My TechRadar colleagues and I have said multiple times that good sound quality doesn’t always have to cost the earth. As my guide to the best wireless earbuds in Australia proves, there is excellent value to be found up and down the budget spectrum, and you can get a great audio experience for little outlay.
Which is why I felt compelled to put together this list of five pairs that promise that excellent experience, with prices ranging from AU$70 up to AU$349. Two of the pairs — from Technics and Bose — do actually already feature in my guide to the best ‘buds, and now they’re currently on the receiving end of discounts at Amazon — making them even easier to recommend.
I’ll list my five top pairs for all budgets in price-ascending order, and of course, to check out more headphone deals, including those on over-ear models, head to Amazon.
Air Pro 3: was $129.07 now $69.99
Already affordable, these wireless buds get a further 46% discount, bringing them within touching distance of their lowest-ever price — and for a pair of earbuds we gave 4.5 stars in our review, that’s quite compelling. For AU$70, you’re getting a comfortable fit, decent ANC and a punchy, engaging sound. Battery life is also excellent, beating pairs on this list, and you get multipoint pairing. Supreme value. View Deal
Ear (3a): was $179 now $122.82
The (3a) is Nothing’s current budget-focused earbuds and successor to the excellent Nothing (a). They’re arguably an incremental upgrade — the sound has been tweaked ever so slightly (and you’ll still want to adjust EQ settings for optimal results), they get a curvier case and static spatial audio. They’re still incredibly comfortable, and the ANC is excellent for the money. Our only gripe is a call-recording feature that screams ‘covert surveillance’.
The Nothing Ear (a) is also discounted to AU$99.46 at the time of writing.View Deal
QuietComfort Earbuds: was $289.95 now $198
While these earbuds may not have all the advanced technology of Bose’s Ultra earbuds, they offer very good noise cancellation, up to 8.5 hours of battery life, customisable tap control and a comfortable and secure fit. They miss out on some higher-res audio codecs, and the case is a bit chunky, but otherwise these Bose buds are superb.View Deal
Tour Pro 3: was $399.95 now $299.95
This feature-packed pair of earbuds doesn’t normally come cheap, so it’s good to see 25% shaved off the price. Headline features include a handy touchscreen on the case (the case itself can be a Bluetooth transmitter to the buds), brilliant head-tracked spatial audio and a competitive 55 hours of battery life (when recharged with the case). Sound quality is vibrant and detailed, while ANC is good, just not quite class-leading.View Deal
My current pick as the best earbuds you can buy, the Technics EAH-AZ100, are simply stunning. They sound exceptional, employ effective ANC, are comfortable to wear and they benefit from impressive features, including triple device multipoint connectivity. Plus, the deal price here is exceptionally close to their all-time low of AU$344.99 — a terrific buy.View Deal
