Illuminate your room using just your voice with the Echo Pop and Globe smart bulb. (Amazon)(Amazon)
Not everyone wants a massive smart assistant dominating their valuable counter-space — and honestly, who can blame them? Sometimes you need something simple, compact and useful, without all of the extra distractions. That's where the Echo Pop comes in, a tiny yet mighty smart speaker full of features proving less can be more. At just 3.6 inches tall, it’s perfect for smaller spaces and doesn’t sacrifice functionality for size. With built-in Eero tech to boost your Wi-Fi and full Alexa voice controls, it handles your smart home needs effortlessly. Plus, it’s sleek enough to blend in, whether it’s on your kitchen counter, bedside table or tucked in a bookshelf.
Not big on the whole always-listening thing? The Echo Pop gives you privacy options to keep things under control, like a physical mute button.
Right now, thanks to Black Friday, it’s only $28 and that includes a free Globe smart light bulb. Upgrade your space simply and affordably.
There's a reason for the hype surrounding the latest iteration of these top-rated earbuds — many reasons, in fact. For starters, they offer rich, crisp sound and superior noise cancellation, allowing you to enjoy music, podcasts, audiobooks and more without outside commotion getting in the way. This model lets you control the volume simply by swiping the stem, and you'll receive four pairs of silicone tips in different sizes for customized comfort.
Our tech editor, Rick Broida, named these "best wireless earbuds overall," saying, "What you get here is even better ANC, a bump in battery life, extra-small ear tips for users with smaller ears and an adaptive-audio mode that adjusts noise-cancellation and transparency modes based on the sounds around you. Meanwhile, Apple's charging case now has a speaker (for use with Find My) and a USB-C port in place of Lightning (the better to match with the USB-C iPhone 15)."
Check out his roundup of the best wireless earbuds for a full review.
We don't need to tell you that it's waaay past time to get rid of your cable TV subscription, do we? This will give you instant access to more than 1.5 million movies and TV shows, all for less than the cost of a couple of movie tickets.
Pilot and aviation enthusiast Duke Armitage is a fan of noise-cancelling earbuds for travel, and this popular pick by Beats happens to be $50 off. "Few things are more irritating than listening to loud conversations or baby screams on a flight," he says. "This doesn't have to break the bank, as you can find a quality pair for $50 to $100."
These come with three tip sizes to ensure a snug fit. Other travel-friendly features? Transparency mode lets you switch off noise-cancelling to hear in-flight announcements or order a ginger ale, and you'll get hours of listening time before they need to be charged. Choose from black, white or red — whatever suits your jet-setting style.
Ready for some Apple picking? Yes, we realize it's not fall, but you'll want to pluck this bad boy from the ol' Amazon tree and add it to your cart because it's currently down to its all-time lowest price — and this is the most recent version! As the unofficial Goldilocks of tech (less bulky than a laptop but larger than a smartphone), this tablet keeps you connected on the go or at home, and you can use it for everything from reading books to taking notes to watching videos.
Broida named this the "best overall tablet," owing to its "under-the-hood improvements, including a faster processor, more RAM (4GB instead of 3GB), Bluetooth 5.0 (up from 4.2) and a USB-C charging port."
Check out his roundup of the best tablets of 2024 for a full review.
With Alexa baked in and additional functionality as an Eero router, this is an absolute steal at this price, thanks to the free smart bulb, which will cost you $12 on its own.
The Echo Pop packs big power into a small size, making it worth every penny at retail, but right now, you can snag it for over 45% off. That includes Amazon's best-selling $12 LED bulb that can change colors to match your mood — all with just a touch on the app or, even better, by telling Alexa to do it for you.
The Echo Pop was built with small spaces — and privacy — in mind. It's the smart speaker for people who want a device in the bedroom or the bathroom, but one that's less invasive. But just because the Pop wants to respect your privacy, don’t underestimate its capabilities. You still get full access to Alexa and can ask it to play music, audiobooks, the weather, set reminders and much more. Even better, the Echo Pop includes Eero functionality, so it acts as a mesh router relay point, expanding your Wi-Fi if you use a compatible system.
And about those privacy features: The light bar at the top of the Echo Pop indicates when Alexa is listening, and the Mic Off button is a physical disconnect for the microphone. You can ensure the device won't listen in on your conversations with just a tap.
If you've never used a smart bulb before, what are you waiting for? Smart bulbs are some of our favorite tech devices for several reasons: One, they allow you to easily set the mood in the room, whether you'd like a romantic feel to your dinner or warm, calming light by your bedside table as you read, this bulb can do it. Two, they're easily controlled by voice thanks to Alexa, so you don't even have to use the app on your phone, just tell Alexa what color and how bright you'd like the light and boom, done.
Nearly 56,000 five-star fans love the features of this powerful little helper (reviewed here, without the sweet smart bulb add-on).
"Small but mighty!" wrote one big fan. "I currently have my Echo Pop on my bedside table. I use it every day from morning to night. It was very easy to set up via the Alexa app. The app is great for controlling your device and setting up functions from your morning and bedtime routine, reminding you to drink water and take out your trash and my personal favorite, playing my Spotify playlists."
"I had never heard of it, I didn't need it, but now I wish I bought more," said one pleased impulse shopper. "I downloaded the Alexa app and plugged it in as instructed, it practically set itself up. The sound is clearer and louder than I expected, much better and less expensive than the highly rated off-brand speaker I previously bought on Amazon. Plus the Echo Pop makes lists, sets alarms and timers, my calls are clear, I've played music on Spotify and Amazon, it connects to my Audible account and I've had no issues with voice recognition."
Already have an Echo Dot, you say? This new release pairs beautifully with its older sibling and will only enhance your home system, fans say.
This happy shopper shared, "I really like this little speaker. It takes up about half the space of a Dot, but I think the sound quality is still right there. Now, I'm not trying to compare this to any high-priced surround sound audio system, but for the purposes of our house, it works great. We like to have music playing most nights, and we've got this one in the kitchen synced up to Dots in the living room and dining room. For the price, it's a fantastic setup."
While shoppers love the capabilities of this little smart speaker, do know that you're not going to get big booming bass with this little guy. That's something to keep that in mind if you're an audiophile.
"Not a great sound, but it’s used in an outdoor veranda, so a cheaper unit made more sense given [my] original Echo got damaged by rain, and this is considerably cheaper to replace should that happen again," said one shopper.
Another three-star reviewer gave a word of caution about connectivity, "I’ve experienced occasional connectivity drops with my Wi-Fi, which can be frustrating, especially when streaming music. ... It’s a good entry-level device for those new to smart speakers, but if you’re looking for more advanced features and reliability, you might want to consider other options in the Echo lineup."
The reviews quoted above reflect the most recent versions at the time of publication.
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