Best Black Friday Soundbar Deals 2020: Bose, Sonos, and Polk

Black Friday has been and gone, but over this weekend there are still some terrific last-minute Black Friday deals available with big discounts to be had on all things tech. That includes home theater-related hardware, like must-have soundbars which are seeing huge discounts this year. But tracking down the best deal can be tough — in part due to there being such a big range of soundbar deals out there. Fortunately, Digital Trends is here to help. We’ve scoured the internet to find the best Black Friday soundbar deals still available and we’re going to share them with you here.

This means you can spend less time researching and more time enjoying your purchase. We’ve done our absolute best to track down the lowest prices, so it’s unlikely you’ll find any of the products below at cheaper prices anywhere else.

Apart from scoring a great soundbar, you might also want to get a TV that goes along with it. Make sure to check out these Black Friday TV deals still available to find your match.

Best Black Friday soundbar deals today

Some of the hottest sales today are a Bose soundbar 700 deal and a Vizio soundbar deal. See more discounts below:

VIZIO 20-inch 2.0 Home Theater Soundbar — $70
TCL Alto 6+ 2.1 Channel Soundbar — $100, was $130
Sony 2.0 Channel 120W Soundbar — $100, was $129
TCL Alto 8+ 2.1 Channel Soundbar with Built-In Subwoofer – Fire TV Edition — $130, was $150
VIZIO M-Series 2.1 Channel Soundbar — $150
Polk Audio MagniFi Mini Soundbar with Wireless Subwoofer — $231, was $280
Bose TV Speaker Soundbar — $249

How to choose a soundbar

Soundbars are essential to any good home theater setup and there are a ton of great options to choose from. Here are some features to keep in mind while shopping for the best soundbars available, from top-of-the-line options like the LG AN11RG to mid-range options like the Sony HT-G700 to some bargains too.

Subwoofers

Some high-quality soundbars come with their own dedicated subwoofer. What is a subwoofer you ask? Well, it’s a device that helps enhance low-frequency sounds to amplify bass — super important when watching an action-packed movie or TV show. For example, the JBL Bar 9.1 carries a pretty powerful subwoofer. If you decide to purchase a subwoofer separately, check out our guide to the best subwoofers out there. Just make sure your soundbar comes with a subwoofer output — not all of them do.

Connectivity

Most soundbars only require a single cable for connectivity — be it HDMI or optical. HDMI supports more audio formats than an optical interface so you’re automatically guaranteed higher quality sound — just make sure to check that your TV supports HDMI ARC. If it does, you’ll also be able to control your entire home theater setup, often with a single remote. It’s not necessary for your soundbar to have this option but if you’re looking for a more streamlined interface, go with it.

Channels

When you’re shopping for a soundbar you’re going to come across numbers like 5.1 or 2.0. Simply put, the number before the period specifies the number of channels your device has — the more the better. The number after the period species if your soundbar comes with a subwoofer. So, 5.1 tells you that your device has five channels and one subwoofer so you’re in for a highly immersive sound experience.

If you haven’t heard a soundbar recently, you might be shocked by how immersive the sound can be on a product like LG’s SL9YG. Some soundbars have a third number involved, this usually refers to Dolby Atmos Surround Sound — the best surround sound technology currently out there, and we recommend that your next soundbar should have Dolby Atmos. Products like the Sonos Arc or the LG SN7Y are Atmos-capable. So if you see a soundbar with 7.1.2 sound, that’s the closest you’ll get to an in-theater sound experience. Keep in mind though, these soundbars are pricier, usually sporting a hefty $1,000 price tag — even with Black Friday sales.

Bluetooth, AirPlay 2, and Chromecast

If your soundbar has Bluetooth connectivity you can easily hook it up to any of your devices use it solely for the purpose of playing music. Apple’s AirPlay 2 is a higher quality option for Apple devices, and Chromecast achieves the same thing for Android devices.

Smart soundbars

Want more from your soundbar? Some soundbars like the Roku Smart Soundbar, Roku Streambar, and TCL Alto 8+ come with inbuilt streaming software so you can use your device to stream TV as well as enhance your sound. This way you don’t have to worry about a larger complicated setup where you need to buy additional cable boxes — this is all in one. You can also find soundbars like the Bose Smart Soundbar 300 or Bose Soundbar 700 that work with Google Assistant or Alexa so you can control your listening experience with just your voice.

For more advice on making a selection, see our tips on how to buy a soundbar.

How much should you spend on a soundbar?

Soundbars are generally a more affordable alternative to fancy speaker systems. Still, there is a range of prices available depending on what features you want and how discerning you are when it comes to audio quality. For a cheap soundbar, for example, to use in a kitchen or to simply improve the sound from a TV you use occasionally, you can find plenty of options in the $100 to $200 range, with some available even cheaper than that. But if you want a fantastic audio experience for a home theater system, you could spend up to $500 or more for a high-end soundbar.

Are any soundbar deals too good to be true?

When you’re browsing online, you might be tempted to quickly grab the cheapest soundbar deal you can find. But you should be careful when shopping the Black Friday sales. You’ll want to do some research to ensure you’re buying a good quality product from a reputable retailer, in order to make sure you’ll be happy with your soundbar once it arrives.

That’s why we only recommend deals from well-known retailers who you can trust to send you a good quality product. Some retailers will try to rush you into a decision with techniques like ticking countdown clocks on their websites, but don’t let these gimmicks push you into making a decision before you’re ready. Take your time, check out your options, and feel good about the product you decide to buy.

Where to find the best soundbar sales

There are a lot of retailers out there with great Black Friday soundbar deals available. Here’s a breakdown of the three top retailers and the sales they’re seeing.

Amazon Black Friday: Get tons of soundbars including smart soundbars for as much as $200 off. Check out the rest of Amazon’s holiday sales.
Best Buy Black Friday: Save up to $400 on high-end soundbars and up to $100 on all other soundbars right now.
Target Black Friday: You’ll find affordable soundbars for under $150 and savings of up to $200 off more expensive soundbars too.
Walmart Black Friday: Brands like Vizio are seeing up to $250 off select soundbars at Walmart.

We strive to help our readers find the best deals on quality products and services, and we choose what we cover carefully and independently. The prices, details, and availability of the products and deals in this post may be subject to change at anytime. Be sure to check that they are still in effect before making a purchase.

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