Earlier this week, Dell dropped the price of Bose’s QuietComfort 35 II noise-canceling wireless headphones, giving Bose fans a chance to save some dough. Amazon has now matched Dell’s price, dropping the price of its stock
down to to a more reasonable price
of $299, $50 off its normal price of $349. But they’ve also
dropped the price on a great alternative
as well, which we’ll talk more about later.
Bose’s QuietComfort 35 II’s arguably are the flagship of the company’s headphones lineup. They deliver all the full rich sound you’d expect from Bose, along with some of the best noise-canceling we’ve seen. The headphone cups fit snugly but not uncomfortably against the ear, and active noise-canceling (ANC) technology continuously adjusts the level of noise-canceling based on ambient noise to ensure all you hear is your music.
Bluetooth technology is of course included, and they’re fully compatible with Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa, and Apple’s Siri. You can switch through these with just a push of the button, so you’re not limited to using just one. You can also use these voice assistants to control playback.
The Bose QuietComfort 35 II’s are pricey, and one of the more expensive headphones out there. If you’re looking for something cheaper, we’d recommend Plantronics’ Backbeats. Normally $199, even at full price they’re cheaper than the QC 35 II’s. But Amazon is currently running a sale which brings the price down to $129 , a savings of $70.
Like the QuietComforts, the Backbeat also supports ANC, which should provide you comparable performance — although not as good in eliminating ambient noise as the Bose headphones. There’s also no Alexa, Google Assistant, or Siri support either. However, reviews do say that the sound quality of the Backbeats is quite impressive for the price, even if they might not be as fully featured.
One thing that we really do like about the Backbeats is their battery life. Plantronics says you’ll be able to get up to 24 hours of listening time off a single charge, which is quite good for a budget wireless headphone. If you can do without some of the bells and whistles of the Bose, than these headphones are definitely ones that you want to consider.
If you’re looking for a more direct competitor to the QuietComfort 35 II’s feature set, we recommend you consider the Sony WH-1000XM3 deal available on Drop right now. At $289, the price is comparable, and the sound out of these things is outstanding (just ask our AV expert, Caleb Denison, how much he likes them). You won’t be disappointed.
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Instagram is making its way to yet another screen, and this time, Apple TV is getting a taste of the Reels rabbit hole. The company has launched a dedicated Instagram app for Apple TV, bringing Reels, longer videos, and live shows to the big screen. So, if watching one quick clip on a phone somehow turns into an hour of scrolling, there's now a much larger screen for that.
Instagram brings Reels and more to Apple TV
Audio-Technica, a brand well known for making some of the best studio and professional headphones on the market, has just come out with the ATH-AWX7000, which the company itself claims to be its "finest headphones ever." The new flagship closed-back headphone has debuted at an eye-watering price of $3,799. It combines hand-finished Japanese woodwork with a newly developed 58mm driver.
The earcups are made from Kiso cypress, a prized wood historically used for Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples. Each housing is finished by hand with traditional Echizen lacquer, which brings out the grain and is expected to darken over time. The frame and sliders are finished in a deep navy kachi-iro shade traditionally associated with samurai.
This post is brought to you in paid partnership with Best Buy.
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