricky to confidently assume what deals will appear during Prime Day – although Amazon devices are a shoo-in – but based on previous Prime Day sales, we reckon JBL Bluetooth speakers, Sony wireless buds and Bose headphones are all safe bets. AirPods also tend to get a look in – whether or not the recently launched AirPods Pro 3 will get a discount remains to be seen

Popular items from previous Amazon Prime Day sales have included the Sony WH-1000XM5 and older WH-1000XM4 noise-cancelling headphones, Amazon Echo Show smart speakers and Fire TV video streamers, Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones, LG, Philips and Sony OLED TVs, and plenty more five-star products across the audio and AV space.

Sonos, Sennheiser, Sony and Bose products – particularly headphones – all come up regularly in Prime Day sales, so if you have your eye on something from one of the bigger brands, there's a good chance some money will be lopped off it.

What about hi-fi? Unfortunately, Prime Day tends to spotlight more mass-market product categories such as TVs, soundbars and Bluetooth speakers for deals, meaning that discounts on hi-fi gear are far and few between. We have seen good discounts on gear from WiiM and KEF before though, so it's not completely unheard of.

While some other retailers drop their prices to piggyback the Amazon Prime events, Black Friday remains the best time of the year to buy hi-fi at discounted prices due to many specialist hi-fi retailers getting on board the more encompassing sale.

How much does Amazon Prime cost in 2026?

First things first: to be eligible for Prime Day discounts, you need Amazon Prime. This is effectively a membership fee that gives you free standard international delivery on select orders over AU$49 or free expedited delivery (in select areas) on eligible items bought from Amazon, as well as access to the Prime Video and Amazon Music streaming services (but not Amazon Music Unlimited – that costs extra), free ebooks, and the ability to share some of these benefits with others in your household.

Amazon Prime costs AU$9.99 a month, or AU$79 if you pay yearly (saving you AU$40 compared to paying monthly). Changed your mind? You can cancel your Prime membership on the Manage Prime Membership page.

And if you haven't placed a Prime-eligible order or used any of your Prime benefits within your membership, you'll be refunded in full.

There's an Amazon Prime free trial, too. Sign up, select 'Start my free trial', and you'll have access to Prime for 30 days with nothing to pay.

That means you can sign up, take advantage of the deals, and then cancel your trial before the 30 days end and not be charged your second month's fee for Prime. Not that we would condone such behaviour, of course!

To be eligible for the trial, you can't have subscribed to Prime in the last 12 months.

Prime Day Australia 2026 shopping tips

1. Sign up for the free Prime trial
If you're new to Amazon Prime, make sure you take advantage of the 30-day free Prime trial. And remember to cancel if you don't want a monthly bill for AU$9.99 when the trial ends.

2. Google a product before buying
Not every Prime Day deal in 2026 is going to be a winner, so make sure you compare prices online before you buy, and, of course, check reviews to make sure the product is worth buying at all!

We at What Hi-Fi? work tirelessly to call out the best deals on the consumer electronics categories we cover – our job, after all, is to point customers towards the best products on the market – so if we haven't included one in our deals coverage, there's usually a good reason for it!

3. Big brands can equal big savings
Amazon often slashes the cost of a few big-brand items – think Playstation and Xbox accessories, Samsung TVs and tablets, etc – to get the attention of shoppers. Keep an eye out for these 'marquee' deals.

4. Check the Amazon Warehouse
Returned goods end up on sale at the Amazon Warehouse at a decent discount, so there's a chance you could spot an open-box bargain that beats the box-fresh Prime Day price.

5. Stay tuned to whathifi.com
Amazon unleashes thousands of deals around Prime Day, which can make it tricky to find genuine bargains on five-star tech and AV. That's why we'll be publishing an up-to-the-minute list of the very best Prime Day 2026 deals.

You've probably heard that Amazon Prime Day is coming. Fast. 

One of the biggest sales events of the year kicks off next week, but with international time differences and some early deals already live, the actual start time can be a bit confusing. When does it actually start? And when do the deals go live?

• View the early deals already live on Amazon

Allow us to explain.

Amazon Prime Day takes place on Tuesday 11th and Wednesday 12th July 2023. Precise start/finish times are as follows:

• UK (BST): 11th July 00:01am to 23:59pm 12th July
• US (ET/PT): 11th July 3am (ET) / 00:00am (PT) to 2:59am (ET) / 23:59pm (PT) 12th July
• Australia (AEST): 11th July 00:00am to 17:00pm on 13th July

Those lucky Australians get an extra-long sale, because the deals stay live until the US event ends.

The eagle-eyed among you may have spotted some deals are already live. That's because Amazon is building anticipation for the event with some early bargains. These are mostly for its own devices and services – rest assured we'll see plenty more deals come the big day.

Here are the best early deals so far.

MORE:

See all our best Apple deals

Browse our best home cinema deals

Our pick of the best projector deals

Are you ready for Amazon Prime Day? The deals bonanza starts tomorrow, but if you want to take advantage, you will need a subscription to Amazon Prime.

The good news is you can sign up for a free, no strings attached 30-day trial. That means you can sign up, bag as many bargains as you like, then cancel before the 30-day period ends and not have to pay a penny for the privilege.

Amazon Prime Day starts tomorrow. The official start times are as follows:

• UK (BST): 12th July 00:01am to 23:59pm 13th July
• US (ET/PT): 12th July 3am (ET) / 00:00am (PT) to 2:59am (ET) / 23:59pm (PT) 13th July
• Australia (AEST): 12th July 00:00am to 17:00pm on 14th July

The eagle-eyed among you may have spotted some deals are already live. That's because Amazon is building anticipation for the event with some early bargains. These are mostly for its own devices and services – rest assured we will see plenty more deals come the big day, and on a much wider range of products.

We will be bringing you all the best deals as they happen, so stay tuned over the next couple of days.

MORE:

See all our best Apple deals

Browse our best home cinema deals

Our pick of the best projector deals

Amazon's Mid-Year Sale is well underway for 2022, so if you are in the market for a new pair of wireless headphones, a 4K TV, a TV-boosting soundbar package or even an iPad, know that you don't have to wait until Prime Day next month to bag a bargain. In fact, 16 bargains are just a short scroll and click away.

