By WIRED
Shopping holidays are often filled with made-up deals on junk gadgets and bunk gizmos. But dare I say that this year’s Presidents’ Day deals are a pleasant surprise. Seriously! There are matches of Black Friday prices on some of our favorite WIRED-approved smartphones, robot vacuums, and headphones below.
These aren’t the only deals we’ve rounded up. You can snag MacBooks for less than $1,000 right now, and we have a strong selection of routers and mesh systems on sale. Be sure to also check out our Best Presidents’ Day Mattress Deals when you’re done scrolling here.
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Tech Deals
We like the Google Pixel 7A (8/10, WIRED Recommends) a lot. We’ve rated it the best Pixel phone for most people, the best cheap phone, and the best Android phone for your money. It last fell to this price during Black Friday. If you’re shopping for a phone this weekend, it’ll be hard to find a better overall deal than this one.
Stop the presses, because this is officially (checks notes) five whole dollars lower than we’ve ever seen before. The Pixel 8 (7/10, WIRED Recommends) regularly bounces between full price and $550, so whichever way you slice it, this deal is solid. The Pixel 8 is the latest flagship from Google and it maintains the excellent camera system Pixels are known for. The Pixel 8 Pro is also on sale at $799 ($200 off), and it has some additional perks like the 5X optical zoom camera, which you can read more about in our Pixel Buying Guide.
This is a solid deal on the best Alexa speaker for most people. If you don’t already have enough smart speakers around, and you’re okay with sticking to Amazon’s echosystem, go with this. The 4th-generation Amazon Echo (8/10, WIRED Recommends) has better sound quality than its predecessors.
This is a match for the lowest price we’ve seen on the Blink Mini, which earned an honorable mention spot in our Best Security Cameras guide. The footage is clear even if it is a little on the bright side. There’s also two-way audio, but it’s a bit laggy. Finally, this camera includes a free month-long trial of Blink’s subscriptions, so be sure to set a reminder to turn it off if you don’t want to be charged later on. Those subscriptions start at $3 per month.
We’ve seen this drop to $30 before. Today’s price is still alright. The Amazon-owned Blink video doorbell is an honorable mention in our video doorbell buying guide. Video quality is OK, the field of view is a tad limited, and notifications aren’t as smart. But you don’t need to set up wiring if you don’t want to—the doorbell can run on two AA batteries—and it’s about as affordable as you can get. Like other Blink products, this comes with a free trial to a subscription that costs $3 per month, so don’t forget to cancel it to avoid subsequent charges.
It’s worth noting that this is not the lowest price we’ve tracked—the tablet was $15 cheaper in the past, and Amazon devices go on sale all the time. But the Fire Tablet HD 10 (7/10, WIRED Recommends) is the best Fire tablet for most people. Most cheap tablets aren’t worth your time, but the Fire tablet series offers decent performance for the money. Note that you’ll want to snag a microSD card to extend the base 32 gigabytes of storage.
This deal price matches the best we’ve seen, including during the Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales of 2023. Amazon’s operating system heavily favors Amazon content, like Prime Video. But if you don’t mind clicking extra buttons to get to other apps, this is our favorite Amazon Fire Stick.
These headphones were cheaper on Black Friday, but they don’t usually fall below $150 outside of the biggest deals holidays. The Pixel Buds Pro (9/10, WIRED Recommends) are truly excellent earbuds. They’re our top wireless earbuds recommendation for Android users, thanks in part to their great sound and top-notch noise-canceling capabilities.
We’ve tested a lot of headphones and these are the best for most people. The WH-1000XM5 (9/10, WIRED Recommends) have 30 hours of battery life and excellent sound quality, plus the noise canceling is some of the best in the business. They fall to this price quite frequently, but never lower.
The Pixel Watch 2 (7/10, WIRED Recommends) was released back in October and this is the best discount we’ve seen so far. It’s better in nearly every way compared to the first-generation Pixel Watch, which is also on sale for $200 ($50 off) right now. We like the snappy interface, the reliable fitness and workout tracking, and the overall comfort. But the proprietary chargers and nonexistent repairability are another story. It’ll work with any Android phone, but not iPhones.
