Review

I recently had the opportunity to test out the P7 Plus Standing Desk from Flexispot. I have been working from a stranding desk setup for years now and prefer it, so I was excited for the opportunity to set up my new office with a shiny new desk and see what Flexispot brings in terms of function and utility. As one of Fleixspot’s top-tier standing desks currently offered, the P7 Plus is rock solid and versatile, with a few added bonuses I haven’t had in the past. I just had some trouble putting it all together and have shared my thoughts below.

The holiday season is fast approaching, meaning it’s that time of the year when we put together some gift guides to help you pick the best for your friends and family. We already have a few guides in place for Apple lovers, musicians, and the like, and today, we’re looking at some of our favorite PC gaming upgrades to enhance your battlestation. From must-have accessories to deck out someone’s existing gaming setup to new gaming PCs and laptops to help set up a new battlestation this holiday season, we got you covered with recommendations and deals for all the PC gamers in your life. Head below to find a curated list of the absolute best gifts for those who enjoy playing video games.

We all know how difficult it can be to reliably tackle last-minute Christmas shopping, so here at 9to5Toys we are kicking off our first list of recommended gifts roughly one month in advance. Instead of going after big-ticket items, this selection is focused on affordable items that folks can benefit from each and every day. If this type of product is right up your alley, you should swing by our new Steals page and subscribe to our daily newsletter. In many regards, you can think of Steals as already-affordable everyday gear that’s now discounted even further. But enough about Steals, let’s dive in to our gift guide of everyday essentials priced from $7.

If you’re looking for some unique gifts for the special people in your life and unsure how to cross those names off your holiday shopping list, today we’ve got some of our favorite smart lighting gear that make perfect Christmas gifts. Nothing sets a mood like smart lights that can switch between a massive multitude of colors and effects, and with this lineup from popular brands like Philips Hue, Govee, Nanoleaf, and more – the enjoyment has near limitless possibilities for year-round usage. Head below to see some of our favorite picks and recommendations on how to upgrade your loved one’s lives with quality ambient smart lighting.

While we are still one week out from Thanksgiving 2024 and Black Friday proper, Amazon and other major retailers have jumped well ahead of schedule to launch massive Black Friday sales starting today. From new all-time lows across the latest lineup of M4 Macs, Apple Watch models, and AirPods, to thousands in savings on power stations, deals on the best e-bikes brands, the now live Anker Black Friday sale, and some of the most sought-after smart gear out there, the early Black Friday are now flying and you’ll find running list of favorites across all of these product categories and more waiting down below.

This is it folks, the official 2024 Amazon Black Friday Week deals are going live today. This year Amazon has decided it is kicking things off well ahead of Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday proper to launch a massive selection of price drops starting today, just as we previously reported – all of the deals will be live at 12:01 a.m. PT/3:00 a.m. ET on November 21 (today). It looks like this year we will be working around the clock for over a full week to ensure the best deals are front and center for everyone leading up to what, at least used to be, the main event. 

With so many retailers and brands kicking things off so early for the biggest shopping season of the year, we are touching down today with the best early Black Friday deals to shop right now. Best Buy has launched early doorbusters this week, we are tracking the best prices of all-time on Amazon’s popular 4K streaming sticks, we have MacBooks at up to $550 off, and the list goes on. Add in a massive $1,200 price drop on Samsung’s epic 55-inch 4K Odyssey gaming monitor, an all-time low on the latest GoPro, hundreds in savings on some of the best e-bikes in the game, and new lows on Anker power stations, and you’re looking at one of the best slates of early deals we have seen in recent memory. Head below to scope out our favorite early Black Friday deals you can score right now. 

