If you've been looking to cut the cord for good, Hulu's latest promotion on its Live TV subscription service may give you the push you need to do so. The streaming company has knocked $20 off its Live TV plan for three months for new and returning customers. That means you'll pay $50 per month for the service instead of the usual $70 for the first three months that you're subscribed.
This is a solid deal considering how rarely discounts on live TV subscription plans come around, namely Hulu's and YouTube's offerings. Hulu + Live TV also includes access to Hulu's ad-supported streaming library as well as Disney+ and ESPN+, so you're really getting access to four different platforms for only $50 per month for a limited time. The Live TV portion of the membership provides access to over 75 sports, entertainment and lifestyle channels, plus you can watch two streams simultaneously and record shows to your hearts desire with unlimited cloud DVR. The latter is a relatively new feature as Hulu got rid of its paid "Enhanced Cloud DVR" add-on earlier this year when it decided to make unlimited DVR a standard feature of its Live TV plan.
You have until October 5th to sign up for Hulu's three-month offer. The price of Live TV will go back up to the $70 after your first three months, but you can cancel at any time. It's also worth noting that the company has already planned a price hike, too: as of December 8th, 2022, the price of Hulu + Live TV will go up to $75 per month. That makes this deal even more compelling if you've been interested in trying out a live TV service like this.
It doesn't get much better than Apple's iPad mini if you're keen on a more compact tablet. We consider it to be the best small slab out there, and the company made a lot of much-needed upgrades to the latest model that came out nearly one year ago. Now, you can pick up the 2021 iPad mini for $400, or $100 less than usual and the best price we've seen it. That's how much you'll spend on the 64GB WiFi models, but you can get the same $100 discount on the 256GB versions too, so you can get one for $550.
The 6th-gen iPad mini is an upgrade in nearly every way from the previous iteration. Apple revamped its design so it looks more like a small iPad Air, complete with slimmer bezels, a Touch ID-toting power button and a USB-C port for charging. It has an 8.3-inch Liquid Retina display that supports input from the second-generation Apple Pencil, so it could be your main device for capturing digital notes, sketches and more. Its A15 Bionic chip performed well and handled everything we threw at it, and we were pleased with the tablet's nearly 12-hour battery life.
Apple also added 5G support to the iPad mini, which will be handy if you spring for an LTE-capable model, along with Center Stage cameras that keep you in the center of the frame when you're on FaceTime calls. Ultimately, our biggest gripes with the mini are the fact that it has no headphone jack and that many people may quickly fill up the base model's 64GB of storage. Plus, it's more expensive than the previous-gen mini, but Amazon's latest sale makes up for that. It's also worth noting that we don't expect Apple to announce a new iPad mini at this week's iPhone event, so the model that's on sale will likely remain the latest and greatest mini for some time.
As you gear up to enjoy the Labor Day holiday, you can also save on some of our favorite gadgets across the web. Apple's AirPods Max headphones are $120 off while the Apple TV 4K remains on sale for only $120. Amazon's swiveling Echo Show 10 is down to the best price we've seen since Prime Day in July, and Solo Stove has knocked up to 45 percent off all of its machines — including the new Mesa tabletop fire pit — for the holiday weekend. Here are the best Labor Day tech sales we found for 2022.
Solo Stove
Solo Stove
Solo Stove has discounted all of its fire pits and bundles for the Labor Day holiday. The Ranger 2.0, Bonfire 2.0 and Yukon 2.0 are down to $200, $230 and $430, respectively, and you can save on most bundles, too, including the Bonfire Backyard Bundle 2.0 that gives you a spark shield, stand, shelter, carrying case and lid along with the aforementioned fire pit. The sale also includes the new Mesa tabletop fire pit, which has been discounted from $120 to $80.
The Apple TV 4K is back in stock at Amazon and on sale for $120. While not quite as cheap as it was on Prime Day last month ($109), this remains one of the best prices we've seen no our favorite high-end set-top box. We gave the device a score of 90 for its fast performance, Dolby Vision and Atmos support, HomeKit integration and much-improved Siri remote.
Apple's AirPods Max are $120 off and down to $429, which is the cheapest price we've seen them on Amazon. We gave the headphones a score of 84 for their excellent sound quality, comfortable fit and strong ANC.
