Engadget Feed

Here’s a collaboration I wasn’t expecting. The hit gaming franchise Call of Duty and the hit Netflix show Squid Game are teaming up for some kind of game mode to commemorate the latter’s second season.

We don’t exactly know what this partnership will entail, but it looks like a game mode for both Black Ops 6 and Warzone. There’s a trailer but it’s devoid of any real details.

We do know that we don’t have long to wait. The description underneath the trailer notes that “Squid Game comes to Call of Duty this January.” This makes sense, given that season two of the Netflix show drops on December 26.

Maybe players will enter the titular Squid Game with a full arsenal of modern weaponry. Or maybe we’ll actually play as the psychotic guards, gunning down desperate contestants with reckless abandon. Late stage capitalism, baby! In any event, we’ll find out next month.

This is just the latest promotion for the Netflix sensation. There’s a multiplayer smartphone game launching in a couple of weeks and a bizarre LARPing experience that costs $40. There’s even an actual reality show based on its fictional counterpart. Nobody actually dies on that one, but there were some on-set injuries and other ridiculous issues.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/call-of-duty-is-getting-some-kind-of-game-mode-inspired-by-squid-game-175829671.html?src=rss

There are plenty of great gadgets on sale today for Cyber Monday that will track your steps or wake you up. But, personally, I'm more interested in the discounts on tools that will boost my beauty routine this winter. So, I'm very excited that the Dyson Airwrap is down to $490 from $600 on Amazon — a 18 percent discount. That brings it to only $10 more than what we saw last year.

Ok, so spending half a grand on hair tools is still quite an investment, but it should be a big boost to your hair. We named it one of the best self-care gifts for 2024 thanks to its air flow system. It uses the Coanda effect to style your hair — theoretically causing less damage to your locks than typical hot tools. The device also comes with six attachments, including a wide-tooth comb, diffuser and Coanda smoothing dryer. 

The Airwrap is only one of the Dyson hair products on sale for Cyber Monday. Right now, you can buy the Dyson Airstrait Hair Straightener (another of our self-care gift picks) for $399, down from $500 — a 20 percent discount. The same deal is available on the Dyson Corrale Hair Straightener, while the Supersonic Hair Dryer has dropped to $329 from $430. 

Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/cyber-monday-deals-include-a-110-discount-on-the-dyson-airwrap-153056335.html?src=rss

Tesla is finally adding SiriusXM integration to its best-selling models. The long-requested feature is coming to the Model 3, Model Y and Cybertruck (the three most popular EVs in the US) as part of the 2024 Tesla Holiday Update.

SiriusXM was already available in the Model S and Model X. However, older versions of those vehicles require a $500 “Radio Upgrade” hardware installation (including a compatible tuner and antennae) when owners have them retrofitted to the newer infotainment system.

Model 3, Model Y and Cybertruck owners can try SiriusXM for a month without entering credit card info. If you subscribe before March 31, 2025, you’ll receive an introductory offer of $10 monthly for your first two years.

After receiving the Tesla Holiday Update, owners will see SiriusXM in the media sources menu. You’ll need Tesla Premium Connectivity ($10 monthly or $100 annually) or an active Wi-Fi connection for access.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/tesla-model-3-model-y-and-cybertruck-owners-finally-get-siriusxm-access-171435762.html?src=rss

Come later this month, GOG will stop selling the first two entries in Blizzard’s seminal Warcraft real-time strategy game series. On December 13, the marketplace will delist Warcraft: Orcs & Humans and Warcraft II: Battle.net Edition, which packages together the original game, Tides of Darkness, and its Beyond the Dark Portal expansion. In a blog post published Monday, the CD Projekt-owned storefront said it was removing the games “at the publisher’s request.”

If you want to grab them before they leave GOG, CD Projekt is offering a modest discount on its Warcraft I & II bundle until December 13. If you pay for the game using US dollars, you can save $2 off the package. Similar discounts are available for customers paying in Euros, Pound sterling and Polish złoty. To take advantage of the discount, use the code “MakeWarcraftLiveForever” at checkout.

