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The Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro have been available for purchase for a couple of weeks now, but as with so many gadgets these days, they can be difficult to find. Even if you can spot some in stock, finding the right storefront to buy from is a challenge in and of itself — especially as retailers and carriers throw deals, bundles, and countless trade-in offers your way.
Several Google Pixel 6 customers have received their pre-orders early, sharing first impressions
Looks like most of them are happy with their purchase
The Pixel 6 and 6 Pro went up for pre-order right after the Made by Google event on October 19th. The devices are scheduled to launch on October 28th, which is also when those who managed to place their pre-orders early should get their units. However, several customers have already had their Pixel 6 or 6 Pro delivered to them days ahead of the launch day.
You might get your Pixel 5a pre-order early
Some shipment notices are showing earlier estimates than its release day
If you can't wait to get your hands on Google's latest mid-range smartphone, have we got some good news for you. Just as with last year's model, the Pixel 5a seems to be arriving on customers' doorsteps earlier than expected, and with two days to go until its official release date, you could find yourself among one of the lucky chosen ones.
Samsung's Galaxy Buds2 aren't even out yet, but they're already $25 off
At this price, why wouldn't you pre-order?
Alongside a couple of folding phones and a shiny new watch, Samsung announced the Galaxy Buds2 last week, its latest entry in an ever-growing lineup of wireless audio. If you're in the market for some new headphones, you don't have to wait until their official release date next week. Woot already has them featured as a daily deal, offering $25 off the usual price.
Phantom Green Galaxy Z Fold3 is back with more pre-order delays
Gotta act fast if you want that snazzy green folder
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Demand for Samsung's new folding phones is understandably quite high, and it looks like in some cases that demand may be exceeding availability. Before Samsung's event had even ended, some versions of the Z Fold3 were already selling out at Samsung's site for pre-order. And while we've seen more stock appear to open up, rapidly changing availability suggests that you'd better act fast if you want to secure your order.
Wyze announces Buds Pro with ANC, then teases an even cheaper set
The Buds Pro will cost $60 and ship in July
Wyze has made a name for itself by selling dirt-cheap stuff that works surprisingly well, notably security cameras, lightbulbs, and other smarthome gadgets. It's recently expanded into more mobile-adjacent tech, including a full-sized set of noise-canceling headphones. The next logical step for the company is in the exploding segment of true wireless earbuds, and so here we are: the Wyze Buds Pro.
Xiaomi's new fitness tracker is up for pre-order in the US for less than the cost of a video game
And the Mi Smart Band 6 is better for you, anyway
Xiaomi makes some great gear for budget-minded users, but finding it in the western hemisphere can sometimes be a problem. It looks like that won't be an issue for the company's latest fitness tracker. The Mi Smart Band 6, announced precisely one month ago, now has its own listing on Amazon's US store. It's a few cents shy of $60, and it's shipping out on May 18th. The Mi Smart Band 6 packs in quite a lot of value into just sixty bucks. It does the usual 24-7 heart rate monitoring with 50 atmospheres of water resistance, the better to stick with you during a sweaty workout or a shower. But it also has an Sp02 meter, the more advanced variation of a light-emitting sensor that can measure the amount of oxygen in your blood. That's still something of a premium feature — for example, FitBit's entry-level tracker the Inspire 2 doesn't do it, despite its $100 MSRP.Unfortunately, it looks like Amazon is only selling the black silicone band at the moment, and the international model lacks NFC. The merchant claims it's a licensed Xiaomi reseller, though we've only got its word for it.The Band 6 uses a 1.56" vertical, full-color OLED screen, which it boasts is 40% larger than the last model, while maintaining an impressive two weeks of battery life. The Xiaomi Mi Fit app can measure thirty different fitness activities, track sleep, and forward notifications to your wrist. The app can sync fitness data to Google Fit, too.The Band 5 got serious praise when we reviewed it last year, even if its best feature was its rock-bottom price tag. The new model is $10 more (at least on this listing), but with its more advanced sensor and bigger screen, it seems like a fair bump.Buy: AmazonVia: XDA
Amazon's latest Fire HD 10 tablets are now finally optimized for Zoom
You'll have to pay up for wireless charging or an ad-free experience
