The best Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra cases add robust shock-proofing, prevent the hinge from getting damaged, and add useful extras like a magnetic ring, screen protection, a phone holder, and a stand. Depending on the price, weight, and thinness, you can easily find a stellar Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra that has a few or all of those features.

Read all about the best Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra cases that match your requirement. I have rounded up the most reliable options right here in this guide.

Level up your Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra's impact protection with these cases

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Incredible Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra cases exist, but most of them are priced around the $100 mark

From cases that glow in the dark and have grippy sides to cases that have kickstands and really powerful magnets, the best Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra cases don't fall short of our expectations. They do, however, almost all cost an arm and a leg to acquire. Fortunately, brands like Spigen exist, making affordable Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra cases priced around $30 instead of $100.

If you want to stick with the cheapest option, you will be pleasantly surprised by how well it functions. The Spigen Air Fit Pro Magfit comes in two colors, black and green, and it is slim enough to allow wireless charging. It still adds military-grade drop-proofing and has incredibly strong N55 magnets inside. You also get dependable hinge protection, all for a really reasonable price.

When money isn't an object, however, you can close your eyes and pick any of the wonderful Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra cases that the most premium brands have to offer. Thinborne is my go-to brand in that case, as the brand uses aerospace-grade 600D aramid fiber to build its cases. The Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra Case comes in three colors, black, red, and blue, and is magnetic. Measuring just 0.04 inches thin, and weighing just 0.8 ounces, you'll forget it's on your Z Fold 8 Ultra. Of course, it doesn't add rugged drop-proofing, but my colleague actually dropped his phone on the tiled marble floor with the Thinborne case on and was shocked at how it was unscathed. So if you have about $90 to spare, you too can enjoy this marvelous case on your Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra.

The rumored Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Wide turned out to just be called the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8, now with much wider screens. This square-shaped foldable has two very lovely displays, both of which could use the help of the best Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 screen protectors to reinforce drop proofing. One slip of the hand and your very expensive book-style foldable could shatter badly, so don't take risk. Whether its durable glass you prefer or flexible plastic, these screen guards have it all.

These Galaxy Z Fold 8 screen protectors are the very best of what's available

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Picking the right Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 screen protector made easy

The best Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 screen protectors come with user-friendly installation frames, multiple pieces of screen guards, and cleaning tools to make your life easy. It's not necessary to change the internal foldable display's screen protector, so you don't have to prioritize it, but it sure helps to have a spare ready to go just in case.

For an all-inclusive package that leaves nothing out without bankrupting you, the Ferilinso 3 Pack Inside Screen Protector for Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 with Back Camera Lens Protectors is the best option. This $20 purchase will buy you a trio of 9H tempered glass screen protectors with military-grade shatter-proofing for your Fold 8's cover display. The kit also includes three tempered glass camera lens protectors and three flexible films for the Fold's internal display. Ferilinso provides two installation frames, one for each display.

If you don't like glossy finishes, then you can opt for a matte, paper-like screen protector instead. The Diacube Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Paperfeel Anti-Glare Matte Screen Protector three-pack includes three screen guards for each of the Fold's dual displays. All six matte films are anti-reflective and able to self-heal from minor abrasions. Diacube provides one installation frame and a cleaning kit as well, and the entire set is priced below $20.

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra is the true successor to the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, with its similar aspect ratios, screen sizes, and triple camera array. As with any smartphone, it is best practice to always reinforce the display with a sturdy screen protectors. And because foldables are more fragile, with moving parts and dual screens, the need for the best Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra screen protectors is even more important.

Protectors to prevent screen shatters, cracks, and abrasions

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A buyer's guide to picking the right Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra screen protectors

The best Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra screen protectors will differ from person to person. Some folks like to be minimal with their shopping, opting for a single screen protector for the front. Others like to get multi-packs and have plenty of extras to spare in the future. It's also important to remember that Samsung does not recommend users to replace the internal folding screen's factory-installed screen guard at home, and not until it starts peeling off, which also factors into your decision.

Regardless of how you want to go about choosing a screen protector for your Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, I suggest getting an all-inclusive kit with multiple spare. It makes more sense to get it done with initially, so you don't have to repurchase later, and you're always prepared in case of emergencies. Ferilinso has a fantastic package that checks those boxes, giving you three 9H tempered glass screen protectors for the 6.5-inch front display, three flexible plastic films for the internal 8-inch display, and three more glass screen protectors for the camera lenses. Ferilinso also includes cleaning tools like wipes and a squeegee, as well as two installation frames.

If you want to stick with a front screen protector alone, there are several great options in different price segments. The BENKS GlassWarrior AR Screen Protector is a high-quality aluminum-lithium 9H tempered glass with an anti-reflective finish and case-friendly curved edges. It repels fingerprints, smudges, dust, and any other solid or liquid particles. Although it's on the pricey side, I have used and found the BENKS tempered glass to be of dependable quality.

Investing in the best Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 screen protectors is like having an extra life in a video game; if you screw up, you can always start over with max health. Dropping your expensive new Flip 8 on a hard surface will definitely shatter the display. And if it's unfolded, both the screens could crack in one fell swoop. Why take the risk? Just get a sturdy tempered glass screen protector for the cover display and a flexible film for the internal foldable display, and you'll have an insurance policy to rely on.

To that end, here are all the best Galaxy Z Flip 8 screen protectors that you can choose. I have also included camera lens protectors, so you can reinforce them as well.

These are your best screen protector options for the Galaxy Z Flip 8

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How to select the best Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 screen protector

The best Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 screen protectors are shatter-proof, fit well, come with installation frames, and have at least one spare set in the box. Fortunately, most of them are quite reasonably priced, apart from the most premium of the lot.

Ferilinso is an affordable, well-liked brand that consistently puts out good quality screen protectors for all the best flagship smartphones. The Ferilinso 3 Pack Inside Screen Protector for Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 with 9H Tempered Glass Back and Camera Lens Protectors is one of the most comprehensive kits available for the Z Flip 8. You get everything you need: three military-grade shatter-proof 9H tempered glass screen protectors for the cover display, three flexible films for the internal screen, and three sturdy camera lens protectors made of tempered glass as well. All the screen guards have an oleophobic nano-coating on top, so they repel solids and liquids alike, including dirt particles, oil residue, and fingerprints. The set even has an alignment tool for perfect at-home installation. All of that for just $15 is an outstanding deal!

If you to opt for more premium brands, Spigen and ZAGG are excellent options. Spigen is more affordable, giving you two front screen protectors made of tempered glass and an easy-to-use frame at $17.

ZAGG, on the other hand, is in a class of its own with its, with its premium-grade InvisibleShield Glass XTR5 made of graphene-infused Hexiom Impact Technology and Eyesafe CPF60 technology that filters blue light emissions. Spending $59.99 on a single front screen protector might sound insane, but it comes with a lifetime replacement warranty and a screen repair guarantee covering up to $250 worth of repairs. Since Samsung does not recommend replacing your Z Flip 8's internal screen protector, it would make sense to just get something for the external display.

The cat's out of the bag: the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Wide is, in fact, just called the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8. The book-style foldable has a very wide aspect ration. With the help of the best Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 cases, you can make it easier to grip and prop up, and add robust impact-proofing too.

Whether you're looking for something magnetic or a heavy-duty case that can withstand any amount of battering, it's all available. All the very best cases in every category are listed right here.

The best Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 cases are all right here

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Choose a Galaxy Z Fold 8 cases that matches your needs and fits your budget

There are hundreds of Galaxy Z Fold 8 cases out there, but choosing the right one means identifying your needs and then matching that with something reliable. I have been testing cases, screen protectors, and accessories for many years, which is why you can rely on my expertise when hunting for the best Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 cases.

Thinborne is a Texas-based brand that has a fantastic reputation. The company isn't very big, but they are stringent with their quality control. This is why the Thinborne Galaxy Z Fold 8 Wide Case is easily the ultimate case for your wide-screened Z Fold 8. The only complaint you will ever have is its price, because its high cost is the only drawback to choosing this case. It is exceedingly thin, has strong magnets inside, and weighs barely anything. Thinborne added two more colors, so the case now comes in black, red, and blue. If you can afford it, this is the optimal Galaxy Z Fold 8 case.

Now if you want to set your sights to a lower price bracket, there are still plenty of decent options with reasonable drop-proofing and handy add-ons like a magnetic ring. The FNTCASE Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Translucent Matte Case only costs $27, but that pricing isn't indicative of the quality. I have tested many cases from the brand and found them to perform really well. It comes in pink, blue, and black, and you can also get a clear variant but that has a glossy finish. FNTCASE promises military-grade shock-proofing, and the Fold 8's spine has been thickly reinforced.

The Flip 8 is slimmer and lighter than ever, so be sure to grab one or two of the best Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 cases. You don't want to take away from the thinness or lightness of such a compact foldable, so be sure to grab a sturdy, scratch-proof phone case that isn't bulky or heavy. I have rounded up the best options available right here for your perusal, be it hinge protection you're looking for or extras like magnetic Qi2 support.

Protective phone cases for your Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8

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Breaking down how to pick the right case for your Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8

There are hundreds of phone cases out there, but only a few of them qualify as the best Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 cases. A stalwart case for a foldable needs to allow for uninterrupted folding and unfolding, and it can't be too thick either. People buy foldables like the Flip 8 for the lightness and thinness, after all, and a thick case takes that away.

Thinborne continues to be the gift that keeps on giving. This Texas-based brand always delivers on every vital front: slimness, lightness, and handiness. The Thinborne Galaxy Z Flip 8 Aramid Fiber Magnetic Case is a marvel, measuring just 0.04 inches thin and weighing just 15.9 grams. It is almost like having a Dbrand skin on instead of a phone case. What's harder to believe is that Thinborne somehow embedded powerful magnets inside this aerospace-grade 600D aramid fiber case. The ultra-premium build does have one unfortunate consequence: it makes the case insanely expensive.

If you don't want to spend $80 on the Thinborne case, you still have plenty of excellent Z Flip 8 cases to choose from. However, none of them get as thin as the Thinborne case.

Spigen is one of the top smartphone case manufacturers in the world. For the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8, I recommend two of Spigen's classic models: the Ultra Hybrid Pro MagFit and Nano Pop MagFit. Both are slim, magnetic, and add reasonable shock absorption, and they are priced affordably as well. If you want to be able to admire the color of your Galaxy Z Flip 8, I recommend the see-through Spigen Ultra Hybrid Pro MagFit.

Charging devices can get out of hand, particularly if you have a few phones, notebooks, tablets, and accessories. You can just use the charger that comes in the box with the phone (which in itself is vanishingly rare these days), but a much better choice is to get a dedicated charging station. Going this route will allow you to charge all of your devices at once, and you get much more power than with a single charger — I use UGREEN's Nexode 500W charging station, and its six ports allow me to charge all of my tech with ease.

Cuktech is a Chinese charging brand that's slowly gaining momentum; I use its 15 Ultra power bank and 140W charger daily, and its products are just as reliable as UGREEN and Anker. The brand is now making charging stations, and I've been testing the 300W 30 Ultra for the better part of a month now. The 30 Ultra retails for $159 on Amazon, and while that is costly, you are getting a charger that can easily charge up to five devices at once. To put this into context, the Nexode 500W that I use in my office costs $199.

If you're not quite sure about what you get with a charging station, these are four things I liked the most about the Cuktech 30 Ultra after a month of testing.

The Cuktech 30 Ultra has all the ports you need

Obviously, the biggest reason for buying a GaN charging station is to be able to charge several devices at once. The 30 Ultra has three USB-C ports, one USB-A port, and a DC connector on the side that lets you connect to notebooks.

The charger also gets a wedge-style stand that angles it on a desk, and this makes the accessing the ports a little better.

When it comes to USB-C, you get 140W over the USB PD 3.1 protocol with the USB-C1 and C2 ports, and the best part is that both ports can deliver 140W at once. This means you can effortlessly charge two MacBooks simultaneously with the 30 Ultra, and that's a big advantage.

The USB-C3 port goes up to 33W, and the USB-A port hits 18W. Cuktech bundles a 240W USB-C to USB-C cable in the box, and you can use it to charge just about any gadget.

It has (almost) all mainstream charging protocols

Most charging stations just get USB PD and leave it at that, so it's great to see Cuktech add a lot of additional charging protocols. That includes Xiaomi's 120W charging standard, and I tested it with the Xiaomi 17 Ultra and Xiaomi 17T Pro to confirm. You also get 100W USB PD with PPS, Qualcomm's QC3.0 and QC2.0, and Huawei's fast charging standard.

The only standard missing is OPPO's VOOC, and I wasn't able to charge my Find X9 Ultra to its potential. That said, the phone goes up to 50W over USB PD, and this proved to be handy with the charger.

You get a dedicated DC port

It's the versatility with the DC connector that gives the 30 Ultra an edge over other charging stations. This port goes up to 300W, so you can easily charge power-hungry gaming notebooks without too much of a hassle. You get a smattering of connectors that you can use with the DC port, but note that these will only work when you connect to a notebook.

There's a built-in LCD panel

While most chargers come with a built-in panel these days — I like the ChargeView 140W because of this — Cuktech took it to the next level with the 30 Ultra charging station. It gets a bigger 1.83-inch panel, and it shows real-time charging details, a power curve, and even how much current is going out of a cable.

It's a valuable addition if you've connected several gadgets to the charging station and want to see just how fast individual devices are charging.

Overall, I really liked using the 30 Ultra; Cuktech nailed the design and the port selection, and having two USB-C ports with 140W power is a welcome move. The addition of a DC port is great as well, and the 1.83-inch panel is a nifty inclusion that lets you see in real-time how fast connected devices are charging. If you need a way to declutter your desk with a single charger, the 30 Ultra is a good choice in 2026.

I use several chargers throughout the house, and I still rely on the 500W Nexode as my go-to charging station in the office. As good as it is, the charging station is bulky, so I don't use it on my desk. I instead prefer a smaller charger that still gives me the flexibility to charge up to four devices at once, and in recent months, I used Baseus' excellent Nomos 2, which also has a Qi 2.2 mat.

That was before Satechi rolled out its latest GaN charger. The ChargeView 140W is a 4-port charger that's roughly the same size as a regular 140W wall charger, but you get four charging ports in total, and Satechi even managed to fit a tiny panel onto it that shows real-time charging details. The best part is that it costs just $99 on Amazon, which is similar to other 140W chargers I used in recent months. Here are three reasons why the ChargeView 140W is now my go-to desk charger.

The ChargeView 140W is the smallest 4-port charger I used

For me, the number one consideration for a desk charger is the size, and the ChargeView 140W nails the brief. It is smaller than other 4-port charging stations I used, and if anything, it's even smaller than a travel charger.

I also like that it has four USB-C ports; most 4-port chargers include a USB-A port, and while I can understand the reasoning behind that, I don't need the port on a desk charger, so just having a multitude of USB-C ports is highly convenient — at least in my use.

Satechi also includes a stand that lets you orient the ChargeView 140W horizontally or vertically. I used it horizontally, and the stand makes accessing the USB-C ports just a tad more convenient. The charger itself is made out of plastic, and I didn't see any issues with build quality whatsoever.

It has USB 3.2 AVS and goes up to 140W

The ChargeView 140W does a solid job charging four devices at once, and the C1/C2 ports have the ability to charge devices up to 140W. The USB-C1 port uses the latest USB PD 3.2 AVS standard to adjust voltage in minute increments, and it makes a difference while charging the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone Air.