Blizzard did not immediately respond to Engadget’s comment request, asking the studio to explain the reason for its request. In 2019, Blizzard worked with GOG to bring Warcraft and Warcraft II to the storefront. Prior to that, Warcraft: Orcs & Humans had effectively become abandonware, which made the game difficult to obtain and get running on modern operating systems. If I had to guess, the fact Blizzard now offers remasters of both Warcraft and Warcraft II likely played a major role in the decision.

As a fan of these games, I wish Blizzard would allow GOG to continue selling them. I wrote about the remasters last month, but, in short, I would argue the GOG versions do a better job of preserving Warcraft and Warcraft II as they were. If there’s a silver lining to the situation, it’s that GOG has pledged to continue supporting both games through its recently announced Preservation Program.

“Once a game joins the Program, we pledge to maintain its compatibility even if it gets delisted from the store,” GOG said. “This means that owners of those titles can still expect a seamless experience and tech support for those titles. This also considers potential changes in Windows OS that may impact games' playability.”

We’ll update this article if we hear back from Blizzard.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/warcraft-and-warcraft-ii-are-leaving-gog-on-december-13-165855359.html?src=rss

Pat Gelsinger is retiring after over 40 years at the company, and close to four years at the chip manufacturer's helm. Effective as of December 1, Gelsinger has left both his post and his position on the board of directors. The board has now created a search committee to "diligently and expeditiously" find a new CEO. In the meantime, Michelle Johnston Holthaus, the next CEO of Intel Products, and David Zinsner, executive vice president and CFO, will serve as interim Co-CEOs of the entire company. 

While Gelsinger held previous positions at Intel, he had most recently spent a decade-plus in senior positions at EMC and VMWare. In 2021, he returned to Intel to replace Bob Swan, who held the title of CEO for for a bit over two years. "As a leader, Pat helped launch and revitalize process manufacturing by investing in state-of-the-art semiconductor manufacturing, while working tirelessly to drive innovation throughout the company," said Frank Yeary, who will become interim executive chair during the transition. "While we have made significant progress in regaining manufacturing competitiveness and building the capabilities to be a world-class foundry, we know that we have much more work to do at the company and are committed to restoring investor confidence."

Gelsinger oversaw Intel during a tumultuous time for the company. In late 2022, for example, Intel laid off about 20 percent of its staff in some divisions. This year alone, Intel has failed quality tests and announced it would lay off another 15,000 people — or 15 percent of their workforce — amid a $10 billion cost-reduction plan. Reporting by Bloomberg indicates the company's board lost confidence in Gelsinger's leadership due to these setbacks, and he was given the option to either retire or be forced out, which explains his very sudden departure.

Update, December 2 2024, 11:26AM ET: This story now includes additional reporting from Bloomberg.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/intels-ceo-pat-gelsinger-has-suddenly-retired-151410215.html?src=rss

Until very recently, my only experience with VR was a one-minute demo about nine years ago. With an Oculus Rift strapped to my face, a virtual catapult hurled me over a low-res city. It was painfully disorienting and I felt my legs give way a bit. I swore off VR for a long time after that unpleasant experience.

Fast forward to 2024 and I was finally ready to try again. An attractive Black Friday/Cyber Monday deal on a PlayStation VR2 proved irresistible. But I felt like I needed to get my sea legs under me before tackling something more immersive and ambitious like the bundled-in Horizon: Call of the Mountain.

As it happened, the day on which my PS VR2 unit arrived also marked the debut of a VR version of one of my favorite games of the last few years, Trombone Champ.

The original game is a bit like Guitar Hero or Rock Band, only instead of using a plastic imitation of a musical instrument to play notes as they appear on screen, you're moving a joystick or mouse and pressing a button to "toot." This time around, in Trombone Champ: Unflattened, you hold a virtual instrument to your mouth with one hand while using the other to slide to the correct (or wildly wrong) notes, mimicking an actual trombone.

