(PCMag/SteelSeries)
The SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless has been one of my favorite gaming headsets for several years now. It sounds great, feels comfortable, and is packed with features. It’s also very pricey at $379.99. Fortunately, you can get it for much less as part of an Black Friday Week Deal: It’s currently available for $289.99, $90 off its retail price.
I’ve reviewed a lot of gaming headsets, and the Arctis Nova Pro Wireless remains a top pick for its performance and features. Obviously, at just under $300, it’s not an inexpensive headset, but it's truly one of the best on the market. Besides its generally excellent sound and build quality, it features very effective active noise cancellation (ANC) that can effectively block out distractions. It also offers spatial audio and extensive customization options when connected to a PC through SteelSeries’ GG app and Sonar sound suite, including a full parametric EQ and hundreds of presets.
The big benefit of the Nova Pro Wireless over its competitors, however, is its base station and batteries. That’s batteries plural, because it comes with two of them: one fits in the headset itself, and the other goes into a slot on the base station to stay charged. This means you can simply swap the battery in the headset to continue using it without needing to plug it in or place it on a charging cradle. That’s a huge benefit I almost never see in this category. The base station can also connect to two devices simultaneously over USB-C, allowing you to seamlessly use it with both your PC and game console. Like most wireless gaming headsets, it can also be paired with your phone over Bluetooth, enabling on-the-go use.
If you plan to use it with a game console, be sure to check which version you order. Like most wireless gaming headsets, it's compatible with either a PlayStation or an Xbox console, but not both simultaneously, due to the way the two systems handle audio connections. The only headset I’ve reviewed that can connect to both game consoles is the Logitech Astro A50 X, which is more expensive than the Nova Pro Wireless, lacks swappable batteries, and isn’t as comfortable.
All of those factors earned the Arctis Nova Pro Wireless 4.5 stars and our Editors’ Choice award. At nearly $100 off for Black Friday, this is the best time to buy it.
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