The USB-C2 port uses the standard USB PD 3.1 profile, and it also goes up to 140W. The C3 and C4 ports go up to a maximum of 40W individually, and these are better-suited for charging handheld consoles and accessories. Like all other GaN chargers, the ChargeView 140W does a good job intelligently managing the power budget based on the number of ports in use. Here's a look at how the power delivering is affected based on number of devices connected:

I used the ChargeView 140W with my Find X9 Ultra, iPad Pro M4, iPhone 17 Pro, and a dozen accessories over the course of the last month. It did just as reliable a job as other GaN chargers I used, and the smaller size and availability of four USB-C ports makes it a long-term addition to my desk.

You get an LCD panel that shows real-time charging info

It isn't that long ago that brands started adding LCD panels to their chargers to show charging details, and I like this feature a lot. The ChargeView 140W has a tiny panel of its own, and it is a great way to see how fast a connected device is charging.

What I like about this is that you can charge the orientation of the panel based on the charger's configuration. So if you're using it vertically, a long press of the button located at the top switches the orientation. It's a small addition, but it's one that makes a noticeable difference.

On the whole, the ChargeView 140W is a great addition to Satechi's charging portfolio, and if you need a reliable desk charger with the ability to charge four devices at once, I'd suggest getting this one.

The budget IEM category has countless choices, and it's the entry-level where things are particularly interesting. ddHiFi is a well-known Chinese outfit, and its latest collaboration with India's Headphone Zone has resulted in the Skyfall and Iris, two IEMs that target the same category.

The Iris has a 10mm dynamic driver and costs ₹2,699 ($28), and the Skyfall has the same 10mm driver alongside a BA driver, and it comes in at ₹3,699 ($38). Both usually cost ₹300 ($3) more, but with Headphone Zone having a sale, now is the best time to get your hands on either if you're interested.

I've used both IEMs interchangeably over the course of the last month, and I tested both with my Fiio M21. I'll get to the sound in a little but, but before that, I want to highlight the design. The Iris has a green hue that looks great, and the Skyfall has a bold blue design that makes it stand out.

Both IEMs have a 3D-printed shell, and the design is definitely a plus point; you don't usually see this kind of build quality in in the entry-level. I like the see-through design as it does a great job highlighting the drivers and the connectors housed within the shell. This is even more evident on the Skyfall, as you can easily make out the dedicated BA driver.

Either shell is on the larger side, but I didn't see any issues when it comes to usability. The sound nozzle on the Iris is a smidgen bigger than that of the Skyfall, but this didn't prove to be a problem.

You get a decent selection of ear tips with the IEMs, and the Iris has a 3.5mm cable, with the Skyfall bundling a 4.4mm balanced cable. The default cable is good enough, and the braided cable has a nylon sheath that gives it a little better durability.

Both IEMs sound great in their own right. They have detailed bass, a clean mid-range that allows vocals to shine, and good treble extension without coming across as bright. I like the Skyfall a little better in this area; the addition of a BA driver leads to better detail in the mid-range and a livelier overall sound, and in my testing, I preferred it to the Iris. You also get better much sub-bass energy, lending itself very well to mainstream music.

That isn't to say that the Iris is bad by any measure — it has standout vocal presentation, and if that's what you need, the Iris will be better-suited to your needs.

If you're unable to decide between the two and just need a recommend, I'd suggest going with the Skyfall. It costs a little bit more, but you're getting a more engaging sound, and a balanced cable. I also like the blue hue a little better, and I think it's a good all-rounder at just ₹3,699.

It's not always easy to find good open-ear earbud deals, at least when compared with those of traditional earbuds. For that reason, it's exciting to see Amazon cut our favorite open-ear earbuds, the Bose Ultra Open earbuds, back down to their lowest price ever. The deal represents a 33% price drop, marking $100 in savings and bringing their price down to just $199.

We love the Bose Ultra Open earbuds for a number of reasons, but especially for their powerful immersive sound setting, their minimal, sleek design, fast charging speeds, and a relatively long battery life.

While they don't come with multipoint connection or wireless charging, the Bose Ultra Open are still head and shoulders above other competitors in overall quality and design. At $199, they're still a little more pricey than others, but $100 off feels like it could be all the justification you need if you're already in the market.

✅Recommended if: you want the best open-ear earbuds on the market and your budget is around $199; you want a pair of open-ear earbuds that won't compromise on immersive, high-quality audio; you like having easy-to-use button controls for playback, volume, answering calls, and more on your earbuds; you need something with a minimal, comfortable fit that can be worn and used for long periods of time.

❌Skip this deal if: you aren't looking for open-ear earbuds and would rather spend this amount of money on higher-quality, fully in-ear devices; you need something that offers more than 4 hours of battery when spatial, immersive, or other modes are engaged; you prefer a pair of earbuds with a higher dust and water resistance rating than IPX4.

The Bose Ultra Open earbuds are a certifiably great pair of open-ear buds, featuring a mind-blowing immersive mode and a solid stereo audio mode, a charging case, and a minimal, comfortable design. Bose says they'll get users up to 4 hours of playtime in immersive mode or up to 7 in stereo mode, while the case can offer up to 48 hours of with intermittent charges.

As a Google Pixel user, I have a wide variety of Qi2 and Pixelsnap accessories to choose from, made by both first- and third-party sellers. But sometimes, I come across products like the Mophie Roam 3-in-1 Travel Charger that are made for Apple, and stare at them longingly.

Although they can be very expensive, accessories for the Apple ecosystem are well-designed and feature-rich. Most multipurpose chargers for iPhones include Apple Watch chargers, which is a rare find for Pixel users. Whether it's a charging dock or a portable charger, it's hard to find officially certified accessories for Google that support the Pixel Watch.

The Mophie Roam 3-in-1 Travel Charger is a modern kit with 3 wireless charging pads

The Mophie Roam 3-in-1 Travel Charger is an all-in-one charging package. It features three wireless charging pads: a 25W pad to charge your iPhone, a 7.5W pad for the Apple Watch, and a third 5W pad for AirPods.

Mophie developed the StealthCharge Technology featured in the Roam 3-in-1 Travel Charger specifically for iPhones. It makes for a quiet, aerated charging pad that dissipates heat without fans or coolants.

Both the iPhone and Apple Watch charging pads fold open and closed, so you can use them as stands if you wish. This also makes it easy to pack the kit into a smaller form factor once you're done using it.

It's a MagSafe and Qi 2.2-certified kit, but the first two pads can also be used with non-Apple devices. But the Apple Watch charger is obviously not compatible with any other smartwatch.

Mophie curated this kit for travel, so it has a small footprint and comes with everything you need to power the 3-in-1 wireless charger, all in a sleek, minimalist pouch. It has several compartments so nothing moves around or gets entangled mid-travel.

The leather pouch is small enough to neatly fit in any backpack, carry-on luggage, or small suitcase. A 40W USB-C charger with U.S. prongs and a 1.5m USB-C to USB-C cable are included in the box, along with three separate prongs for the U.K., Europe, and Australia.

You can squeeze all the accessories in, but it's really only designed to hold one or two of the included global prongs.

Mophie also includes a handy ferrite bead in the kit. When attached to a USB cable, a ferrite bead — sometimes also called a ferrite ring, choke, or core — acts as an electromagnetic interference (EMI) shield, preventing unwanted RF signals from being transmitted to and from a device.

The Mophie Roam 3-in-1 Travel Charger is a luxury product with a high-end build quality

The Mophie Roam 3-in-1 Travel Charger set comes in two colors: Black and Cream. It retails for $149.95 at Apple or Mophie.

This is the 2026 iteration, the fourth generation of this kit from Mophie, with updated charging speeds all around. Older-gen variants are more widely available and come in some fun colorways like a cherry blossom print. The older-gen kits have slower charging speeds, but most of them still retail for the same price.

Overall, I love how the Mophie Roam 3-in-1 Travel Charger is the perfect portable charging kit for an avid Apple user. It supplies the fastest wireless charging speeds to six generations of iPhones, as well as every single Apple Watch and AirPods iteration.

I wish Mophie made a similar kit for the latest Pixel hardware, certified by Google for official Pixelsnap support. There isn't a single similar product available for Google Pixel users.

Even if accessory makers were able to make a universal travel charging kit with wireless charging pass for Pixel phones and Pixel Buds, the Pixel Watch would still make it hard. Since the chargers of all Pixel Watch iterations are not compatible with each other, this complicates things.

If you're an Apple user, this is the most comprehensive travel kit for all your gear.

It's no secret that storage devices are getting more and more expensive, which has led some users to switch to NAS for all of their file management needs. NAS servers haven't been quite as affected by the 2026 memory shortage as other devices, which means you can still find some pretty exceptional deals if you know where to look.

UGREEN is a rising star in the NAS space, and unlike popular models from brands like TerraMaster and Synology, UGREEN's NAS servers for home tend to get discounted on a fairly regular basis. Case in point: at this very moment, Amazon is slashing prices on a bunch of the brand's best devices, making now a perfect time to invest in one of these versatile storage solutions.

My top UGREEN NAS deal

• See the full list of deals at Amazon

More deals from Amazon's UGREEN NAS sale

• More NAS deals: Amazon | Newegg | Best Buy | Walmart

Marshall just launched brand-new over-ear headphones for the affordable price segment on May 19, 2026. The Marshall Milton ANC headphones retail for $229.99, walking headfirst into a starkly competitive neck of the woods: budget wireless headphones.

The Milton ANC have been getting overwhelmingly positive reviews everywhere I look online, which I don't fully understand. Audio quality-wise, the pair does a fantastic job, right on the money. But the entire wear experience is destroyed by what I feel are the smallest ear cups in the world.

This is a very subjective experience, so you be the judge of whether my hands-on experience is relevant to you. If you have the ears of a child, you can skip the review and go ahead and buy them. Otherwise, read on, my friend.

Initial setup and customization is a breeze

The Marshall Milton ANC connect via Bluetooth, but you can also use the included 3.5mm audio jack to the USB-C port to plug them into your smartphone manually. This does, however, prevent app usage.

First-time installation and setup is easy breezy. Turn the headphones on, enable Bluetooth on your phone, and almost immediately, a connection request pops up thanks to Google Fast Pair. After that, you can even add the Milton ANC to your Google Find Hub or Apple Find My Device.

Then you open the Marshall app to customize ANC, the dynamic equalizer, M-button settings, power-off timer settings, soundstage options, and more.

There is a dedicated Auracast broadcast section to tune in to nearby broadcasts. Noise cancellation can be switched between three modes: ANC on, ANC off, and a transparent mode. The ANC mode allows you to adjust the level of noise cancellation with greater granularity.

Unlike the Marshall Monitor III ANC, there is no dedicated ANC button. The M-button can be customized to toggle that while doubling as the Spotify Tap trigger. You also don't get auto pause/play when you take the Milton ANC on and off your head.

The physics of the Marshall Milton ANC headphones

Marshall advertises the Milton ANC as extremely lightweight, portable, and comfortable headphones with better airflow than other Marshall headphones.

These are quite bendy, and they only weigh 200g, so half of those claims are true. You can fold both ear cups and stow the Milton ANC headphones away in small spaces. They even fit in a handbag, or oversized baggy pant pockets. But the prongs that extend from each ear cup stick out at odd angles when folded.

My biggest issue (and only major complaint) with the Marshall Milton ANC is the square ear cups. I have so many questions for Marshall. Why are the ear cups so small? Are they built for Lilliputians, because what in the Whoville is going on?

I do not have big ears by any measure, so I can't imagine others with even larger ears than mine having a positive wearing experience with these. It felt like I was wearing children's headphones with these on.

And why square? I know a lot of over-ear headphones do have boxy ear cups, but the size and shape make for a bad combination. I had to position the Milton ANC ear cups just right, but I still felt they didn't fully or ergonomically cover my ears. Not to mention, I have plenty of piercings in each ear, including helix and tragus piercings, so that added to the discomfort.

Should you buy the Marshall Milton ANC headphones?

To me, the Marshall Milton ANC headphones are proof that a brand can do everything right, but if the design isn't truly ergonomic or inclusive, it's not worth buying.

Even at the full retail price, the Marshall Monitor III ANC headphones are better than the Milton ANC. However, you can currently get these $380 headphones on Amazon for $229.99 — the same price as the Milton ANC.

So tell me, if one can find good deals on the Monitor III ANC, why would anyone buy the Milton ANC? Unless you have really tiny ears, I suggest you go for the bigger, better headphones.

Most DACs largely look the same and don't really stand out in anything other than their tonal characteristics. That's why I enjoy using the Fiio K17 and K19; these DACs don't look like a regular black box, and the styling makes them look great on a desk.

The Muse 300 is now aiming to do the same, but this desktop DAC is taking things to a new level: it has a 5-inch panel, three distinct sound modes, a built-in OS, and a unique UI. Muse HiFi is a recent entrant in this category, and the brand has released six DACs until now. The Muse 300 is its most ambitious effort yet, and it's now being crowdsourced for $379, a $60 discount from its eventual retail price of $439.

Obviously, design plays a big part here, so let's start there. The Muse 300 is a sizeable chunk of metal, and there's nothing subtle about the angular design — it's meant to stand out. It doesn't look like a DAC at all, and that's because you just have the 5-inch panel and a control knob up front; the 6.3mm and 4.4mm connectors are located to the right. I prefer this design as it lets me plug in a headset and not have the cable jutting out the front, and it looks cleaner on my desk.

The control wheel has built-in lighting, and it has excellent tactility. Honestly, the design and build quality make the Muse 300 feel like a high-end DAC, and it holds its own against the likes of the K19, which costs four times as much.

A big selling point for the Muse 300 is the OS, and it enables three distinct audio modes: Balanced, Tube Amplifier, and ACG. The Balanced mode has a neutral soundstage — similar to most DACs — and the Tube Amplifier mode switches to a warm profile that's great for casual listening. The ACG is a unique addition that leads to a bright sound with fast transients, and it's the one I'd suggest if you're gaming.

What's unique about the Muse 300 is that it has dedicated physical circuits with each mode instead of just relying on EQ, and it makes a noticeable difference. I tested the DAC with the Meze 99 Classics v2, Audeze LCD-S20, and the MM-500.

The Balanced mode is the one I used for analytical testing, and the Muse 300 proved its worth by delivering a clean sound with great dynamics. It allowed the MM-500 to shine, but it's the Tube Amplifier that I enjoyed using the most — it just has a warmth and liveliness to the sound that just makes listening to music that much more enjoyable, and it made me want to get a dedicated tube amp. You don't quite get the same amount of definition in this mode, but it is the one that I enjoyed using the most.

The Muse 300 features ESS' ES9039 Ultra DAC chip alongside a Qualcomm QCC3095 Bluetooth 5.4 modem. It does 32-bit/384kHz PCM decoding alongside DSD256, has a 129dB SNR and low distortion of 0.0006% THD+N.

The built-in amp delivers 1.1W of power at 32 ohms via 6.3mm, and 2.2W of power at 32 ohms over the balanced 4.4mm connector. There's good connectivity at the rear, with the DAC offering USB, Bluetooth, optical, and coaxial, in addition to XLR and RCA line out. The only annoyance is that the Muse 300 uses USB-B instead of a standard USB-C port. You'll need an external 12V/5A power brick to drive the DAC, and it's bundled in the box.