Unfortunately, I had some trouble setting up my PS VR2. The right controller was working just fine in my PS5's menus and such, but button presses weren't working in-game and I couldn't grab the slide of the virtual trombone. I found the solution on Reddit, where users have mentioned similar trouble with new controllers, which in some cases appears to be due to debris getting stuck behind a trigger. In my case, I was able to fix the problem by desyncing the controllers and only re-registering them with the PS5 once I was in-game.

Obviously, the first thing I had to do in the Trombone Champ: Unflattened tutorial was more or less figure out how to play the opening fanfare of the main Super Mario. Bros theme. From there, I dove straight into the campaign.

The aptly named Flat2VR (which made a well-regarded VR mod for Half-Life 2) adapted Trombone Champ for VR. It did an admirable job of bringing Holy Wow Studios’ game to a new format with a fresh look and feel. Rather than trying to follow the notes of a song on a 2D chart, you’ll need to be on your toes as they fly at you on both sides. After a couple of songs, though, I changed a setting to have them on just one side to make it easier to focus.

You're also tooting your way through these (primarily royalty-free) songs on stage in front of an audience of Nintendo Mii-style characters. I was trying my best to play these songs properly to get a good score, so I tuned out the crowd for the most part so I could concentrate.

That changed when I tried a ska song I don’t recall hearing before. I didn’t know where it was going and I struggled to keep up at the highest difficulty. The crowd wasn’t having any of it. Unlike in Guitar Hero and Rock Band, there’s no fail state here if you miss several notes in a row. The song keeps going, no matter how badly you mess up. As such, the audience was booing me relentlessly and I couldn’t get them back on board.

Flat2VR Studios/Holy Wow Studios

It’s been a long time since I’ve been on stage in a band or doing musical theater (yup, I was one of those kids), but I’ve never had a reaction like that. It weirdly cut to my soul, yet I was having a blast at the same time. Sorry to disappoint my virtual haters. I tried flipping them off with my floating hands, but it didn’t work. I resorted to pointing at myself with my thumbs in a “that’s right, this guy” motion, another thing I wouldn’t have tried in a non-VR experience.

Trombone Champ: Unflattened is wildly fun and easily one of the most delightful gaming experiences of 2024. Astro Bot and Another Crab's Treasure, two of my favorite games of the year, both kept a smile on my face throughout — but Trombone Champ: Unflattened had me full-on cackling. I can’t imagine that I could have chosen a better intro to VR.

There’s a bit more to it, including a free play mode that unlocks all the songs for you (DLC tracks seem to be on the way). I did enjoy vandalizing — I mean, customizing — my trombone with spray paint too. I’m sure Glenn Miller would have loved that.

Maybe I’ll get better at Trombone Champ: Unflattened over time. If not, I don’t care. Being bad at this game makes it all the more enjoyable. The game's at its best when you’re playing along with a song you’re familiar with. You know how it’s supposed to sound, so screwing up is much funnier.

While there are challenges that reward you for doing well, it’s almost as if the game wants you to suck at it. The toughest songs would be nearly impossible to nail, maybe even for actual professional trombone players, since they wouldn't have the same tactility of having the instrument in their hands.

The PC adapter for PS VR2 has been out of stock for a while in Canada. But when I get one I’ll probably also snap up the PC version of Trombone Champ: Unflattened there because modders are already adding custom songs into the game.

One song that modders inevitably added to Trombone Champ was the ultimate rhythm game track: Dragonforce’s “Through The Fire and Flames.” In the original game, it's so tough that even an "autotoot" tool that plays notes automatically struggles. So I've no doubt that trying to play it myself in VR will go very wrong and be highly entertaining.