Black Friday is one of the best times to upgrade your battlestation with huge savings on gaming laptops, desktops, and other gear from brands like Alienware, Samsung, Lenovo, and more. So for our next round of Best of Black Friday features, we’re diving into the most notable PC gaming gear. Retailers like Amazon, Best Buy, and Walmart are already running early Black Friday discounts and deals on pretty much everything from gaming monitors to smaller peripherals like SSDs, keyboards, and more. Today, we’re giving you a curated one-stop shopping list of our favorite PC gaming deals during the holiday shopping season, highlighting both the deals that are live right now along some insights on what to expect over the next few weeks. Head below for more details on the best Black Friday PC gaming deals.

We’re continuing our Best of Black Friday posts today with a look at the best current deals on power stations and their respective bundle options. Folks across the country and beyond have been steadily investing more and more in the industry for a variety of reasons – whether it’s for on-the-go travel needs, short-term off-grid support, or home backup when emergencies rear their ugly heads. Regardless of your needs, it’s a great time to get in on your starting or continuing investments with the major brands on the market offering some of the best deals of the year. On top of the massive discounts we’re seeing across the board, we’re also seeing plenty of bonus savings in the form of flash sales, additional savings after reaching certain purchase thresholds, and even free gifted gear. Today, we’re giving you a curated one-stop shopping list of our favorite deals during the savings season, with units from Anker SOLIX, Bluetti, EcoFlow, and Jackery. Head below to check out our favorite picks and also get links to the full sales.

Update 11/13: Google has now officially detailed its upcoming Black Friday prices – deals start November 21: Pixel 9, Pixel Watch 3, Nest, Fitbit, and more. Scope out the details right here.

For our next round of Best of Black Friday features, we are diving into the most notable gear in the Google ecosystem. While we will certainly being seeing deals across the Googleverse, including its latest Pixel tablets and Chromecast devices, this post is focusing in on its big-ticket latest releases, many of which are already seeing seriously notable price drops as Google attempts to get ahead of the Black Friday curve. Massive price drops are now already live on the Pixel 9 handsets, Pixel Watch 3, and the latest Pixel Buds Pro 2, not to mention its smart home gear, as we look ahead to hopefully seeing the first deal on the latest Google Nest Learning Thermostat (4th Gen). Head below for more details on the best Black Friday Google deals and more.

Our Best of Black Friday posts are continuing today with a focus on EVs. For many folks across the country, money is far too tight to justify buying a car for travel around town, while others are looking to specifically lessen their carbon footprint and find alternative commuting options – especially in areas that may not have robust public transport. Luckily, right now is the best time to shop as many popular brands have opened their seasonal savings events on e-bikes and e-scooters, some of them in full at the same time that others are gradually dropping deals in short-term flash sales leading up to November 29. We’ve got massive savings across many of the most popular brands, including Lectric, Aventon, MOD Bikes, Tenways, ENGWE, Heybike, and so much more – all collected together and curated for your one-stop shopping pleasure.

Our Best of Black Friday posts continue today with the prime time Apple gear. Just about all of the latest Apple gear will be on sale for Black Friday this year, in fact much of it already is. But we are touching down this afternoon to take stock of the best prices live right now, the deals we already know are about to go live starting next week, and where we expect prices to land. We are already seeing deals on AirPods 4 as well as AirPods Pro 2 at within $1 of the best price ever, but this post is going to focus in on the big-ticket Apple Black Friday deals – M4 MacBook Pro, M4 Mac mini, M4 iMac, Apple Watch Series 10, Apple Watch Ultra 2, and the iPad lineup. Scope it all out down below.

Black Friday is just around the corner, and we’re excited to help you navigate the sea of deals to find the best gaming monitor for your battlestation. Alongside loads of early deals now live down below, we are also here to provide some insight on what’s to come based on past trends and our coverage of 2024 Prime Day and the like. We’ll be keeping a close eye on the latest offers from major retailers like Amazon, Best Buy, and more, and we’ll also pay close attention to the offers directly from the online stores of various brands like Samsung, Dell, and more. Keep an eye on our Black Friday 2024 hub to stay updated on the best deals and avoid impulse purchases. Whether you’re looking for a high-refresh-rate monitor for competitive gaming or a wide-screen ultrawide for immersive gaming experiences, we’ll help you find the perfect monitor for your setup.