The 5-inch IPS panel has a resolution of 854 x 480, and it's driven by Muse OS. The OS lives on a 32-bit MCU, and is designed exclusively for audio playback and user interface. There's a lot to like in the UI, and while it is barebones, it doesn't have any lag, and you get all the usual settings. It doesn't have any additional features — like the ability to install apps — so you will need to use one of the inputs to play music.

After a month of use, the Muse 300 proved to be a revelation. It has the design and build quality of a high-end DAC, and it's clear that Muse HiFi paid a lot of attention to the tuning of the sound with each mode. The idea of Muse OS is interesting in its own right, and I want to see how it evolves over the years. The DAC has enough power to drive demanding headsets, and on the whole, it's a great all-round choice in the sub-$500 category — I didn't think I would enjoy using the DAC as much as I did.

I attend a lot of product briefings and meetings, and that's particularly true now as we're once again heading into phone silly season. Normally, I just attend the briefing, take notes, and write up any salient points. If I'm conducting an interview — like the one about Arm's neural gaming tech — I usually record the audio and transcribe manually. That's what takes the most amount of time, and in the last six months, I used an AI-assisted solution: Viaim's RecDot earbuds.

Now, there's no shortage of AI-assisted audio-to-text transcribing services available, and you can do it on your phone as well; this is one of the things I use the most on my Pixel 10 Pro XL. Viaim is one of many brands that are positioning AI-based products to do this automatically. I used Plaud Note in the past to do something similar, but I like the idea of the Viaim RecDot better as it isn't another thing I have to carry.

The versatility of having earbuds that record calls and meetings and automatically transcribe audio is a big deal, and it made a noticeable difference in my daily use. My favorite feature is Instant Summaries, which provides insights and key takeaways from hours-long meetings; this saved me a decent chunk of time.

A pretty cool addition is FlashRecord, a feature that records conversations up to four hours locally on the buds without needing your phone. You can also record when you're not wearing the buds by pressing a button on the case. There's also an AI-assisted translation feature, and it provides real-time translations. The RecDot did a decent job with Hindi to English translations, but it didn't hold up anywhere as well with Telugu (my native language) to English. That said, the buds have the ability to translate between 78 languages, and that's a cool use case if you're traveling abroad.

The RecDot earbuds are available for $199, and while that's quite a lot of cash, you are getting decent earbuds even outside of the AI features. The buds have a standard design with a lengthy stalk, and they don't really stand out. They have a glossy coat and the shell nuzzles into the ear comfortably, and I didn't see any fatigue even with extended use. At 4.8g, each bud is light enough that you won't even notice it.

There are other niceties; the RecDot gets IP55 dust and water resistance, and sound quality from the 11mm dynamic driver is much better than I imagined; it's not going to overthrow Bose or Sony, but it's clear that Viaim paid attention to the audio tuning. You get a boosted low-end that makes listening to most modern music that much more enjoyable, and while there isn't much extension to the treble, the overall tonal characteristics are decent. You get Qi charging, Bluetooth 5.2 connectivity, and the buds connect to two devices at once.

There's pretty good noise isolation too, and the RecDot did a reasonable job tuning out ambient sounds in my immediate vicinity. Again, while they weren't as effective as my Bose QuietComfort Ultra Gen 2 earbuds, they're good enough that I wouldn't mind using the buds while working at a cafe. You don't get AptX codecs, but there's LHDC, which made a difference while using with my Find X9 Ultra and X9 Pro.

The Viaim app is what you'll be using to generate summaries and transcribe audio, and it's decent enough. I had issues where it crashed while using it on the Find X9 Ultra, but I didn't run into problems on the iPhone 17 Pro, so that's what I used predominantly with the buds. The UI itself is easy to navigate, and you get all the notes and transcribed text easily accessible.

On the whole, Viaim did a good job with the RecDot, and if you attend a lot of meetings and need an easy way to transcribe and summarize key takeaways, these earbuds are a great option.

WiiM has consistently delivered great products over the last two years, and while it started out with amps, it is branching out into home audio, and that's exciting. The WiiM Amp Ultra sits at the center of my home theater system, and it does a great job paired to my Wharfedale Linton. I use the WiiM Pro Plus daily, and it continues to be the ideal way to connect older stereo gear to the internet. Similarly, the WiiM Sub Pro is an interesting addition that ties in really well with existing stereo systems if you need to add a subwoofer.

Then there's the WiiM Sound. I've been using it for the last six months, and it has proven to be the perfect smart speaker. It sounds much better than the Nest Audio, the stereo sound is much more detailed than the Sonos Era 100, and its connectivity is unmatched. There are plenty of other features that I'll get into below, but if you need a great-sounding stereo speaker with Google Assistant and Alexa integration, this is the one I'd get in 2026. And coming in at $299, it doesn't cost much more than the equivalent Sonos while giving you so much more.

While convenience is always high up on the list when considering a smart speaker, I care about sound quality above all else, and the WiiM Sound does well in this area. The speaker has a 4-inch woofer alongside two 1-inch silk-dome tweeters, and it delivers 100W of sound with plenty of detail. I would've liked a bit more rumble to the bass, but it is tightly controlled, and the mids are clean, with vocals shining through. Audio quality is better than what you get with Amazon, Google, and Sonos in this category.

Where the Sound truly stands out is the connectivity. It has Google Cast, Spotify Connect, DLNA, Tidal Connect, and Roon Ready integration. Additionally, you can easily connect it existing multi-room audio systems if you use Google Cast or Alexa.

You can get two units and create a true stereo pair, and if you need a 2.1 system that has much better bass, you can connect it to the $449 WiiM Sub Pro like I did. Rounding out the connectivity, you get Wi-Fi 6e, Bluetooth 5.3, 3.5mm aux in, and Ethernet, so there isn't much missing anything in this area.

This flexibility is a key selling point of WiiM products in general, and with the brand rolling out a soundbar — dubbed the WiiM Bar — soon, you can use the Sound as a rear surround or center channel in a home theater configuration. The Sound has 24-bit/192 kHz playback, and combined with Roon integration, you get the easiest way to stream your local music library — that's how I've been using it in the last six months.

The WiiM Sound connects via the WiiM Home app, and it has a modern interface with an exhaustive amount of customizability. It does a great job bringing together all of your media streaming platforms, and it's just a joy to use. Setting it up takes just a matter of minutes, and if you don't like the way it sounds, you can easily tweak the EQ.

Design is another area where WiiM is doing the right things; the Sound has a modern aesthetic that resembles the HomePod 2, but it includes a 1.8-inch panel up front that lets you control the speaker without pulling out your phone. I use it as a clock, but you can customize it to show album art, and you can change the settings. There's also a top portion with playback controls.

There's a $229 WiiM Sound Lite as well, and the only difference is that it doesn't have the front panel, and you don't get the Bluetooth WiiM Voice Remote 2 Lite. If you're looking to maximize value, the Sound Lite is the one I'd buy.

I have a half-dozen WiiM products at this point, and a big reason why I use the brand's audio gear is because of the connectivity and easy configurability. Value also plays a big part, and while the Sound costs $299, you're getting a feature-set that far exceeds what other products deliver in this category. If anything, the only feature omission is AirPlay; this was an issue on the Amp Ultra as well.

Outside of that, the WiiM Sound does everything I want in a smart speaker. It looks great, connects to every music platform and digital assistant I use, has decent sound, and is highly configurable. If you're looking to get a new Cast-enabled speaker or want something to extend your multi-room audio setup, the WiiM Sound should be your go-to choice.

I always enjoyed using Marshall's Bluetooth speakers; I bought a Stanmore 11 years ago, and it's still going strong. The Emberton III is my go-to choice for portability, and its small design combined with great sound and water-resistant chassis makes it ideal for use anywhere.

And then there's the Bromley 450. I've been using the portable Bluetooth speaker for just over a month now, and it is a powerhouse: it weighs 24lb, has two woofer units and four audio drivers that produce a 360-degree sound, comes with Auracast, and has RCA as well as XLR connectors that lets you easily start a karaoke party.

Basically, the Bromley 450 has everything you need to get a party started, and it is more powerful than most home-focused Bluetooth speakers I used, including the likes of the Stanmore. There's a price attached to all of this: the Bromley 450 costs $746 on Amazon as of writing. There are plenty of other speakers like the $279 Tribit StormBox Blast 2 (which I like a lot), but the Bromley 450 is in an entirely different league altogether.

There's also the small matter of the design; the Bromley 450 looks like an old-school Marshall amp, and that alone makes it worthy of consideration. Instead of a regular review, I'm going to highlight four things I liked the most about the Bromley 450, so let's dive in.

The Bromley 450 is the loudest Bluetooth speaker I used yet

The sheer size of the Bromley 450 has allowed Marshall to slot in a total of six driver units, and this leads to wall-rattling sound. This is designed to be a party speaker, and it absolutely nails the brief; even with the volume at 50%, the sound is loud enough to fill a decent-sized room, and crank it any higher than 80%, and you'll have the neighbors at your door.

It's not just the loudness either — the Bromley 450 sounds pretty great in its own right. The speaker has two 90W woofer units alongside four 55W drivers and two passive radiators, and you get a classic Marshall sound: engaging low-end with a lot of energy, clean mids that make guitar riffs stand out, and a soaring treble.

The orientation of the drivers means you get 360-degree sound, and it makes a big difference, particularly if you're looking for a party speaker.

Of course, like most Marshall speakers, you have full control over the tonality of the sound. There are physical controls to adjust the volume, bass, and treble, and the app allows you granular control over the equalizer.

Lastly, you can daisy-chain two Bromley 450 units; the speaker has aux in and out, and this makes it easier to connect two units to double the sound.

It connects to just about everything

The Bromley 450 has the best connectivity of any portable Bluetooth speaker around — it connects to just about everything. It uses Bluetooth 5.3 and Auracast, and it connects to two devices at once. I didn't see any issues with range in my testing, and it maintained a steady signal even at 30ft.

Where it stands out is the inputs; you get 3.5mm aux in and out, USB-C, RCA, and the ability to connect two instruments via XLR. You can easily hook up an XLR mic as well, and it's this versatility that makes it stand out. I predominantly tested the Bromley 450 with Bluetooth — I paired it with my Find X9 Ultra and Vivo X300 Ultra — but I also used it with RCA by plugging in my WiiM Pro Plus, and connected it to my Teenage Engineering OP-1 field synthesizer via 3.5mm.

Oh, and you can easily charge your phone with the speaker — the USB-C port charges at up to 15W. While it isn't as fast as a dedicated power bank, it's still nifty to have, and I like that Marshall included the feature.

This speaker is built for all-nighters — and it charges your phone

Marshall did all the right things when it comes to battery tech. The Bromley 450 uses an LiFePO4 battery that has better longevity than the standard lithium-ion batteries in most speakers.

The best part about the battery is that it is removable, and this gives the Bromley 450 a definite edge over other Bluetooth speakers. You can basically switch out the battery should it degrade down the line, and honestly, it's refreshing to see a manufacturer provide this in 2026. The battery itself doubles as a power bank, and it has USB-C.

It also makes charging effortless; I only had to charge the speaker once, and in that instance, I just took out the battery and connected it to a 100W USB PD charger. The Bromley 450 comes with a standard AC connector, but I found it much easier to just take out the battery and use USB-C instead. It takes over three hours to fully charge the battery, but there's fast charging that gives you six hours of music playback with just a 20-minute charge.

And when it comes to battery life, the Bromley 450 easily lasted over 40 hours with the volume set to 50%. This is a speaker that just doesn't quit, and it can easily handle all-night parties.

It has an iconic design that grabs attention

A big selling point of Marshall products is the classic design, and the Bromley 450 is its best showing yet. It has a domineering presence that immediately stands out, and the Marshall logo with the grille are all reminiscent of the brand's vintage amps.

Build quality is excellent, the edges are reinforced, and it gets IP55 dust and water resistance, making it ideal for pool parties. There's a carrying handle on the left that makes it easy to lug the Bromley 450 around, but there's no getting around the fact that this is an absolute unit.

I also like the physical controls; you get knobs to adjust the volume, bass, treble, a delightful power button, toggle to switch between connection modes, and knobs to adjust the volume of connected instruments, and add effects. It's just plain cool, and there's built-in lighting as well, with three effects. The lighting isn't distracting, and it makes the Bromley 450 that much more enjoyable to use.

Overall, the Bromley 450 is an absolute beast of a Bluetooth speaker. It gets louder than anything else I used in this category, it has the best design, connectivity, and battery life. You are paying quite a lot, but after a month of use, I can say with some confidence that it's worth it.

External storage devices just keep getting more expensive, which is why every discount is worth considering nowadays, no matter how small. Fortunately, Amazon has just dropped a bunch of storage discounts that aren't small, even if they're not quite to pre-2026 standards. 

Whether you want a sturdy Samsung SSD, an all-in-one NAS server, or a compact flash drive to throw into your pocket, there is no shortage of storage discounts to check out at Amazon today. 

Indeed, these prices can still be a bummer if you're accustomed to how things were before the current RAM crisis, but if you need more storage for your tech today, this is about as good as it gets. In fact, since prices are continuing to go up for these devices, unless you want to wait another year (at least) to upgrade your storage, I'd jump on these deals while you can.  

• See the full list of deals at Amazon

Fight the global memory shortage with these Back to School storage deals

Why are storage devices so expensive right now?

Storage devices (such as SSDs, HDDs, and DRAM) are getting more expensive because of a global memory shortage caused primarily by the rise of AI data centers. The rapid growth of AI technology has led to a huge demand for memory products, which means there's less supply for consumers. Some devices have seen price increases of 200% or more, so it's important to take advantage of deals whenever you can. 

When will the memory shortage end?

No one knows for sure, although most projections have stated that the global RAM shortage will last through 2027 at minimum. Our sister site Tom's Hardware has even reported that the memory crisis will be "even worse" in 2027 than it is this year. In other words, if you need to invest in an external storage device, I'd do it sooner rather than later. 

Phone grips and stands are a dime a dozen, and making your mark in the industry at the level of brands like PopSockets is challenging.

Enter AULUMU. This award-winning Chinese brand aims to "reimagine urban tech accessories" with its futuristic, almost cyberpunk aesthetic. The brand launched its innovative G09 Infinite 360° Magnetic Stand in January 2026, followed by a see-through version, the G09 Ghost Transparent Infinite 360° Magnetic Stand, in May 2026.

I have been testing the G09 Infinite 360° Magnetic Stand for a month, and it is a breath of fresh air, something truly innovative in the phone accessories segment.

Puzzling at first, genius once you figure it out

AULUMU sent me the Ghost Transparent version of the G09 stand in Yellow. This version costs $39.98 and comes in Yellow, Orange, Translucent White, and Translucent Gray. Meanwhile, the regular opaque variant costs $45.98 and comes in Black and Silver.

AULUMU includes an adhesive magnetic adapter ring in the box, as well as a very helpful manual with easy-to-follow diagrams. Without the manual, I was very lost and couldn't make head or tail of the stand.

The AULUMU G09 Infinite 360° Magnetic Stand is a 3-axis magnetic stand with dual-sided magnetic attachments. These two main sides slide open on a tight hinge, so depending on the angle you set the stand at, it stays put. It's confusing when described with words, but the pictures provide much-needed context.

Twist it, turn it, bend it, fold it

The AULUMU G09 stand can be contorted into countless angles. Since it's a magnetic accessory, you can rotate it on the back of the phone too. The N52 magnets embedded within the stand are very strong.

This makes for a highly adjustable phone stand that weighs only 39g (35g for the opaque variant) and isn't too bulky. Whether in portrait mode or landscape mode, you can find an angle that works for you. Here are some of the many configurations I tried out.

