There are Prime Day deals flying around for just about everything under the sun (well, as long as it’s on Amazon). If you’re on the lookout for a solid deal on budget-friendly headphones in particular, consider Audio-Technica’s ATH-M20xBT. Sure, the name might not easily roll off the tongue, but they were already solid value before they dropped to an all-time-low price for Prime Day. You can now pick up a set for $59, which is $20 off the regular price.
These are our favorite budget wireless headphones on the market right now. They have physical controls and Bluetooth multipoint connectivity, which enables you to link them to more than one device simultaneously (say, a laptop and a phone). There’s also a wired connection option.
The headphones have 40mm drivers designed to bolster low frequency performance. A low-latency mode should help to make sure audio and video are synced, which could prove useful for gaming.
You’ll get up to 60 hours of battery life on a single charge, so, given that they’re pretty comfortable, you might end up wearing them all day. If you need to, you can top up the battery with up to three hours of listening time after just 10 minutes of charging.
On the downside, there’s no active noise cancellation. You won’t be able to fold these up, either. If you can live with those tradeoffs, though, it’s certainly worth considering the M20xBT as a budget-conscious set of headphones for yourself or even as a stocking stuffer for someone else.
Amazon is kicking off this year’s holiday shopping season with its Prime Early Access Sale. This Prime Day “part two” of sorts is the second members-only sale event of the year that Amazon has had in 2022, and Prime subscribers will find thousands of items on sale at record-low prices. This is your opportunity to not only stock up on household essentials while they’re discounted, but it’s also a chance to pick up some holiday gifts for less. If you have tech like headphones, earbuds, laptops, streaming devices, gaming accessories or other electronics on your list, you’ll find a bunch of them on sale during this event. We’ve collected the best tech deals for October Prime Day here so you don’t have to go searching for them.
Sony WH-1000XM5
Billy Steele/Engadget
Sony’s WH-1000XM5 have dropped to $348. We gave the headphones a score of 95 for their great sound, supreme comfort and 30-hour battery life.
Apple’s second-generation AirPods Pro at $15 off and down to $235 for this October Prime Day. That’s the best price we’ve seen since launch, and we gave them a score of 88 for their improved sound, excellent Transparency Mode and solid ANC.
The latest Apple TV 4K has dropped to $109. While on the expensive side, it’s a set-top box that Apple lovers will appreciate. We gave it a score of 90 for its speedy performance, Dolby Vision and Atmos support and much improved Siri remote.
Amazon knocked $120 of Google’s Pixel 6a for this event, bringing it down to a record low of $329. We gave the budget-friendly smartphone a score of 89 for its attractive design, great cameras and long battery life.
The 10.2-inch iPad is down to $269. We gave it a score of 86 for its improved performance, excellent battery life, better front-facing camera and increased base storage.
The Galaxy Z Fold 4 is $410 off and down to $1,390. We gave the flagship foldable a score of 86 for its brighter main screen, sleeker hinge, updated cameras and much better battery life.
Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 4 is $200 off and down to $800. We gave it a score of 86 for its improved battery life, added hands-free applications and attractive design.
Google’s Pixel Buds Pro are down to a new record low of $160 right now. We consider them to be the company’s best earbuds yet, giving them a score of 87 for their deep, punchy bass, solid ANC and reliable touch controls.
Our current favorite budget headphones, Audio Technica’s ATH-M20xBT, are on sale for only $59 right now. While they don’t have ANC, they’re quite comfortable, plus they have multi-device support and a 60-hour battery life.
The Echo Show 5 is on sale for $35, or a whopping 59 percent off its usual price. If you want a smart alarm clock, this is the smart display to get. We like its sharp 5-inch display, ambient light sensor, smart home controls and tap-to-snooze feature.
The higher-end Fire TV Stick 4K Max has dropped to $35, which is $20 less than usual and a record low. On top of all of the features in the standard Fire TV Stick 4K, the Max version also supports WiFi 6 and live picture-in-picture viewing.
The Kindle Paperwhite is on sale for $100, which is close to its record-low price. The updated model has 17 front lights, a sleeker design, an adjustable warm light, weeks of battery life and Audible support.
The Beats Fit Pro are 20 percent off and down to $160 for this sale. We gave them a score of 87 for their comfortable, water-resistant design, good sound quality and ANC and long battery life.
Bose’s QuietComfort 45 headphones have dropped to $229, or $100 off their normal price. We gave them a score of 86 for their clear, balanced audio, improved ANC and long battery life.
