SALTZMAN These 7 early Black Friday tech steals are the real deal

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No need to wait until next weekend to score sweet sales on gadgets, gear

Author of the article:

Marc Saltzman

Publishing date:

Nov 12, 2021  â€¢  15 minutes ago  â€¢  5 minute read  â€¢  Join the conversation Philips Hue Smart Light 3-Pack: Philips Hue Smart Light 3-Pack: Photo by Supplied /Signify Holding. Article content

‘Tis the season to buy tech toys, whether it’s to gift to loved ones over the holidays or perhaps treat yourself to something after enduring nearly two years of pandemic restrictions.

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Either way, economists strongly recommend starting your holiday shopping earlier this year because of a global supply chain crisis that threatens to keep it a little sparse under your tree.

From fewer items on store shelves to shipping delays for online orders to higher prices across the board, many are relying on bargains spread over Black Friday (Nov. 26) and Cyber Monday (Nov. 29) to wrap up purchases before December rolls around.

In fact, you need not wait at all.

Understandably, retailers have already announced early Black Friday sales, including many tech toys, to move inventory for early birds.

The following is a look at a few recommendations, in terms of quality and price, and where and when to score the short-term savings.

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Article content Fitbit Sense: ©2021 Fitbit LLC. Fitbit Sense: ©2021 Fitbit LLC.

One wild wearable

At $150 off the original $399.95 price, Fitbit Sense ($249.95) is on sale at its official website (fitbit.com) â€" but only until November 18.

This smartwatch can calculate your daily movements, including how long you’ve been active, as well as steps taken, elevation, pace and distance traveled, and estimated calories burned.

Fitbit Sense also detects electrodermal activity tied to stress management, skin temperature, and has an integrated electrocardiogram (ECG) to help assess your heart heath. With a battery that lasts up to 6 days between charges, it’s also ideal to wear to bed to assess the quality of your sleep.

Along with the touchscreen and companion app for your smartphone, there’s also voice support for Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant, the ability to pay for items at retail, and take Bluetooth calls, get text and app notifications.

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Light it up

If you haven’t done so already, it’s time to replace your incandescent and florescent bulbs with LED lights, as they sip rather than gulp electricity â€" which is better on your wallet, too.

They last considerably longer, too, and many have some smarts to them.

For $80 off until November 18, Best Buy (bestbuy.ca) is selling a 3-pack of the Philips Hue A19 Smart Bluetooth LED Light Bulbs for $99, which can save you even more on your electricity bill as you can set schedules and timers, remotely access your lights (such as turning lights off via an app), or, when coupled with room sensors, have the lights go off automatically when someone left the room.

These smart lights also let you use your voice to control them (via Amazon Alexa or Google speaker) and you can change between millions of colours or preset scenes.

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Article content Razer Homerun Bundle: © 2021 Razer Inc. Razer Homerun Bundle: © 2021 Razer Inc.

Game on (and on and on)

What to buy a snooty computer gamer on your gift list? Accessories, of course.

Fortunately, the Razer Home Run Bundle is selling for $199.99 instead of $349.99 at Staples (staples.ca), which consists of four complimentary products: the Kraken V3 X headset and microphone (for private listening of your games and trash-talking with others online), the DeathAdder V2 wired mouse (for high-precision movement and aiming), the colourful Ornata V2 Keyboard (a “mecca membrane” keyboard that’s not as loud and “clicky” as a mechanical keyboard) and a Gigantus V2 mousepad, a giant mat to place under your mouse for added comfort, precision and speed.

Ideal for any PC gamer to add to or start their growing gaming collection, this Razer Home Run Bundle is a smart buy to extend the functionality and longevity of your computer.

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Sale ends Nov. 29.

Nest Hub Max: © Google Inc. Nest Hub Max: © Google Inc.

To the max

Get $100 off Google’s popular Nest Hub Max (now $199.00) at the official Google Store (store.google.com), while quantities last.

In case you’ve never seen this 10-inch device, not unlike a smart speaker you can ask Google Assistant any question (like “What’s the score of the Raptor’s game?”) or give a command (“Set a timer for 20 minutes”) and you’ll hear a human like voice reply. But this is a “smart display,” too, so you can also see your answers, such as a 7-day weather forecast, a step-by-step recipe, view album artwork while listening to music, or see your calendar.

In fact, you can watch TV shows while you’re cooking dinner, video call a friend, and flip through photos of family and friends.

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Some place this on a night table as a bedside companion, to play white noise, audiobooks, podcasts and music, and setting an alarm to a favourite song.

Ninja Foodi 10-in-1 8-quart XL Multicooker: © 2021 SharkNinja Operating LLC Ninja Foodi 10-in-1 8-quart XL Multicooker: © 2021 SharkNinja Operating LLC

Fry guy

You don’t know what you’re missing if you haven’t yet cooked with an air fryer.

Or maybe you love yours and want to gift one to a doubting friend?

Either way, Walmart (walmart.ca) has an early Black Friday sale (starting Nov. 18) on its Ninja Foodi 10-in-1 8-quart XL Multicooker â€" priced down to $189.98, down from $299.98 ($110 off).

This versatile appliance, which sits on your kitchen counter or island, lets you fast “fry” food but without requiring oil (or very little, if you like) â€" yielding similarly crispy results in look, texture and most importantly, taste â€" whether it’s fresh or frozen fries, a 7-pound chicken, or even breathing new life into leftovers like pizza. It uses high heat and a fast-spinning fan to do its thing.

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As its name implies, this doohickey lets you pressure cook, air fry, steam, slow cook, dehydrate, sear/saute, bake/roast, broil, and more.

LG 4K TV: © 2009-2021 LG Electronics LG 4K TV: © 2009-2021 LG Electronics

Screen dream

While paying $2,198.00 for a television may not sound like a steal, when it’s $1,100 off the original price ($3,298.00) and a monstrous 86-inch television from a company like LG, it’s worth looking at (with your own eyes, ideally).

Ending on November 18th, Visions (visions.ca) is discounting its LG UP8770 , an ultra-large 4K HDR Smart TV, featuring 3840 x 2160 pixels (Ultra HD resolution), high-dynamic range (for improved contrast, brightness and colour), a fast 120Hz refresh rate to reduce blur and increase sharpness, and a powerful a7 Gen4 AI Processor 4K that uses artificial intelligence (A.I.) to optimize the picture based on what you’re watching.

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As a smart TV, it houses LG’s proprietary webOS 6.0 operating system (including a packed app store), and includes a redesigned Magic Remote, which has computer mouse-like features for navigating content.

Amazon Echo Auto: © 2008-2021, Amazon.com Amazon Echo Auto: © 2008-2021, Amazon.com

Road trips with Alexa

Usually $69.99 but deep discounted to $29.99 (yep, 57 percent off) for Black Friday, Amazon (amazon.ca)’s Echo Auto gives you access to the popular hands-free Alexa personal assistant while behind the wheel.

This small black device plays through your car’s speakers â€" via a wireless Bluetooth connection or an aux-in port, if you prefer â€" and features eight microphones and far-field technology, so it can clearly hear you over music, air conditioning, and outside road noise.

It works by wirelessly connecting to your phone (to access Alexa’s servers over the Internet), allowing you to use your voice to check the news, weather, stock quotes, manage your calendar or make calls, as well as stream content from Audible (audiobooks), Spotify, Amazon Music, SiriusXM, and more. An air vent mount is included.

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