It also has a removable silicone finger strap, so you don't have to take the AULUMU G09 Infinite 360° Magnetic Stand off. It can stay at the back of your phone, replacing your PopSocket or whatever grip you've been using.

You can easily use the stand with a MagSafe or Qi2 magnetic case on your phone, though that will naturally thicken up your smartphone setup.

Stacks on stacks

One of the many advantages of the double-sided magnets is that you can stack magnetic accessories on top of the G09 stand. So if you really prefer a grip with a popping top, you could just add it to the AULUMU G09 Infinite 360° Magnetic Stand.

You can take this even further by using the double-sided magnetic arm or attachment to stick your phone to a metal surface.

And because of the circular shape on both sides of the stand, you can literally hang your phone from the handles or knobs, too. This configuration makes the G09 stand look like a pair of handcuffs, but it works, so I won't knock it.

The AULUMU G09 stand innovates in a meaningful way and is definitely worth the buy

AULUMU might be writing up a steep bill, but the G09 Ghost Transparent Infinite 360° Magnetic Stand definitely feels worth the $40. It combines so many functions into one, so I think it really offers fantastic value for money.

The G09 stand takes some time to figure out, though, so you'll have to keep the instruction manual with you the first few days. But once you get used to it, it's really good fun to use.

I think the only real question here is whether you should get the costlier opaque version of the G09 Infinite 360° Magnetic Stand. At 35g, it's only 4g lighter than the Ghost Transparent variant. Is that worth $6 more? Personally, I don't think so. Besides, the see-through design comes in more exciting colorways anyway.

What you need to know

• Galaxy SmartTag 3 may launch in September alongside the Galaxy S26 FE.
• Reliable tipster Roland Quandt leaked the release window on Bluesky, though actual hardware specs and design details remain completely under wraps.
• SmartTag 2 is due for an upgrade, with its Bluetooth 5.3 hardware and SmartThings Find network now trailing Apple's Find My ecosystem.

Samsung might finally be preparing to refresh one of its most forgotten Galaxy accessories. The Galaxy SmartTag 3 could be released as early as September, according to a new leak, finally ending a wait of nearly three years since the SmartTag 2 arrived in 2023.

The rumor comes from well-known leaker Roland Quandt, who shared on Bluesky that the SmartTag 3 is coming soon with the Galaxy S26 FE. If that timeline holds up, Samsung would likely announce both devices together at its expected September launch event for the Fan Edition phone. That’s all we know so far. The design and hardware of the tracker are still a mystery.

Even with so few details, there's plenty of room for Samsung to improve its item tracker. The existing SmartTag 2 still runs on Bluetooth 5.3 and is only compatible with Samsung’s own SmartThings Find ecosystem. That network has expanded over the years but still lags behind Apple’s Find My network in the sheer number of devices helping to find lost items.

A third-generation SmartTag could be the right time for Samsung to modernize the experience. An upgrade to a newer Bluetooth standard seems like an obvious step, and there are hopes the company could also expand the reach and effectiveness of SmartThings Find. Smarter crowdsourced tracking could help the SmartTag line become more competitive against the leading Bluetooth trackers like Apple’s AirTag and Google’s Find Hub-compatible trackers.

But for now, it's all based on a single leak, and Samsung has not confirmed the product exists. If the report is on the money, September may bring not only another Fan Edition phone but also Samsung’s first new Bluetooth tracker in years. The big question is whether the SmartTag 3 will simply play catch-up or give Galaxy users a compelling reason to stay in Samsung’s ecosystem.

Android Central's Take

If this rumor is true, Samsung has a real chance to make the SmartTag lineup relevant. A spec bump alone won’t cut it in 2026, especially when rivals have been busy improving their tracking networks and user experience for the last few years. I’d like to see Samsung spend more time making SmartThings Find actually reliable when it matters. A tracker is only as good as the network behind it.

What you need to know

• DuRoBo announced the Moodi: a wireless page-turner that is compatible with a "wide range" of e-readers, tablets, and phones.
• DuRoBo says the Moodi is designed to reduce the strain users experience when reading with a device over longer periods.
• The Moodi offers a selection of swappable emoji caps with deliver a gentle, satisfying clicking experience in the palm of your hand.
• The Moodi is available on Amazon U.S. for $30.99.

There are accessories of all kinds in the tech world, and DuRoBo is bringing competition to a surprising device.

DuRoBo shared details about the launch of Moodi: a wireless, Bluetooth page-turning remote that uses cute (swappable) emoji caps. DuRoBo is the company behind the Krono ePaper Focus Hub. This remote is said to "make long reading sessions more comfortable and more enjoyable." Usually, users are holding their device, using their thumb or finger to turn the page.

DuRoBo says its Moodi is designed to "reduce the strain" typically experienced during longer reading sessions. With its small form, the Moodi offers a "soft, springy" and satisfying rebound when pressing its buttons. The Moodi offers three modes: Reading, Multimedia, and Browsing. For Reading, consumers can hold the Moodi in one hand and enjoy the gentle, tactile button presses to turn the page.

The Multimedia Mode brings easy play, pause, or track-skipping controls for audiobooks, music, and podcasts. The Browsing option is centered around browsing posts online.

With a 90mAh battery inside the ergonomic frame, the Moodi can reportedly last "for weeks" on a single charge. Additionally, its built-in lanyard helps keep it comfortably (and safely) around your wrist for maximum chill potential. What's more, the swappable emoji caps are a highlight for the Moodi, giving consumers options such as "meh, cheeky, drowsy, hype, vibin’ and goofy."

DuRoBo's Moodi is available on Amazon for $30.99 in the U.S. The company adds that the Moodi is compatible with a "wide range" of e-readers, tablets, and smartphones.

Reading should be chill

What's interesting is that when my colleague Nicholas Sutrich brought this up, he also mentioned that Boox has a similar product. You might know Boox better for its pocketable e-readers; however, it also has a small, tappable page-turner. Boox's version is called Tappy, and takes on a different shape than what DuRoBo is doing with Moodi. Either way, it's intriguing to see competition enter a device like this.

DuRoBo showed off its Krono during CES 2026, and it was arguably the event's most interesting e-reader. According to Sutrich, the Krono is off to a good start with a minimalistic, phone-sized e-reader vibe going on. DuRoBo also made the experience much simpler than others, but Sutrich said, "I'd also like to see some more options for the existing functions."

Android Central's Take

As I said at the top of the article, this wireless page-turning device might be weird in a good way. I can almost imagine the satisfying click feeling DuRoBo is going for. If you're a PC gamer or know someone who is, and they have a fancy-looking keyboard, ask them why. I can almost guarantee that it's because of the sound. A mechanical keyboard that sounds good is like half the reason why I have the keyboard I do. Also, what DuRoBo is doing with this small page-turner sounds like maximum chill reading time.

What you need to know

• Google posted the patch notes for an early July update that's rolling out better reliability, improved sports interactions, and visual refreshes for Gemini.
• The Home app gives better light control for two Walmart onn products, while also delivering "Suggested Automations" for users.
• In June, Google brought Pet Memory to users, improving how their smart home products perceive their pets walking around their home with personalized alerts.

Google's streak of smart home patches continues in July with key updates for the Home app and Gemini.

Gemini for Home is still in early access; however, that's not stopping Google from rolling out better assistance and conversational capabilities this week. Google announced improved visual layouts for weather forecasts and general knowledge answers from Gemini on smart displays. What's more, sports lovers are getting "more accurate and up-to-date" answers.

With the FIFA World Cup still going on, entering the quarterfinals round today (July 9), users receiving the patch can ask Gemini about schedules, team standings, and more. The other Gemini-centric update concerns "Continued Conversations." Google says it's making its AI "more reliable" with its responses to your follow-up questions and rapid-fire commands.

Outside of the AI scope, the Google Home is rolling out an important update for user automations. With v4.20, users are getting "Suggested Automations." We've heard about automation suggestions a few times in the past. Users will soon find "ready-made automations tailored to real-life tasks like home security, morning routines, or energy savings." Google states these suggestions can be found at the top of your Automations tab or below your scheduled automations.

A light button arrives in the app for onn Outdoor Camera Plug-in and onn Floodlight Camera Hardwired devices. While in camera view, users can toggle the light on and off for these devices. Additionally, older Nest cameras are receiving improvements to the setup process.

• We've resolved a problem that could cause your camera live stream to fail to refresh or resume after unlocking your mobile device
• We've optimized the camera live view to prevent slow performance during extended viewing sessions
• We've corrected the status display of smart door locks to ensure they are never shown with incorrect offline icons
• We've corrected an issue where the Face Match setup flow could abruptly exit during brief network interruptions
• We've resolved a fan control flickering issue when manually toggling your thermostat fan on and off
• We've resolved a crash that could occur when rotating your screen while organizing your favorite tiles
• We've resolved a visual issue where offline doorbell camera previews showed an unintended black border on Google TV

Reliable AI

Continued Conversations was a significant update for Gemini earlier this year. The purpose was to give Gemini better memory for conversations that haven't concluded. Users can converse with the AI, and it will keep its mic open for a few extra seconds in case there's more to add. The original update brought the core of this feature, and now Google is making the AI more reliable in this space.

In June, Pet Memory arrived for user smart home cameras. With Ask Home, users can ensure the AI knows their pet's name and type. Alerts that come through will be more accurate in this sense, as Google Home will say "Bandit is in the living room," instead of "dog is walking."

Android Central's Take

Anytime I see anything remotely related to sports, it has my attention. Beyond that, Gemini's reliability has been called into question before, and it's nice to see Google working on that. If Gemini is slow or causing you to repeat what you've said, that'd just cause headaches. No one wants that.

What you need to know

• Rumors claim that Samsung's previously rumored open-ear or "clip-on" earbuds, the Galaxy Buds Able, have changed names to "Galaxy Buds On."
• However, a leak from another source claims "Galaxy Able" might remain, as the title was discovered in the Wearable app's code with the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro.
• Earlier this year, Galaxy Buds Able were rumored to be earbuds that rely on bone conduction for producing sound with

Rumors have surfaced again about a set of "bone conduction" earbuds that Samsung is developing.

Tipster evowizz on X posted a short claim about a unique pair of earbuds Samsung allegedly has in the works (via SamMobile). Their post claims that the previously rumored "Galaxy Buds Able" title has been replaced with "Galaxy Buds On." The publication adds that they bear the model number SM-U600 internally for Samsung.

The number reportedly swaps "R" for "U," the latter of which is typically used to identify new earbuds from the brand.

The situation progresses with another round of leaks from SammyGuru. According to its post, the publication discovered "Galaxy Able" listed in Samsung's Wearables app code beneath the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro. What's more, the post highlights a "samsung.accessory" string that may suggest full integration for the buds across Samsung's software. This has speculation leaning to one side, but nothing's confirmed yet.

Now and then, rumors will conflict like this. It's best to take what's been said here with a grain of salt for the time being.

Audio shifts

To make sense of this, we'll have to walk things back to April when rumors of "bone conduction" earbuds surfaced. At the time, the name "Galaxy Buds Able" led the way with an open-ear or "clip-on" design. It was said that these earbuds would clip onto a person's ear, sending vibrations through their bones to produce sound. Clearly, this is a departure from earbuds we're used to seeing and using that sit in-ear (or even traditional open-earbuds.

The model number that SamMobile mentioned in this recent leak was cited before. Prior reports added that the "U" is typically reserved for U.S. product releases, but this model number changes things. The vibrancy or richness of audio has also been called into question. If these buds rely on bone conduction and not more traditional methods, their bass could suffer as a result.

Android Central's Take

These buds already sounded interesting before, but the idea isn't that wild or unique to Samsung. Other brands have gone this route before, and could be seen as another earbud alternative, like anything else on the market. I'm still holding back, since there's nothing else about these buds. No hardware specifications, no charging case, nothing. For now, I'll wait.

The global storage shortage isn't going away any time soon, but that doesn't mean you can find some good SSD deals if you know where to look. The Samsung T7 and T9 portable SSDs are two of my favorite storage devices for file management on the go, and Amazon is currently slashing up to 31% off the 1TB versions for a limited time.

Both of these Samsung storage solutions are durable and travel-ready, with lightning-fast transfer speeds, Dynamic Thermal Guard to prevent overheating, and high-end AES 256-bit hardware encryption straight out of the box. They're also small enough to toss into a bag or coat pocket.

That being said, the Samsung T9 is easily the better value here, offering faster transfer speeds of up to 2,000MB/s and a more durable design than the T7. I often recommend the Samsung T7 since it's usually a bit more affordable than its rubberized counterpart, but this leftover Prime Day deal has actually dropped the 1TB T9 to only $199.99, which is a full $20 cheaper than the T7's current price.

Still, if you prefer something sleek and you don't mind slower speeds, the T7 remains a solid pick. Both SSDs are impressive options if you need external storage while traveling this summer, and this Amazon deal has made them more approachable than they've been in a while (barring last month's Prime Day discounts, of course). Given how expensive storage devices are these days, every penny counts.

What you need to know

• Nothing Ear 3a introduces Audio Snapshot with onboard storage.
• The earbuds can also record phone calls and meetings.
• New 12mm drivers, 45dB ANC, and Hi-Res Audio support are included.
• Pricing starts at just $99.

Nothing makes some of the best wireless earbuds on the market, and the company today unveiled its latest pair, the Ear 3a, with a new feature that feels particularly relevant in the AI era.

The headline feature of the Nothing Ear 3a is built-in storage of 32MB. Nothing says this lets users record what it calls Audio Snapshots, essentially allowing you to save whatever is being heard through the earbuds at any given moment. The feature captures audio from both before and after the trigger gesture, creating an "audio screenshot" without you ever having to pull out your phone.

Recordings automatically sync to the companion app, where you can replay, edit, share, and transcribe them.

The storage also enables call and meeting recording directly on the earbuds. Users can start recording with a simple gesture and capture conversations for up to two hours. With privacy in mind, other participants are notified whenever a call or meeting is being recorded.

On the audio side, the Ear 3a gets a new 12mm dynamic driver designed to deliver stronger bass and improved detail. The earbuds also support Hi-Res Audio Wireless at up to 24-bit/96kHz and an 8-band equalizer that you can customize right in the app.

There are ANC upgrades as well. The Ear 3a now offers up to 45dB of wideband ANC, with Nothing claiming a 17.1% improvement in overall noise cancellation coverage compared to the previous generation.

In terms of design, they'll look familiar to anyone who's used Nothing's earbuds before. The case keeps the brand's signature transparent-ish aesthetic, while the earbuds themselves come in four colors: Black, White, Yellow, and a new Pink finish.

The Nothing Ear 3a are priced at $99, putting them in direct competition with the Google Pixel Buds 2a and the Samsung Galaxy Buds FE.

Android Central's Take

I've stopped getting excited about ANC improvements and bigger drivers at this point. But built-in storage that records and transcribes what you're hearing? That's something I'd genuinely use every day, especially when my attention span is basically non-existent at this point.

Bringing pictures to life takes a whole new meaning with the Homture Magic Frame. This enchanting digital photo frame is loaded with AI goodies and smart sensors, making your still shots move dynamically.

What truly makes this a magical experience is the motion sensor detection. The frame only triggers movement in your static photos once it detects motion nearby. And that is exactly why it feels like a Harry Potter style moving portrait — it literally senses movement and reacts!