Amazon's Echo Show 10 smart display is $50 off and down to $200, which is the best price we've seen since Prime Day back in July. We gave the device a score of 83 for its excellent audio quality, ability to work as a security camera and automatic panning and zooming capabilities for video calls.
Samsung's Galaxy Buds Pro are down to $149 at Wellbots when you use the code ENGBUDS20 at checkout. While they are no longer Samsung's latest pro-level earbuds, we gave them a score of 85 when they came out for their good sound quality, comfy fit and wireless charging capabilities.
Sony's budget-friendly WH-CH710N headphones are on sale for an excellent price of $98. While we have seen them cheaper before, this 35-percent discount is a good one for these ANC cans. We like them for their comfortable design, solid noise cancellation and long battery life.
HBO Max has discounted its annual plan, so you can save 30 percent if you sign up and pay for one year upfront. If you can deal with ads, the service will cost $70 for 12 months, down from the usual $100. to get an ad-free experience, you'll pay $105, which is $45 off the usual rate.
iRobot's Roomba j7+ is $200 off and down to $599 right now, while the s9+ has the same discount and is on sale for $799. These are some of our favorite robot vacuums, and they're made even better by these sale prices. The j7+ has advanced obstacle detection that helps it avoid pet poop and other hazards, while the s9+ has the strongest suction power of any Roomba.
Sony improved upon its already stellar WH-1000XM4 headphones earlier this year by introducing their follow-up, the WH-1000XM5. The new cans make nearly everything about the previous model ever so slightly better, putting them in a class of their own — and their $398 price tag reflects that. But now you can snag the XM5 for roughly $60 less than usual thanks to a one-day sale at Woot that brings the black model down to $340. That's the best price we've seen since the headphones came out in May.
Sony did make some subtle changes to the design of the XM5. Compared to the XM4, the new headphones have a slimmed down headband and a more modern look overall. They only weigh slightly less than their predecessor, but they feel much lighter when you're wearing them, which should make them even more comfortable to wear for hours on end.
Somehow, Sony managed to make sound quality and active noise cancellation even better on the XM5. The headphones have new 30mm carbon fiber drivers that handle audio, which is well-tuned for a wide variety of genres and has better depth and clarity. ANC has improved thanks to additional processors and a total of microphones that help detect noise and block it out. Overall, the XM5 does a better job of blocking out things like nearby voices and TV noise than its predecessor.
The XM5 work with Sony's companion mobile app as well, which you can use do change settings and do things like enable multipoint connectivity, change voice assistants and more. As far as battery life goes, you'll get roughly 30 hours before you'll need to recharge them, and it'll only take three minutes to get three hours of playback time. Make no mistake, the Sony's WH-1000XM4 are still great headphones (which you can often find on sale as well), but the XM5 cans are the ones to get if you want all of the latest features and some of the best ANC you'll find on over-ear headphones.
If the foldable phone life isn't for you yet but you still like Samsung gadgets, you can pick up one of the company's other flagships for some of the best prices we've seen. Amazon has discounted the entire Galaxy S22 lineup ahead of Labor Day, so you can get the Galaxy S22 Ultra for $930, the S22+ for $750 or the standard S22 for $650. Those are new record-low prices for the Ultra and the S22, and a return to its best price ever for the S22+.
Aside from the Galaxy Z Fold 4, the Galaxy S22 Ultra has all of the most advanced features Samsung has to offer right now. Its a hybrid device that marries features from both the S and Note families, with the result being a handset with a 6.8-inch Super AMOLED touchscreen that supports 120Hz refresh rates, a peak brightness of 1,750 nits and S Pen input. The stylus is built into the phone, so Note loves will be able to doodle, take notes and more wherever they may be.
The S22 Ultra also has a formidable triple rear camera system, consisting of a 108-megapixel main sensor, a 12MP ultrawide shooter and two 10MP telephoto lenses. We were impressed by the photos taken with the smartphone, plus improvements like better auto-framing and new features like Adaptive Pixel make it a great system for mobile photographers.
Overall performance is solid as well. The S22 Ultra runs on Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor and 12GB of RAM, and the base model has 128GB of storage. It handled everything we threw at it, and we rarely felt it get warm even under stress. While we wish the S22 Ultra's battery life was a bit longer, it's still enough to get you through the day.