Trombone Champ: Unflattened is out now on PS VR2, Meta Quest and Steam VR

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/trombone-champ-in-vr-is-some-of-the-most-ridiculous-fun-ive-had-all-year-161811221.html?src=rss

According to Reuters, Uber now offers boat-hailing services on Dal Lake, located in the Kashmir region in India. These wooden Shikara boats are decorated with bright colors and have seemingly comfortable pillows to let tourists enjoy a scenic boat ride.

Those who want to enjoy the Dal Lake Shikara rides through Uber can make reservations at least 12 hours (and up to 15 days) in advance.

Currently, around 4,000 Shikaras operate on Dal Lake. According to Uber, the app will let riders match with Shikara operators but won’t charge a fee. All of the boat ticket money paid by the passenger goes to the operator.

The Shikara operators shared mixed feelings about Uber's entry into the market with Reuters. Some say working with Uber can help prevent bargaining and cheating, while others claim this won’t make a difference.

Of course, this isn’t the first time Uber is offering transport besides cars. Uber Copter launched in 2019. Uber Boat by Thames Clippers is another service available in London, and it recently launched across Europe this summer. The company has also inserted itself into scooter rentals, flight bookings and, improbably, coders for hire.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/uber-now-offers-boat-hailing-in-india-160156465.html?src=rss

Amazon’s Kindle Scribe is on sale for Cyber Monday, dropping to $270 from $340. That’s a 21 percent discount and, while not a record-low price, it’s pretty close. This pack gives you the 16GB E Ink tablet and the Basic pen. Just be aware: this discount is on the first-gen Scribe that debuted in 2022. Amazon announced an update model in October, but it has yet to be released. If you’re holding out for an upgrade, you’ll still have to wait a few more days for that one.

The Kindle Scribe was Amazon’s first tablet to support handwriting with a stylus. It’s conveniently lightweight despite being larger than other Kindle models, with a 10.2-inch screen. And unlike some other writing-focused notebooks out there, the screen is lit so you can use it in low-light settings. It comes with the Basic Pen, and can convert your handwriting to text thanks to an update it got in 2023.

It’s a good option if you’re looking for a tablet with an e-paper display that can handle basic writing tasks on top of being a solid ereader. Taking notes on books with the Scribe can be a little clunky though. You can’t write in the margins or directly on the text in most cases, but you can create sticky notes that’ll be linked to the words you’ve selected. There are certain books you can write on directly after Amazon rolled out an update with the feature last year, and those can be found in the “eBooks you can write on” section of the Amazon’s online store.

Amazon’s upcoming Kindle Scribe solves these issues, with a more seamless way of taking notes on books and the ability to write in the margins. That model is slated for release on December 4.

Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/cyber-monday-deals-discount-the-kindle-scribe-by-21-percent-144838338.html?src=rss

iPhone users who want the smartwatch experience without shelling out a fortune have a great option in the Apple Watch SE, and the wearable is cheaper than ever right now thanks to a Cyber Monday deal. The Apple Watch SE has dropped to $149 at Amazon. That's a discount of 40 percent or $100 off — the best discount we've seen.

The Apple Watch SE is a good choice for iPhone users who have yet to hop into the smartwatch ecosystem or perhaps are clinging onto a much older Apple Watch but don't need a flagship model. If you're looking for something more advanced, you'd be better off with the Apple Watch Series 10, which is also currently sitting at a record low price for Cyber Monday and is our pick for the best smartwatch overall. 

The second-gen Apple Watch SE is our pick for the best budget Apple Watch and we gave it a score of 89 in our 2022 review. It has the same chipset as the Apple Watch Ultra and Series 8, and it should feel faster if you're coming over from, say, a Series 6 or earlier model.

The SE shares some, but not all features with flagship Apple Watches. It supports crash detection, heart rate monitoring and emergency calling, and it is water resistant to 50 meters. We felt that the screen was easy to view, even when the sun was shining brightly. Fitness tracking is accurate (which is pretty important!). Perhaps most crucially, the Apple Watch SE is light and easy to wear.