Amazon's tablets aren't meant to set the world on Fire, but they're probably some of the most popular on the planet thanks to low price tags and integration with the company's retail empire. It's been about a year and a half since the 10-inch version got an upgrade, but today Amazon is taking pre-orders for the new Fire HD 10 and Fire HD 10 Plus. In terms of physical design, the refreshed Fire HD 10 now places its front-facing camera in a landscape position instead of portrait. It also moves the speakers to the bottom edge, giving the entire package a more conventional design for tablets of this size. Amazon says this is better for video conferencing. It keeps the same 10-inch, 1080p display as the previous model and a similar 2.0GHz octa-core processor, but boosts RAM up to 3GB. That's still on the low side for any Android device these days. Amazon says the body is thinner and lighter, with a stronger aluminosilicate screen that's 10% brighter.Thankfully Amazon kept the USB-C charging added to the last model, which isn't a given with tablets at this price point. Storage is either 32GB or 64GB, plus whatever you can fit in the MicroSD card slot. The 10 HD starts at $149.99 for the 32GB model, coming in black, denim, lavender, and olive color options. Yes, that price is "ad-supported," and it'll cost you $15 to get rid of them.The HD 10 Plus keeps a more or less identical physical design, but boosts RAM up to a welcome 4GB and adds Qi-compatible wireless charging. Wireless charging is a rare feature on tablets, but Amazon started including it on some premium models last year, because it makes it easy to turn them into Alexa smart displays with the sold-separately dock. Previously the 10-inch tablets needed an adapter case for wireless charging; now it's built-in, like the Fire HD 8 Plus. The Plus model also gets a "premium" soft-touch finish. The Fire HD Plus has the same storage capacity, but that RAM boost is worth it for a $30 price bump.In addition to the $50 wireless charging dock (made by budget brand favorite Anker), Amazon is also selling both tablets in a "productivity bundle," which comes with a Fintie wireless keyboard and a year of Microsoft 365, starting at $220 for the base model Fire 10 HD. Both tablets are up for pre-order on Amazon now, shipping on May 26th.
Amazon's new Echo Buds might actually be worth buying
They add ANC, wireless charging, and (wait for it) USB-C, with a price cut
Amazon introduced its self-branded true wireless earbuds, the Echo Buds, a year and a half ago. The big deal at the time was its direct integration with Alexa, but for the company's second go-round, they're piling on the extra features to make the headphones more competitive in a matured true wireless market. The new model is up for pre-order on Amazon today, delivered by May 13th. Physically, the redesigned Echo Buds are about 20% smaller and more rounded, now with Amazon's "smile" logo right on the outside in an only-slightly-conspicuous shade of black or white. The charging case has been redesigned: less like a tray and more like the case of the AirPods Pro. Said case has new wireless charging powers, at least if you shell out a few extra bucks for the upgrade. The charging case now uses USB-C for wired charging — the MicroUSB port was one of our biggest gripes with the original design.In terms of sound quality, the major upgrade is active noise cancellation, still a premium feature in most headphone lines. This will be Amazon's first try at the tricky noise reduction technology, so we'll have to see how the second-gen Echo Buds with their enhanced triple microphones stack up to competitors like Apple and Sony.Of course the integrated Alexa voice control is back: when paired to the app on your phone, the Echo Buds can work more or less the same as Amazon's smart speakers. It's specifically designed for voice controls for music playback and Audible audiobooks, though the Buds include conventional touch controls as well.Amazon claims 5 hours of battery life on a charge, with 2 extra full charges in the case for a combined total of 15. 15 minutes on a quick charge should give the Buds two hours of playback. The second-gen Echo Buds will retail for 9.99. That's $10 off the price of the originals, but you'll have to splurge $139.99 if you want the upgraded wireless charging case (which is not compatible with the older Buds).If you pre-order the Echo Buds you can take $20 off the price ($100/$120) and get six months of Amazon Music Unlimited for free. But don't be in too much of a hurry — Amazon's branded hardware goes on sale frequently, and we've got a Prime Day coming up.
Today is Galaxy S21 Day: Here are the deals still available on Samsung's latest flagship
Samsung Store trade-in values are the same 'for a limited time'
Though some units shipped early, formal availability for Samsung's new Galaxy S21 series starts today. That means "pre-order" is now "buy" at most retailers, and many of the early pre-order credit promotions are gone. However, trade-in values at Samsung's store remain pretty great, and you can still get $50-100 (or more) in store credit, plus a SmartTag.
The Samsung Galaxy S21 series will officially be available starting January 29, but some pre-orders have already shipped and are slated to arrive early — which shouldn't be a surprise if you've ever pre-ordered a smartphone. If you put down money towards the S21, be sure to check your mail and see if you're in for the early treat.
OnePlus Nord N10 5G and N100 come with pre-order goodies from B&H and OnePlus
There's up to $50 in value to be had here
OnePlus announced Nord N10 5G and N100 US availability a few days ago, and it turns out there are some pre-order bonuses being offered as well. Depending on which phone you buy and where you order from, you could end up with a $30-$50 gift card or a pair of wireless OnePlus earphones.
