If you're looking to take your smart home to the next level, a smart thermostat can do the trick. Google makes a few reliable ones, including the Nest Learning Thermostat, which is a tad bit smarter and sleeker than the standard model. Normally $249, the Nest Learning Thermostat is on sale for $179 at Wellbots right now when you use the code THERMOENGADGET. While not an all-time low, it's the best price we've seen on the gadget in months.
Most people are drawn to smart thermostats because of the energy savings they provide. In the case of Google's device, it uses a feature called Savings Finder to learn about your home system and make temperature suggestions and set schedules based on how you live. And since it syncs with Google's companion app, it can use your phone's location to know when you're away, automatically entering an Eco Temperature mode to save energy. The app also lets you set schedules manually and make adjustments from anywhere — so if you want your home at a certain temperature when you get home from work, you can set that before you even start your commute.
The Nest Learning Thermostat has a few perks that the standard device doesn't have. First, it works with the Nest Temperature Sensors so you can control the environment in certain rooms of your home more easily. It also has a metal ring deals and comes with a trim plate, so it'll look sleeker on your wall. The actual display on the device is nicer, too — it's a high-res panel that can show the time, temperature and the weather as well, depending on the settings you choose. Overall, it's a capable device that can make controlling the temperature of your home easier while saving you some money on energy costs in the long run.
Even though Apple announced its third-generation AirPods last month, the second-gen earbuds are still around and some may prefer them if they like the fit of Apple's old-school EarPods. You can pick up the previous-generation AirPods for only $89 right now at Walmart, which is $70 off their normal price and $10 cheaper than they were last Black Friday. You'll have to sign in with your Walmart account before you can make a purchase, and we expect these to go quickly. While Amazon isn't currently matching the deal, we expect it to if the AirPods come back in stock soon.
If you're (somehow) unfamiliar, AirPods are Apple's true wireless earbuds that have become some of the most popular buds in the space since the first came out. One of the biggest reasons why many prefer them is how easily they pair and switch with Apple devices. Setup is super quick as your iOS device will recognize the earbuds as soon as you open the case, and then audio playback will switch based on which device you're using. That means you can go from taking a call on your iPhone to listening to music from your MacBook without hassle.
The second-gen AirPods have a similar design and fit to Apple's EarPods, and they have decent sound quality, too. We liked their improved wireless range and good battery life as well — you'll get around five hours of use before needing to recharge. Despite not being the newest AirPods anymore, these buds are a much better buy at this $89 sale price. But if you're willing to spend a bit more, Apple's latest AirPods offer a lot of improvements including a better fitting design, improved audio quality and a longer battery life.
Samsung's affordable Galaxy Buds 2 impressed us with all of the premium features they offer at a decent $150 price tag. But now you can grab the wireless earbuds for $50 less thanks to a new sale at Woot. The online retailer has the Galaxy Buds 2 for $100, which is a new record low. As always, we recommend checking out Woot's return policy before purchasing from them as their rules are different than those of their parent company, Amazon.
Samsung brought a select bunch of features from its higher end Galaxy Buds+ earbuds down to the Galaxy Buds 2. Notably, these buds have solid sound quality plus active noise-cancellation and an adjustable ambient sound mode. While the ANC isn't as strong on these buds as some more expensive models, it still blocks out most environmental noise well. They also have a small, comfortable design that's easy to wear for hours on end, and with their five-hour battery life (with ANC turned on), you'll be able to do just that. We also appreciate that their case supports wireless charging — something that's often left out of affordable wireless earbuds.
The biggest caveat with the Buds 2 is that they're best for Android users, and particularly great for those with Samsung smartphones. Whereas other Samsung earbuds offer better integration with iOS, the Buds 2 focus on Android. Sure, you could use the Buds 2 with an iPhone or an iPad, but you'll be stuck with the default settings. If you or someone on your holiday gift list is an Android users in need of a new pair of earbuds, the Galaxy Buds 2 are a solid option — especially at this sale price.
If you’re anything like us, the holiday shopping season never really gets easier. It always seems to sneak up when you’re unprepared and making your gift list is often an arduous process. Despite the warm feelings this time of year brings, it can be awash with stress as you try to find the right gifts for the right people, all while trying to stay within budget.
But hopefully our annual holiday gift guide can provide some ideas for the tech-loving individuals in your life. We’ve spent time pondering the best (and most fun) gadgets we’ve used this year and came up with more than 200 products worth recommending. You’ll find gifts for aspiring game streamers, amateur photographers, audiophiles, pet parents and more, as well as the best laptops, tablets and wearables. And for those with strict budgets, we have a roundup of all things under $100 in our guide along with additional ideas for stocking stuffers that come in under $50.