The Homture Magic Frame can be set up as a gift or for personal use

Priced at $139.99, the latest Homture Magic Frame version was launched in October 2025. The 10.1-inch frame has a Full HD+ (1920x1200) resolution, 64GB of local storage, a one-year warranty, and a 30-day return period. There is a stand built into the back that can be used both horizontally and vertically, and a proprietary power cord is included in the box.

The Homture Magic Frame can be set up for your own use or as a gift for someone else to use and own. This can be done by scanning the QR code on the box, or by sending a digital gift code if it's a long-distance present.

The Homture Magic Frame uses Wi-Fi to connect to the Android or iOS app. Once the frame is paired with your phone, you can add photos from your smartphone's gallery to the Magic Frame.

It is a fairly straightforward setup process that requires you to simply follow the steps indicated on the Magic Frame once you turn it on. The setup process takes about five minutes, including time to install the Homture app on your phone.

The moving photos are AI-powered

The moving pictures are created by using the AI Magic feature within the Homture app. You can select which photos you want to bring to life and what actions you would like them to do. For example, I created an AI Moment of my cat waving at me. Every time I step near the frame, my cat waves hello!

The sensor isn't perfect, and sometimes it doesn't detect movement. To address this, you can tweak the motion detection settings in the frame's Settings menu and choose from high, medium, or no trigger probability options to make the dynamic photos move more or less frequently.

Once these "AI Moments" are created, you can send them to the frame. There are several options within the app, such as the ability to show a certain picture or AI Moment immediately, add and delete pictures from the frame, hide pictures, like pictures, and download pictures. So if the frame is a gift, the recipient can add, remove, or download whatever pictures you loaded for them beforehand.

It is certainly cool, but is it worth spending money on?

One big drawback is that the Homture Magic Frame requires AI credit points to create these dynamic portraits. Each moving photo or AI Moment consumes 100 points. You get a 2,000-point card for free with the frame, which translates into 20 AI-generated videos or AI Moments.

AI credit points can be topped up later as well, with 500 credits priced at $4.99, 1,000 credits selling for $9.99, and 2,000 credits going for $19.99. Prices vary per region.

As much as I also wish for Alexa or Google Home integration, that would likely just drive up the price of the smart frame even more.

With the right curation of photos and videos, the Homture Magic Frame can be the most thoughtful gift ever. At its current price, it is a reasonable purchase, cheaper than many alternatives. Just be careful about how you spend your free 2,000 credits so you don't need to purchase any for a while.

Many cinephiles have amazing home theater setups with projectors, reclining and rumbling seats, multi-channel surround sound systems, and probably even a built-in popcorn maker in their theater room. While that's great for people who want to spend a lot of time setting up all the pieces to the home theater puzzle, plenty of people don't have the technical know-how, time, or money for such an endeavor.

Thankfully, Google is making a simple home theater setup with its new Google Home Speaker, which lets you quickly pair your speakers with your Google TV Streamer for a quick surround sound system without all the wires or wall anchors. This is a great option for anyone with less space to work with, or even just as a temporary solution for any reason.

The best smart speakers from Sonos and Amazon have had this capability for quite a while, but Google is finally joining the crowd with its latest speaker, the 2026 Google Home Speaker.

What's it like using a Google Home Speaker with a TV?

The 2026 Google Home Speaker upgrades the Nest Mini and Google Home Mini audio experience with a taller design and larger audio components, delivering significantly better bass and sound quality. It also uses 360-degree drivers, which can help create a virtual surround sound system with two speakers.

Traditional surround sound systems typically require you to hook up an amplifier and run wires for speakers that you'd normally mount on a wall or ceiling. Lots of people (including me) opt for soundbars for this reason: they usually connect to your TV, include a subwoofer, and sometimes add a second set of speakers for the rear channels.

All of these solutions generally require running audio wires, whereas a Google Home Speaker only requires a power cable. While the Google Home Speaker is the easiest solution in this set of options, it also comes with some caveats.

Compared to a traditional surround sound system or a soundbar, the Google Home Speaker won't have the booming bass of home theater systems, since it doesn't include a dedicated subwoofer. That might be better in a community housing situation (like an apartment), or in smaller living spaces.

While you can pair two Google Home Speakers with a Google TV Streamer, this only provides stereo sound with virtual surround options. It's not a true surround sound system since it doesn't have three or more speakers, so the overall quality and immersiveness of a traditional surround sound system will be missing.

That being said, this is a great option for simplicity's sake, to save space, and to reduce setup time, especially if you're not a person who enjoys running cables. If you pair only one Google Home Speaker with your TV, I recommend placing it under the TV or on a shelf at the front of your room. With two speakers, you have a bit more freedom to place them around the room.

Pairing a Google Home Speaker with your TV

To get started, you'll need at least one Google Home Speaker (two is best), plus a Google TV Streamer. I'll assume for this guide that you've already plugged in and set up your Google Home Speaker for regular use. If you haven't, go ahead and do that, then follow along with the guide:

1. On your Google TV Streamer, press the Home button, then select the Quick Settings option at the top of the screen.

2. On the pop-up window, select Audio output from the list of tiles.

3. In the audio output window, select Connect another device.

4. In the Remotes & Accessories section, select Google speakers from the list, then select Getting started.

5. A list of Google Home Speakers on your account will appear in the next window. Select all the speakers you want to use for TV audio output, then click Next.

6. Once setup is complete, all connected Google Home Speakers should appear in the Google speakers section of the Remotes & Accessories menu.

Now that youre Google Home Speakers and Google TV Streamer are connected, they will automatically connect and be used any time your Google TV Streamer is powered on.

Fixing audio latency issues with a Google Home Speaker and Google TV Streamer

Sometimes, when using wireless audio, you'll find that the image on the TV doesn't match the audio coming from your speakers. This is more than just annoying, as it makes it difficult to watch anything. Thankfully, Google has a simple built-in tool to fix this problem:

1. On your Google TV Streamer, press the Home button, then select the Quick Settings option at the top of the screen.

2. On the pop-up window, select All settings at the top.

3. Select the Remotes & Accessories section.

4. Select the Google speakers option.

5. Select the offending speaker from the list, then select Audio video sync.

6. Follow the on-screen instructions to adjust the audio latency to match the audio with the bouncing ball.

Using an older Google Home or Nest speaker as a surround sound system

If you're not willing to shell out $200 for a pair of new Google Home Speakers (and I can't blame you for that), your existing Nest or Google Home speakers can serve a similar function, but it'll likely require a bit more tweaking.

All Google Home and Nest speakers support Bluetooth, so you can pair them with your TV or preferred streaming device to enjoy higher-quality audio than the TV can provide. Bluetooth could have quality, range, and audio latency issues, but let's get things set up first before we assume those things:

1. Open the Google Home app on your phone.

2. Select All devices from the list (it's the 4-square grid icon).

3. Find your speaker in the list and tap it.

4. Tap the settings cog at the top of the screen.

5. Select Audio from the list.

6. Select Paired Bluetooth devices.

7. Tap Enable pairing mode at the bottom, then select the speaker from the audio section of your TV or streaming device.

Since every TV or streaming device is different, I can't walk you through how to find the audio section on those, but it's likely under system settings, audio, then Bluetooth or wireless audio. If you need to adjust audio latency, your TV or streaming device should have options for it in the same section.

Whichever method you use, Google Home and Nest speakers are a great way to add higher-fidelity audio to a TV without running wires, which can make a big difference in your TV experience.

Google's Nest Mini speaker was announced alongside the Pixel 4, which should give you a good idea of how old the speaker is at this point. While smart home speakers were never designed to be updated annually the way phones are, the Nest Mini's hardware is showing its age in the Gemini era. Most commands take a notable amount of time to process, and since the audio quality was never top-tier to begin with, it's likely you're considering an upgrade by this point, anyway.

That's where the Google Home Speaker comes in. Google has dropped the Nest name for its latest speaker, going all-in on Gemini integration and a powerful new speaker system. At $99, it's twice the price of the Nest Mini when it launched, and while it's certainly an excellent upgrade for every Nest Mini owner, there might still be a few reasons to keep that Nest Mini in the right room.

Google Home Speaker (2026) vs. Nest Mini: Design

My favorite Nest Mini feature was, undoubtedly, the mounting hole on the back. This ingenious little dimple lets it be hung on any wall, discreetly adding a speaker to any room you want. Whether you had the cord hanging freely (as in the picture above) or you got more professional with it and hid it, the Nest Mini was a great addition to any room.

The Google Home Speaker doesn't have this mounting hole, so it's not easy to hang on a wall, but it's a great addition to any shelf or nightstand thanks to its homey texture and colors. It uses a similar textile look to the Nest Mini, plus the same LED volume adjustment buttons on top and a thick rubber nonstick pad on the bottom to keep it from sliding or being bumped around.

You'll also find a hardware mute switch on the bottom of both speakers, so you can feel confident in your privacy if you just want these to act as speakers (and not a Gemini-powered assistant).

While talking to the Nest Mini, an array of LEDs lights up on top to let you know it's listening or processing a command. The Google Home Speaker spruces this up a bit with an LED ring on the bottom, which features a unique glow that's more obvious than the Nest Mini, which is particularly important since it tends to blend in well with decor on shelves.

Both speakers feature poor choices for power cabling, which is more than just annoying. The Nest Mini featured a proprietary barrel plug, which meant you needed to buy a new charger if something happened to it. The Google Home Speaker uses a USB-C charging brick, but the cable is hardwired into the speaker, so you'll likely have to buy a whole new one if something happens to this one.

Both wires are about the same length (~6.5 ft), and since they're either proprietary or non-replaceable, you'll have to choose a location close to an outlet or extension cord.

Google Home Speaker (2026) vs. Nest Mini: Sound quality and connectivity

Although Nest Mini's sound quality was an improvement over the original Google Home Mini speaker, neither model offered stellar sound. They were simply too small for that. The Google Home Speaker substantially upgrades the audio quality this time around, and it does so without drastically altering the speaker's footprint.

That's because, while the Google Home Speaker is about twice as high as the Nest Mini speaker (42mm vs 86mm), it's also about the same diameter (96mm vs 106mm). That's a very easy size to stuff into a bookshelf or a similarly small space (as evidenced in the photo above).

The Google Home Speaker also features an omnidirectional 58mm full-range audio driver, delivering 360-degree audio that sounds great no matter where the "front" of the speaker is. Nest Mini features a similar 360-degree design, but the 40mm driver and substantially lighter weight (181g vs 408g) mean the Google Home Speaker's bass quality simply sounds better.

Both speakers support the Google Cast protocol and multi-room speaker capability, so you can cast nearly any audio source to them, but the Google Home Speaker supports Google's new surround sound mode. That lets you connect multiple Google Home speakers to your Google TV streamer for surround sound while watching TV, giving you a great way to ditch the soundbar (or an older wired audio system) for something chicer.

The Google Home Speaker also supports faster wireless connectivity via Wi-Fi 6 (Nest Mini is Wi-Fi 5), better Bluetooth quality via Bluetooth 5.4 (vs Bluetooth 5.0 on Nest Mini), and full support as a Thread hub for Matter connectivity.

That last part ensures that the Google Home Speaker is a better choice for smart home connectivity, as it allows newer smart home devices to connect through a local Thread network for faster local commands.

Google Home Speaker (2026) vs. Nest Mini: AI capabilties and specs

Nest Mini was launched as a mostly cloud-centric computing device, often offloading even the most basic commands to Google Assistant in the cloud. Over time, as Google has migrated many commands to Gemini, Nest Mini has started to feel slower and slower.

The Google Home Speaker was built to help fix this problem, but it doesn't do it quite as well as I had hoped. The newer 2.0GHz CPU with a built-in NPU is designed to process more tasks and commands locally, but my experience with the speaker has shown that Google still offloads many commands to the cloud.

This results in a speaker that executes many commands fast (and some near instantly), but some commands are still absurdly slow. Even simple commands, like setting a timer, might take 20 seconds or more to execute if something goes awry. While this is likely just a bug happening with the Google Home Speaker at launch, it still shows that Google isn't keeping as many commands local as I'd like.

Since both devices support Gemini, there's no functional difference in these speakers' ability to use Google's AI-powered assistant. The difference is mainly down to speed, something I hope Google will continue to improve and tweak in the new speaker with future software updates.

Google Home Speaker (2026) vs. Nest Mini: Which should you buy?

While newer isn't always better (especially when it's double the price), Google no longer sells the Nest Mini. You could always pick up a second-hand unit on eBay and try your luck, especially if you just want a little speaker to hang on a wall.

Otherwise, the Google Home Speaker is an easy choice. It's got substantially better audio quality, support for Matter and Thread, Wi-Fi 6, newer Bluetooth for better audio quality, surround sound support with Google TV Streamers, and a better processor for faster smart home and Gemini queries.

Google is relaunching its smart speaker ecosystem for the "Gemini era," as it has stated so many times with recent products. While I'm not fully convinced this new speaker is a truly revolutionary Gemini-powered speaker when compared to existing Google and Nest speakers, the overall quality of the Google Home Speaker is a great value for $99.

Whether you're looking for a new music-playing speaker that understands basic commands or want an extra speaker to enhance your smart home, this is a solid choice with some annoying software issues that will hopefully be cleared up in the near future.

Google Home Speaker price, availability, and specs

The 2026 Google Home Speaker is the first smart speaker from Google that's designed "from the ground up for Gemini." It's the first Google speaker to include a proper NPU for AI processing, an upgrade over ML processors in the past few Nest releases. It retails for $99 and comes in two colors globally — Hazel and Porcelain — while U.S. customers can also choose from Berry or Jade varieties. My review unit is Jade.

Google includes 6 months of Google Home Premium for free (a $60 value) when you purchase a Google Home Speaker before September 30, 2026.

Mostly the right priorities

For the past few years, Google has used the Nest brand name for its smart speakers, but I've rarely called them that. Whether it's the Nest Mini or one of the Nest Hub smart displays, my household always refers to them audibly as the Google speaker or the Google display.

Because of that, I think it makes a lot more sense to keep using the Google name as the proper brand, and I know I'm not the only person who calls their smart speaker "Google" something or other. Thankfully, Google rectified the name without ruining the excellent design and the sort of feng shui character of the Nest line of smart speakers.

The 2026 speaker is still clad in homey fabric that looks graceful and unobtrusive on a shelf. It's the ideal size between the tiny Nest Mini and the gargantuan Google Home Max speaker, with appropriately sized audio components. It's even got a cute little glowing light underneath that makes it feel more like you're talking to a smart little robot than mumbling into a speaker.

But I don't understand why Google speakers seem to almost always have some weird issue with the power cables. Earlier models used barrel plugs and proprietary chargers, creating unnecessary e-waste. This model uses a standard 30W Google USB-C charger, but the cable is hardwired into the speaker, meaning you'll either have to splice it when it eventually breaks or toss the speaker and buy a new one. Dumb.

Since it's slightly smaller than the Nest Audio speaker (yes, there have been a lot of options over the years), the audio quality won't be quite as good, but the Google Home Speaker's advantage is that its speaker is omnidirectional. Depending on how you want to mount it, this could make a big difference.

You can also use the Google Home Speaker in conjunction with a Google TV Streamer to create a surround sound setup, which is a great feature I'm glad Google finally adopted from Amazon Echo and Fire TV devices.

I'm not exactly an audiophile and don't care much about top-notch sound, so I found these speakers ideal, as they're a notable upgrade over the Nest Minis I have around the house. Nest Audio fans should stick with those unless they have issues with using Gemini.