It may feel like years since Google's Launch Night In event, but it's actually been just under a month. Folks waiting since that reveal for the $500 4a 5G to go on sale have had to wade through reviews and editorials without the means to actually buy one — at least, here in the US. But as of today, pre-orders for the Pixel 4a 5G are now open.If you want our opinion, the 4a 5G is a better choice over even Google's $700 Pixel 5, packing the same chipset with a bigger (but less smooth) screen, the same cameras, and even a headphone jack. You give up on some features, like wireless charging, an IP rating, a couple gigs of RAM, and a better build quality, but we're not quite sure the differences there are really worth an extra $200.There is a $239 discount on the Verizon-exclusive and more expensive mmWave 5G model (on contract for 24 months, for new lines, etc.), but we don't think it's worth the extra hundred bucks over the sub-6 5G version, which is otherwise $500 when purchased outright. Pre-orders are available at multiple retailers, as well, so you aren't limited to purchasing from just the Google Store. And although Google offers a trade-in program, you're better off not using it.Google previously told us that phones would ship by November 19th, so you still have a wait ahead of you before the Pixel 4a 5G is in your pocket, but it's easy for us to recommend in the meantime.Buy: Google, Amazon, Best Buy, B&H Photo
You can already save $100 on a Samsung Galaxy S20 FE pre-order at these retailers
Snapdragon 865, 8GB of RAM, and a super smooth 120Hz display
The Galaxy S20 FE (Fan Edition) keeps the Snapdragon 865, 120Hz display, and triple-camera setup from the higher-end S-series phones while landing at a much more attractive price point. Samsung just unveiled the S20 FE earlier today, but it looks like you can already save $100 off the already-low $699 MSRP by ordering from retailers like Amazon, Best Buy, and B&H Photo.With a powerful 5G-equipped processor and 8GB of RAM, the S20 FE should fly through most everyday tasks. (That's right, these savings are on the higher-end model with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage.) It even has both wireless and reverse wireless charging so you can power up your Galaxy Buds right from the phone itself. And the 120Hz display makes monotonous social media posts more fun to scroll through.
Samsung shares Galaxy Tab S7 pre-order details, including 50% off keyboard cases
Pre-orders open September 2, ahead of September 18 retail availability
Samsung introduced the Galaxy Tab S7 and S7+ just about a month ago, its latest super-premium tablets for entertainment and productivity. With some high-refresh-rate screens and a new low-latency S Pen, there was a lot to like, leaving us wondering how shoppers would actually be able to get their hands on one. Today Samsung's finally sharing all the information you'll need about Tab S7 pre-orders.
Red Magic 5S pre-orders are open ahead of September 2 availability, starting at $579
You can also pre-order a cooling fan for your phone, too
The Red Magic 5G came out 4 months ago as Nubia's first 5G gaming phone. Today, the ZTE spin-off is at it yet again with a small iteration on the Red Magic 5G — the Red Magic 5S is available for pre-order right now.
Google's Pixel 4a was supposed to be formally available yesterday, but some folks that pre-ordered phones from Best Buy with the initial expectation of picking them up on launch day were out of luck. Reports from tipsters indicate Best Buy is pushing out the in-store pick-up dates for some Pixel 4a pre-orders.
Google clarifies that Canadian Pixel 4a buyers who opted for a trade-in won't be left without a phone
You won't have to use a landline or something in the meantime after all
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The Pixel 4a is undoubtedly an incredible value on the smartphone market right now, but its weakest point is still its maker — Google. The search giant has messed up the logistics so often in its relatively short existence in the smartphone space that we’ve frankly lost count. The brand-new Pixel 4a couldn’t avoid the inevitable either, but Google’s latest snafu sounds fresh; hear me out. The company is asking its Canadian customers to ship back their existing phones more than a week before the Pixel 4a is expected to reach them.
Weekend poll: Did you pre-order a Pixel 4a, Note20, or Note20 Ultra?
Did any of last week's new phones catch your eye?
This last week was pretty busy for smartphones. We got two major announcements almost back-to-back with Google's Pixel 4a and Samsung's new Note20 series. It's quite a spread, from midrange to literal "Ultra" flagship. While you can't zip down to the store and get one today, we're curious of any of our readers have pre-ordered either.
Samsung has opened reservations for "the next Galaxy," a pretty clear euphemism for the now much-leaked Galaxy Note20 series of phones. Pre-registering your interest today will snag you a $50 instant credit you can spend on Samsung's site for stuff like tablets, smartwatches PCs, and "select" accessories.