Today, Amazon has slashed prices on loads of tech products, from TVs to soundbars, headphones to subwoofers – and even Apple iPads. So if you're in the market for a deal, it's a good time to be looking. But you don't have to look too far, because we've scoured the site to pick the best Amazon Mid-Year Sale deals out there. 

Below are our top 16, but if you prefer to browse yourself, be sure to check out the Amazon quick links below...

Amazon Mid-Year Sale 2022 links 

• Amazon Mid-Year Sale on Amazon devices - Save up to 50% on Echo Auto, Echo Dot, Echo Show and more
• Amazon Mid-Year Sale on headphones - Get up to 48% off Sony, Yamaha and Jabra wireless earbuds
• Amazon Mid-Year Sale on TVs  - Save up to $426 on Philips 4K smart TVs, $100 off portable projectors
• Amazon Mid-Year Sale on soundbars - Big discounts on Bose, Sony, Denon and Yamaha soundbars and subwoofers
• Amazon Mid-Year Sale on speakers - KEF, Polk and Edifier speakers are up to 34% off

The 16 best Amazon Mid-Year Sale deals

• See the best TVs, best headphones and best soundbars you can buy

Happy Boxing Day AV fans! If you're recovering from all the food and drink of Christmas Day and are keen to do some online shopping for discounted AV tech, then you're in luck.

I've been tracking AV and audio Boxing Day deals all week and the good news is, there's still plenty to get excited about.

Unfortunately, deals on Bose headphones and speakers appear to have come to an end... at least for now. I'll be keeping my eyes peeled for discounts over the course of today and for the next few days. I've also noticed a huge discount on the Sony Bravia 9, so if you've been eyeing up that outstanding Mini-LED TV, this could be your best chance to get it at a discounted rate.

I'll continue to search for more deals throughout today, and my team and I will be scouring electronics retailers such as Amazon, The Good Guys, Kogan, JB Hi-Fi and The Audio Tailor for deals on TVs, headphones, soundbars, hi-fi kit and anything else that falls under the audio-visual umbrella.

And we are, of course, prioritising products we have reviewed and can recommend, and given the sheer number of great deals we saw during Black Friday, expect to see knockdown prices on plenty of five-star and What Hi-Fi? Award-winning products below.

Be sure to bookmark this page to check back for regular updates...

Australia Boxing Day sales – retailer quick links

• Amazon Australia: deep discounts on hundreds of items
• Appliance Central: discounts on 4K TVs, OLEDs and QLEDs
• Appliances Online: savings on TVs and home audio
• JB Hi-Fi: save on wireless headphones, Bluetooth speakers and more
• Kogan: save on audio gear, new and refurbished
• The Good Guys: dive into TV, soundbar and home audio sales
• The Audio Tailor: big discounts on hi-fi speakers and electronics

The best AV Boxing Day deals in Australia

TVs & projectors

Soundbars

Media streamers

Headphones

Hi-Fi

Portable speakers

Boxing Day AV & audio sales 2025: FAQs

• The best TVs you can buy
• The world's best headphones and best wireless earbuds
• The best soundbars on the planet
• The best Bluetooth speakers out there
• The best record players you can buy
• The best hi-fi systems for convenience and performance

Be sure to keep a careful eye on your budget – an especially important consideration during these hard economic conditions – and try to stick to your wishlist. And if you are planning to do your Boxing Day sales shopping in-store this year, be sure to get there early to beat the queues, so check opening times.

UPDATE: Amazon's Mid-Year Sale has wrapped up for the year, but for more great deals from the online retail giant, keep an eye out on our Amazon Prime Day page for Australia.

Amazon Australia's Mid-Year Sale event landed overnight, kicking off the EOFY sales period ahead of Amazon Prime Day with a huge array of discounted products, some of which fall neatly in the realm of hi-fi and AV.

Amazon Australia is discounting a bunch of products across the entire online retail site, with Bluetooth speakers, headphones, soundbars, game consoles and more among the fray.

While you can browse the deals directly via Amazon, it can be a bit overwhelming, so we've scoured the site for the best hot products and offers and will be continually updating this page with fresh findings throughout the day.

Headphones

TV & AV

Amazon Prime Day 2021 is just three weeks away. According to Bloomberg, Amazon will hold one of the biggest sales events of the year over the 21st and 22nd June. This would mark a return to normal after Prime Day 2020 was derailed by the pandemic.

Bloomberg claims that Amazon has notified staff of the date and told them to keep the information confidential. An announcement is expected in the coming days.

Amazon Prime Day usually takes place in July, but last year Amazon shunted the sale to October in order to focus on meeting the increased demand caused by the Coronavirus pandemic. So if these dates are correct, it would get Amazon back to its usual schedule.

As ever, expect to see big discounts on all kinds of products, including headphones, TVs, smartphones, tablets, speakers, turntables and more. We've already started rounding up the best Prime Day TV deals and best Prime Day headphones deals in anticipation of the big day.

Amazon said that last year Prime members saved more than $1.4 billion during Prime Day with sales up 60% year-on-year. And we're sure it's hoping that this year's event can top that success.

MORE:

Amazon Prime Day 2021: date, deals and what we know – all the details

Read all about last year's event: Amazon Prime Day 2020

Check out the best headphones on Amazon

This guide is all about gifting inspiration for the (probably frustrated) frequent flyer in your life; that friend or relative who can't make it through a lockdown anecdote at the dinner table without announcing their next long-haul destination.

From noise-cancelling headphones to Bluetooth trackers, power banks to tablets, these affordable, travel-savvy gifts will keep even the most restless souls happy as they finally, fingers crossed, set off in search of adventure in 2021...

Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones

You don't need to be travelling first-class to get premium sound; these fourth generation Sony wireless headphones will work just as well in coach. A What Hi-Fi? Awards 2020 winner, they offer supreme comfort, natural, all-round sound quality, a 30-hour battery life (rising to 38 hours if you switch off ANC) and class-leading noise cancelling – ideal for isolating you from the person in front's continual request for another glass of orange juice. 