And while "built for Gemini" should be the actual upgrade for the Google Home Speaker over any other Nest or Google speaker, my experience with it has been extremely inconsistent. If I ask it to turn the lights on or off, check my cameras, or even what the weather will be like next week, responses generally take about 1 second to process. This is much faster than the other Google speakers in my house, for the most part.

But some commands are bizarrely slow. Setting a timer, for example, often takes 20-25 seconds of processing time before I receive an "OK, setting a timer" response. Asking it to add bananas to my grocery list also takes 5-10 seconds. This bizarre behavior persists through reboots, so I don't know what to make of it. Clearly, the speaker isn't doing as much local processing for simple commands like this as I had hoped. Google is aware of the issues (as I'm not the only one experiencing them), and I will update this review if they are resolved.

This is particularly annoying because all of the other features I've used over the past week have been great. Gemini allows you to chain multiple commands together or even express complex commands, while Assistant can only do one at a time. For example, you can ask it to "turn off all lights except for the bedroom light," a command I issue nightly as I tuck in for reading time.

This isn't particularly unique to this new speaker since Gemini has been rolled out to even the oldest 2016 Google Home speaker (which is still in operation in my house), but this speaker is certainly going to be supported for years to come, while those older speakers will eventually receive an end-of-life update.

At some point, Google had locked down several features behind the annoying Voice Match feature. I don't want to use Voice Match, but I (and others in my house) do want to check my calendar, and Google finally allows users to do that on its smart speakers.

This speaker also seems to actually understand commands, including simple ones like "stop" when a timer is going off, while I swear half my other speakers ignore my commands half the time. Maybe time will also turn this one into a pretty paperweight, but it's pretty great for the time being.

Should you buy it?

The 2026 Google Home Speaker is a generally good little product that delivers great audio quality in a compelling design, with a virtual assistant that seems to actually understand you. Processing time is strangely lengthy for some simple commands (like setting a timer), but this is almost certainly a bug rather than a product defect.

If Google can reduce processing time for some commands, this will be my go-to speaker recommendation for the future. Gemini has been excellent for smart home commands in my experience, and far more understanding of every other type of command than Assistant has been for the past half-decade, and that's really all I want out of a smart speaker, anyway.

What you need to know

• Google Home Speaker users have reported a glaring issue: their device's assistance has become incredibly sluggish.
• Other users have experienced the same; however, this latency problem appears to affect more than the Home Speaker, as other Nest devices struggle, too.
• Google has responded to this thread, stating a fix is being worked on "ASAP."

Google's latest smart speaker got off to a fast start, but users are reporting anything but good news, as problems emerge.

Earlier this week, reports surfaced on the Google Home subreddit from a user with a Home Speaker (via Android Police). The root of their report is that their Home Speaker has weirdly become sluggish. They say that the "First day all was smooth... the second day every single question (even 'hello') needs at least 30s of answer time." Troubleshooting provided no such relief from this issue.

Users started flowing into the thread, stating that others with the Home Speaker are having the same problem. The publication spotted another thread from a user that blows this problem wide open. It's not just a Home Speaker issue, but rather a Google smart home issue that's affecting a range of its products. The user says, "Everything is timing out."

They add that their smart home devices are all struggling with delayed or sluggish response times. Resetting has seemingly offered no aid in solving the issue. One user said, "Definitely noticed this since the update. Especially for simpler tasks which used to be snappier, eg turn on the light, change to warm white, set 50%." A subsequent report says they haven't noticed anything timed out, but rather their streamed content (like music) is stopping midway.

Google has become aware of this smart home problem. A community member says the company is "working on a fix ASAP." There's no clear timeframe for when we could see this, so users will have to tough it out as best as possible.

Updates were made to do the opposite

It's interesting to see users bring up the fact that the Home Speaker "used to be" snappy with its response times for mundane tasks. Google rolled out an update for Gemini's home assistance in March, quickening its responses by ~30% to ~40%. This patch reduced the latency between the user giving the task and Gemini responding to it/following it.

Google's smart speakers were brought into the spotlight a week ago, as the company fixed a long-standing SiriusXM radio problem. Users had been receiving errors with SiriusXM on their smart speaker, stating, "I looked for that, but it either isn't available or can't be played right now." SiriusXM would work via the user's phone, just not on Google's smart home devices. All is seemingly well now after Google's patch.

Deals on wireless earbuds are hardly uncommon, but finding a discount that drops 50% off one of my favorite models? That's when I really start paying attention. This week only, Best Buy's 4th of July sale is carving half off the Momentum 4 True Wireless earbuds by Sennheiser, knocking the price of the top-rated buds down to only $149.99.

These are some of the best wireless earbuds we've ever tested, with Sennheiser's famously versatile sound profile, some powerful active noise cancellation (ANC), and a comprehensive suite of handy customization features. The Momentum 4 earbuds may be a few years old at this point, but slap on a 50% discount and they become an absolute steal. 

• Best Buy's 4th of July sale is LIVE: see the full list of deals

We gave the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4 a near-perfect review back in 2024, and it isn't hard to see why. The earbuds sound great right out of the box, with support for plenty of hi-res audio codecs (including SBC, aptX Adaptive/Lossless, and AAC), plus you get ANC, wireless charging support, and up to 30 hours of battery life when you use the included charging case. 

Speaking of the charging case, that's one of the best parts of the package here, sporting a high-quality tweed finish that feels like pure luxury next to the plastic stuff we usually have to deal with. The Sennheiser Smart Control app also lets you fine-tune the sound from your earbuds directly from your smartphone, letting you experiment with a variety of EQ settings, ANC transparency modes, and more.

Now, let's be real: given their age, I would no longer buy these earbuds at full price. There are plenty of newer noise-cancelling earbuds by companies like Bose or Sony that will do the job better in 2026. But now that the Momentum True Wireless 4 are sitting with a 50% discount at Best Buy, the prospect of buying some last-gen buds is more appealing than ever before. These Sennheiser buds have stood the test of time, and for $150, they're an incredible bargain. 

What you need to know

• Motorola's new Moto Tag 2 arrives in North America with Bluetooth 6.0, UWB support, Google Find Hub integration, and over 500 days of battery life.
• It adds Find My Phone, remote camera controls, location sharing, IP68 durability, privacy protections, and support for third-party accessories.
• The Moto Buds 2 Plus are getting new looks with Swarovski-studded Brilliant Collection and new Pantone color options while keeping the same hardware.

Motorola’s connected ecosystem is getting a little boost, but only one of its latest accessories is actually new. The company is bringing the all-new Moto Tag 2, an upgraded Bluetooth tracker that includes newer wireless technology, longer battery life, and tighter integration with Google's Find Hub network, to North America along with fresh color options for the Moto Buds 2 Plus.

In North America, the Moto Buds 2 Plus are available in the eye-catching Brilliant Collection, which pairs a PANTONE Violet Indigo finish with Swarovski crystals, or a more understated PANTONE Cool White. There is also a Canadian PANTONE Silhouette option available.

The Brilliant Collection includes 12 Swarovski crystals embedded in each earbud, plus another 41 hand-placed crystals around the Motorola logo on the charging case.

The styling is new, but the hardware is the same. The Moto Buds 2 Plus still have Sound by Bose tuning, dual 11mm dynamic drivers with Knowles balanced armature drivers, Hi-Res Audio support, Spatial Audio on compatible Motorola phones, and Dynamic Active Noise Cancellation. Transparency Mode and six microphones with CrystalTalk AI also return to enhance calls and keep users aware of their surroundings when necessary.

Motorola hasn't skimped on features, either. Bluetooth 6.0, dual-device connectivity with auto-switching, wear detection, customizable EQ, Bass Boost, low-latency Gaming Mode, Audio Share, Fit Test, and Motorola AI integrations are still present on compatible devices.

Battery life is rated at up to nine hours on the earbuds alone, or up to 40 hours with the charging case, with a quick 10-minute top-up delivering up to two hours of listening. The earbuds also boast an IP54 rating, while the charging case comes with an IPX2 splash resistance rating.

Pricing hasn’t changed much either. The Swarovski Brilliant Collection edition is priced at $200 in the US, while the PANTONE Cool White version is $150. Availability begins June 30 through Motorola’s online stores.

The bigger announcement is the Moto Tag 2. Motorola's new Bluetooth tracker includes Bluetooth 6.0 with Channel Sounding and supports Ultra Wideband (UWB) on compatible Android phones, helping you locate lost items more accurately.

It also works with Google’s Find Hub network, so Android users can find tagged items through the crowdsourced network of devices.

Motorola is also emphasizing practicality. The Moto Tag 2 runs for more than 500 days on a user-replaceable CR2032 battery, carries an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance, and works with Android 9 and newer devices.

In addition to basic item tracking, it has Find My Phone, remote camera controls, location sharing, unwanted tracking alerts, and end-to-end encryption and works with third-party accessories. Those additions make it more versatile and address growing privacy concerns around Bluetooth trackers.

What you need to know

• Recently, the World Power Consortium held a Qi Off-Cycle meeting at Xiaomi's HQ in Beijing, China.
• Xiaomi and several more companies were there to discuss a new Qi2 charging standard: 50W.
• The major talks have concluded, but there's more work to be done, and it's been reported that Qi2 50W might not debut until 2028.

Times are changing, and it looks like the World Power Consortium (WPC) wants to upgrade Qi2 to match what consumers are looking for.

It was reported by ITHome (Chinese) that the WPC's Qi Off-Cycle meeting at Xiaomi's HQ in Beijing, China, was to discuss the future of the wireless charging standard (via 9to5Google). Specifically, Xiaomi is spearheading the future of Qi2 by chasing a 50W charging standard. The publication reports that Xiaomi is focused primarily on "small inductance, low voltage, high power solutions" (machine-translated). Each of these is said to directly influence safety/charging efficiency, coil module loss, and more.

In short, what this new 50W direction wants to solve is "high-powered wireless charging."

The publication states that the meeting featured Xiaomi, as well as "over 20 companies" that have been working alongside it and the WPC to advance the Qi2 wireless standard. The companies met in Beijing to talk about Qi2's 50W "interoperability verification" and to highlight the prototype testing stage. These companies have been encouraged to continue working together to push 50W through, so the market (and consumers) can see it in their future phones.

However, there's nothing official just yet. Right now, what Xiaomi and its partners have been working on is just the groundwork. It's been reported that following Xiaomi's partnerships with domestic companies, Qi2 50W could be a reality by 2028.

25W was almost a year ago

Let's not forget that in July 2025, the WPC announced Qi2 v2.2.1. The version numbers equates to the wireless charging we have today: 25W. The WPC highlighted this new version as being "more powerful" than the original Qi2. A primary critique from consumers about wireless charging is its speeds. They're slow. The latest 25W version aimed to solve that, but it hasn't quite nailed that yet.

Charging speeds were previously stuck at 15W, and now they're 25W. However, if Xiaomi has anything to say about it, things won't stay there for long. It's not satisfied with 25W charging, and consumers aren't either. At the time, iPhones were among the first to bring this to its consumers, with Android makers adopting it soon after. There's a chance we'll see a similar occurrence whenever Qi2 50W arrives.

The WPC was also confident that even more Android phones would see Qi2, and that's thanks to Google and Samsung.

It's no secret that SSDs and other storage devices are absurdly expensive right now, and it doesn't seem like that's changing any time soon. Fortunately, Prime Day gave us a few solid deals on portable SSDs and other storage devices, and even though that sale has officially come to a close, there are still a few leftover discounts hanging about.

One of my favorite leftover deals is this offer that slashes 38% off the 1TB T9 SSD by Samsung, knocking the price of the storage device down to $179.99 for a limited time. Up until Prime Day, the 1TB SSD was floating around $250, so this is no small discount — it essentially amounts to $0.18 per gigabyte. And the best part is that, unlike many of the official Prime Day deals we saw last week, you don't need to be a Prime member to enjoy the savings.

Whether you're a photographer, musician, or business professional, if you're dealing with large files on the go, the Samsung T9 is the ideal companion. This compact device boasts read-and-write transfer speeds of up to 2,000MB per second, plus you get regular firmware updates with AES 256-bit password protection and a high-end thermal cooling system that keeps your SSD running smoothly, no matter how heavy the usage.

The SSD is also built from durable materials and has been drop-tested from up to 9.8 feet in height, so you can take it with you anywhere without worrying about the safety of your most important files. If something does go wrong, Samsung also offers a five-year warranty.

Indeed, the Samsung T9 is a powerful storage device for on-the-go file management, and this is a good price. If you're planning to upgrade your storage setup this year, I'd recommend jumping on this deal before Amazon's leftover Prime Day deals expire. After all, the current RAM crisis isn't going away any time soon, and if you miss this discount, you'll likely have to wait until Black Friday to save this much cash on a portable SSD by Samsung.

More deals - quick links

• Phones: major savings on Pixel, Samsung, and beyond
• Wearables: up to 50% off Garmin, Galaxy Watch, and Fitbit
• Tablets: Galaxy Tab, Kindle, and Amazon Fire tablets from $50
• Chromebooks: discounts on ASUS, HP, and Lenovo
• Smart Home: up to 60% off Alexa devices
• Headphones/earbuds: huge discounts on Beats, Sony, and more
• Smart TVs: cheap smart TVs from $69.99

What you need to know

• Google states a fix is rolling out late in June for a bug that impacted several of its smart speakers and SiriusXM radio.
• Users given multiple errors a month ago, when reports surfaced, and were unable to get their content to stream via a speaker.
• While this issue gets resolved, Google's also debuted its new Home Speaker and expanded Gemini for Home to more partners.

Google has been busy with new launches and bug fixes since May. This week, it's been reported that a major fix is on the way for a satellite radio problem.

About a month ago, users on the Google Home subreddit reported a sudden problem attempting to listen to SiriusXM radio on their smart speakers (via Android Authority). Getting down to brass tacks, Google responded to this month-old thread this week, stating "We've resolved an issue impacting the ability to stream SiriusXM on some Google Home devices." These "issues" Google refers to were highlighted by the thread's OP (original poster), who states their smart speakers were unable to stream any content.

Specifically, the user states their device would consistently give them the following error: "I looked for that, but it either isn't available or can't be played right now." They checked their Google Home settings and ensured their SiriusXM subscription was properly linked. Spoiler alert: everything was fine. Further investigations showed that they could listen to the radio via the app, just not through their speakers.

Many more reports on the subreddit stated similar issues. After contacting Google Support, users were told to run through normal troubleshooting procedures. Many users already said they did this on their own, to be fair. However, through these reports, Google acknowledged it was an issue, at least that's what users said after contacting support.

Now, over a month later, a fix for the radio issue is coming through for Google Home smart speakers.

New speaker on the block

In the time that these issues were reported, Google launched the Home Speaker, its future of smart speakers and AI assistance at home. For $99, the Home Speaker is the brand's first device built completely around its AI, Gemini. The AI is capable of understanding normal speech, meaning users don't have to constantly remember and throw buzzwords around. The AI can act on multi-step commands, and users can engage in follow-up questions to keep their conversations going.

Since Gemini is so tightly integrated, we all know what that means: Gemini for Home is at its core. When Google expanded its availability to more countries, the company improved Gemini's response times by 40%. What's more, it improved the AI's ability to understand what device users are talking to about to (hopefully) avoid mistaken commands. On a related note, Google opened Gemini for Home to hardware makers and carriers.