Our annual Best of Black Friday deals features are kicking off today with the upcoming Amazon offers. The 9to5Toys Best of Black Friday posts are designed to provide shoppers a better idea of what’s to come, some expert perspective on the sorts of prices you can expect to see, and to help folks avoid falling into the early deals too soon. The best prices on Amazon’s in-house tech almost always come courtesy of Amazon of course, despite being available at other retailers, so we aren’t sure exactly what the prices will be just yet, but we can offer up some insight on the sorts of discounts you can expect based our extensive coverage of the 2024 Prime Day deals and historical knowledge.

I love leather Apple Watch bands, it’s very much my thing, but I had been on the hunt for something that can provide that sort of timeless, elegant look that I can also wear for hours on end, in any condition, and during just about activity. Traditional leather bands can get a little bit cumbersome and uncomfortable for some folks after extended wearing periods, myself included and especially if its get’s hot or during workouts. So I just had put the waterproof hybrid leather and rubber Nomad Active Band Pro to the test to see if it actually was the solution I have been after. 

The growing number of 15W MagSafe charging stands out there is dizzying. It is becoming harder and harder for brands to differentiate themselves from the pack, but I think Journey has managed to pull this off, even if mostly in an aesthetic way, with its new NOVA 3-in-1 Fast Wireless Charging Station. And now it’s time to go hands-on to see if the price of entry is worth it. 

9to5Toys Steals is a new bite-sized deal format we are launching to enhance our highly-personalized and hand-curated coverage of the best deals across the internet. The 9to5Toys content we all know and love isn’t going anywhere – it’s more motivated and successful than it ever has been. 9to5Toys Steals is just a new way to expand our reach, highlight notable price drops in product categories we don’t already feature on a regular basis, and save you even more money.

Moment has been a staple brand around for years, delivering some of the better camera lens attachments in the game while accommodating them by way of its iPhone 16 Camera Case with the built-in Drop-In Lens Mount. It has been popular among readers for good reason, and it’s time to put its new iPhone 16 model to the test to make sure it’s up to par with the Camera Control button and Apple’s latest handset design. 

We’ve covered the new GoPro Hero 13 and the DJI Osmo Action 5 Pro, and now we’ve got the latest action camera from Insta360 – the Ace Pro 2 with 8K resolution, dual image-processing chips, and increased battery life. So, which is the best pick for moto-vlogging in 2024? Be sure to hit the video below to see all of the details. 

After getting a chance to go hands-on with the latest JBL Live Beam 3 recently, we are now diving into some hands-on impressions of the higher-end JBL Tour Pro 3. They certainly come at more of a premium, but we are also talking about one of the most feature-rich wireless earbuds experiences you can buy in the price range. Let’s jump to see if the $300 sticker tag is worth it. 

We have been covering the Peak Design Everyday canvas cases around here for at least a few years now, but this year it has introduced a whole new model made of a vegan Clarino Leather. How does it stand up against the bevy of vegan leather out there? Did the brand right its wrongs from last year’s Action Button mishap? The short answers are it’s very good and yes, it very much did. Scope out our hands-on impressions below.

There’s no shortage of Qi2 chargers on the market in 2024 and we’ve tested a bunch of them here at 9to5Toys, right from Anker’s MagGo 3-in-1 charging station from the first wave of these chargers to ESR’s 3-in-1 Qi2 charger more recently. While they all have different form factors and even multiple charging pads and ports for added functionality, none stand out the way UGREEN’s new Uno Qi2 2-in-1 charging station does with its unique design. I’ve been using it as my main charger over the last few weeks and it has won me over not just with its reliable charging but by adding a touch of personality to my desk.