• Sony WH-1000XM4 review

Tile Pro tracker tag

Picture the scene: they've checked into their capsule hotel in Tokyo, unpacked their bag and are just about to leave their little cubicle for a night in Ginza. Only, wait, where did they put their wallet and ID? Nobody needs a jet-lagged search for valuables in unfamiliar surroundings, so give them a hand by gifting them a Bluetooth tracker.

Tile makes the world's best-selling device of such, and the Pro model boasts a seriously impressive 400ft range. It measures just a few centimetres wide and can be attached to anything – luggage, bag, keys, cuddly toy... – and then used to alert the owner to their item's whereabouts with a ringtone activated by their smartphone. 

If their luggage went missing, any Tile device within range of their missing item can notify them of its location, too.

JBL Flip 5 Bluetooth speaker

Another What Hi-Fi? 2020 Award winner and one of our top portable speakers. This brilliant wireless speaker is small enough to sling in a rucksack, but the sound and bass weight you'll get from it belies its diminutive proportions. It's rugged, it's waterproof to an IPX7 rating (we actually sank it in a bowl of water to double-check. It was fine), and it has a USB-C charger and promises 12 hours of playback on a full charge. Beach day in Bali? They'll bring it. Rainy hike? Yep. Camping in Dorset? Absolutely.

• JBL Flip 5 review

Anker PowerCore+ 26800 powerbank

You might have passed on gallivanting across the globe with them, but you still want to follow their every sunset, meal, beach day and cute cat on Instagram, right? Nobody wants that last, perfect holiday moment to go un-shared because they ran out of battery. 

This portable Anker USB charger holds up to ten phone charges, can deliver fast-charging to three devices simultaneously, and doesn't even need to be plugged in – so if they forgot to pack the corresponding country's adaptor, it's no biggie.

Sony NW-A55L music player

The Award-winners are coming thick and fast, aren't they? Yes, this little Sony portable music player scooped up a 2020 gong too. And if you're looking for another reason to purchase it (aside from its great sound quality and ability to play almost any file you throw at it, including FLACs up to 24-bit/96kHz and DSD up to 11.2MHz), here's one: using a separate device for tunes will further save on their phone battery somewhere down the road.

Of course, other excellent portable music players are available, such as Astell & Kern's A&norma SR25, but you'd better be feeling generous...

• Sony NW-A55L review

Apple iPad (2020) 

You want Award-winners? The excellent 8th-gen iPad tablet marks the fourth in this little gift guide alone. To paraphrase Disney's The Jungle Book: wherever we wander, wherever we roam, we couldn't be fonder of our big home. 

Slip this excellent iPad into their bag, have it loaded up with books and digital magazine subscriptions, plus their favourite TV shows downloaded from the likes of BBC iPlayer, and they'll be able to take a break from exploring whenever they need a proper slice of home. Got an Apple device yourself? FaceTime video calling will keep you in close contact.

• Apple iPad (2020) review

Bolatus (30cm) multi-charger cable

Do they have an iPhone, a Samsung Galaxy Tab, a pair of true wireless earphones, a MacBook Air or a UE Bluetooth speaker? Chances are they have at least two devices that use different charging connectors, which is why this super-handy three-in-one (micro USB, USB-C and Lightning) charging cable will prove invaluable. 

It means they won't have to get annoyed with themselves for forgetting a particular juice-supplier for an essential device and then waste precious hours trying to beg for, borrow or buy one – worth its weight in gold to the seasoned globetrotter. 

Bose QuietComfort Earbuds 

On-ears are excellent for plane journeys, but what if your giftee in mind is backpacking, hiking or trekking? Something the size of a box of dental floss is vastly preferable to a larger case holding a heavier pair of cans, and Bose's newest true wireless offering proves that downsizing needn't mean sacrificing on sound quality or effective noise cancelling.

Class-leaders in their category, these earbuds offer an immense amount of sonic detail for the money, alongside brilliant noise-cancelling technology.

• Bose QuietComfort Earbuds review

Incase Icon Pack rucksack

This design-conscious laptop backpack is made from patented Woolenex, abrasion-resistant fabric woven from two different thicknesses of polyester fibre.

It's durable and weather resistant but still chic and within hand-luggage guidelines. The main compartment is large enough to carry a 15-inch MacBook, while the front pocket offers ideal dimensions for an iPad or tablet. A plethora of storage pockets and useful zippered compartments mean every little item for chapstick to charger will be protected. And there’s even a pocket with a headphone cable hole for easy wired listening on the go.

AudioQuest Dragonfly Cobalt DAC

Yes, it may look just like a dinky USB stick, but that's the beauty of it. The AudioQuest Dragonfly Cobalt is a little bobby-dazzler of a digital-to-analogue-converter. 

Its plug-in-and-play approach will vastly improve the sound from a computer or (with the included dongle) a smartphone or tablet. A more premium proposition to, say, the Cyrus soundKey, it's probably one for the roaming audiophile in your life. But if you're reading this list it's probably because you know (or are) one...

• AudioQuest Dragonfly Cobalt review

Rumours have been pouring in over the course of the year around Amazon's Prime Day 2020 shopping event, the date it may land on, and whether or not it would even go ahead due to the global pandemic.

Recently, a leak pointed to an October 13 start date to the online shopping spree, and now that's been substantiated, with Amazon finally announcing that Prime Day 2020 will officially span October 13 - 14 in Australia.

• Amazon Prime Day 2020 in Australia: everything you need to know

As with last year, Australians will have access to a full 66 hours of deals, as the savings begin at 12am AEDT on Tuesday October 13 and won't end until 6pm AEDT on Thursday, October 15, with Aussies being given access to a selection of US-based deals that will technically push the shopping event well into a third day.

As with other regions, we'll still be seeing 48 hours of local deals (those end at 11:59pm on Wednesday, October 14) and any savings and discounts you score in the following 18 hours will be from products that ship from the US.