The Ion-X glass isn't quite as robust as the sapphire crystal on other recent Apple Watch models, so you'll likely want to be extra careful with it. Other features present on other Apple Watch devices that are missing here include an always-on display, blood oxygen monitoring and temperature sensor. The very handy Double Tap feature isn't available here either.

While we feel that this is a good price for the second-gen Apple Watch SE, it's worth bearing in mind that a new model could arrive in the coming months. Apple is reportedly working on an Apple Watch SE with a plastic casing in a bid to reduce the price and allow for bolder color options. It's unlikely that Apple will announce this model before next year, though.

Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/the-apple-watch-se-is-40-percent-off-for-cyber-monday-183924545.html?src=rss

Cyber Monday deals make it a bit easier to consider investing in something new. If that something for you happens to be a reliable assistant for home cleaning, consider this Dyson 360 Vis Nav, one of our choices for the best robot vacuums. This is the first time it’s been discounted since Dyson started selling these earlier this year. You can pick it up for $200 less than usual at $999 both at Amazon and Dyson directly.

We put this robot vacuum through its paces, and you can see the results in our Dyson 360 Vis Nav review. It managed to suck up an impressive amount of dog hair in our tests and has 360-degree vision augmented with LED lights to prevent collisions and accidents. While not perfect, it only hit chair legs a couple of times. On top of this, the robot has more than enough sensors and memory to remember your room’s layout.

Even if you’re not home, you can tell the vacuum to start cleaning up if you’ve connected it to your MyDyson app. It compiles deep clean reports and other useful information to help you find the right settings for better results in the future. Sadly, it doesn’t have a self-emptying base, but the debris ejection process is straightforward.

Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/dyson-cyber-monday-deals-get-you-200-off-the-360-vis-nav-robot-vacuum-143634945.html?src=rss

The newest version of Bose’s QuietComfort headphones are on sale via Amazon for just $200. This ties a record-low price, as these headphones typically cost $350. All told, the Cyber Monday sale represents a discount of 43 percent. Most colorways are included with this deal, so have at it.

A version of these cans made our list of the best wireless headphones, so there’s plenty to recommend. The battery life is fantastic, lasting around 24 hours on a single charge. There’s also a quick charge feature, which can squeeze two hours of additional use with just 15 minutes at the power outlet. These are primarily wireless headphones, but can operate with an analog connection.

The adjustable EQ is great and, of course, the sound is top-tier. Bose is known for making some pretty good stuff. There are touch controls built into the earcups, which is handy, and active noise cancellation. This ANC can be adjusted to create a transparency mode, so you won’t walk into a truck or whatever. The headphones are also quite comfortable, thanks to plush earcups and a padded band.

The only downside here is the price. It’s tough to recommend these headphones at $350, especially with rival products at similar price points from companies like Apple, Sony and Sennheiser. However, it’s really easy to recommend them at $200. That’s a legit steal.

Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/bose-quietcomfort-headphones-are-43-percent-off-for-cyber-monday-174600731.html?src=rss

Sonos Cyber Monday sales have begun, kicking off one of the few times of the year you can actually save a decent amount on the company’s speakers, soundbars and other gear. This time around, you can get up to $200 off, with some of the highlights being $50 off the Sonos Era 100 and $110 off the Sonos Five.

If you’re in the market for a soundbar, consider the Sonos Arc. Now that the Arc Ultra is available, Sonos has discounted its previous flagship soundbar by $200 to $699. For something more affordable, the Beam 2 is currently $369, down from $499. Lastly, there’s the Era 300. Right now, you can buy the Dolby Atmos-compatible speaker for $359, instead of $449 as usually priced. All of these deals are being matched by Amazon, too.

More than a few of Sonos’ speakers, including the Era 100, have found a spot and stayed on Engadget’s list of best smart speakers. If you care about music but still want a speaker with modern features, a Sonos system is the way to go. Not only do the company’s speakers sound great, but you also get access to things like AirPlay 2 that make it incredibly easy to play exactly the song you want to listen to in the moment.

