I get it: you want to find a few choice early Black Friday deals and avoid the stress of the big weekend itself. You also quite fancy a pair of those AirPods you’ve seen hanging out of people’s ears everywhere you look – and whoa! At Walmart right now, you can get a pair with the charging case for just $89; a $40 saving on their $129 ‘regular’ price.
The thing is, I’m TechRadar’s Audio Editor, and unless it has to be Apple and it absolutely has to be AirPods, I wouldn’t. This isn’t the cheapest they’ve been – and even then, they’re hardly the newest earbuds on the block (having been superseded twice… or four times if you count the Pro versions). While newness isn’t the be-all and end-all when it comes to audio, I think your $89 could be far better spent on something newer in the run-up to Black Friday. What would I nudge you towards? Either of these more fully-featured and sonically superior offerings from Nothing or Sony…
Both of these cheap AirPods alternatives feature in our best budget wireless earbuds lineup. Both are also five-star offerings (versus the 3.5 stars the AirPods gained under intense review) and during recent sales events their humble price tags have actually been slashed even further – and I’ll even tell you the discounts to look out for. Don’t thank me now…
Today’s best Black Friday earbuds deals
The AirPods deal I don’t think you should buy
…and what you should wait for instead
So what do I suggest you snap up if you don’t grab a set of inexpensive AirPods? Let me direct you to the Sony WF-C700N or Nothing Ear (a). Which is best? Well, I’ve even written a versus comparing the Nothing and Sony options, so you can choose for yourself.
Now, I can’t promise you unequivocally that these deals will land again in the run-up to Black Friday, or even over the big weekend itself, but I can show you what has happened before – and will probably happen again if you’re prepared to exercise a little patience. I’m not a betting woman, but if I were, I’d wager these deals will land again soon…
So, the lowest price on the April 2024-release Nothing Ear (a) we’ve seen is $79 (down from $109), which happened in September 2024. And the Sony WF-C700N? The lowest asking fee we’ve seen on these April 2023-release earbuds is $78 (down from $119).
Both feature noise cancellation and a plethora of perks they’ve no business offering at the level – and both are cheaper than those $89 AirPods listed above that don’t have noise cancellation. See what I mean?
More Black Friday deals to consider
- Amazon: TVs, smart home & air fryers from $12.99
- Apple: AirPods, iPads, MacBooks from $89.99
- Best Buy: $1,000 off 4K TVs, laptops & headphones
- Cheap TVs: smart TVs at Best Buy from $69.99
- Christmas trees: top-rated trees from $54.99
- Dell: best-selling Inspiron & XPS laptops from $279.99
- Dreamcloud: mattress deals from $349 + free shipping
- Holiday: decor, lights, Christmas trees & PJs from $10.99
- Home Depot: 40% off tools, appliances & furniture
- Lowe’s: holiday decor, appliances & tools from $17.31
- Nectar: up to 50% off all mattresses
- Nordstrom: 46% off boots, coats, jeans & jewelry
- Samsung: $1,500+ off TVs, phones, watches & appliances
- Target: save on furniture, Halloween, tech & clothing
- Walmart: cheap TVs, robot vacs, furniture & appliances