Amazon Music Unlimited

As a special offer for any Amazon Prime members (new or existing) that haven't yet tried out the Amazon Music Unlimited streaming platform with its 60 million songs, Amazon is offering four months of the premium tier for just AU$0.99, after which it returns to AU$11.99 monthly.

Early Amazon Prime Day 2020 deals

• Browse today's best deals on Amazon AU

Amazon may be one among the world's biggest retail giants, but it hasn't gone through the Coronavirus pandemic unaffected. Its annual sales bonanza, Amazon Prime Day, which typically takes place in July, was postponed last month. Previous reports suggested Amazon would be pushing it back until September, but now it looks like it could take place in October – just a month before Black Friday.

On Wednesday, Amazon reportedly informed third-party sellers that the date would likely be pushed back again to the 5th October (via Business Insider).         

The email describes the 5th October as a "placeholder date" for Prime Day promotions. It goes on to caution that "exact Prime Day dates have not been announced" but that "a definitive date will be announced as we get closer to the event”.

Prime Day 2019 saw Amazon sell 175 million items and surpass $7billion in sales as  the Amazon Prime members shopping event grew from a single day of discounts to two-day deals extravaganza. With more Prime members than ever signing up to Prime, and the looming threat of some people still being stuck at home more than they usually would be, Amazon Prime Day 2020 could be the biggest yet.

MORE:

Amazon Prime Day 2020: new date, details, what to expect

All the details on the Amazon Prime Free Trial

Best Amazon UK deals 2020 

Best Amazon US deals 2020

Today is Presidents' Day, which for online retailers means yet another excuse to slash their prices. And who's going to argue with that? Especially when the Apple iPad has been reduced by a generous $80, and there's a tasty Apple HomePod deal knocking about.

After something else instead? We've scoured the sales to find you the best deals around on all kinds of audio visual equipment, including headphones, TVs and home cinema systems.

Ready to save money? Let the bargains begin...

MORE:

Best cheap headphones deals 2020

Best Sony deals 2020

Best soundbar deals 2020

Sevenoaks is dishing out some Christmas cheer by discounting kit from the likes of LG, Sony, Sonos, Denon, Panasonic, Marantz and more – several of which are 2019 What Hi-Fi? Award winners.

• Browse all the Sevenoaks deals

The retailer is offering the (joint) most competitive price (£799) on the Award-winning Denon AVR-X3600H and throwing in some Sennheiser wireless headphones in for good measure.

Our favourite TV of the year, the LG OLED55C9, can be reduced to £1399 with a £100-off discount code (GDSAVE100), and buyers will also get the opportunity to save 50 per cent on a Sky TV Entertainment package.

Been good enough this year to treat yourself to a new high-end AV amp? The Arcam FMJ AVR850 is now £2499 thanks to a massive £2000 discount from its RRP.

The Panasonic TX-55GZ2000 – note: we recently heralded the 65in version "the best performing OLED TV we’ve tested so far" – is down to £2399 when using that code (a deal Richer Sounds is matching).

The Award-winning Sony KD-49XG9005 is now £500 off, while the fantastic Sonos Beam has been slashed from £399 to £319.

And there's plenty more where those have came from over at Sevenoaks. Merry Christmas.

MORE:

The best Sevenoaks Sound and Vision deals

The best Richer Sounds deals

The best John Lewis deals

The best Currys deals

The best Amazon UK deals 2019

We know: you did read our Christmas gift guides, but its been a busy month and now the big day is looming fast and the list of people you're supposed to buy for seems to grow by the hour. 

Don't fret, Amazon's gone and launched a whole host of last-minute Christmas deals that should take the stress out of gifting. 

Obviously you'll want to buy quality as well as save a bit of cash (and time) so we've rounded up a couple of our top picks:

If you need clarification regarding the excellence of the products listed above, a glance at our reviews of both the Ultimate Ears Wonderboom and JBL Charge 4 should help. 

While we cannot vouch for the exact model of the Bose headphones, they'll be well worth the (small) investment if, as we expect, they share the same energetic sound and powerful bass as their namesake Bose SoundSport Wireless in-ears.

It's worth mentioning that while we know the end date of the sales (22nd December), we don't know how long Amazon's stock will last. So, there's no time like the present to buy that present.

MORE: 

 JBL Charge 4: Is it any good? Should you buy it?

Best budget Bluetooth speakers: portable speakers for every budget

Christmas Gift Guide 2019: the very best tech gift ideas for music and movie fans

Christmas stockings once meant children got a lump of coal for luck, vitamin C in the form of an orange and, if they were really fortunate, some marbles or a clothes-peg doll. Fast forward to the age of internet shopping however and the words "stocking" and "sleeping bag" might easily be interchanged, and even your cat is expecting his or her jumbo haul of treats and toys. 

And we're OK with that! Seeing the ones you love dig out each small, thoughtful gift on Christmas morning is one of life's great pleasures and is probably why the centuries-old Christmas stocking tradition persists. So let's get down to brass tacks (not literally) and point you in the direction of some quality but affordable stocking-fillers. It's much like aiming for Christmas dinner to be on the table by 2pm: preparation is key, and its never too early to start. 

• Christmas Gift Guide 2019: the best tech gift ideas for music and movie fans

Hit Factories: a Journey Through the Industrial Cities of British Pop

Upon discovering a derelict RCA record pressing plant on the edge of the A1 motorway near north-east England's Gateshead, Karl Whitney pockets four of the factory's old floor tiles. He imagines David Bowie's steps across them when the singer visited the plant to cut a cake and sign his first record deal, the glorious – and platinum – Hunky Dory of 1971. Those floor tiles become Whitney's stepping stones on a journey that explores the industrial cities of British pop music and the sounds that shaped them. 

For vinyl-lovers and anyone interested in the music industry's fluctuating grip on the physical product, 2019 release Hit Factories largely avoids the well-documented London music scene and instead sheds light on the historic soundscapes of Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool, Newcastle, Sheffield, Hull, Glasgow, Belfast, Birmingham, Coventry, Bristol and more. An insightful and provocative read from the author of Hidden City: Adventures and Explorations in Dublin.