You may have seen that Sonos bungled the release of the latest version of its companion app. That’s true, but as things stand, the company has done a lot of work in recent months to fix its software. As a daily user, I can safely say the Sonos app is in much better shape now than it was in the spring. Other than the premium price that comes with Sonos products, there’s not much they don’t do as well or better than the competition. With the discounts the company is offering for Cyber Monday, its speakers come even more highly recommended.

Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/sonos-cyber-monday-deals-include-up-to-200-off-soundbars-and-speakers-131538574.html?src=rss

Amazon only rolled out the 2024 Kindle Paperwhite in October, but it’s already discounted for Cyber Monday. The new ereader — which has faster page turns, a bigger and better screen and longer battery life — is marked down to $130 ($30 off). That’s its first discount on one of our picks for best ereader since launch.

The sixth-generation Paperwhite has a seven-inch screen, noticeably bigger than the 6.8-inch one on its predecessor. Amazon also boosted the display’s contrast thanks to its oxide thin-film transistor display tech, which should help reduce eyestrain. It still has a warm light that you can tune to match your room’s lighting. The front light in the new model gets 25 percent brighter at its maximum level than the 5th-gen model. It’s one of our picks for the best ereader.

The new Paperwhite has 25 percent faster page turns than its predecessors, which Engadget’s Amy Skorheim found makes a marked difference in the reading experience. (The review was for the more expensive Signature Edition, but it has identical page turns.) At 7.8mm thick, this is the thinnest Paperwhite to date.

The ereader still has IPX8 water resistance, and the device uses a new rubberized texture that makes it easier to grip. Amazon estimates its battery will last up to 12 weeks per charge. It ships with a USB-C cable (but no power brick).

You can also save on the new standard Kindle on sale for $85 (from $110). Although that model skips out on the warm light and has a smaller screen, it gives you a lighter and more compact ereader on the cheap.

Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/cyber-monday-kindle-deals-include-30-off-the-2024-paperwhite-090013082.html?src=rss

Black Friday might be behind us but there are still a ton of worthy deals available for Cyber Monday. One such offer includes a solid discount on the Sonos Five speaker. It has dropped by $110 to $439 at both Sonos and Amazon.

While there are many other Sonos products worth snapping up, we feel that the Sonos Five is the best smart speaker for music lovers. Technically, the Sonos Five is more of a connected speaker than a smart speaker. After all, it doesn't have built-in voice assistant capabilities. You will be able to control it using connected Sonos speakers that do have that capability though, as well as an Echo Dot or Nest Mini for Alexa or Google Assistant voice commands. You can also control it using the (thankfully much improved) Sonos app.

In terms of audio quality, we feel that the Sonos Five sounds better than any of our other top smart speaker picks. It offers more bass, clarity and stereo separation than many rivals. It's superior to other Sonos speakers too.

If you're able to splash out on two Sonos Fives, they sound even better when paired for stereo playback. Even though this is a solid deal, it's worth noting that the Sonos Five has been around for a minute. It arrived in 2020 as a rebranded second-gen Play:5. We still very much recommend the Five, though it's getting closer to the point where an upgraded model may soon become available.

Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/cyber-monday-deals-discount-the-sonos-five-smart-speaker-by-110-140016475.html?src=rss

Believe it or not, there are solid budget wireless earbuds out there and now’s a great time to look for them since many will be discounted for Cyber Monday. Case in point: the latest Echo Buds, a pair of our favorites, which are half off and down to only $25 as part of Amazon’s Cyber Monday deals.

Amazon released its most recent generation of Echo Buds in 2023 and impressed us with its level of quality for an open earbud option. The semi-in-ear style allows for more ambient noise and might be more comfortable depending on your ear shape. The earbuds have some solid perks such as multi-device connectivity and a solid five hours of music playback. You can increase their life by another hour if you turn wake word off. You'll get up to 20 hours of charge with the case.