This means consumers will likely see more devices hitting the market that support Google's AI natively.

A good pair of earbuds is fairly easy to find, but finding a good pair of affordable earbuds can be a challenge. The Pixel Buds 2a are surprisingly good for their price point, which makes this Prime Day deal even better, bringing the earbuds down to their lowest price since launch.

The Pixel Buds 2a are less than a year old, launching in August 2025 and hitting stores in October for a retail price of $129. There have been a few price dips since then, but now you can get them for just under $100.

• Prime Day returns June 23-26: see the full list of deals

✅Recommended if: You own a Pixel smartphone and/or want an affordable pair of earbuds with good sound, great ANC, and a sweat-resistant design.

❌Skip this deal if: You don't own a Pixel smartphone or you want earbuds with support for higher-quality audio codecs.

I've been using the Pixel Buds 2a for some time, and despite them being the epitome of everything I don't like about many earbuds today, I can't seem to put them down. I even own the Powerbeats Pro 2, which I bought specifically for the gym, but before I go out, I grab the Pixel Buds 2a.

A big reason is that, despite their low price point, the audio quality is surprisingly good, and ANC does a great job of blocking out most noise, especially at the gym. They're also incredibly light, fit well in my ears, and are sufficiently sweat-resistant, so I don't have to worry about them during runs.

They may not support high-quality audio codecs like higher-end earbuds, but I'm no audiophile, so I'm content with how they sound. And if you're willing to spend just $99 on a pair of great earbuds, these are the ones.

Over-ear headphones can get expensive quick — I routinely test models between the $400 and $600 price points. If you're on a budget, going with an on-ear pair of headphones can be an excellent way to save without sacrificing quality. On-ear headphones come with perks of their own, like lightweight designs and secure fits.

Beats Solo headphones have been the default for on-ear headphones for years, and the Solo 4 model is $100 off for Prime Day. For a limited time, these headphones are just $99.95 on Amazon, meaning you're technically saving more than you're spending (by five cents). I've tested the Beats Solo 4 personally, and found a handful of ways they beat more expensive headphones.

• Prime Day 2026 ends TONIGHT: see the full list of deals

✅ Recommended if: you need a secure pair of on-ear headphones; you want headphones with week-long battery life; you value a USB-C port and 3.5mm jack for lossless audio.

❌ Skip this deal if: you prefer over-ear headphones; you have more to spend and would rather upgrade to the Beats Studio Pro (only $50 more for Prime Day).

The difference between on-ear and over-ear headphones is simple. On-ear headphones, like the Beats Solo 4, have ear cushions that rest directly on your ears. They're typically smaller and lighter, with a higher clamping force, as a result. This makes headphones like the Solo 4 ideal for working out, where you don't want to have over-ears slipping off your head during a lifting session.

By comparison, over-ear headphones like the Beats Studio Pro fit your ear inside the cushions, which some find to be more comfortable. I tend to like over-ear headphones, but the tradeoffs are size, weight, and price.

The Beats Solo 4 stand out among the competition with numerous connection methods. You can use them wirelessly with iOS and Android, and there are physical power, play/pause, next/previous, and volume up/down buttons. Better yet, there's both a USB-C port and a 3.5mm jack for wired connections.

The USB-C port can be used for charging, and when fully charged, the Solo 4 last for up to 50 hours. If they die, the 3.5mm jack supports fully analog mode — you can use them with an aux cable without power. The USB-C port can also be used for wired audio. You have a ton of options, and the two wired modes support lossless audio.

It's worth noting that the Beats Solo 4 lack active noise-canceling, and this cost-cutting measure helps them cost so little. If you can look past that, these are a surprisingly great pair of headphones for slightly under $100.

All Prime Day 2026 - quick links

• Phones: major savings on Pixel, Samsung, and beyond
• Wearables: up to 50% off Garmin, Galaxy Watch, and Fitbit
• Headphones/earbuds: huge discounts on Beats, Sony, and more
• Smart Home: up to 60% off Alexa devices
• Tablets: Galaxy Tab, Kindle, and Amazon tablets from $50
• Smart TVs: cheap smart TVs from $69.99
• Chromebooks: discounts on ASUS, HP, and Lenovo

I became a Powerbeats user with the Powerbeats2 Wireless — they came out 12 years ago — and I've used every model released since. The Powerbeats Pro 2 are the most well-rounded workout earbuds yet, and I bought two pairs of the Nike collab for $250 each for me and my sister.

I don't regret spending that much on them, but I'm happy to report that you can get them for $70 off during Amazon Prime Day. At only $180, these sporty earbuds pack a ton of features. They share internals with the AirPods Pro 2 and the AirPods Pro 3, but work just as good on iOS as on Android.

I've run thousands of miles with Powerbeats earbuds in my ears, and they're the only ones I'd recommend for fitness buffs as we kick off summer.

• Prime Day 2026 ends TONIGHT: see the full list of deals

✅ Recommended if: you need a pair of workout earbuds with a secure fit and ear hooks for stability; you want earbuds that can move between iOS and Android easily; you value on-earbud controls, like playback and volume buttons.

❌ Skip this deal if: you don't like the Powerbeats Pro 2's large design; you want earbuds with a smaller charging case.

The feature that always sold me on Powerbeats is their included ear hooks. These wrap around your ear, ensuring that even if the ear tips slip out, the Powerbeats Pro 2 won't fall out of your ear. Another great perk is the physical volume rocker and play/pause button. No one wants to fight with gesture controls in the gym or on the track with sweaty hands.

With the Powerbeats Pro 2, I don't have to. And both the left and right earbuds have the physical buttons, so I can wear just one without missing out on features. This is great for safety, as I stay aware of my surroundings while I run. Since the earbuds have ANC and transparency mode support, I can also use the latter to maintain awareness while working out.

Beats is owned by Apple, but it's worth emphasizing that the Powerbeats Pro 2 work just as good on Android as iOS. They get a companion app on Android, and every feature is available across both platforms. In fact, if you've always wanted AirPods but needed better Android support, these are the earbuds to get. The Powerbeats Pro 2 share the same Apple H2 chip as the AirPods Pro 2.

And, the Powerbeats Pro 2 have the same optical heart-rate monitor as the AirPods Pro 3. That's right — you can use these earbuds to track your heart rate during workouts without needing a smartwatch or chest strap, pairing them to your Android phone.

It's clear that they were built from the ground up with fitness buffs in mind, and that's why I love them as a runner. At $180, they're a no-brainer if you love to work out.

All Prime Day 2026 - quick links

• Phones: major savings on Pixel, Samsung, and beyond
• Wearables: up to 50% off Garmin, Galaxy Watch, and Fitbit
• Headphones/earbuds: huge discounts on Beats, Sony, and more
• Smart Home: up to 60% off Alexa devices
• Tablets: Galaxy Tab, Kindle, and Amazon tablets from $50
• Smart TVs: cheap smart TVs from $69.99
• Chromebooks: discounts on ASUS, HP, and Lenovo

I test every mainstream pair of wireless earbuds that come out, and my buying advice is simple: grab the pair that matches your phone. More often than not, it really is that easy. If you have an iPhone, get AirPods. If you have a Samsung Galaxy phone, get Galaxy Buds. Google Pixel users are lucky enough to get the Pixel Buds Pro 2 — they're not just the best for Pixel, they're one of the best wireless earbuds overall.

While most premium earbuds start at $250 and up, the Pixel Buds Pro 2 are just $229 at full price. That makes this Amazon Prime Day deal feel too good to be true. You can snag the Pixel Buds Pro 2 for only $160, and every Pixel user should consider it.

• Prime Day 2026 ends TONIGHT: see the full list of deals

✅ Recommended if: you want small and comfortable earbuds without a stem; you have a Google Pixel phone and want companion earbuds; you want incredible wireless audio under $200.

❌ Skip this deal if: you need physical on-earbud buttons (the Pixel Buds Pro 2 use swipe gestures); you're on a budget and would rather get the Pixel Buds 2a (also on-sale for Prime Day)

Most wireless earbuds on the market today offer great sound, and many bundle exclusive software features you only get with a matching phone. That's why the Google Pixel Buds Pro 2 go great with, say, a Pixel 10 Pro. I've used the Pixel Buds Pro 2, and there's one thing that makes them stand out among the competition.

It's their comfort. While many earbuds are chunky or feature long stems, the Pixel Buds Pro 2 are minuscule by comparison. They are 27% smaller than the original Pixel Buds Pro, and they're also 24% lighter. Better yet, they have an included stabilizer that keeps the Pixel Buds Pro 2 locked in place.

Google did something clever to let you know when you've found the perfect fit: the "G" logo on the Pixel Buds Pro 2 will be upright when they're twisted in place. I have AirPods and Galaxy Buds slip out of my ears all the time, and that's never happened with the Pixel Buds Pro 2.

At their $160 sale price, these earbuds are priced like a base-model pair, with the specs of a flagship. They have a custom Tensor A1 audio processor to handle sound and active noise-cancelation. They can also do spatial audio and multi-device switching, connecting with Google Find Hub for tracking.

I don't think you'll find a better pair of wireless earbuds at this price point — but this deal won't last forever. Prime Day ends today, so move fast.

All Prime Day 2026 - quick links

• Phones: major savings on Pixel, Samsung, and beyond
• Wearables: up to 50% off Garmin, Galaxy Watch, and Fitbit
• Headphones/earbuds: huge discounts on Beats, Sony, and more
• Smart Home: up to 60% off Alexa devices
• Tablets: Galaxy Tab, Kindle, and Amazon tablets from $50
• Smart TVs: cheap smart TVs from $69.99
• Chromebooks: discounts on ASUS, HP, and Lenovo

You've got only 12 hours left to shop some of the best Prime Day deals, and I was curious to know what the top-most clicked items Android users have been buying were. So I found them and compiled a list for you. These products range from chargers to storage devices to phones, wearables, and even a huge TV.

They are clearly popular because they have been flying off the shelves, and you guys have been buying them. So if you're having a bit of FOMO and need to know what to buy, check out one of these nine products that are highly recommended... by YOU!

• Prime Day ends TONIGHT: see the full list of deals

Amazon has officially confirmed that Prime Day 2026 will be begin on June 23rd and run through June 26th. This means that you have four full days to take advantage of the members-only sale event.

Do I need to be a Prime member to shop during Amazon Prime Day?

Although select discounts may be available to the general public, the vast majority of deals during Prime Day are exclusive to Amazon Prime members. Haven't joined yet? Sign up for Amazon's 30-day free trial to enjoy all of the benefits of a Prime membership without paying a cent. The cost of a membership is $14.99 per month once the trial period is up, but you can cancel at any time with zero hassle.

More Prime Day 2026 - quick links

• Phones: major savings on Pixel, Samsung, and beyond
• Wearables: up to 50% off Garmin, Galaxy Watch, and Fitbit
• Tablets: Galaxy Tab, Kindle, and Amazon Fire tablets from $50
• Chromebooks: discounts on ASUS, HP, and Lenovo
• Smart Home: up to 60% off Alexa devices
• Headphones/earbuds: huge discounts on Beats, Sony, and more
• Smart TVs: cheap smart TVs from $69.99

Google just released the Home Speaker, its first smart speaker in half a decade. It's a small device designed with Gemini at the core, but it's not very impressive as a speaker. A single, tiny full-range driver is responsible for all the sound. Luckily, if you want a smart speaker with high-quality audio chops, you can get the Amazon Echo Studio instead for just $75 more than the Home Speaker during Prime Day.

Amazon's Echo Studio is an impressive smart speaker. It has large audio drivers with Dolby Atmos support, an integrated mesh Wi-Fi extender, and complete Alexa support. This device really does it all, and the Echo Studio justifies its price tag. It's an easier sell for Prime Day, as you can get the Echo Studio for only $175, saving 20%.

• Prime Day 2026 ends TONIGHT: see the full list of deals

✅ Recommended if: you need a smart speaker with sound that can fill your living room; you want Dolby Atmos and spatial audio support; you value a smart home controller with a built-in mesh Wi-Fi extender.

❌ Skip this deal if: you don't have a lot of Amazon Echo or Matter accessories; you want Gemini or Siri instead of Alexa.

Too many smart speakers skimp on sound quality, but the Echo Studio doesn't make that mistake. This speaker includes three full-range drivers and a 3.75-inch high-excursion woofer. There's software support for lossless audio, spatial audio, and Dolby Atmos. Everything you'd need from a living room or home theater speaker is here. You can even pair two of them together to create a stereo set for room-filling sound.

The Echo Studio uses four microphones to ensure it picks up your voice, even when music is playing. Alexa is the voice assistant, and you can subscribe to get the upgraded Alexa Plus version.

Another neat Echo Studio feature is the built-in Wi-Fi mesh extender. You need an Eero router to use it, but if you have one, the Echo Studio can add up to 1,000 square feet of extra coverage for up to 10 connected devices. It also has Zigbee, Matter, and Thread support, so the Echo Studio can be the centerpiece of your smart home.

The Google Home Speaker's sound quality is somewhat disappointing, and if you're looking for something better, the Amazon Echo Studio is a great alternative. For only $175 until time runs out, you can't beat this smart speaker's feature set.

All Prime Day 2026 - quick links

• Phones: major savings on Pixel, Samsung, and beyond
• Wearables: up to 50% off Garmin, Galaxy Watch, and Fitbit
• Headphones/earbuds: huge discounts on Beats, Sony, and more
• Smart Home: up to 60% off Alexa devices
• Tablets: Galaxy Tab, Kindle, and Amazon tablets from $50
• Smart TVs: cheap smart TVs from $69.99
• Chromebooks: discounts on ASUS, HP, and Lenovo

Need a place to keep your phone on your desk while you work? Why not get a stand that wirelessly charges it as well? This magnetic stand from Anker supports 15W Qi2 and MagSafe wireless charging, so you get to recharge your phone without ever plugging it in. And thanks to this final day Prime Day deal, you can score a sweet 20% discount on the Anker MagGo 15W Qi2 Wireless Charger Stand.

Magnets are really great on stands or mounts because you don't need to mess around with clamps, arms, and all that nonsense. And now that magnetic Qi2.2 is catching on in the Android space, iPhone users aren't the only ones who can enjoy the perks of MagSafe products.

• Prime Day June 23-26: see the full list of deals

✅Recommended if: You need a wireless charging stand that is magnetic, adjustable at multiple angles, and supports 15W speeds.

❌Skip this deal if: You want a stand that comes with another charging pad on the base. If that's the case, I recommend getting the slightly pricier Anker MagGo 2-in-1 15W Qi2 Wireless Charger Stand instead, which is 30% off right now.

The Anker MagGo 15W Qi2 Wireless Charger Stand has really powerful magnets, so you can even use the charger with a slim MagSafe or Qi2 case on. Anker promises a speedy 15W wireless charging speed nonetheless.

Since you can rotate your phone a full 360 degrees, you can easily mount it in landscape or portrait orientations. It also tilts, to the point that you can make the mount completely flat, like an elevated pad facing upwards, to charge non-magnetic accessories like earbuds.

The Anker MagGo 15W Qi2 Wireless Charger Stand uses Anker's dependable ActiveShield 2.0 technology to intelligently monitor and manage the temperature of the charging stand. Anker says it measures the device temperature up to 3,000,000 times per day and has built-in protections to help guard against voltage spikes, overcurrent, and overheating.

To add even more reassurance, Anker includes a 24-month warranty. The only thing missing here is a wall charger, but you can use any of your USB-C chargers lying around at home that you use to charge your phone.