SoundMagic E11C

If someone on your Christmas list is looking for a new set of in-ear headphones, how about writing this pair of What Hi-Fi? 2019 Award winners by their name? Yes, £40 ($40) or thereabouts represents top-end stocking-filler for us too, but on the other hand, it is a very reasonable price for a five-star award-winning set of wired earbuds. 

We tested the SoundMagic E11Cs in 2018 and have loved them ever since. They remain unbeaten in the category, and the feel here is altogether premium. 

• Best headphones 2019: all styles, all budgets

JBL Go 2

OK we'll level with you: the idea that your recipient might initially believe this little Bluetooth speaker to be a bar of soap made us want to include it all the more. But don't let that put you off! The JBL Go 2 is a lovely little performer for the money. 

Our only real gripe is the relatively short five-hour battery life, but with a well-balanced sound and 14 beautiful colours to choose from (our favourite is still this retro, pearlescent mustard hue) this diminutive speakers is a great shout for sonically enhancing the home of someone you love.

INXS Live, Baby Live: Wembley Stadium

Every so often the stars align, the ascension of a band beautifully coincides with a suitably notorious venue and the resulting gig is nothing short of astronomical. 

It's 1991 and, after a decade and a half on the road, INXS deliver the gig of their lives at London’s Wembley Stadium to a sold-out crowd of 74,000. And remember, this was the old, 1923 Wembley. 

If the person you're buying for missed the one-night-only cinema release in 4K and Dolby Atmos, don't fret. The full live show is being made available for the first time internationally across 3 LP Deluxe, 2 CD and all digital formats on 15th November. The performance features the hits Need You Tonight, New Sensation, Devil Inside and a track previously thought to be lost, Lately from the album X – all newly remixed in 2019 by Giles Martin and Sam Okell at Abbey Road Studios.

The CD format features unseen imagery from the show, new essays from the band and sleeve notes by broadcaster and INXS super-fan Jamie East, in the crowd that night. Buy it so they can hear the crowd sing along to Hutchence's almost disbelieving vocal and experience what a truly great night at old Wembley felt like. 

• View INXS Live Baby Live at Amazon

Apollo 11 4K Blu-ray

Because if you can't make the most of your 4K home cinema over the Christmas period, when can you? From director Todd Douglas Miller (Dinosaur 13), this cinematic event is 50 years in the making and a required addition to any Blu-ray collection. A freshly discovered vault of 65mm footage interspersed with more than 11,000 hours of uncatalogued audio recordings take us straight into the beating heart of NASA's Apollo 11 mission – the one that put the first men on the moon. 

If you haven't seen it, there are periods when the tension is almost unbearable – and it's all real. Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became household names in 1969, but here you feel as if you actually get to know them. Even Michael Collins (the astronaut you've never heard of) is finally given his moment to shine. The sweeping shots of spectators waiting silently on the ground are brilliant on so many levels, and when you see the technology available – basic at best by current standards – you marvel that such a feat was ever achieved. 

VU meter phone case

Yes, they might have the most up-to-date smartphone on the market, but they can still give it a dash of passive electromechanical 1940s charm with this volume unit meter case, and protect their device to boot. These charming, relatively inexpensive cases can be ordered to fit most models and, for an extra few pounds, you can even opt for the case to glow in the dark – handy for those times when they've switched their phone off at the cinema and then can't find it to book the Uber home.

Escher Birds 12in turntable slipmat

Handmade from 100 per cent felt (just as hip-hop guru Grandmaster Flash advocates), these designs are printed with vinyl flex and then heat transferred onto the slipmat, a technique that promises not to damage records when the DJ in your life sets about slip-cueing, beat-matching and scratching.

Perhaps the best thing about them though is that whether or not they're used to help records 'slip' on a turntable, they convert decks into works of art when the plate-spinner is idle. Other designs include an Andy Warhol's Velvet Underground banana or The Great Wave of Kanagawa. This Escher design remains a firm favourite for little over a tenner.

View the Escher Birds 12" turntable slipmat

Bolatus multi-charger cable

Whether you're en route to Bali or the nearest bar, no one wants to get caught short with a 2 per cent battery. Does your beloved have an iPhone, Samsung Galaxy Tab, true wireless earphones, MacBook Air or a UE Bluetooth speaker? Chances are they have at least two of these, and thus, this super-handy. 30cm three-in-one charging cable will be invaluable. Your giftee need never get annoyed with themselves for forgetting a particular juice-supplier again – worth its weight in gold when you're in need.

Yellow Submarine ice cube moulds

Depending on how icy they like it, their drink of choice could soon contain a squadron, a flotilla or even a whole fleet of happy little submersible ships – a stone-cold smile inducer. Look, it's a bit of fun for £6, isn't it? Who, on hearing that sublime Beatles song for the first time, didn't bob along happily and genuinely consider running away to find their own sea of green? Exactly. 

View the Yellow Submarine ice cube moulds

Abbey Road mug

"Oh great, another mug". Yes, well that's clearly the exclamation other, lesser hot beverage receptacles might be met with upon reception. A bright red one printed with London's most iconic and still up-and-running recording studio? No chance. That mug is becoming the mug. (Even if they really could've done without a 19th to squeeze into their cupboard). Perfect for that Christmas evening eggnog... and the strong coffee every morning after. 

View the Abbey Road mug 

Milk chocolate tablet

Is it even a Christmas stocking if it doesn't contain any chocolate? A more, er, 21st-century alternative to chocolate money, this choccy tablet should give them something to work on throughout the day – even without all those apps they usually have. 

If an iPad lovingly recreated in chocolate sounds a bit much for one person, smaller smartphones made entirely out of the sweet stuff are also available. 

Then again, it is Christmas...

These gifts are bound to go down a storm with anyone who asked for new running gear or a gym membership this Christmas. Alternatively, if their idea of a sporty afternoon is a few hours sat down in front of the football or the darts, we've got a number of alternative options for them too.

Pick any of these gifts and Yule be in their good books well into 2020.