As an Amazon device, the Echo Buds are also equipped with Alexa, so you can ask the assistant to play music, call someone, set a reminder or one of the many other standard tasks. Plus, you can use the Alexa app to set tap controls for muting your mics and changing your music. Speaking of music, these earbuds have 12mm drivers and a crisp overall sound (though the open nature hurts the bass quality). Be careful, though, when working out as their low IPX2 water resistance rating means sweat could be a problem.

The Echo Buds are just one of the many Cyber Monday deals available for under $50. If you want to expand your Echo family then check out Amazon's Echo Dot speaker for $23, down from $50 or the Echo Show 5 and Echo Spot — each down to $45. Anker is another company with great options under $50 on Cyber Monday, Shop deals like the Anker Soundcore 2 Portable Bluetooth Speaker for $28, down from $40 or the Soundcore by Anker Space A40 wireless earbuds, available for $45, down from $70. 

Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/amazon-cyber-monday-deals-include-the-echo-buds-for-only-25-100030426.html?src=rss

Some smartphones (looking at you, iPhone) are often excluded from the Cyber Monday deal fun, but that’s not the case for all of our favorite handsets. If you’re on the hunt for a solid smartphone that won’t break the bank, you can’t get much better than the Google Pixel 8a — and now you can pick it up at a steep discount. The Pixel 8a has dropped to $399 for Cyber Monday, or $100 off its usual price. This price is for a configuration with 128GB of storage, but 256GB models are also $100 off at $459.

The Pixel 8a is our pick for the best midrange smartphone overall. We gave it a score of 90 in our review. Thanks to Google's inclusion of the Tensor G3 chip, the Pixel 8a supports many of the same AI features that you'll find on flagship Pixel devices. We feel that the cameras are excellent, while that 6.1-inch 120Hz OLED display sure looks pretty.

The Pixel 8a has great battery life too. It lasted for 20 hours and 29 minutes in our video rundown test, actually beating out the Pixel 8 by 13 minutes. On the downside, wireless charging is pretty slow as it maxes out at 7.5W. The bezels are a little thicker than you might like too, but otherwise the design is fairly slick. Another plus point is that the Pixel 8a is IP67-rated for dust and water resistance, so it should be somewhat durable.

Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/cyber-monday-phone-deals-include-the-google-pixel-8a-for-100-off-180827359.html?src=rss

Cyber Monday gaming deals are plentiful this year, including consoles, video games and accessories. If you need more storage space on your Xbox, or want to preemptively pick up more storage for that new Series X you just purchased, there’s a great deal on Seagate’s expansion card you can get right now. The 2TB version is on sale for a record low of $200 right now, or 44 percent off its regular price.

Seagate's version is one of our picks for the best Xbox Series X/S accessories. The 2TB version should give you ample space — at least until you start filling it up with all of the huge Call of Duty games that have started hitting Game Pass.

Let's face it, proprietary storage stinks, but the choice for Series X/S owners looking for more space is largely between Seagate's Storage Expansion Card and WD's Black C50. It's possible to store Series X/S games on a regular external drive, but you'll need to move them to internal storage or an expansion card anyway to actually play them. If you don't want to deal with shifting large files around and waiting for transfers to complete, or you don't want to delete and download games more than is necessary, an expansion card is the way to go.

Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/xbox-cyber-monday-deal-get-the-seagate-2tb-expansion-card-for-200-180119160.html?src=rss

Cyber Monday deals have brought big discounts to some of our favorite tech, even the devices that are usually quite affordable. For example, our top pick for the best budget wireless earbuds, Anker’s Soundcore Space A40, are down to a record low of $45 right now. That’s 44 percent off, a great discount that makes picking up a new pair of wireless buds for yourself or for someone on your holiday shopping list more accessible.

That matches a record-low price for these earphones. We first saw them dip to $45 during the October Prime Day event.

While the audio quality isn't on the level of high-end earbuds from the likes of Sony and Bose (a feat that would be extremely difficult to pull off at this price range), we feel that the Space A40s have a pleasant, warm sound. They also have features that you'd often have to spend much more to get from earbuds, such as an adaptive active noise cancellation system that adjusts settings automatically depending on the audio in your surroundings.

