As a veteran of more Black Fridays than I can count, I’ve learned that the best way to get a real deal on something like one of the best sound bars is to plan ahead. This is partly because a bargain for something you didn’t really want isn’t really a bargain. But it’s more because if you choose your shortlist carefully, there is a very high probability of getting what you want for the price you want to pay.
So how do you do that?
Sony HT-2000: a Sonos alternative with surprisingly big sound
In our Sony HT-2000 soundbar review, we gave this excellent soundbar four and a half stars out of five – it’s reasonably priced and delivers surprisingly big sound from its compact chassis. It’s particularly good at handling dialogue in movies and the bass is much better than many similarly priced rivals.
The main features here are the impressive Dolby Atmos and DTS:X performance thanks to Sony’s clever audio processing, and while there are some limitations (if you want to use it as a streaming speaker, you’re limited to Bluetooth quality, and there’s no voice assistant support), none of those things would be deal-breakers for me, because I just want a soundbar that sounds great and doesn’t cost too much money. And this Sony delivers on both fronts.
I’m pretty sure you’ll see Black Friday deals on this model, because they’ve already started: at the time of writing, Amazon UK is listing it for £299, down from £449, and Amazon US is listing it at $298, down from $499.
Sonos Ray: The smallest Sonos soundbar packs a big punch
We think the Sonos Ray is the ideal affordable soundbar for older or smaller TVs – it’s a good option for TVs between 24 and 50 inches. It’s a great upgrade for those TVs’ audio systems and is particularly good for movie dialogue. With four speaker drivers plus bass ports, it adds the bass impact and overall clarity that many smaller TVs lack.
In our Sonos Ray review we said it’s a “massive improvement over TV speakers” with decent bass and very clear speech. It’s really good for music (we thought it was the best in its class in its price range) and features “top-notch” wireless streaming over Wi-Fi.
At full price (it launched at £279 / $279 / AU$399), we felt it was a very solid buy, if not a bargain. But the street price has dropped considerably since then and I expect it to drop this month.
Ultimea Poseidon D50: surround sound at an ultra-low price
I’m already seeing multiple discount offers on this ultra-affordable soundbar, so it’s shaping up to be a enormous Black Friday deal: The D50 initially launched at £169/$219, but the official price has since dropped to £149/$119 (around AU$180) and deals have brought the price down further.
Even at its original price, this soundbar system was extremely cheap, and cheap in this case does not mean unpleasant. In our review of the Ultimea Poseidon D50 we gave it four stars and said it was a refreshing product: it doesn’t particularly worry about looking pretty or surprising you with a list of features you’ll never use; it simply gives you a solid overall package comprising a main soundbar, a subwoofer, and two surround satellite speakers.
The D50 doesn’t have Dolby Atmos or DTS:X, but it’s much louder and much more bass-heavy than most TV speakers and makes movies and games much more fun. We enjoyed their live sports performance and liked the whistling of the fighter jets on Top Gun: Maverickand he also does a decent job on the music. If you want to upgrade your TV’s audio without spending a lot of money, this is one of the cheapest ways to do it.
More Black Friday deals in the US
- Amazon: 45% off TVs, AirPods, Air Fryers, and Vacuum Cleaners
- Apple: iPads, AirPods and MacBooks from $119
- Best buy: $1,000 off TVs, laptops, and headphones
- Housing deposit: 40% discount on appliances, furniture, grills and tools
- lenovo: 45% discount on laptops and tablets
- Lowe’s: up to 30% discount on appliances, Christmas decorations and tools
- Aim: 40% discount on Christmas decorations, clothing and furniture
- Walmart: cheap furniture, televisions and vacuum cleaners from $69
- Fair path: 54% discount on Christmas, furniture and decoration