• Christmas Gift Guide 2019: the best gift ideas for music, film and tech fans

JBL Flow truly wireless in-ear headphones

If you don't want to get in a tangle down the gym, these talented wireless headphones from JBL should do the trick. A convenient design mixed with excellent sound quality and impressive battery life.

• JBL Reflect Flow review

Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 2 wireless speaker

If you prefer exercising outdoors, this petite and highly portable wireless speaker will look the part parked next to your yoga mat. It will keep you entertained and withstand the elements thanks to its dustproof and waterproof design.

• Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 2 review

Sky Q 4K subscription service

As good as television content currently gets, Sky Q has more than its fair share of 4K Ultra HD sport on the menu, including Premier League football, cricket and Formula 1 all in 4K. A pricey Christmas present, but impressive nevertheless.

• Sky Q 4K review

Samsung UE49RU8000 4K HDR TV

If you're going to be watching 4K sport, then a good 4K TV will undoubtedly come in handy. And they don't get much better for the money than this superb 49in Samsung set. It's a great choice at a relatively low price.

• Samsung UE49RU8000 review

Sony HT-ZF9 Dolby Atmos soundbar

Despite only having three front-facing drivers and an absence of upward-firing speakers, this clever Sony soundbar can handle Dolby Atmos and produce a virtual 7.1.2 listening experience. Perfect for those 4K football broadcasts through Sky Q.

• Sony HT-ZF9 review

Bose SoundSport Wireless Bluetooth headphones

A fine pair of wireless in-ears for the money. They're comfortable and sound great – ideal for throwing in your gym bag. The SoundSport Pulse versions even have their own heart rate sensor.

• Bose SoundSport Wireless review

Apple Watch Nike+ Series 5 smartwatch

The latest version of the Apple Watch isn't just a fine activity tracker. You can also store tunes on its 16GB hard drive, use Bluetooth 5.0 to pair wireless headphones and control music playback on your smartphone.

View Quest Blighty portable DAB radio

A portable, budget DAB/FM radio with decent enough sound for those who want their sporting fix while on the move. The ideal size for slipping into a Christmas stocking.

• View Quest Blighty review

Anker PowerCore II portable charger

The last thing you need is your phone (i.e your music source) dying halfway through a workout, so keep it topped up with the help of this affordable 10,000mAh power bank. It features Anker's own fast-charging tech, so you shouldn't have to wait around for too long to get your device (and yourself) up and running again.

MORE:

11 best Christmas tech gift ideas for film fans

11 best Christmas stocking fillers: budget headphones, turntable slipmats and more

10 best Christmas tech gift ideas for travel lovers

Best sports headphones: great headphones for running and the gym

Somebody you really love? A friend you need to impress? Deserve a treat of your own this Christmas?

Whatever your reasoning for spending up to £500 on a single gift this year, it'll feel a lot more expensive if you get the wrong one. And that's why we're here. Whether it's a pair of speakers, a portable DAC or a 4K telly you're after, this page is designed to give you a nudge in the right direction.

If last Christmas you gave them a Scart, the very next day they threw it away. Hopefully these gifts will fare a little better. Merry Christmas and hi-fi New Year, everyone.

• Christmas Gift Guide 2019: the best tech gift ideas for music and movie fans

Fyne Audio F302 floorstanding speakers

Fyne Audio made a real splash with some very competitively-priced loudspeakers this year, including these Award-winning floorstanders. Somewhat re-writing the rules of performance you can expect from a pair of sub-£400 towers, the F302s are full bodied, musical and wildly entertaining.

• Fyne Audio F302 review

Denon D-M41DAB microsystem

We aren't entirely sure what kind of sorcery Denon uses on its micro systems, but we're big fans. Partnered with a suitable pair of budget loudspeakers, or Denon's own SC-M41 standmounters, the D-M41DAB is one of the finest all-in-ones out there.

• Denon D-M41DAB review

Audio Pro Addon C10 wireless speaker

Audio Pro again took home three wireless speaker prizes at this year's What Hi-Fi? Awards, including a Product of the Year gong for the Addon C10. The largest of the company's boombox-style speakers, the C10 combines impressive scale with Audio Pro's now famously musical presentation.

• Audio Pro Addon C10 review

Elac Debut 2.0 B5.2 stereo speakers

With great looks, a streamlined design and excellent sound quality, the Elac B5.2 standmounters are brilliant  for the money. Their sound is detailed and beautifully organised, and the fact they're well under £500 is the icing on the Christmas cake.

• Elac Debut 2.0 B5.2 review

Roberts Stream 94i

Gather round the wireless and and eat coal like they used to in Christmases gone by. Only this time, make it a Roberts Stream 94i radio and real food instead. 

The Stream 94i is a FM, DAB and internet radio, plus it has Spotify Connect, wi-fi connectivity and USB playback. The build is excellent and the styling smart. (Coal/real food not included.)

• Roberts Stream 94i review

Panasonic DP-UB820EB 4K Blu-ray player

Ah yes, there is absolutely no better start to Christmas Day than a bottle of port with a Christmas film. Or is there? What about if that Christmas film was on 4K Blu-ray? Costing less than £300 – so plenty spare to spend on discs to use it with – this Panasonic 4K disc spinner will wow you with its punchy and believable colour balance, vibrant HDR picture and powerful sound.

• Panasonic DP-UB820EB review

Samsung UE43RU7470 4K TV

Of course, a 4K Blu-ray player is redundant without a television capable of displaying its picture. For less than £500 you won't find better than this 43-incher from Samsung, which matches the Sony machine with its own keen eye for detail and a dynamic image. Even in HD and standard definition, the Queen's speech will be delivered with such clarity it'll be like looking at the back of a five pound note.

• Samsung UE43RU7470 review

Sonos Beam soundbar

This is Sonos's smaller, cheaper soundbar, but it's no less impressive a device. In fact, we liked it so much, we gave it one of our coveted What Hi-Fi? 2019 Awards. It supports the Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Apple Siri personal assistants, so you're spoiled for choice when it comes to voice controls. It might be your best bet for conversation by the end of the festive period.