Jabra’s excellent Elite 3 earbuds have dropped to $50, or $30 off their normal rate. These already affordable buds earned a score of 88 from us for their impressive sound quality, good battery life, reliable touch controls and comfortable fit.
The Google Nest Thermostat is back on sale for $100 right now, which is one of the lowest prices we’ve seen. It’s an Energy Star-certified device that intelligently monitors the temperature in your home and suggests ways you can save money on energy usage. You can also control it from your phone, changing your home’s environment from anywhere at any time.
LG’s 48-inch A1 OLED smart TV is cheaper than ever at $645 for this sale. This is one of the company’s more affordable OLED sets and it runs on LG’s a7 Gen 4 AI Processor 4K and supports Dolby Vision, HDR10, Game Optimizer and voice controls with Alexa and the Google Assistant.
August’s 4th-gen WiFi smart lock is down to $184 for this sale. We gave it a score of 80 when it first came out thanks to its minimalist design, easy installation and mandatory two-factor authentication setup.
Samsung’s 32-inch Smart Monitor M8 is cheaper than ever at $500 right now. It plays double duty as a monitor into which you can plug in your laptop and a smart TV with a built-in interface that gives you access to Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and other streaming services. It also has a built-in smart home hub for connecting things like smart lights, switches and more.
The original Peloton Bike is more than $200 off and down to $1,225 for Prime Day. It’s a compact exercise bike with a built-in screen that lets you take a variety of cycling, strength, yoga and other classes with Peloton’s digital membership. Also, one of the company’s latest gadgets, the Peloton Guide, is on sale for $250, too.
You can get two Blink Mini wired security cameras for only $30 for this October Prime Day. This camera needs to be plugged in, but we like its compact design, 1080p recording, motion alerts and two-way audio.
When Mark Zuckerberg announced the company he founded would change its name from Facebook to Meta, he added it would be “metaverse-first, not Facebook-first.” He’s shown off dystopian VR offices, looked at space in VR with Neil deGrasse Tyson and talked up the metaverse on Joe Rogan’s podcast. (During that appearance, Zuckerberg said he’s started MMA, doing some critical damage to the sport on the way.)
This year’s Connect kicks off at 10 AM PT today, with a keynote from Zuckerberg, and Engadget’s Karissa Bell has outlined a lot of the questions we still need answering. Will the metaverse ever look cool? How will it handle harassment and misinformation? And can Zuckerberg explain what the metaverse even is, one more time, for those of us at the back of the class?
If you still don’t own an Echo speaker or a Kindle yet…
Amazon Prime Day is, unsurprisingly, the best time to pick up a gadget made by Amazon. We saw record-low prices during July’s Prime Day and a lot of those prices have returned this fall. Discounts cover not only the usual Kindle tablets and Fire TV gadgets but also Eero routers and Blink security cameras.
Including the MagSafe accessories worth your money.
So you’ve upgraded to an iPhone 14, now what? Now you need to upgrade your phone charger from that dinky charging brick you got with your iPhone 6. Seriously, it may well change your smartphone life. We’ve got several other recommendations for charging cables, cases and more.
Gaming laptops have become some of the most intriguing PCs around. They’ve gotten thinner and lighter, naturally — but they’ve also become vastly more powerful and efficient, making them suitable for both work and play. They’ve adopted some bold innovations, like rotating hinges and near desktop-like customizability. Gaming laptops are where PC makers can get adventurous. If you’re a professional in the market for a beefy new computer, and you like to play a few rounds of Apex Legends on occasion, it may make more sense to go for a gaming notebook instead of a MacBook Pro-like workstation. We pick out the best options from the likes of ASUS ROG, Razer, Dell and more. It doesn’t have to cost several thousand dollars either. Our budget pick is $800.
A court in the Netherlands has ruled that a US company violated a Dutch worker’s human rights by forcing him to keep his webcam on during work hours. Hired by a telemarketing firm Chetu, the employee was terminated for refusing to be monitored “for nine hours per day” by a program that streamed his webcam and shared his screens.
“Tracking via camera for eight hours per day is disproportionate and not permitted in the Netherlands,” the court verdict states, adding it also violated Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The court found Chetu dismissed the employee unfairly and must pay a $50,000 fine, along with the worker’s back wages, court costs and unused vacation days.
Last week, LG announced it would allow third-party TV manufacturers to use its webOS platform, and now its main rival is following suit. Samsung has revealed it will license its Tizen OS TV platform for use in non-Samsung TV models for the first time, partnering with Akai, RCA and a bunch of other brands you… probably haven’t heard of. Those manufacturers will get access to features like Samsung TV Plus (a free streaming platform), personalized recommendations and even Samsung’s Bixby.