On Amazon, you’ll need to click around to see the pricing on various colors, but they’re all close to the deal price—which is one of the best we’ve seen. The Galaxy Watch6 is similar to the Watch6 Classic (7/10, WIRED Recommends); it just lacks the rotating bezel that’s present in the model we reviewed. It’s a natural fit for Samsung smartphone owners, with a robust suite of health trackers and a snazzy round design. Just be aware that if you use non-Samsung Android phones, some features are unavailable. It’s also not compatible with iPhones.
The Jabra Elite 8 Active are our favorite wireless headphones for working out. They’re comfortable and secure, with excellent sound and noise cancelation. They’re also waterproof and have solid battery life, and the on-board control buttons aren’t easy to activate by accident. Get more recommendations in our Best Wireless Headphones guide.
It’s been $8 cheaper in the past, but this is a solid deal on our favorite gaming headset. The Logitech G Pro X (8/10, WIRED Recommends) has fantastic sound plus crystal-clear voice quality; it’s hard to beat this headset—especially with this discount.
The 10th-generation Apple iPad (7/10, WIRED Review) is listed in our iPad Buying Guide as “The Awkward Choice.” But this price makes it more enticing, especially since one of our main complaints is that the base cost is so high. There’s finally a USB-C port, and it’s faster than previous versions. If you don’t mind a smaller screen, the 9th-generation iPad is our top pick and is on sale for $249 (though it falls to this price quite often.) Be sure to check our Best iPad Accessories guide to round out your new slate.
While the price is still astoundingly high, the AirPods Max (8/10, WIRED Recommends) don’t usually fall below $450. Equally astounding is the audio quality. They’re some of our favorite noise-canceling headphones on the market, with elegant yet sturdy build quality and fabulous sound. Just keep in mind that the included flimsy carrying case is, to put it nicely, hot garbage. Amazon sells some third-party options you may want to consider.
Clothing and Household Deals
This is a match of the Black Friday pricing we saw last year. The Roborock Q5 Pro+ (9/10, WIRED Recommends) is the absolute best robot vacuum according to our tester. WIRED senior reviews editor Adrienne So says the Roborock Q5+ is her mainstay despite testing nearly every other vacuum. This version doubles as a mop, and when it’s done intelligently navigating your floors, either on its own or at your behest, it’ll return to its dustbin and empty its trash. I don’t even do that! I’m no better than a robovac.
Verloop makes some of our favorite slippers. They’re made from deadstock yarn, which reduces textile waste, and the patterns are eye-catching and adorable. They feel as good as they look. Right now a pair of Flower Knit Sock Slippers drops to $39 ($16 off) after coupon code COZY, but several other sizes and styles are on sale too.
Our top upgrade pick in our Best Office Chairs guide, the Steelcase Gesture doesn’t go on sale often. It’s supremely comfortable, even if you sit like a goblin throughout the day. It also has an excellent 12-year warranty. The deal is part of a larger Steelcase sale—just keep in mind that you’ll want to avoid the Series 1.
Photograph: Humanscale
The total cost will vary depending on the fabric and arm options you choose, but this deal is a solid one (and rare). The Humanscale Path is our top office chair pick for small spaces. It’s still comfortable and luxurious, but it doesn’t have a huge footprint—unlike most of the options you’ll find when you’re shopping.
The luxurious Benchmade Modern Tyler Sofa is well-made. We say as much in our Best Couches guide. You can customize nearly every facet of the sofa, and even order a full-size printout of the footprint so you can make sure it fits in your space. WIRED senior reviewer Scott Gilbertson says this is the best-looking and most comfortable couch he’s ever sat on.
Shoes! Laptops! Certified refurbished robot vacuums! Chainsaws! This eBay sale is gigantic. But if you want to give it a look, you can use coupon code PRESIDENT20 to get an extra 20 percent off. Our How to Shop on eBay guide has helpful tips if you aren’t familiar with the platform.
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