• Sonos Beam review

Sony STR-DN1080 AVR amp

Soundbars are great and everything but nothing says Christmas like 5.1 and an AVR. This multi-award-winning AVR from Sony is the part you'll be able to afford for under £500, sneaking in at £429.

The feature-packed Sony STR-DN1080 sounds fantastic. It reaching deep into its reserves to deliver a performance packed with punch, dynamism and authority in a way we haven’t heard from home cinema amplifiers at this sort of price.

• Sony STR-DN1080 review

Wharfedale DX-2 speaker package

Of course you could always go for the home cinema speaker package instead and let your giftee find themselves an AVR.

The Wharfedale DX-2s are a snip at £399. You're not going to get anywhere near what this set can offer for under £500 anywhere else. Their sound is punchy, detailed and surprisingly expansive given their diminutive size. If you're looking for a discreet 5.1 system, then this is it.

• Wharfedale DX-2 review

Sony WH-1000XM3 wireless headphones

We imagine there will be a fair few pairs of wireless headphones being unwrapped this Christmas morning, but not many will be received with such gleeful gratitude as these on-ears from Sony. Our Product of the Year in 2018 and 2019, the WH-1000XM3s offer a natural-sounding, rhythmic and dynamic performance, and noise-cancelling good enough to block out Grandad's post-dinner snoring.

• Sony WH-1000XM3 review

Pro-Ject Juke Box E turntable system

The Pro-Ject Juke Box E is almost everything you need in one box. Just add a pair of speakers and some records and you can get playing immediately with this turntable system. It's seriously convenient and has Award-winning sound quality. It's the perfect excuse to disappear up to your room like a teenager as soon as you've finished your sprouts.

• Pro-Ject Juke Box E review

Bluesound Node 2i streamer

Coming in just under budget, the Node 2i is one of the most impressive performers from Bluesound's latest generation of multi-room products. It adds myriad streaming services to your hi-fi system with a highly detailed and entertaining presentation.

• Bluesound Node 2i review

Chord Mojo DAC

Delivering much of the sound of its big brother, the Chord Hugo, but at a fraction of its near two-grand price tag, the Mojo is a true feat of hi-fi and engineering. Our favourite DAC costing between £300 and £500, it remains streaks ahead of the competition in just about every facet of its performance.

• Chord Mojo review

Beyerdynamic Amiron home headphones

Beyerdynamic's Amiron home headphones just squeeze into this price bracket, thanks to a rather generous discount on their original £545 price tag. But they'd be worth altering your budget for regardless – clear, insightful and better organised than the Filofax Christmas party.

• Beyerdynamic Amiron review

Audiolab 6000N Play

Reduce the audiophile in your life to tears by giving them the job of cutting the onions for the roast... and the 2019 Product of the Year-winning music streamer.

If their hi-fi separates are only set-up for traditional formats – CDs or vinyl, say – than the Audiolab 6000N Play will drag them into the present so fast you might want to get them a neck brace to avoid the whiplash.

• Audiolab 6000N Play review

Ruark Audio MR1 Mk2 desktop speakers

Impressive features, excellent sound quality and the kind of stylish good looks that can fit into any home at any time. The Ruark Audio MR1 Mk2s are brilliant desktop speakers for the money. You might struggle to wrap these up and give them away when push comes to shove.

• Ruark Audio MR1 Mk2 review

Cowon Plenue D2 portable music player

A second portable is the kind of luxury it's hard to justify to yourself, but if someone was to buy a pocket device dedicated to hi-res audio for you, well, that would be a different matter. Watch the smile spread on their face when they realise how good portable tunes can really sound.

• Cowon Plenue D2 review

Shure SE425 in-ear headphones

Now, a Cowon D2 is going to leave you some pocket change from your £500, so you'd better throw in what we consider to be the very best in-ear headphones for 2019.

There's an energy and immersiveness to the Shure SE425's sound that makes them some of the most addictive headphones we've ever tried.

• Shure SE425 review

MORE:

10 best Christmas gift ideas under £50

8 best Christmas tech gift ideas £50-£100

We all know someone who's obsessed with their smartphone, and the best Christmas gift for them is one that involves their beloved handset. You don't need to cripple yourself trying to buy them an upgrade, though. Instead, it's time to learn to accessorise.

There's more to smartphones than just playing CandyCrush and buying a new case to prevent it from scratches and cracks. So, here's a list of fun gadgets and essential smartphone accessories to enhance anyone's mobile life, along with some nifty smart home products you can't use without a smartphone.

Fill your boots, or should we say stocking?

• Christmas Gift Guide 2019: the best gift ideas for music and movie lovers

Klipsch T5M wired in-ear headphones

You listen to music on it, you watch videos on it, you play games on it, and you listen to podcasts on it. Your smartphone is the one-hit-wonder for all things audio, so everyone deserves a great pair of headphones to get the most out of their favourite podcasts, tunes and immersive games.

These What Hi-Fi? Award-winning Klipsch in-ears sound fantastic and offer a great fit. It's an instant step up in quality from the bundled earbuds you get with smartphones, and your loved one (or yourself, if you're making a wish list) will be forever grateful.

• Klipsch TM5 wired review

POWERUP 3.0 smartphone-controlled paper airplane kit

Loved making paper airplanes as a kid but was terrible at getting it to soar? This stocking filler is a great 21st-century invention to a decades-old entertainment that will keep your kids occupied for at least a few hours come Christmas morning.

Mixing old school paper charm with new tech, this plane is controlled via Bluetooth and has a range of 180 feet. You can even steer it using the phone app.

Anker PowerCore II Slim 10000

They say there are two certainties in life: death and taxes. But your smartphone running out of battery is surely a third addition to that list. 

Keeping a portable battery charger at hand is a must, so make someone's day by giving the smartphone addict in your life this very useful – and stylish, slim and compact – option that should charge any flagship smartphone over three times over.

Netflix gift cards

Nothing says "Merry Christmas" like free Netflix, with its vast library of old and new content keeping the most avid TV/film fan happy for hours on end.