Other features multipoint connectivity to link the earbuds to two devices simultaneously. They're IPX4-rated for water resistance too. The Soundcore Space A40 earbuds are slated to run for 10 hours on a single charge, with the case adding an extra 50 hours of listening time. A 10-minute charge can add four hours of listening time. The case supports wireless charging too.

This year's Cyber Monday festivities includes all kinds of deals under $50 for consumers on a budget. These include the Amazon Echo Pop smart speaker for $18 and the Roku Streaming Stick 4K for just $29, among many others.

Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/our-favorite-budget-wireless-earbuds-are-discounted-to-45-for-cyber-monday-154250914.html?src=rss

Smart rings are having a moment, and now you can get one of the most popular models at a deep discount. The Oura Ring Gen 3 is on sale for as low as $249, depending on the style you decide to pick up. You’ll get the lowest price on the black and silver finishes, while the brushed titanium and stealth materials are on sale for $279, down from the usual of $349. The premium gold and rose gold rings are down to $349 instead of the usual $449.

The company did just release the Oura Ring Gen 4, so this deal won't give you the most cutting edge developments in sensors and design. But for someone who wants a less intrusive approach to a wearable, the Gen 3 still has a lot to offer.

Our review by Daniel Cooper pointed out that the Oura Ring offers impressively accurate readings even though all its sensors are packed into a much smaller form factor than a smartwatch. While he felt the design of the ring is a little bulky, in practice it was easy to forget that he had it on.

Keep in mind that unless you're upgrading from another Oura product, you'll want to buy the size guide to make sure your new ring fits correctly. When you do buy a sizing kit for the Gen 3, you'll get $10 towards the purchase of the actual wearable.

Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/amazon-cyber-monday-deals-drop-the-oura-ring-gen-3-to-a-record-low-195248216.html?src=rss

While pretty much every TV is a smart TV these days, you might still want a dedicated streaming box to do the heavy lifting — or maybe you'd like to have one for a projector. There are a number of Cyber Monday deals on streaming devices, including the latest Roku Ultra. That box has dropped by $20 to $80, which is an all-time low-price for the streaming box.

Roku unveiled the 2024 Ultra in September. It claims that the device is at least 30 percent faster than any of its other players. As such, apps should load quickly and moving around the user interface should feel zippy.

The previous version is our pick for the best set-top streaming box (we're currently testing the 2024 model). The Roku Ultra offers 4K streaming with HDR10+ and Dolby Vision, as well as Dolby Atmos audio. It supports Wi-Fi 6 connectivity and you can plug in an Ethernet cable as well.

This model comes with a second-gen Voice Remote Pro, which boasts backlit buttons and USB-C charging, though Roku says it should run for up to three months on a single charge. Other features include hands-free voice control and a lost remote finder function. Roku ditched the headphone jack for wired listening this time around, unfortunately, but you can still connect wireless headphones to the Roku Ultra via Bluetooth.

The Roku Channel offers more than 400 free, ad-supported streaming channels, along with on-demand shows and movies. The Roku Ultra is also compatible with Alexa, Google Assistant, Apple HomeKit and AirPlay.

In addition to the latest Ultra, you can save on a number of other Roku devices for Cyber Monday. The most affordable of the bunch is the Roku Express HD, which is down to only $18, and the Roku Streambar SE is on sale for $69 — only $10 more than its record low.

In case you need a new flatscreen to actually plug your Roku devices into, there are a ton of Cyber Monday deals on TVs as well. Hisense models are up to $602 off and you can get a similar discount on the latest model of the 55-inch Frame TV from Samsung. The prices of some TCL and Sony Bravia TVs have also dropped by hundreds of dollars for Cyber Monday.

Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/amazon-cyber-monday-deals-discount-the-2024-roku-ultra-to-79-164512812.html?src=rss