Smartwatches can be a popular gift around the holidays, but the best ones can definitely blow a lot of people’s budgets. Fortunately, today you can 42mm Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 Classic for just $149 from Walmart in black or white, which is an exceptional discount of $200. This model is the only one left with Samsung’s wonderfully tactile and unique rotating bezel controls, allowing you to operate the watch with less reliance on the touchscreen – very useful for gloved hands in the winter months.
While the newer Galaxy Watch 5 brought slightly improved battery life and a somewhat useless temperature sensor, the Watch 4 Classic has remained in the lineup and is now seeing enough discounts that still make it very attractive. The Galaxy Watch 4 Classic has all the usual health and fitness tracking you’d expect, and it runs on the latest from Google’s Wear OS 3. Samsung has its own range of apps and UI tweaks and has introduced new health and fitness features over time. added accessibility features such as tracking your sleep using cute cartoon animals. And again, I must repeat: that bezel. Read our review.
The holidays often mean a lot of hosting and activities around the house, which means a lot of cleaning before the party arrives and after they leave. A iRobot Roomba j7 Plus can certainly make life a little easier by handling most of your vacuuming tasks, and it’s on sale for $599 ($300 off) at Amazon, Targetand Best Buy.
This vacuum bot maps your home so you can target it at specific rooms or set no-go zones to make sure it stays away from places it could get stuck. And even if you don’t clean up some mess before sending it on a cleaning job, it will automatically avoid obstacles and send you photos with its built-in camera to inform you when it had to skip some small spots because the cat was hiding another toy under the bed . (Okay, maybe I’m speaking from personal experience here).
The j7 Plus remains our top pick for smart vacuum cleaners, in part because the auto-emptying docking station and software make it a very easy and manageable experience that’s mostly no-fuss.
If there’s one thing that gets us through the holidays and Black Friday, it’s coffee. How appropriate then that the self-warming Ember Mug 2 smart mug is on sale. You can get the 10-ounce version for about $99.95 ($30 off) at Best Buy, Targetor Amazon in black or white, or you can step up to the 14-ounce version for about $119.95 (also $30 off) at Best Buy, Targetor Amazon in the same monochromatic colours. While the best deal may be for those of you with Costco memberships, where you get the 14-ounce Ember in gray for $99.99.
Whichever size is right for you, the Ember Mug 2 will keep your drink heated to the temperature of your choice within a range of 120 to 145 degrees Fahrenheit. These mugs are great if you sit or stand at a desk for long hours and often forget about your drink until it gets cold. Is it a necessity? No. Is it incredibly convenient and a charming use of technology? sure! It also makes a great gift, which is why it made it into our home tech holiday gift guide.
Peak design is holding an early Black Friday sale on its site, running through Cyber Monday and offering up to 30 percent off select bags, smartphone cases and camera accessories. I’ve owned and used a variety of Peak Design gear over the years, and the bags are some of my personal favorites for carrying camera gear – even if it’s marketing sometimes makes me cringe so hard I want to shoot myself in the sun.
Some highlights of this deal include the Daily Backpack Zipper 15L in blue or white for $132.96 ($56.99 off). This smaller backpack follows the design of the standard Everyday backpack (which is currently 10 percent off), but it uses a simple zipper to open from all sides. Plus, the smaller size helps keep me from burdening myself with way too much heavy stuff, while still providing room for a laptop, chargers, accessories, a mirrorless camera, and a few lenses.
The Everyday Zip Backpack is a compact, multifunctional camera and commuter bag that uses an all-around zipper to open like a capsule, allowing access from the sides or top. It has flexible dividers for mirrorless camera systems, interior side pockets for small items, and a back pocket for a 13-inch laptop and a small tablet.
Aside from rather fancy bags, Peak Design also makes some nice phone cases for iPhones and Pixel phones that normally start at $39.95. These cases have their own built-in magnetic accessory system, meaning you can add pseudo-MagSafe magnetic wireless charging to your Pixel 6 or Pixel 7. Pixel Phone Cases and cases for previous generation iPhones are 30 percent off.
Some more offers:
- Now latest generation Apple TV 4K is on sale at Amazon for $79.99 (about $99 off). The new one might have more CPU power and HDR10 Plus support, but last year’s base model still has an Ethernet port. Read our review.
- The Logitech G435 Lightspeed gaming headset in blue and red is $29.99 ($50 off) at Walmart. This headset for PC, PS4, PS5 and Nintendo Switch is one of the best all-around multiplatform wireless options, and this is as cheap as it gets. Read our buying guide.
- The standard from Microsoft Xbox Wireless Controller costs about $39.99 ($20 off) in select colors at Amazon, Best Buyand Target. It works on all current Xbox consoles or on PC via Bluetooth wireless or wired USB-C connections.
- LG’s 48-inch A2 OLED TV is $569.99 ($730 off). Best Buy. This 4K TV is budget-friendly for an OLED, although the biggest trade-off is only peaking at a 60Hz refresh.
Janice has been with businesskinda for 5 years, writing copy for client websites, blog posts, EDMs and other mediums to engage readers and encourage action. By collaborating with clients, our SEO manager and the wider businesskinda team, Janice seeks to understand an audience before creating memorable, persuasive copy.