Sony MDR-NC200D Noise-canceling headphones

The Sony MDR-NC200Ds are compact noise-canceling headphones with a creative design, deep bass, and adequate noise cancellation. The headphones fold up to fit into a convenient carrying case and can still play music without the noise cancellation engaged.The bad: Slight, but audible hiss with noise canceling on, and the headphones lack an integrated microphone for making calls.The bottom line: If you can't afford Bose's QuietComfort noise-canceling headphones, the attractively designed and more affordable Sony MDR-NC200Ds are worth your consideration.The first thing you'd probably ask me if you were going to buy these active noise-canceling headphones is whether they're better than the the Bose QuietComfort 15 or Bose QuietComfort 3 models.The short answer is no. I found the Bose headphones slightly more comfortable to wear, and they effectively block out more noise than the Sony headphones. On top of that, I'm more partial to their sound, but those Bose models cost $300 and $350, while the Sony MDR-NC200Ds come in at $200.