Peak Design has built a reputation for developing photographer’s tools that translate to just about anybody, whether you’re carrying a camera or not. The company is now releasing a new series of outdoor bags specifically designed for photographers – or anybody – to get on the go with comfort, ease of use, and versatility. They have succeeded.

Atom Studios is a relatively new brand on our radar here at 9to5Toys, but after getting a chance to test out its recently-released lineup, we decided it more than deserved some limelight. While you will find some more traditional cases in its iPhone 16 collection, it is its iPhone 16 Agave Leather MagSafe Soft Snap case that really caught our eye. Head below for our exclusive discount code and our hands-on impressions. 

MUJJO, much like year’s past, was among the first leather case makers out of the gate when iPhone 16 was unveiled. I have been a fan of the brand’s leather treatments for at least a couple generations now, and with some new color options landing for iPhone 16, was excited to give them a test for 2024. While the initial run of these case had a Camera Control button that wasn’t up to the task, it has now re-issued with corrections, readied replacements for early adopters, and I am here to see if it all worked out.

Harber London, a brand well-known around here for creating gorgeous leather carriers and bags, unleashed its new All-Rounder MacBook Sleeve a couple months back, and now it’s time to weigh in after giving it a good test run. I have been and continue to be a huge fan of the brand’s bags – its Overnighter was just showcased in a recent 9to5Toys Travel Kit feature – but this time it is trading out some of the full-grain leather for a recycled fabric and we are ready to serve up our hands-on impressions. 

Today we are talking a hands-on look at the brand new Bose SoundLink Home Bluetooth Speaker. The combination home and on-the-go speaker immediately caught our eye at launch with the retro chic design, and now it’s time to see if its impressive looks and sound quality are worth the price of entry. Head below for our hands-on impressions of the Bose SoundLink Home Bluetooth Speaker in the latest edition of Tested with 9to5Toys.

Today Twelve South is unleashing its brand new MagSafe charging stand, the HiRise 2 Deluxe. Trading out the 3-in-1 setup available on its wonderful HiRise 3 Deluxe for a more compact and streamlined approach, the new HiRise 2 Deluxe delivers a magnetic charging stand for your iPhone with an additional Qi pad hidden in the base for AirPods or another handset. Now available for purchase starting today from Twelve South, we will detail the new release down below alongside some early hands-on impressions. 

The Arc Pulse has been one of the most popular options this year among 9to5 readers, bumper style or otherwise. It would seem more and more folks are looking to leave the Apple design and their color of choice on display while still trying to maintain some semblance of drop protection at the same time, and the Arc Pulse very much does that. But let’s dive in with some hands-on impressions to see how everything shakes out in practice. 

The 2024 Amazon Prime Day deals are now live as part of its fall Prime Big Deal Days event. The October sale is effectively the exact same thing as what we get during the summer sale – massive price drops across a broad range of categories from Apple, Samsung, and Google gear to Amazon in-house tech, smart home products, e-bikes, power stations, just about anything you could ever want for your PC gaming battlestation, charging gear, accessories, of all kinds, and so much more. We will be updating our 2024 fall Prime Day hub with the best deals as they go live over the next 48 hours, so be sure to head back over throughout the event’s duration as we uncover all of the most notable price drops live for this year’s Prime Big Deal Days. 

The best fall Prime Day smart TV deals went live early today (one day before the main event) with even more to come and this is the place to find them all in one place. That includes brands like LG and Sony as well as the value-packed 2024 models from Hisense and TCL alongside Amazon and other budget-friendly solutions. More and more folks are opting for these more wallet-conscious offerings, and frankly so have we as of late. We are already tracking massive deals on the 2024 LG OLEDs – one of the more popular solutions among folks who like to go big-time – alongside as much as $1,000 in savings on the latest from Hisense and TCL. Head below for our collection of the best Prime Big Deal Days smart TV deals and be sure to check back as even more go live over the next two days. 