And for all you bargain hunters out there, Engadget will continue to cover the best tech deals throughout the holiday season. There have been a ton already as retailers have pushed up the start of the shopping season by an ungodly month (or two). But it’s safe to say that the weeks leading up to Black Friday and Cyber Monday will bring even more discounts. If you haven’t crossed everything off your shopping list yet, be sure to check out our Deals hub and @EngadgetDeals on Twitter to keep up with the latest sales.
Regardless of how and when you secure those final gifts, we hope our gift guide can make it easier for you to get there. And if you pick up something for yourself along the way, consider that a well- deserved reward for making it through yet another crazy year.
Even with the high-powered MacBook Pros now available, we still consider the MacBook Air M1 to be the best Apple laptop for most people. We've seen the notebook go up and down in price this year, but now you can grab it at the best price we've seen. The 256GB model is down to $800, or $200 off its normal price, and the 512GB model has the same $200 discount, bringing its final price down to $1,050. As of writing this post, the silver option in both storage capacities is sold out, so we recommend grabbing the color you want soon.
Apple's thinnest and lightest laptop earned a score of 94 from us when it first came out due mostly to its impressive performance and lack of fan noise. The M1 chipset makes this MacBook Air feel speedier and smoother than previous models, helping the notebook wake almost instantly when you open the lid and making the machine more responsive overall. You'll also notice GPU improvements as well — while the MacBook Air isn't a gaming machine, you'll be able to play Apple Arcade titles easily.
Apple removed the fan from the inside of the MacBook Air M1, so you won't be bothered by whirring noises even when pushing the machine to its limits. It's a small detail, but it makes the experience of using the laptop much better — and you'll be able to do so for a long time thanks to the MacBook Air's 16-hour battery life. Arguably the biggest downsides to the Air M1 come from its svelteness: it only has two USB-C ports, which is in stark contrast to the new MacBook Pros' wide array of useful connectors. But if you can deal with the dongle life for a bit, the MacBook Air M1 will likely serve you well as your daily driver.
The first week of November brought a deluge of early Black Friday sales, many of which included some of our favorite gadgets at all-time-low prices. Amazon and Best Buy discounted everything from Sony headphones to smartwatches to OLED TVs. Google devices, including the Nest Audio and the Nest Hub smart display, have dropped to record-low prices as well, while Apple's AirPods Pro with the new MagSafe case are $60 off. Here are the best early Black Friday tech deals you can still get today.
AirPods Pro (with MagSafe)
Billy Steele / Engadget
The updated AirPods Pro with the MagSafe charging case are down to $190 right now, or $60 off their normal price. These remain Apple's best sounding wireless earbuds and we gave them a score of 87 for their better fit, IPX4 water resistance and hands-free Siri controls.
The latest 12.9-inch iPad Pro with 512GB of storage is $150 off, bringing it down to $1,249. That's the best price we've seen on this particular model, which would make a good laptop alternative when paired with the right accessories. We gave the iPad Pro a score of 87 for its powerful performance, lovely display and handy Center Stage camera.
Apple's 512GB Mac Mini M1 is on sale for $750 thanks to an automatically applied coupon. This is the desktop to get if you want a relatively compact device, plus one with the power of Apple's M1 chipset.
Our favorite pair of Sony headphones, the WH-1000XM4, are down to a record low of $248 right now. We gave these cans a score of 94 for their powerful ANC, immersive sound quality and multi-device connectivity.
Sony's excellent WF-1000XM4 earbuds are down to $248 during this sale. We gave them a score of 86 for their great sound quality, powerful ANC and improved battery life.
iRobot's latest robot vacuum, the Roomba j7+, is on sale for $699, or $150 off its normal price. The robo-vac without the clean base is also on sale for $499. In addition to the company's standard vacuuming technology, these models have AI-driven computer vision technology that lets them detect obstacles — including pet poop — and move around them as they clean.
iRobot's Roomba 694 is on sale for $180, or $94 off its normal price. This model made it into our budget robot vacuum guide thanks to its good cleaning power, decent battery life and easy-to-use companion app.
The August WiFi smart lock is on sale for $180, which is a record-low price. This fits over many types of deadbolts and allows you to remotely lock and unlock your door using the companion app. We gave it a score of 80 for its easy installation process, elegant design and support for multiple voice assistants.
Sony's already affordable WH-CH710N wireless headphones are down to an all-time low of $78 right now. That's the same price they were during Amazon Prime Day in June, making it a great time to snatch these capable cans up. We like them for their comfortable fit, punchy bass, good ANC and up to 35 hours of battery life.
Samsung's T7 Touch portable SSD in 1TB is down to $150, which is $40 off and a record low. It's almost exactly the same as the standard T7 drive, but it has a built-in fingerprint reader for an extra layer of security.
