• Wired audio is a growing revival trend, but not everyone's on board
• Noble Audio unveils Astrid, wireless IEMs with three drivers and a fit test
• Breggz's new Zohn 2 sport dual drivers and IMAX Enhanced certification

Are you getting a bit tired of this wireless audio resurgence? Are you glad of the option to forego tangling cables, starting to shirk a source device that isn't your phone, or finding it ironic that Sony's new Walkman headphones don't work with actual older Walkmans? You're not alone.

On the same day (today, November 10), two premium audio brands have come to market with two high-end wireless earbuds, (hopefully) giving audiophiles something to enjoy without the tangling cables.

Meet the Noble Audio Astrid and Breggz Zohn 2. And keep your eye on your bank account, because neither of these earbuds sit within the budget category.

The Noble Audio Astrid is available to buy right now for $539 / £499 (about AU$1,000 — ouch!) but the Breggz is even more expensive, yours for £549 (about $600, AU$1,100). Zohn 2 will hit shelves in the UK from November 17, and will be rolling out to other countries through 2027, so US and Australian buyers will likely have to wait just a little longer for these earbuds.

Noble Audio Astrid: what you need to know

Let's look at Noble's Astrid first; partly because you can buy them right now, and partly because I've tested some similar buds in the form of the Noble Osprey.

These premium IEMs have three drivers per bud: an 8.3mm dynamic driver, 6mm planar driver and balanced armature unit, which means they can cater to the broad audio range.

But that's not the best bit: Noble has continued its partnership with Audiodo, who helped on the Noble FoKus Artemis, to bring a personalized listening test and equalizer. This'll let you fine-tune the buds to best cater for your ears, so you can make those buds work for you.

The earbuds have 11-hour battery life, ANC and, as with previous Noble buds, have a lovely textured design for the buds and case — something that looks like a high-end IEM headshell but without the wires. This time, said design flourish looks like petrified palm fronds, or the natural cracks on a crystal. Nice.

Breggz Zohn 2: what you need to know

Next up, Dutch brand Breggz is here with an expensive model... that's way cheaper than its $1,750 Zohn-1 which launched in 2024, and the new model also quietly ditches the 'in-ear computer' mantra its predecessors failed to make waves with.

No; the Breggz Zohn 2 are here for enhanced movie watching and more. At least, that's certainly the implication behind their IMAX Enhanced certification, making them the second buds to receive this award after the original pair (it's a title usually saved for soundbars and AV receivers). This certifies that the buds meet IMAX's audio standards for movie watching, so if you want to watch The Odyssey on your iPhone, say, they'll give you the true listening experience.

The earbuds also have five drivers per bud including a 10mm dynamic, 6mm planar driver and three BA drivers for detail. What they don't have is ANC, so the buds seem to be designed for home listening rather than the great outdoors (though there is a transparency mode).

Hidden in the press release, Breggz also confirms that its carry case has a replaceable battery, so the Zohn 2 are repairable to a certain degree. For buds at that price, it's a great thing to add, so one fault won't wipe them out. They have a 7-hour battery life, but the average IMAX movie is only about five hours, so you're safe.

Will they challenge some of the best earbuds we've tested? And can the audio beat any of the best wired earbuds on the market? Time will tell. Let's see…

Black Friday is almost upon us, unofficially heralding the start of the festive season — and before you know it, all the gifts will have been wrapped and given, and another year will have flown by!

The good news is that, simply by being here, you're already ahead of the Black Friday deals curve, especially if you're looking for noise-cancelling headphones and earbuds (and why wouldn't you be? With prices starting at just £19, they're excellent stocking fillers).

This roundup isn't like the others. Why? Because, unlike other publications, I've linked a full, no-holds-barred TechRadar review of each pick in the product description box, along with a rating of the deal, and whether it's a new lowest-seen offer, a return to its lowest-ever price, or merely close to it.

So, you know exactly what you're getting, and you know about the price you're paying — that's why you stick with me.