Today we are going hands-on with the new UAG Civilian iPhone 16 Case. The brand is well known for its ultra-protective solutions for Apple’s handsets, but it is the mid-ranger Civilian that catches my eye first, managing to both offer a notable level of protection without looking (or feeling) like there’s a gigantic chunk of plastic around my phone. Let’s dive in down below with some hands-on impressions to see how this year’s model stacks up against Apple’s latest handset design. 

It’s time for a hands-on look at what might be the only “official” third-party iPhone 16 case with Camera Control (providing you don’t count Beats). We have seen models with the conductive button cover from SUPCASE and Spigen, but OtterBox seems to have had a more official connection to Apple with its implementation considering you can buy it direct from Cupertino’s stores, so let’s dive in and see if the OtterBox Lumen Series iPhone 16 case with Camera Control is any good. 

USB-C hubs have traditionally been functional but forgettable devices with little to no innovation or evolution in their design or utility over the years. UGREEN, however, has found a way to make the mundane USB accessory more interesting by adding a touch of personality and a cheerful face. Its new Uno 6-in-1 USB-C hub — just like the other accessories in its Uno series — offers a playful plugging experience with an LED panel that lights up with a smile when in use. I’ve been using the Uno 6-in-1 as my main hub over the last few weeks and I can finally report on whether this cheap and cheerful gadget is worth the cash.

Nomad’s 2024 iPhone case collection has once again been one of the more popular options among readers and staffers here at 9to5. Its full-wrap Traditional Leather iPhone 16 case is simply gorgeous, and my favorite so far. But now it’s time to look at something a little bit different, something perhaps for folks that like to live on the edge, confident they won’t bounce the edge of the iPhone 16 on the concrete, and those looking to let their new Apple handset shine in all its glorious titanium beauty…we are hands-on with the new iPhone 16 Nomad Magnetic Leather Back case today.

Today we are hands-on with the new Native Union iPhone 16 case collection, and more specifically the (RE) Classic 3.0. In my opinion, the brand has always found a way to stand out amongst the hundreds of case and accessory makers vying for your attention, but it’s now time to see how its latest iteration of the (RE) Classic holds up for iPhone 16 users in the latest entry to our Tested with 9to5Toys series.

Today, Sony is expanding its lineup of lauded audio gear with a pair of new LinkBuds Fit, the LinkBuds Open you see above we have had some early hands-on time with, and the new LinkBuds speaker. The brand has mades waves across the ultra-competitive headphones market with its XM4 and XM5 headphones and wireless earbuds, often times undercutting and, at least for some, outperforming the big-time offerings from Bose, Apple, and others, but today it is focused on the slightly more affordable LinkBuds side of its lineup. Some of the more unique in-ears on the market are getting a refresh for 2024 and are now joined by a new Bluetooth speaker with smart audio hand-off tech as well. 

Today we are serving up some hands-on impressions of the new Bowers & Wilkins Pi8 wireless earbuds. Complete with active noise cancellation and a charging case that features audio retransmission, the brand is well known for producing some of the better sounding audio gear out there, and it’s time to see if the new Pi8 buds are worth a lofty price of admission in the latest edition of https://9to5toys.com/guides/tested/.

Update: Burton Goods has now redesigned the Heritage case with a new 3/4 cutout, completely mitigating the issues I had with the original cutout. You’ll find more details here, and some additional images of the new cutout can be found below. 

Earlier this year Burton Goods made its worldwide debut with a range of absolutely gorgeous leather accessories for your Apple gear. Its leather M2 iPad Air and M4 iPad Pro covers were among the most popular we featured among readers, and now it’s time to go hands-on with the brand’s new Heritage Leather iPhone 16 Case as the latest entry to our venerable Tested with 9to5Toys series. 