Lenovo's Flex 5 Chromebook has dropped to $300, which is $130 off its normal price. We praised this machine as a capable Chrome OS laptop for its Core i3 processor, 1080p touchscreen, comfortable keyboard and good array of ports. It's a great buy even at its normal price, so it's a steal when on sale like this.
Amazon knocked $50 off the GoPro Hero 10 Black action cam, bringing it down to $450. It earned a score of 92 from us for its improved image quality, speedy user interface and additional slo-mo and frame rate options.
A couple of Sony OLED sets were discounted this week. The 55-inch Sony Bravia XR A80J OLED 4K TV is down to $1,398, or $300 off its normal price, while the 48-inch Sony Bravia A9S OLED TV dropped to $1,198. The former includes the company's Cognitive Processor XR, HDMI 2.1 support, 4K upscaling, XR Motion Clarity and more, while the latter supports HDR and Dolby Vision, Acoustic Surface Audio, X-Motion Clarity technology and AirPlay 2.
The standard Kindle is down to the best price we've seen it, only $50. We gave this e-reader a score of 91 for its front-lit display, improved contrast screen and sleeker design.
Amazon's Fire TV Stick 4K is half off right now, bringing it down to $25. This compact streaming device supports 4K content, Dolby Vision, HDR and Dolby Atmos sound. It's one of the easiest, and cheapest, ways to turn an old TV into a smarter one.
Amazon slashed prices of its Fire HD 8 tablets this week, so you can grab one for as low as $45. The kids versions are on sale as well — $70 for the Fire HD 8 Kids and Fire HD 8 Kids Pro.
Shure's high-end SM7B microphone is 28 percent off, bringing it down to $359. This is a record-low price that we haven't seen very often, and this mic is a good pick for those who want to take their podcasting or streaming audio quality to the next level.
Both the OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro smartphones are down to record-low prices, coming in at $599 and $799, respectively. We gave the 9 Pro a score of 88 for its fantastic display, impressive performance and much improved main camera.
Moft's early Black Friday sale knocks up to $35 off depending on how much you spend. Use the code BF10 to get $10 off $50 or more, the code BF20 to get $20 off $100 or more and the code BF35 to get $35 off orders of $150 or more. The company makes a bunch of slick mobile accessories, including a magnetic stand and wallet for the latest iPhones.
NordVPN has a promotion going on right now that gets you two years of the service for $89. That's 68 percent off its normal price. We like NordVPN for its speed, its no-logs policy, the thousands of servers it has to choose from and that one account supports up to six connected devices.
Samsung's Galaxy Buds+ are down to only $59 at Walmart, which is nearly $100 off their normal price. We gave them a score of 83 for their improved audio, better call quality, longer battery life and improved wireless range.
Until November 12, Amazon Prime members can get up to $20 off Oculus Quest 2 headsets at Woot. We gave this VR kit a score of 89 for its high-res screens, powerful hardware and excellent abilities as a standalone VR device.
iRobot's Roombas are arguable the most sought after robot vacuums, but they're also some of the most expensive ones out there. We recommended the $275 Roomba 694 in our budget robot vacuum guide because it did a good job cleaning hard and carpeted floors and has a straightforward mobile app experience that even newbies will learn quickly. Now, you can grab that robo-vac at the best price we've seen it — an early Black Friday sale at Amazon has knocked the Roomba 694 down to $180, or $94 less than usual.
This model just came out earlier this year and it replaces the older Roomba 675. The two vacuums are mostly the same, albeit for the refined design on the Roomba 694. It's a sleek, all-black robot with three buttons on its top in the center, which allow you to manually control it whenever that's easier than using the companion mobile app. It uses iRobot's three-stage cleaning system to suck up dirt on both hard floors and carpet, while navigating around furniture and other obstacles. It also goes a good job sensing problem areas — like pockets of dust or small piles of dirt — and focusing on those until they're gone. It even has a spot-clean feature that you can activate by pressing one of the on-device buttons.
The Roomba 694 connects to WiFi and works with iRobot's mobile app, which lets you turn on the robot, set schedules and more. iRobot's app is clean and easy to use, so if you're thinking about gifting this to a less tech-savvy person, they shouldn't have a problem figuring out how to use their new robo-vac. The Roomba 694 also works with Alexa and the Google Assistant, so you can activate it without even opening the app — just ask your preferred voice assistant to get it to start cleaning. This model should run for about 90 minutes when cleaning hard floors before it automatically returns to its base for a recharge. The Roomba 694 was already a great choice for those on a budget who wanted an iRobot device to clean their homes, but now it's a steal at this early Black Friday price.
