We reveal the best gifts on the market for audio lovers this Christmas 2025...
Bluesound Pulse Cinema Mini £799
Launched just in time for Christmas, this wonderfully compact (850x74x140mm), fully-featured Dolby Atmos soundbar boasts a size-defying 280 watts of high-resolution audio from eight precision-tuned drivers. And when you don’t need it to punch up the audio performance on the latest blockbuster, BluOS, the brand’s own high-resolution streaming platform, enables you to stream in lossless quality throughout your home via aptX Adaptive Bluetooth and AirPlay 2. Bluesound also sells a range of amplifiers, speakers and streamers. bluesound.com
POCA Pine Beat £169
While traditional hi-fi can last decades, modern battery-powered speakers and headphones have a long way to go in terms of longevity. One British start-up brand on a mission to keep hi-fi out of landfill is POCA, which has designed a Bluetooth speaker that features a long-lasting user-swappable battery and clever, upgradeable design. The aluminium casing houses a 2.5" neodymium driver and 1.25" tweeter, it is completely waterproof – it even floats – and the clever modular construction means that if parts do fail, they can be easily swapped out. pocaaudio.co.uk
Glorious Record Vinyl Frame £49
While records should be played rather than displayed, this update to the classic album frame really makes the most of your favourite LPs and is a lovely idea for the collector in your house. The cover and record are set securely in a foam insert, and there’s a pin to keep the vinyl in position so there’s no risk of slippage or damage, while the aluminium frame looks great. Acrylic glass is used for added safety and, mercifully, there’s a magnetic side clip that lets you swap – and play – records easily. glorious.de
Technica ATH-CKS50TW2 Earbuds £125
The perfect gift for the forgetful music fan, these feature-packed Active Noise Cancelling (ANC) earbuds have a feature for anyone – my wife, for example – who seems incapable of putting their earbuds back in the carry case once they’ve finished listening. Instead, the earbuds can magnetically clip together and go into standby mode, helping to preserve the battery. But in truth, with a whopping 15 hours of battery per earbud, you won’t need the case for recharging very often… which is handy if they happen to have misplaced that too. audio-technica.com
Goldring Extract Stylus Kit £39
Goldring’s new stylus cleaning kit is a must-have for anyone who loves playing vinyl but is plagued by dust. Designed to suit all cartridge types, it features a 10x magnifying lens that lets you see just how gunked up your needle has become – and how clean it is after you’ve treated it. The super practical anti-static brush removes dust and fluff without shedding, and a specially formulated gel carefully lifts any stubborn residue without harming the stylus or cantilever bond. goldring.co.uk
Mixx Analog System 5 £299
Budget gramophone-style turntable and speaker systems are convenient, but they usually sound poor and use cheap, record-gouging styluses. Vinyl costs too much to risk, which is why this old-school all-in-one is a better option for first-time listeners. It pairs a simple belt-driven turntable with a set of 50W active stereo speakers and a quality Audio-Technica AT3600L moving magnet cartridge that’s easy to upgrade for better sound. Setup is effortless, connecting directly to the master speaker, which includes Bluetooth streaming and a remote control – however, kids, remember that you’ll still need to flip the record. mixx-audio.com
Pure Classic C-D4 £149
Available in deep walnut brown or white oak, this classical looking, wood-clad 15 watt music cube boasts DAB+/FM with 80 channel presets, colour display, remote control, aux-in, Bluetooth for streaming from smartphone, full clock radio features including snooze, plus a good-old-fashioned CD player. At just 12.7cm tall and 20.5cm wide it will sit neatly in your office or kitchen and give you an opportunity to finally catch up on all our fantastic BBC Music Magazine cover CDs. pure-audio.com
Bowers & Wilkins PX8 S2 £629
If you find yourself close to the top of Santa’s ‘Nice’ list, make the most of it and ask for the latest flagship headphone from Bowers & Wilkins. Luxury doesn’t come cheap, but every aspect of these over-ear ANC wireless headphones is sheer class, from the nappa leather earcups and headband to the precision-milled aluminium arms. I can happily attest to how engaging they are, with a tight, controlled bass and phenomenal clarity across all frequencies. bowerswilkins.com
What's in store for 2026?
Given the resurgence in love for vinyl and CDs, I’d love to predict that 2026 will be the year of the Minidisc. Sadly, Sony has no plans to resurrect its 1990s masterpiece, but nostalgia and the desire to have a connection with music beyond streaming will continue to grow. Having everything a click away is convenient, but there’s an argument that streaming is making us passive, rather than engaged, listeners.
What does that mean for audio brands? We’ll see more multi-format systems and a host of accessible, better quality all-in-one turntables with streaming. Premium brands are certainly embracing the stylish one-box solution that bridges the gap between ultra-luxury and mass-market. Cambridge, Naim, Bowers & Wilkins, Technics and Ruark already offer wonderfully entertaining just-add-speaker systems, while the new KEF Coda W active speakers (above) enable you to seamlessly switch from vinyl to streaming when the mood strikes.
Despite our lust for nostalgia, not many of us will be forgoing streaming, and the race is on to see who can produce a streaming codec that can match – or surpass – the brilliance of a basic cable. It won’t be long.
