Sony's flagship WH-1000XM6 noise-cancelling headphones have fallen to their lowest price since launch, drawing fresh attention to a model that arrived at $449.99 — a $50 jump over the outgoing XM5. The discount makes the new top-tier cans an easier sell against rivals from Bose and Apple.
The XM6 brings back the folding hinge that buyers missed on the XM5, and packs Sony's new QN3 processor, which the company says is several times faster at adaptive noise cancellation. It keeps roughly 30 hours of battery life with ANC on, multipoint connection to two devices, and adds AI-assisted call noise reduction.
For anyone holding out on an upgrade, the early price cut on a months-old flagship is unusual — premium headphones rarely see meaningful discounts this soon after release.