The latest iPad Pro is your best bet if you want to eschew traditional laptops and go for a more versatile Apple machine. Currently, both Amazon and B&H Photo have a great deal on the 512GB WiFi model — it's down to $1,249, which is $150 off and a new all-time-low price. If you plan on using this iPad as a laptop replacement, you won't regret springing for a model like this with a bit of extra storage.
We gave the 12.9-inch iPad Pro a score of 87 thanks in part to its stellar performance. The latest tablets run on Apple's M1 chipset, so they perform similarly to the company's MacBook Air M1. They handle taxing tasks like 4K video editing smoothly, and they won't break a sweat when handling multiple browser tabs, mobile games and other actions. Battery life is good too — you should get at least 10 hours before needing to recharge. On top of that, the latest iPad Pros have support for 5G, and they include a USB-C port for charging and connecting peripherals, plus the new Center Stage camera that keeps you in frame on video calls.
Both the 11-inch and the 12.9-inch iPad Pros look much the same as they have for the past couple of years. However, the 12.9-inch version has the added bonus of a Liquid Retina XDR display. You'll notice its full benefits when watching videos — the full screen can hit up to 1,000 nits of brightness, while some HDR elements like flashy visual effects will shoot up to 1,600 nits. Combine that with the screen's 120Hz refresh rate and you have a stunning panel that's excellent to use on a daily basis, and even better when watching TV shows and movies.
We still consider the MacBook Air M1 to be the best Apple laptop for most people, but you can get a similar laptop experience with a bit more versatility by opting for an iPad Pro. Paired with the right accessories — like the Magic Keyboard and the Apple Pencil — a 512GB iPad Pro would make a solid laptop replacement for those that value portability above all else. And thanks to the M1 chipset, you won't sacrifice power to get a better grab-and-go machine.
If you're going to use a Chromebook as your daily driver — or even just more than once or twice a day — you should get a decently powerful one. Perhaps unsurprisingly, even Chrome OS machines can get expensive when you start to spec them out, but Lenovo's Flex 5 Chromebook has been one of our favorites precisely for how much value it packs at a relatively affordable $430. Amazon now has this versatile Chrome OS laptop at the best price we've seen — only $300. That's $130 off its normal price and an all-time low.
The model on sale runs on a 10th-generation Core i3 processor, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage. While the latter two are pretty common in entry- to mid-level Chromebooks, the Core i3 processor will help this laptop feel zippier than others. While we initially weren't thrilled by the 4GB of RAM, we found that the Flex 5 Chromebook was more than capable of running multiple tabs simultaneously. As for storage, 64GB should be enough for most people who do most of their work in the Chrome browser anyway. Even at its normal price, the Flex 5 Chromebook provides a lot of power compared to other similarly priced devices — but at $300, it's a fantastic value.
Most Chrome OS machines in this price range tend to sacrifice on style, and while Lenovo's laptop isn't ugly by any means, it's not the slickest either. It weights about three pounds and measures 0.66-inches thick, but it does have a handy convertible design so you could use it as a tablet or even in tent mode to watch TV shows and movies. It has a decent 1080p touchscreen, too, along with a decent array of ports that includes two USB-C ports and a USB-A port. Lenovo did a good job of combining most key features of a good Chromebook into this laptop, which is why we continue to recommend it both when it's on sale or at regular price.
While we did not get an updated Mac Mini this year, the existing M1 desktop remains a good option if you want a compact machine with one of Apple's latest chips. Amazon often discounts the machine, and the 512GB model is down to an all-time low right now. While the list price is $869, an automatically applied $119 coupon will knock the final price down to $750.
At this sale price, the Mac Mini M1 is the most affordable way to get a machine with Apples M1 processor (unless you snag one of the latest iPad Pros while they're discounted). Apple's MacBook Air M1 starts at $999 and the new MacBook Pros with the M1 Pro and M1 Max processors are much more expensive than the rest. While we didn't give the Mac Mini M1 the full review treatment, you can expect it to run similarly to the latest MacBook Air, which is to say, speedily and smoothly. It has an eight-core CPU, an eight-core GPU and a 16-core Neural Engine that handles machine learning tasks. And with the discounted model, you're getting more than the base amount of storage, which should help future-proof the machine for at least a little while.
With all of the updates inside of the desktop, the Mac Mini's exterior looks much the same as previous versions. It's a small, silver box interrupted only by its array of ports, which includes two Thunderbolt ports, two USB-A connectors, an HDMI port, an Ethernet port and a 3.5mm headphone jack. At this point, there's no telling when Apple will launch a totally redesigned Mac Mini, so this sale is a great option for those who can't wait any longer for a new desktop.