You can download plenty of shows on the smartphone app to keep you occupied on those long-haul flights or no-signal commutes on the Underground, too.

Three shows we'd recommend: The Good Place, Godless, and GLOW. That should keep you busy.

• Netflix review
• 31 best shows to watch on Netflix right now

Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 2

The UE Wonderboom 2 is a What Hi-Fi? Award-winning portable speaker and just the ticket for a smartphone fanatic. There's very decent sound for its size with plenty of bass and a 13-hour battery life to back it up.

It'll blast out audio in 360 degrees, but best of all it's virtually indestructible. It's dust-proof and drop-proof, certified from 1.5m. It also floats and is completely waterpoof, making it the ultimate device for shoving into your bag and whipping out come rain or shine... or for pool-side party.

• Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 2 review

Cambridge Audio Melomania 1

Want to level up from the Klipsch in-ears? How about these true wireless Cambridge Audio Melomania 1?

Compatible with all Bluetooth-toting smartphones, these tangle-free, What Hi-Fi? Award-winning gems offer a degree of noise isolation. That said, it's the 36-hour battery life and compellingly detailed sound that you'll love most.

• Cambridge Audio Melomania 1 reiew

HP Sprocket portable photo printer

Of course you know someone in your life who is constantly taking photos of everything - food, holidays, road signs, selfies - using their smartphone. To give their memories a more permanent touch, they'll love this compact printer that prints out small, retro-tastic Polaroids of their favourite snaps.

The HP printer is tiny, so you can even carry it around with you; it's easy to fill it with new photo sheets; and you can control everything via a free app. 

NanoLeaf smart lights

We love these light panels that you can set with a static colour theme or change colours along with your music. The starter pack includes nine panels, which you can arrange in any design you like (we like the minimalist Christmas tree in the photo above) and can customise the colours, patterns and rhythms using the app. There are plenty of presets, but you can create your own and save them too.

You can also control the lights by voice thanks to support from Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri.

Game of Phones card game

No, this isn't a TV-show-themed app; someone just got carried away with puns.

It's a Cards Against Humanity-style game that challenges you to hunt for specific things using just your phone and your best social media/internet skills. With 100 cards and 60 seconds to complete the task (things like 'find the best photobomb'), it's a clever twist on the card game resulting in plenty of laughs – ideal for after-dinner festivities.

Ember Temperature Control Smart Travel Mug

Last year, we told you about the Ember smart mug... which of course you bought. Well, now the travel version has arrived and it's time to add that you your loved one's collection. How's that for the gift that keeps on giving?

Set your desired heat level on this 355ml vessel and let its two-hour battery life keep your coffee at exactly that temperature for you to enjoy. That way you can have your cuppa your way and save the planet all before you get to work.

Available in black or white, it's controlled via the Ember app, obviously, for which you'll need that smartphone.

MORE:

10 best Christmas tech gift ideas under £50

10 best Christmas tech gift ideas for travel lovers

11 best Christmas tech gift ideas for film fans

Walmart has extended its Big Save summer sale event to Sunday 21st July, so if you've still cash to splash after Prime Day you may be interested in the best tech bargains you can bag this weekend.

We've picked 8 of the deals, which include a 60in Hisense TV for $370, money off Apple AirPods, an iPad and a Bose soundbar, a Vizio soundbar/sub system for $158, and more!

• See all deals in the Walmart Big Sale savings event

MORE: The best US TV deals for July 2019: LG, Samsung, Sony

World Wide Stereo is celebrating the momentous occasion with its own 4th of July sale, available especially for What Hi-Fi? readers right now until Sunday (7th).

The home cinema and hi-fi retailer is offering $50 off products priced $499+, and $100 off products priced $1000+. That's savings on over 300 products, from cheap 4K TVs, soundbars and AV amplifiers to Bluetooth speakers, turntables and headphones.

All you have to do is add the discount code 'JULY4' at the checkout cart to receive the $50 or $100 discount. But you'll have to be quick – the 4th of July deals are only running until Sunday.

So why wait for Amazon Prime Day deals when you can start saving right now?

• All products in the World Wide Stereo 4th of July sale

The sale includes plenty of five-star products, such as the Denon AVR-X3500H AV amplifier ($499 after code), Naim Mu-so ($949 after code), Dynaudio Xeo 2 wireless speakers ($849 after code) and Astell & Kern A&norma SR15 portable music player ($649 after code).

Further highlights include: 

LG 65in 4K HDR TV ($997 after code)

LG 55in 4K OLED TV ($1897 after code) 

Klipsch budget Dolby Atmos speakers ($449 after code)

AudioTechnica AT-LP1240-USB XP turntable ($449 after code) 

LG SL8YG Dolby Atmos soundbar ($547 after code)

MORE: 

Best 4K and OLED TV deals on Amazon Prime Day

Amazon Prime Day: Save $100 on Fire TV Recast

The best World Wide Stereo audio and home theater deals

Like most people, your relationship with Amazon is probably best described as complicated. Most of us are less than happy about its dominance, and its effect on smaller, independent retailers. But then there's no denying it is mighty good at getting shiny new devices through your door in double-quick time, and at knockdown prices to boot.

So you can't ignore the company's two-day shopping extravaganza, Amazon Prime Day, especially if you're currently feeling the pinch and are in need of a bargain. A wide-range of electronics are sure to be on offer, including speakers, TVs, headphones and more.

But there's a catch. The clue is in the name: you do need to be an Amazon Prime member to take advantage of any of these savings. And that costs money. It's a pretty good deal generally, with Amazon Prime offering fast, free delivery, and access to Prime Music and Prime Video, but nevertheless if you haven't signed-up, you won't be able to take advantage of the Prime Day deals.

However, there is a way to take advantage of Prime Day without spending a penny on Prime membership: sign-up for the Prime free trial. Thanks to the 30-day free trial, you can sign up now and take advantage of the Prime Day sales. Once you've filled your boots, and perhaps your online shopping basket, you can cancel your membership (with nothing to pay) and ride off into the sunset with a bundle of discounted products under your arm... Just don't tell Amazon we told you. 

• The best Amazon Prime Day early deals