Author Archives: Lawrence Bonk

Amazon early Black Friday deal knocks iRobot’s Roomba 694 down to a record low of $159

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iRobot’s Roomba 694 isn’t the most feature-rich robot vacuum on the block, but it certainly gets the job done. Now, it can get that job done for cheaper, as the Roomba 694 is on sale for $159 as part of an early Black Friday deal on Amazon. This is a record-low price for the gadget, with the discount slashing $115 off the MSRP. That’s more than 40 percent off the usual price of $275.

If you've been curious about hiring a robot helper to sweep the floors, but were waiting for a good deal, now might be a great time to jump on board. After all, the Roomba 694 sits at the top of our list of the best budget robot vacuums in the world. This little jobby might be low in price, but it's high in functionality.

The cleaning power is on point and the affiliated mobile app is both useful and easy to operate. The 694 boasts a sleek all-black design, giving it an aesthetic similar to its more expensive siblings. It can spot clean or do more intensive jobs throughout the home. The app lets you control the vacuum manually or set cleaning schedules. Amazon now owns Roomba, so you can even use that famous wisecracker Alexa to set up cleaning times.

The vacuum includes an edge-sweeping brush for corners and adaptive navigation capabilities, so it won’t careen down the stairs like a little kid on Christmas morning. These navigation sensors also allow the vacuum to clean under furniture. You don’t get any replacement brushes or filters with this unit, so you’ll have to buy those on your own when the time comes.

It cleans for 90 minutes before requiring a charge, but it’ll automatically head to the dock when the power’s running low, which is a staple of most modern robo-vacs. The Roomba 694 features a three-stage cleaning system that excels on both carpets and hard floors, but you won’t be able to use this little bot to mop. That’s a feature reserved for the pricier models.

Speaking of pricier vacuums, Roomba is running a sale on multiple models right now. You can snag the flagship J9+ for $600 instead of $1,000, or the J7+ vacuum/mop hybrid for $700 instead of $1,000. Even the mop-focused Braava Jet M6 is on sale for $300. In other words, it’s a mighty good day to be very, very lazy.

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This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/irobots-roomba-694-drops-to-a-record-low-price-of-159-154512793.html?src=rss

Amazon’s Fire Max 11 tablet just dropped to a record-low price of $150

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Amazon’s flagship Fire Max 11 tablet just dropped to a record-low price of $150, representing a savings of $80 from the MSRP of $230. That’s 35 percent off, for you math-heads out there. This deal is for the standard tablet and doesn’t include a stylus, keyboard or any other accessories. Being as this is an Amazon tablet, you also get those ads on the lockscreen, but they are fairly unobtrusive.

This is the most powerful Fire tablet out there, with an 11-inch LCD screen, a slim aluminum frame and Alexa-powered smart home controls. You get a fingerprint sensor in the power button, WiFi 6 support and split-screen/picture-in-picture features. We were impressed by the inherent value of the tablet at its full price, so we are 35 percent more impressed now.

The Fire Max 11 is also light, weighing around a pound, and is designed around multi-tasking, with an octa-core MediaTek processor that is nearly twice as fast as any other Amazon-branded tablet. In other words, this is a far cry from the kinds of affordable, kid-friendly tablets the company typically releases.

There’s a keyboard and stylus available for this device, but you’ll pay extra for the added functionality. There are bundles that include these accessories that are also on sale, ranging from $185 to $275.

Speaking of sales, this is part of a larger early Black Friday event that includes many other Amazon tablets. You can snag the Fire HD 10 for $75, which is half off, or the Fire 7 Kids edition for just $55. The Fire 10 Plus and the Fire 10 Kids Pro tablets are also both on sale for a limited time.

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This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/amazons-fire-max-11-tablet-just-dropped-to-a-record-low-price-of-150-163018884.html?src=rss

Amazon Fire TV streaming devices are up to half off right now

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Amazon Fire TV streaming sticks and related devices are up to half off right now, starting at just $18. Some of these prices match record lows found during recent Prime Day events. All told, there are five devices on sale, from the entry-level Fire TV Stick Lite to the powerful Fire TV Cube.

The Fire TV Stick Lite is on sale for $18 and the standard Fire TV Stick comes in at $20. The Fire TV Stick 4K costs $30, while the beefier TV Stick Max clocks in at $45. Finally, the Borg-like TV Cube will set you back $110, a savings of over 20 percent. This is the latest Cube, with a 2GHz octa-core processor and an HDMI input connection to plug in your cable box, which lets you use voice commands to watch regular cable TV.

The Fire Stick TV Max, typically $60, is the company’s most powerful streaming stick, with 40 percent more power than the Fire TV Stick 4K. To that end, you get 4K streams, fast app boot times and fluid menu navigation. This stick integrates with WiFi 6, Dolby Vision, HDR, HDR10+ and Dolby Atmos audio. Of course, you can use Alexa voice commands to do just about anything via the included voice remote.

The Fire TV Stick 4K is no slouch, offering support for WiFi 6 and 4K streams. It also ships with an Alexa remote and a 6-month subscription to one of Amazon’s many streaming platforms, MGM+. That’s the one with the Harold Perrineau-led supernatural thriller From. The standard Fire TV stick and the Lite don’t offer 4K streams, but they do ship with a voice remote.

This sale is part of an early Black Friday event and it remains unseen when prices will balloon up back to the original MSRPs. So if you’re looking to get a capable streaming stick, or cube, on the cheap you should probably be quick about it.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/amazon-fire-tv-streaming-devices-are-up-to-half-off-right-now-152416126.html?src=rss