Top of the pile for me? I adored the CMF Headphone Pro when I reviewed them, and now they're just £49 (was £79). However, if you really need to save that extra tenner, the slightly older but beautifully teardrop-shaped JLab JBuds Lux ANC have absolutely no business being £39 (was £79) and they'll look and sound so much pricier than that.

Came here for buds? Simple: JLab's Pop ANC are literally £19.99 (was £24.99) in one of the best colourways I've ever seen — or there's the Nothing Ear (3), Nothing's flagship buds that landed just over a year ago, not to be confused with the newer, in-call recording Ear (3a). I loved the 'Super Mic' function there and only knocked the audio quality for the money, although of course, that's not nearly so much of an issue now…

Want the newest of the new in this roundup? That would be the Nothing Headphone (1) Pro, launched on September 28, 2026 and reviewed by yours truly. This is also their first ever discount — to clarify, the also-featured Nothing Headphone (1) are the company's inaugural model, launched on July 15, 2025.

Which pair is the best of the two? Oh, the newer pair without a doubt — apart from the case, which sadly is bulky, plastic and more of a fashion statement. If taking care of your listening gear is of paramount importance, I might still pick the originals, which is why I've listed them here.

Want something from a trusted name in audio? You can't get much more tried and true than Sennheiser's Accentum True Wireless, although these are also the oldest earbuds pick in the roundup, having arrived in May 2024. That said, they're oh-so-tiny and stuffed with features. And if you want a cheap set of buds with a nifty dial for volume on the case, the CMF Buds 2 are a great shout for this money.

Lastly, don't sleep on the Anker Soundcore Space One, despite their 2023 release date. We called them a "bargain Beats alternative with ANC" under intense review, and at this new-low price, there's an awful lot there for £64 (was £89)…

The best early Black Friday headphones and earbuds deals

• Bluetooth LE gets support for High Data Throughput (HDT)
• It boosts the standard's maximum supported bit-rate by almost four times
• That means support for hi-res audio, spatial audio and multi-channel audio

Good news for the best headphones of 2027 and beyond: the latest Bluetooth technology includes High Data Throughput technology, HDT for short, which gives Bluetooth LE a huge performance boost. It can transmit almost four times as much data as the current version, enabling it to send hi-res audio, spatial audio and multi-channel audio to other devices.

The fact that HDT is part of Bluetooth is important, because that means you aren't reliant on a proprietary technology for your hi-res music: if manufacturers choose to use HDT, which we'd expect them to do, then you'll have compatibility across a huge range of headphones, Bluetooth speakers and other home entertainment hardware.

There are other benefits too, as many current hi-res audio streams are sent via Wi-Fi rather than Bluetooth. Sending them over Bluetooth LE removes that traffic from your home network, potentially cutting down on congestion, and it is likely to boost your headphones' battery life, too.

Faster data transfer means less work for your Bluetooth radio, whether you're listening to hi-res audio or lower-res streams.

What's new in the blue

HDT is an optional feature in the newly published Bluetooth Core 7.0 standard, and it ups the bitrate of Bluetooth LE connections from 2.5Mbps to 7.5Mbps. Those are headline speeds, and as ever you'll get a bit less in the real world. But it's still a huge boost.

The benefits aren't just limited to headphones and other audio equipment. Anything that currently transmits or receives data via Bluetooth could benefit from the improved throughput of HDT, whether that's a smartwatch, smart glasses or a smart home device. If HDT can make updating my Apple Watch software take less time than forever, I'm sold on it already.

The downside is that you can't buy an HDT device yet. That's because there's always a lag between a new version of Bluetooth being published and products with the latest version appearing on shelves.

Bluetooth 6.0 was released in September 2024 and the first Bluetooth 6.0 headphones arrived in June 2026, with major headphone brands such as Sennheiser updating their flagships mid-year. You can expect a similar time frame with Bluetooth 7.0, so that's a summer to look forward to.

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