Holiday Gift Guide 2020: Truly Wireless Earbuds, Bluetooth Headphones & More

There are a lot of headphones available out there, and it’s not always easy to find what to buy. Well, if you’re having a hard time navigating those waters, that’s what we’re here for. We’ve put together a buyer’s guide for headphones, that you can either get as a gift for someone or for yourself.

You’ll find 11 headphones / earphones in the list down below. We did our best to make that list a bit versatile, and still include really good pairs of headphones in there. You’ll stumble upon both wired and wireless earphones, bot over-ear and in-ear ones. TWS earphones are also included in the list, while you’ll be able to choose from budget and some more expensive pairs of headphones / earphones.

Sony WH-1000XM4

The Sony WH-1000XM4 are amongst the best over-ear wireless headphones you can buy at the moment. Many of you have probably heard of them by now, and even though they’re not exactly budget headphones, they do offer a lot of the price. These earphones are extremely comfortable, and the included noise-canceling is stellar. What about the sound quality? Well, that aspect is great too. The sound is well-balanced, clear, and great overall.

These headphones do come with Bluetooth 5.0, and touch controls. Those touch controls work great as well, unlike many other implementations out there. You can get plenty of additional features when you connect to the Sony Connect Headphones app. Taking calls via these headphones is a breeze as well, while the battery life is no slouch either. You can get up to 30-hour battery life  here, and fast charging is included.

Sony WH-1000XM4 – Amazon, Best Buy, B&H Photo

Bose 700

The Bose 700 are yet another well-known over-ear headphones. These are also wireless headphones, and actually a direct competitor to the Sony WH-1000MX4. The Bose 700 are also extremely comfortable headphones, which allow you to adjust ANC (Active Noise Canceling) levels. They look quite sleek, and are equipped with eight microphones. That is not something you see often. Those microphones do help things when it comes to calls and noise canceling.

There are 11 levels of adjustable ANC, and it works great. You can also access Alexa by pushing a button or using a wake up word. These headphones are also optimized for the Google Assistant. They’re made out of stainless steel, and they have excellent battery life as well. You can get up to 20 hours of use here. The audio quality is excellent as well, they offer similar quality to the Sony WH-1000MX4 in that regard.

Bose 700 – Amazon, Best Buy, B&H Photo, Target, Walmart

GRADO SR60e

If you know someone who doesn’t need wireless earphones, and you’re looking to spend a bit less cash at the same time, the GRADO SR60e is an excellent choice. These headphones are considerably more affordable than the first two entries here. They cost $79, and are wired headphones, with an open-back design. You’ll hardly find a better pair of over-ear headphones for this amount of cash.

They deliver a wide, natural soundstage, and the open-ear design definitely helps with that. They’re extremely comfortable to wear, and offer this industrial design that many people love. There are no in-line controls here, but you will get excellent sound from them. The sound is on point, it’s sharp, well-balanced, while the bass is present, but it’s not overpowering. You can’t go wrong with the GRADO SR60e.

GRADO SR60e – Amazon

Sennheiser HD 450BT

The Sennheiser HD 450BT are wireless headphones, and they’re well worth the money. These headphones are priced at $149.95, and are amongst the best headphones in that price range. Noise canceling provided by these headphones is excellent, it’s rivaling a lot more expensive pairs of headphones. The sound coming from them is also excellent, so much that it may please audiophiles as well.

These headphones are also extremely comfortable, even if you wear them for longer periods of time. The soundstage could be more open here, as it pales in comparison to the GRADO SR60e.  These are equipped with Bluetooth 5.0, and offer great battery life. You can get up to 30 hours of use, and when it comes time to charge them, you have a USB-C port at your disposal. They do support fast charging, by the way.

Sennheiser HD 450BT – Amazon, B&H Photo, Walmart

Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro

We’re closing down the list of over-ear headphones with the most expensive pair on the list, the Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro headphones. These are one of the best over-ear headphones on the market, and they are not wireless. You’ll need to use a cable in order to hook this up to your devices. The build quality here is excellent, to say the least, while the design is unique, that’s for sure.

The Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro headphones are extremely comfortable to wear. The sound quality is stellar, there’s no better way to say it. The lows, mids, and highs are spot on, the sound is sharp, there’s not much to complain about. If you’re buying a gift for an audiophile, this is definitely a good choice. The Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro headphones are not cheap though, as you’ll have to part with $600 in order to get them.

Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro – Amazon

Jabra Elite Active 75t

If you’re looking for the very best in the TWS (Truly Wireless) earbuds section, well, it doesn’t get much better than the Jabra Elite Active 75t. These are one of the best TWS earphones out there. They’re definitely not the priciest TWS earphone on the list, though. They do offer full sound, which is a rarity when it comes to TWS earphones. The design is quite nice, while the earphones are also waterproof.

You can customize the audio output via an app, and the battery life is not bad either, quite the contrary. In fact, the battery life and sound is better than what you’d get from the Apple AirPods Pro, the next pair of TWS earphones on our list. The call quality has been improved in comparison to their predecessor, so there’s really not much to complain about here.

Jabra Elite Active 75t – Amazon

 Apple AirPods Pro

Very few people haven’t heard of the Apple AirPods Pro earphones. For many people, these are the benchmark for TWS earphones. They are very popular, that’s true, and Apple’s branding definitely has a lot to do with that. Apple did a good job making these, as they’re miles better than the AirPods 1 and 2, but these are not the best TWS earphones on the market. Still, they’re mainstream, and they do offer good sound and features.

The design is very nice, and these earphones do offer great active noise cancellation. They’re also very comfortable to wear for longer periods of time, which is not something we can say for many TWS earphones. They feature adaptive sound, which is actually quite good. Apple managed to place three microphones and six sensors in each earbud, which is impressive. The battery life is not great here, though, it’s good, but not great.

Apple AirPods Pro – Amazon, Best Buy, B&H Photo, Target, Walmart

Bose QuietComfort

The Bose QuietComfort are, without a doubt, one of the best TWS earphones on the market. They have one of the best ANC (Active Noise Cancelation) implementations out there. The sound is really well-balanced as well, and these are also one of the best TWS earphones for calls. They’re also equipped with Bluetooth 5.1. If there’s one negative here, then it has to be battery life. It is not bad, but it could be better.

You’ll get about 5 hours of use out of these earphones, before you’ll need to charge them. The Bose QuietComfort earphones also come with a functional case, and the earbuds themselves look great. There are 10 levels of adjustable ANC here, and the transparency mode is included. It’s hard to deny that the Bose QuietComfort are one of the best TWS earphones on the market, so if you’re looking for something like that, these are worth considering.

Bose QuietComfort – Amazon, Best Buy

Anker Soundcore Liberty Air

The Anker Soundcore Liberty Air are the last TWS earphones on this list. Coincidentally, they’re also the cheapest (TWS earbuds). These are priced at $77, and for the price, they do have a lot to offer. The sound coming from these is not half bad, and neither is the design. They do offer a longer stem than some other offerings on the list, but if that doesn’t bother you, the design is actually quite nice.

The charging case itself has three LED lights on the outside, for battery level indication. These are equipped with Bluetooth 5, and touch controls are also included on each earbud. Graphene drivers are included, and you can get up to 20 hours of playtime here, along with the charging case. The earbuds themselves will offer around 5 hours of use. Each earbud is also quite light, and comfortable to wear.

Anker Soundcore Liberty Air – Amazon

Klipsch T5M

The Klipsch T5M are the cheapest earphones on this list in general. They cost only $44.52. if you’re on a tight budget, and you still want something that will offer good sound, look no further. The Klipsch T5M earphones do come with an in-line remote and microphone, while they’re extremely comfortable to wear. The sound is really good as well, better than you’d expect you’d get at this price tag, that’s for sure.

The cable here is kind of unique, and it has some copper embedded within it. These earphones are sweat and sweat resistant. Bass is boosted on these earphones thanks to Klipsch’s 5mm dynamic drivers. Unfortunately, there are no volume controls on the cable. It’s quite easy to recommend the Klipsch T5M earphones at this price tag. If you’re looking for something affordable, and wired, you can’t go wrong with these.

Klipsch T5M – Amazon

1More Triple Driver

If you want a pair of earphones that come with a neckband, and you don’t want to break the bank at the same time, the 1MORE Triple Driver earphones are the way to go. These are wireless earphones which offer really good sound output, and they look great at the same time. The build quality is also really good. It’s hard to believe that these earphones cost only $54.99, as you’d think they’re more expensive based on the performance and build.

They come with three drivers on the inside. Two balanced armatures, and a separate dynamic driver are included. An aerospace-grade metal composite diaphragm provides great highs, clear mid-range, and deep bass. That is something the company claims, and it’s actually true, they do sound really good. Bluetooth 4.2 is included here, while the battery life is pretty good as well. Fast charging is also included.

1More Triple Driver – Amazon