If you would like to purchase a dedicated charging brick to go with the stand, Anker's fantastic little Nano Pro 20W charger is just $11.99 on Amazon.

No one likes bad Wi-Fi connections. In fact, the only thing I hate more than slow Wi-Fi is spending money on networking gear. I get it — there are a million things you'd rather spend your money on before Prime Day runs out than a new router. But if you're tired of buffering, connectivity issues, and slow speeds, that's exactly what you should buy.

After years of using the router provided by my ISP, I upgraded to the Google Nest Wi-Fi Pro. I had tons of Android and Google Home or Nest devices, so buying a router with the smarts to tie the entire ecosystem together made sense. Now, you can get the Nest Wi-Fi Pro for just $85, saving nearly $115 compared to the usual retail price. It's a no-brainer if you need a Wi-Fi 6E router and are invested in the Android or Google ecosystems.

• Prime Day 2026 ends TONIGHT: see the full list of deals

✅ Recommended if: you need a reliable mesh Wi-Fi system; you want Wi-Fi 6E speeds; you have a Google Home or Nest ecosystem and want your router to fit in.

❌ Skip this deal if: you have internet speeds faster than 1Gbps from your ISP; you need a router with more Ethernet jacks.

There's a lot to like about the Google Nest Wi-Fi Pro, starting with its simplicity. It's just an orb-shaped, plastic Wi-Fi 6E router with a power cord and two Ethernet jacks. One is used for the Ethernet cable coming from your modem, and the other can be used to connect other devices to your network. You can even hook up an unmanaged Ethernet switch to add ports to your Nest Wi-Fi Pro.

The subtle design and stylish colorways allow you to place the Nest Wi-Fi Pro anywhere in your home. You manage it through the Google Home app, just like your other Nest devices. They all work together nicely. For instance, I can ask my Nest Hub display to run a speed test for my Nest Wi-Fi Pro, and see the results on the screen.

Google uses software optimization to help your Nest devices run better on networks powered by Nest Wi-Fi Pro. For example, it says that you can get a "stronger live connection to your Nest Doorbell and faster 4K streaming on Chromecast with Google TV." I personally use a Nest Doorbell Battery and two Nest Cam Indoor cameras in my home, and they all run great thanks to the Nest Wi-Fi Pro router inside.

The best thing I can say about the Nest Wi-Fi Pro is that after upgrading to it, I haven't had to think about my Wi-Fi. It just works, and when there's an issue, it lets me know before my ISP can. If you struggle with Wi-Fi issues too, this is the $85 fix you need for Prime Day.

All Prime Day 2026 - quick links

• Phones: major savings on Pixel, Samsung, and beyond
• Wearables: up to 50% off Garmin, Galaxy Watch, and Fitbit
• Headphones/earbuds: huge discounts on Beats, Sony, and more
• Smart Home: up to 60% off Alexa devices
• Tablets: Galaxy Tab, Kindle, and Amazon tablets from $50
• Smart TVs: cheap smart TVs from $69.99
• Chromebooks: discounts on ASUS, HP, and Lenovo

A lot of the recent innovations in power banks have been around Qi 2 charging tech. There's a decent amount of choice if you need a good power bank, and I use the Baseus Picogo, which just got a discount and is down to $28 right now.

The Picogo is a 10,000mAh power bank, and it has a sleek design with powerful magnets that let you attach it to your iPhone and Pixel without any issues. I used this model with my Pixel 10 Pro XL and iPhone 17 Pro, and after a year of use, I didn't see any issues whatsoever.

✅Recommended if: You want a Qi 2 MagSafe power bank that's lightweight and reliable in daily use. The Picogo power bank has a 10,000mAh battery, Qi 2 with 15W charging, and a USB-C port that hits 22.5W when you need to plug in.

❌Skip this deal if: You need Qi 2.2 with 25W charging. In that case, get the Baseus Picogo AM52, which is now $52.

There's a lot to like with the Picogo power bank. The 10,000mAh battery is enough to charge a phone fully, and I really like the design; the metal chassis makes it durable, and the Qi 2 magnets are strong — they attached to my iPhone and Pixel without any problems.

With Qi 2 connectivity, you get 15W charging, and while it's on the slower side, it is adequate while traveling as the power bank stays connected to the phone. This is a big advantage over regular power banks, and the size and weight of the Picogo gives it an edge over its rivals.

There's a dedicated USB-C port that goes up to 22.5W, and this is useful if you need to plug in a secondary device to the power bank. Note that while the power bank has a 10,000mAh battery, it doesn't mean you'll be able to charge your phone twice over. Because of charging efficiency and the inherent energy that's lost while charging your phone, you'll get close to 5,500mAh of actual usage power out of the Picogo, and that is in line with other power banks in the industry.

If you need Qi 2.2 with the full 25W charging, you'll want to get the Picogo AM52. It has the same design and the same 10,000mAh battery, and the magnets are the same as well. The biggest difference is that it's able to deliver a 25W charge consistently, and I found that to be a decent enough differentiator when I need to charge my phone. But because of the newer standard, the AM52 costs a lot more — you'll be shelling out $52 to get your hands on the power bank.

Honestly, the regular Picogo should be more than adequate for most, and the best part is that it is now available for under $30, making it a good overall option.

In between summer travel and beach parties, I'm gonna be spending a lot of time relaxing in the comfort of my own home. I love listening to music, and since I've been meaning to upgrade my setup after moving into a new space, something as cool as the new Sony PS-LX3BT Wireless Bluetooth Turntable seems to fit the bill! It's the perfect mix of old-school and new, with a classic yet modern turntable design, and right now it's at its lowest price for Prime Day, making it the perfect opportunity to buy one.

The Sony PS-LX3BT Wireless Bluetooth Turntable was launched just this year and normally retails for $398, which is a bit above my price range (for most things). At $150 off, you're now paying just under $250 for this rather impressive turntable, which feels like quite a steal.

✅Recommended if: You want a modern turntable with Bluetooth out capabilities as well as support for wired audio connections.

❌Skip this deal if: You don't have a vinyl collection nor plan to build one up.

I've been eyeing turntables for a few years now, and have even started buying vinyl records... just in case.

One of the biggest reasons I want this particular model is that it supports Bluetooth output. For some reason, many turntables only support Bluetooth in, where you can stream music to the player from your phone, but that kinda defeats the purpose of even having a record player. Having Bluetooth out means I can connect the Sony PS-LX3BT Wireless Bluetooth Turntable to my Bluetooth speakers, though it also supports wired audio with a built-in cable and even has a switchable phono EQ.

The turntable features automatic playback, and the tonearm can raise, lower, and return to its resting position on its own. It also supports 33⅓ and 45 rpm speeds, so just about all your vinyl records should play just fine.

But of course, I'll also want a new speaker to go with it, and that's where the Marshall Stanmore III comes in, featuring big, booming sound, plenty of connection options, and a classy design that will fit any home. And whatd'ya know; it's also on sale!

Public USB charging ports are convenient, but they're not always something you should rely on, especially at airports. That's exactly why this Baseus Prime Day deal caught my attention. Amazon has knocked 29% off the Baseus PicoGo AM52 MagSafe Power Bank, bringing it down from $80 to just $57.

At its original $80 price, the PicoGo AM52 felt a little too expensive for a power bank. But at $57, it's much easier to recommend. And that's not just because it supports MagSafe or packs a 10,000mAh battery, it's because it solves a few annoyances that most other power banks simply ignore.

• Prime Day is back June 23-26: see the full list of deals

✅Recommended if: you want a power bank with a built-in USB-C cable, MagSafe support, a slim design, and a 10,000mAh battery.

❌Skip this deal if: you need a much larger battery capacity or you're simply looking for the cheapest power bank possible.

The timing of this deal is actually pretty good. Last year, the TSA warned travelers about the risks of juice jacking at public USB charging stations. Whether you worry about that or not, charging from an airport USB port also means you're stuck sitting next to it while your phone charges.

That's exactly where the PicoGo AM52 makes sense. What originally launched as a premium $80 accessory is now much easier to justify at $57.

What really sets this power bank apart is the built-in USB-C cable. You don't have to remember to pack an extra cable every time you travel. On top of that, it's fully MagSafe compatible, so you can snap it directly onto the back of an iPhone or Pixel 10 series device.

If you're using a MagSafe-compatible case with a Galaxy S26, it'll work there too. And when you need faster charging, just plug in the built-in cable, which supports up to 45W output, plenty for most smartphones.

The PicoGo AM52 also includes an additional USB-C port if you want to use your own cable or charge another device. There are a few other nice touches as well, including a small charging status display and a premium metal construction that makes it feel much more expensive than many plastic power banks.

At $57, it's really hard to find faults in the PicoGo AM52 portable charger. If you've been looking for a travel-friendly power bank that already has everything built in, this is probably one of the better Prime Day deals you'll find.

More Prime Day 2026 - quick links

• Phones: major savings on Pixel, Samsung, and beyond
• Wearables: up to 50% off Garmin, Galaxy Watch, and Fitbit
• Tablets: Galaxy Tab, Kindle, and Amazon Fire tablets from $50
• Chromebooks: discounts on ASUS, HP, and Lenovo
• Smart Home: up to 60% off Alexa devices
• Headphones/earbuds: huge discounts on Beats, Sony, and more
• Smart TVs: cheap smart TVs from $69.99

I think the thing I freak out about most while traveling is not having enough charge on my devices, especially on long-haul flights. Even though most flights have some kind of charging port, I still feel like I need the right portable battery-saving devices to keep things fully charged.

Incoming Anker, literally the only brand I trust with my life for keeping my things always charged. When I was introduced to the brand, I was literally shocked by how powerful its products are and how sleek its designs are.

But picking the right Anker charger, cable, or even powerbank can be overwhelming. I've curated 11 of the best Anker products to consider taking on your next trip.

How to pick the right charging accessories

When looking for charging tech, it's important to know your phone's charging specs. Most phones in the U.S. top out at 60W wired charging, especially if you're using a Samsung Galaxy or Google Pixel phone, so you should be able to take advantage of faster charging depending on your device. Motorola and OnePlus phones usually support fast charging, so you'll want something that can charge at over 60W.

Also make sure your power bank has enough capacity to adequately support your device. If your phone has a 5,000mAh battery, aim for a power bank with at least 10,000mAh so you can get a full charge and then some.

Finally, cable specs are also important to consider. Not all cables are made the same, and some support faster speeds than others. If you can find a cable that supports 100W or more, go with that.

Prime Day is a great time to stock up on gifts for the second half of the year. And if you've been looking for a useful tech gift under $30, you may not need to look any further. Anker's 45W Smart Display Charger is currently 35% off, bringing it down to just $26.

With more smartphone brands ditching chargers from the box, a compact fast charger is already a practical gift. But Anker has added a few thoughtful touches that make this one stand out from the usual wall adapter.

• Prime Day is back June 23-26: see the full list of deals

✅Recommended if: you want to see real-time charging speeds, like the idea of a built-in display, or need a travel-friendly charger with a foldable plug design.

❌Skip this deal if: you need more than 45W charging or want a charger with multiple USB-C ports.

When we first saw this charger at CES 2026, it immediately stood out because of its design. The plug folds through 180 degrees, making it much easier to fit into awkward wall outlets or tight spaces. It's a small design feature, but one that makes it especially handy for frequent travelers.

The other standout feature is the built-in LCD display. Instead of just being another plain charger, it shows the real-time power your device is drawing while also displaying a small animated character that gives it a bit of personality. It's a surprisingly fun little touch that makes the charger feel more premium than its price suggests.

Thankfully, it's not just about looks. The charger supports up to 45W fast charging, which is more than enough for iPhones and most Android phones sold in the U.S. It can also recognize different iPhone models, including the iPhone 15, 16, and 17 series, and adjust charging accordingly.

The only real downside is that it includes just a single USB-C port. Personally, though, I'd rather have one port capable of delivering the full 45W than two ports splitting that power between multiple devices.

Right now, the blue version is available at 35% off on Amazon. If you'd rather match the charger to your phone or just prefer a different color, Anker is offering the same discount across the other color options on its own website as well.

More Prime Day 2026 - quick links

• Phones: major savings on Pixel, Samsung, and beyond
• Wearables: up to 50% off Garmin, Galaxy Watch, and Fitbit
• Tablets: Galaxy Tab, Kindle, and Amazon Fire tablets from $50
• Chromebooks: discounts on ASUS, HP, and Lenovo
• Smart Home: up to 60% off Alexa devices
• Headphones/earbuds: huge discounts on Beats, Sony, and more
• Smart TVs: cheap smart TVs from $69.99

Your phone overheating is more likely to happen with the unforgiving summer heatwaves happening of late. Overheating not only slows down your phone, causing lags, but it can also potentially cause your phone's lithium ion battery to catch fire or explode in extreme scenarios.

Beat the heat and prevent thermal throttling issues on your smartphone with the right cooling accessories. Something as simple as a cooling fan or a thermal case can prevent your phone from having a meltdown — literally.

Thanks to Prime Day, you can save a lot of money on summer essentials like these phone coolers. Don't waste time making up your mind, though, because these deals end tomorrow!

• Prime Day returns June 23-26: see the full list of deals

Black Shark FunCooler 5

Black Shark used to be Xiaomi's gaming sub-brand. I have reviewed many of their gaming phones and accessories before and found they have incredibly good value for money. The brand's phone coolers in particular are insanely good at what they do, freezing down boiling temperatures in seconds.

The Black Shark FunCooler 5 has a cooling fan, RGB lights, and really strong 12N magnets, so you can attach it to the back of your phone magnetically. Any MagSafe, Pixelsnap, or magnetic Qi2 device should be able to use it natively. You can also use a magnetic adapter ring to make it work for non-magnetic phones.

PHOOZY Apollo Thermal Phone Case

If you watch Shark Tank, you might have spotted the PHOOZY Apollo Thermal Phone Case on the show. This clever contraption is a thermal phone case that reflects light, deflecting heat and insulating the internals. This keeps your phone nice and cool while sealing the heat outside.

The PHOOZY Apollo Thermal Phone Case features military-grade water resistance, so it's the ideal companion for beach visits and poolside hangouts. You can choose between Gold and Silver colors, and there are two sizes: medium and large.

TORRAS PolarCircle Qi2 Wireless Charger

When looking to eliminate heating issues on your phone, why not get an accessory that does multiple things at once? The TORRAS PolarCircle Qi2 Wireless Charger is a 15W Qi2 wireless charger that not only cools your device using a fan, but it also recharges it wirelessly.

There's even a stand built into the back of the TORRAS PolarCircle Qi2 Wireless Charger which has a sturdy rotating a ring-like shape. And since the cooling accessory is powered by USB-C, you don't need to worry about charging it or buying a separate cable for it.

Whether it's for the FIFA World Cup or vacation, plenty of people are traveling this summer. But if you're new to international travel, one thing to keep in mind is keeping your tech powered up, and that means remembering to pack the essentials. That includes charging bricks, adapters (because different places use different plugs!), cables, and more. Sounds like a lot, but Prime Day helps ease the stress on your wallet.

I'm going to be traveling soon, and my charging stache needs a big upgrade. Fortunately, Anker has just about everything anyone could need when traveling abroad, and all of it is on sale right now for Prime Day. I've already highlighted one portable power bank that I recommend for just about any time you leave the house, but here are some additional charging accessories that I'm putting in my cart.

• Prime Day returns June 23-26: see the full list of deals