Getting all of that for less than $1,000 is a great deal, but if you're on a tighter budget, either the Galaxy S22+ or S22 handsets would make great choices. Both earned a score of 87 from us thanks to their slick designs, lovely displays and strong overall performance — and if you spring for the S22+, you'll get additional perks like a longer battery life, faster WiFi speeds and support for UWB and WiFi 6E.
Smartphones aren't the only Samsung gadgets on sale at Amazon right now either. A bunch of Galaxy tablets are up to 30 percent off, so you can pick up the Galaxy Tab S7 FE for $500, or $180 off its usual price, and the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite for $300, or $130 off the normal rate. All of those deals expire today, though, so you'll have to decide soon if you want to pick one up. Also, the Galaxy Buds Pro are $60 off and down to $140, while the Galaxy SmartTag+ is $10 off and on sale for only $30.
Labor Day deals are already starting to pop up across the web. Both Ooni and Solo Stove have early holiday sales that slash prices of some of their most popular machines, so now's the time to consider getting a pizza oven or a fire pit while you can save some money. Apple's base iPad dropped to a new record low of $280, while the Apple TV 4K is nearly $60 off as well. You can still pick up a number of Crucial SSDs and portable drives at some of the lowest prices we've seen, plus Google's latest Pixel Buds Pro are cheaper than ever. Here are the best tech deals from this week that you can still get today.
Google Pixel Buds Pro
Billy Steele/Engadget
Google's new Pixel Buds Pro are on sale for $175, or $25 off their usual price. This is the first real discount they've received since they launched last month. We gave the buds a score of 87 for their deep, punchy bass, solid ANC and reliable touch controls.
Apple's entry-level iPad has dropped to a new all-time low of $280. We gave it a score of 86 for its solid performance, excellent battery life and improved Center Stage cameras.
The Apple TV 4K is back in stock at Amazon and on sale for $120. While not quite as cheap as it was on Prime Day last month ($109), this remains one of the best prices we've seen no our favorite high-end set-top box. We gave the device a score of 90 for its fast performance, Dolby Vision and Atmos support, HomeKit integration and much-improved Siri remote.
Some models of the Apple Watch SE are up to 30 percent off at Amazon. This wearable earned a score of 88 from us for its solid performance, comfortable design and comprehensive feature set for the price. However, if you want the latest model, you may be better off waiting another few weeks as we expect to see new Apple Watches announced at the company's September 7th event.
The Product Red version of the Apple Watch Series 7 (45mm) is on sale for $320 right now. We gave the wearable a score of 90 for its larger screen, faster charging and handy watchOS capabilities. However, if you want the latest from Apple, it may be worth waiting until September when the company historically has announced its latest phones and smartwatches.
Both the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro M1 laptops are on sale at Amazon — the former is $200 off and down to $1,799 and the latter is $300 off and down to $2,199. Both of these machines earned scores of 92 from us for their powerful performance, excellent Liquid Retina displays, plethora of ports and excellent battery lives.
Solo Stove has discounted all of its fire pits and bundles ahead of Labor Day. The Ranger 2.0, Bonfire 2.0 and Yukon 2.0 are all up to 40 percent off and down to $200, $230 and $430, respectively. Most bundles are up to 45 percent off, too, including the Bonfire Backyard Bundle 2.0, which includes a spark shield, stand, shelter, carrying case and lid along with the aforementioned fire pit.
Ooni's early Labor Day sale knocks 20 percent off all of its 12-inch pizza ovens. That means you can get the Fyra for $279, or the Karu or Koda for $319. We've recommended these pizza ovens in outdoor guides in the past because they're relatively easy to use and produce delicious, bubbling pizzas that are as close to restaurant quality as you'll get in your home.
Google's budget-friendly Pixel 6a is on sale for $399 right now, or $50 less than usual. We gave it a score of 89 for its attractive design, great cameras and long battery life.
Most models of Google's Pixel 6 Pro are on sale right now for a record low of $649. The standard Pixel 6 is also on sale for $499. The Pro is one of our favorites at the moment, and we like it for its striking design, excellent performance and battery life, plus it has some of the best cameras you'll find on any smartphone.
You can pick up a bunch of Crucial gadgets for less at Amazon right now. The Crucial MX500 internal drive in 1TB is 24 percent off and down to $76, which is the best price we've seen. Also discounted are the Crucial P5 Plus SSD in 2TB, which is down to $226, and the X6 portable drive in 1TB, which is 25 percent off and down to $83.