Roku appears to be expanding into the smart home space with a smart bulbs, light strips and security cameras, according to a Reddit user and report from Zatz Not Funny. The products appear to white-labeled Wyze products, and it looks like Roku is working on a Smart Home channel and dedicated mobile app.
The images, apparently taken from Walmart’s website, show Roku white and colored smart bulbs, a Roku lightstrip, Roku smart plug, Roku indoor and outdoor security cams, and a Roku panning cam. They look exactly the same as Wyze‘s Cam v3, Cam Pan V2, Bulb Color and other products.
Nathaniel/Reddit
With the TV and smartphone apps, Roku could let users show and control camera feeds, bulbs, smart plugs etc. There’s no sign of pricing, but Wyze products like the $34 Cam Pan V2 and $23 Wyze Bulb Color are relatively inexpensive compared to Nest or Philips, for example. However, Wyze was recently criticized for not addressing known camera security flaws in a timely manner, and suffered a December 2019 data breach that exposed the data of 2.4 million customers.
A four-legged robot in China that looks similar to Boston Dynamics’ Spot has gone viral again on platforms like Twitter and Reddit, but this time there are a couple of new twists. The machine can be transported via drone, according to the new video. And, perhaps most importantly, the robot has a gun attachment on top.
Anker is selling quite a robust selection of products at a discount for Amazon’s Prime Early Access Sale, and some of the deals even represent new all-time lows for the items. If you need to make sure your devices don’t ever run out of battery, the Anker 737 Power Bank is currently on sale for $100, or $50 less than its retail price. The model has a 24,000mAh battery capacity and has two USB-C, as well as one USB-A, charging ports. Anker says it carries enough juice to charge an iPhone 13 for almost five times, though that number would probably be lower if you have an iPhone 14.
Need a portable wireless battery for your iPhone instead? The black variant of the Anker 633 Magnetic Battery (MagGo) is currently on sale for $55. That’s $25 off and the lowest we’ve seen for the wireless charger on the website. The device has a small kickstand attachment, and since it sticks to your iPhone while charging, it also doubles as a phone stand. This one’s a bit smaller than the 737 Power Bank and has a 10,000mAh battery capacity with a 20W USB-C power delivery port for fast charging times. The white and blue versions are also on sale, but they cost a bit more at $64.
If you’re traveling or just simply need a power strip with an abundance of ports and outlets, you can get Anker’s 727 Charging Station for $66.50, or 30 percent off its usual price. That’s the lowest we’ve seen for the power strip, which has a maximum output of 100W. The 727 Charging Station has two USB-C ports, two USB-A ports and two AC outlets, and it comes with a five-foot detachable cord.
In case you need cords to be able to connect your iPhones and iPads to a USB-C charger, you can also grab a bunch from the sale. A 3-pack bundle of Anker’s Powerline II USB-C-to-Lightning Cable will set you back $22, or $17 lower than usual. The cables come in different lengths — three feet, six feet and 10 feet — and had been tested to withstand up to 12,000 bends.
There are a lot more Anker items on sale at the moment, but they are exclusive to Prime members. If you’re a new user or haven’t been a Prime subscriber over the past 12 months, though, you can sign up for a 30-day free trial.
If you missed the chance to buy the Apple TV 4K when it was $70 off during Prime Day earlier this year, now is your chance to get it at that price again. For its first-ever Prime Early Access Sale, Amazon has discounted the Apple TV 4K to $109. That’s an absolute steal for one of the best streaming devices you can buy.
Engadget’s Devindra Hardawar awarded the latest Apple TV 4K a score of 90 last year. Highlights include a much improved Siri remote and a more powerful A12 Bionic chip that can output HDR video at up 60 frames per second, while also delivering improved gaming performance.
If you own a handful of other Apple devices, you’ll appreciate the Apple TV 4K’s support for AirPlay. The protocol makes sharing video, photos and music from your iPhone, iPad or Mac to Apple TV-connected television easy. With the recent addition of SharePlay, you can even use the device to participate in watch parties over FaceTime. All that to say, the Apple TV 4K shines if you’re already invested in Apple’s broader ecosystem.
Naturally, the Apple TV 4K supports all of the most popular streaming services, including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, Hulu and Apple TV. It’s true you could buy a more affordable device like the $40 Roku Express 4K to access those same platforms. However, the Apple TV 4K offers nearly unmatched picture quality thanks to its A12 Bionic Processor.
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