Spigen unleashed its new iPhone 16 case collection with just about all of the usual models and styles folks familiar with the brand will already know…with one exception. With the introduction of the Camera Control button on iPhone 16, Spigen is now one of only a large handful of options out there that actually have a case that forgoes the cutout in favor of a button cover that is supposed to translate the multi-gesture action through to the phone. But at under $30 Prime shipped the question is, does it?

Nomad debuted its new iPhone 16 case collection shortly after the new Apple handsets made their first official appearance, and today we are taking our first hands-on look at one of them. The brand introduced a new model this year known as the Traditional Leather Case for iPhone 16 with a complete leather wrap around the sides and I was very interested the first time I laid eyes on it. So let’s dive in and see if this thing really is one of the best leather iPhone 16 case I have seen yet as part of our hands-on Tested with 9to5Toys series. 

While the first two editions of our new 9to5Toys Travel Kit series took us to the Big Apple and the swamps of Virginia and North Carolina, today we are focused on an overnighter wedding closer to home. The bulk of the event is going to be a lightweight affair and will only require a few things – suit, watch, some extras for the groomsmen, and an iPhone for the most part. But because I’ll be checking into a hotel room on the premises, I will need to put together a small kit with some must-have gear for an overnight wedding.

DJI has just released its latest action camera, the Osmo Action 5 Pro. Besides being the next numerical number, this generation also has “Pro” in its name. What gives is that Pro designation? DJI claims 13.5 stops of dynamic range and up to four hours of battery life. Combined with 47GB of internal storage, will it be my new favorite action camera for motovlogging? Stick around and watch the video below to find out. 

Satechi debuted its new Find My passport wallet alongside the rest of the tech industry’s IFA launches, and following a string of models from other brand’s leveraging Apple’s item tracking action. But with Satechi being among our favorite accessory makers out there, and it’s latest release coming along with one very useful feature we have yet to see much from the competition, we decided to get hands-on to give it a run for its money. Head below for our hands-on impressions.

The prebuilt keyboard market is filled with a lot of compelling boards at both budget and ultra-premium price points. While the budget ones leave out a lot of features in the name of cost-cutting, the premium offerings with features like gasket mounting and hefty aluminum chassis demand a prohibitive price tag. There’s a distinct lack of reliable keyboards in the mid-range space offering a good mix of features at a palatable price point, and that’s exactly what Varmilo hopes to change with the new Muse65 Hall Effect keyboard.

Last week Twelve South unleashed what it called the “world’s firs power supply with Apple Find My” with the latest iteration of its PlugBug wall charger. I was already a fan of the now discontinued original PlugBug with its slender, hug-the-wall form-factor, so I was immediately knocking on Twelve South’s (virtual) door to get my hands-on the new Find My model, because Find My is cool and I wish everything I owned had it to be honest. Head below for our hands-in impressions of the new Twelve South PlugBug with Find My in the latest edition of Tested with 9to5Toys. 

Welcome to the second edition of our new 9to5Toys Travel Kit series, and this time around, I’ll be heading down to the swamps of Virginia and North Carolina to visit family in the open window of my otherwise busy schedule (it probably doesn’t help that they are a solid 8 to 12 hours of driving away). There is one unfortunate hiccup, however…they are busy people too, and we’re visiting in the middle of the week. So, to keep our sanity amongst the sleepy quiet of those small towns, I’m going to be counting on these devices to fill the hours where there won’t be much going on – and some for when things are going on. Some of them are strictly must-haves on my trips, some have mixed uses for work and play, some are entirely for play, one is staying behind at home, and there’s even a surprise treat waiting for me at one of my destinations. Head below to learn about my favorite gear to keep sanity strong while in the monotonous swamps of Virginia and North Carolina.

Summer may be coming to a close, but there’s still time (depending on where you live) to get those last refreshing swims in while the hot weather makes its last stand. To truly enjoy days in the waters of your backyard, a clean and balanced pool is vital, and Beatbot has made that maintenance process easier than ever with its Aquasense Pro robot. See more in the video below.