HBO Max has discounted its annual plan, so you can save 30 percent if you sign up and pay for one year upfront. If you can deal with ads, the service will cost $70 for 12 months, down from the usual $100. to get an ad-free experience, you'll pay $105, which is $45 off the usual rate.
Sony's budget-friendly WH-CH710N headphones are on sale for an excellent price of $98. While we have seen them cheaper before, this 35-percent discount is a good one for these ANC cans. We like them for their comfortable design, solid noise cancellation and long battery life.
iRobot's Roomba j7+ is $200 off and down to $599 right now, while the s9+ has the same discount and is on sale for $799. These are some of our favorite robot vacuums, and they're made even better by these sale prices. The j7+ has advanced obstacle detection that helps it avoid pet poop and other hazards, while the s9+ has the strongest suction power of any Roomba.
Amazon knocked $15 off its Fire TV Stick 4K Max, bringing it down to $40. A couple of other Fire TV dongles are on sale, too: you can pick up the standard Fire TV Stick for $25 and the Fire TV Stick Lite for only $20. The TV Stick 4K Max is the most capable of the bunch, with support for Dolby Vision, WiFi 6 and more.
Samsung's new T7 Shield SSD in 1TB is down to a new record low of $98, which is $62 less than usual. This is the most durable version of Samsung's palm-sized portable drive, featuring a rubberized exterior and enough protection to survive up to 9.8-foot drops. It has sequential read speeds of up to 1,050 MB/s and write speeds of up to 1,000 MB/s, plus Dynamic Thermal Guard and 256-bit Advanced Encryption Standard.
Ooni pizza ovens have been popular outdoor gadgets as of late, and now you can pick up any of the company's 12-inch models for less. Ooni's early Labor Day sale knocks 20 percent off the Fyra, the Karu 12 and the Koda 12 through August 29th, so you can get the Fyra for $279 and the Karu or Koda 12s for $319. We've recommended these pizza ovens in outdoor guides in the past because they're relatively easy to use and produce delicious, bubbling pizzas that are as close to restaurant quality as you'll get in your home.
All of the models on sale are 12-inch machines, so they're designed to make personal-sized, 12-inch pizzas. The Fyra uses wood pellets to heat up to 950 degrees, while the Koda 12 uses propane to reach the same maximum temperature. We appreciate that the Fyra is pretty portable, too — it has foldable legs and a detachable chimney, and since it weighs roughly 22 pounds, it won't be too difficult to transport.
The Koda 12 gives you a bit more flexibility as it takes wood, charcoal or propane as its fuel source, and it's made of brushed 430 stainless steel. If you plan on using gas, you'll need the gas burner adapter that Ooni sells for this one. The Koda 12 also has a max temperature of 950 degrees and all three of these Oonis take only 15 minutes to heat up. Ooni rarely has sales like this, so now's a good time to pick up one of these pizza ovens while you can get it for less — and while you still have a bit of summer left plus the whole fall season to use it in your backyard.
Solo Stove is celebrating Labor Day a bit early this year by discounted all of its fire pits and bundles. This is the first big sale we've seen on the new, second-generation fire pits, which debuted earlier this month. The Ranger 2.0, Bonfire 2.0 and Yukon 2.0 are up tp 40 percent off and down to $200, $230 and $430, respectively. Most bundles are around 45 percent off, including the Bonfire Backyard Bundle 2.0, which includes a spark shield, stand, shelter, carrying case and lid along with the aforementioned fire pit.
We've been fans of Solo Stove machines for a long time here at Engadget. They've made it into numerous guides in the past because, while pricey, they produce less smokey fires and will last longer than cheaper alternatives you can pick up at a local hardware store. Once you get a fire going, Solo Stoves channel smoke away from you using a double-walled design that pulls hot air through vent holes and back into the fire. This setup reduces smoke while also creating a fine ash and keeping the fire hot.
The 2.0 models that recently came out fix arguably our biggest gripe with these machines — how difficult they can be to clean. After a couple of uses, you used to have to pick up the whole fire pit and hold it upside down over the garbage to get all of the ash and debris out. That's not necessary now thanks to the removable base plate and ash pan that come with the 2.0 models. Once the fire pit has completely cooled, you can simply reach in, remove the base plate and then pull out the ash pan to dump out leftover debris.
This is a big improvement and will make the overall experience of using a Solo Stove much easier. Plus, the company didn't mess with the design otherwise. The new models have the same 360° Signature Airflow Technology of the previous versions, plus all of the first-gen accessories work with the new fire pits. Whether you're picking up a Solo Stove for the first time or upgrading from your current fire pit, now's a great time to grab one of the latest machines while they're on sale.
TP-Link makes a bunch of IoT gadgets that can make your home a bit smarter, and now you can pick up a number of them for less. Amazon has a one-day sale on TP-Link devices that brings many of them down to record-low prices. We particularly like the company's Kasa Smart Light Bulbs, which earned a spot in our best smart lights guide. You fan grab a two pack of those multicolored bulbs for $17, which is a return to their Prime Day price. If you prefer white lights, a four pack of those bulbs is 38 percent off and down to $28.
Both the white and color packs that are on sale are WiFi lights, which means they don't need a central smart home hub to work. You'll simply connect them to your home's WiFi network via the TP-Link companion app, and then you'll be able to control them from your smartphone. The mobile app is pretty easy to use, allowing you to cycle through light colors, set schedules, change dimness settings and even check out usage stats per bulb. These TP-Link lights are also compatible with Amazon's Alexa and the Google Assistant, so you'll be able to control them with voice commands as well.
Smart lights are some of the easiest IoT gadgets to install in your home, but you can also easily make "dumb" things around your home a bit smarter with the right plugs. TP-Link makes a bunch of smart plugs that we've recommended in the past, and a couple of packs have been discounted in this sale. A four pack of the Kasa Mini Smart Plugs is 20 percent off and down to $24, while one of the Kasa Outdoor Smart Dimmer Plugs is 40 percent off and on sale for $18. The former is for indoor use only, but they let you plug in a coffee maker, kettle, lamp or other things and control them via your smartphone. Similarly to the Kasa smart lights, the plug's companion app lets you set schedules and check usage for all of your appliances, and you can use Away Mode to automatically turn things on or off when you're out of the house.
Finally, there are quite a few networking gadgets included in this sale. You can pick up Gigabit Ethernet switches for up to 56 percent off, and a number of routers and mesh systems for less. Key among them is the TP-Link Deco AX3000 mesh WiFi 6 system, which has returned to its Prime Day price of $200. The pack includes three Deco X55 routers that you can place around your home to cover up to 6,500 square feet. You'll be able to connect up to 150 devices wirelessly to your network, and each node has three Ethernet ports, which means you have more options to hardwire devices for even better speeds if you wish.
If you have an aging machine that could use a storage upgrade, or you need a new portable drive before the new semester begins, you can pick up many Crucial gadgets for less at Amazon right now. A slew of Crucial's internal and portable SSDs are up to 29 percent off, and that includes one of our favorites. The Crucial MX500 internal drive in 1TB is 24 percent off and down to $76, which is the best price we've seen. Also discounted are the Crucial P5 Plus SSD in 2TB, which is down to $226, and the X6 portable drive in 1TB, which is 25 percent off and down to $83.
Crucial's MX500 has been a favorite among Engadget staffers for quite some time. It has a standard 2.5-inch form factor, so it'll fit into many machines, and decent sequential read/write speeds of 560/510 MB/s. It also has 256-bit hardware-based encryption and integrated power loss immunity, which should protect your saved work if power gets cut off. The five-year warranty that it comes with is a nice perk as well.
The P5 Plus drive earned a spot on our list of storage options for the PlayStation 5 thanks to its 6,600 MB/s sequential reads and heatsink compatibility. It doesn't come with a heatsink by default, but you do have the option to add one to your order when you're buying from Amazon. The 2TB drive alone is on sale for $226 right now, but you can get it with a heatsink for only about $10 more.
As for external SSDs, Crucial's X6 is a good all-around solution for most people. It supports read speeds of up to 800 MB/s, works with a variety of devices including PC, Android, iOS gadgets and has a lightweight, pocket-friendly design. If you're willing to spend a bit more, you can get a speed upgrade by opting for the Crucial X8 drive, which supports read speeds up to 1,050 MB/s.The 1TB version of that drive will set you back $90 in this sale.
