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ZDNET’s key takeaways At $130, the Blink Outdoor 4 Floodlight Camera is a practical, battery-powered solution for darker areas around your house that lack wiring and outlets. The AA batteries allow the floodlights to beam at 700 nits of brightness, which is not the most powerful on the market but good enough to see your surroundings. The Blink app is feature-rich, with plenty of camera settings to customize for the best surveillance, but you’ll need…

ZDNET’s key takeaways KeySmart’s SmartCard is available on Best Buy for $40 (3-pack for $90). It’s super thin, works with both Android and Apple iOS, has a wireless rechargeable battery, and is IPX7-rated. It needs to be recharged every 5 months or so. Apple AirTags have changed my life, saving me countless hours looking for keys and other items that I absent-mindedly misplaced. But AirTags have a few design flaws. First, the replaceable battery means…

ZDNET’s key takeaways The Beats Solo Buds are budget earbuds at $80 (and currently on sale for $35 less) Their compact size, fun colors, and 18-hour battery life make them earbuds appealing to Beats devotees Other earbuds offer features these earbuds lack — like active noise cancellation and Bluetooth multipoint — for less money. The Beats Solo Buds across all four colors (Transparent Red, Matte Black, and Storm Gray) are on sale for $59.95. These days,…

Kerry Wan/ZDNET ZDNET’s key takeaways The Google Pixel 9 Pro XL has a starting price of $1,099, while the Pixel 9 Pro starts at $999. For the price, you’re getting a larger, brighter-than-ever 6.8-inch display, exclusive Google AI features, and the most forgiving camera system on the market. I just wish the base storage (128GB) was at least double and the AI features were more reliable. On Amazon, the Pixel 9 Pro XL is $200 off,…

ZDNET’s key takeaways The iPad Mini 7 is available for $500 but is currently $100 off. The compact iPad Mini 7 has gone everywhere with me this past week, fitting easily into bags and purses without weighing them down. Aside from the more powerful A17 Pro chip, the iPad Mini 7 isn’t much of an upgrade (especially for 6th-gen users), plus its display tops out at 60Hz. more buying choices The iPad Mini 7 is…

ZDNET’s key takeaways The OnePlus Pad 2 is the company’s latest Android tablet with a premium design and flagship specs for $550. It’s compatible with a keyboard and pen that OnePlus sells separately, so you can turn it into an Android-powered laptop. While the multitasking features are excellent, and the Pad 2 checks all the boxes when it comes to entertainment, it still suffers from the pitfalls of using Android on a big screen. more…

ZDNET’s key takeaways The Samsung Galaxy S24 FE starts at $649, with 128GB of storage and AI features included. Large 6.7-inch AMOLED display and an enduring 4,700mAh battery are the top two strengths. At its price, the S24 FE faces stiff competition from Google, OnePlus, and Samsung itself. more buying choices Multiple retailers have discounted the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE by $100, including Best Buy and Amazon. One of the biggest benefits of catching up…

ZDNET’s key takeaways The Levoit Sprout smart air purifier is available for $280. This smart and efficient device is informative, accurate, and visually appealing to clean the air in kids’ rooms, who are a vulnerable population. The Sprout smart air purifier is a little expensive, but it pays off with insight into your kids’ air quality. The Levoit Sprout Air Purifier is on sale for $200 for a limited time, a 29% discount. Levoit is…

ZDNET’s key takeaways The latest Xiaomi 15 Ultra sees improvements in almost all the right places, with a 200MP periscope lens and a more durable design. The camera configuration is still one of the most competitive ones on the market. If you’re in the US, you’ll have to pay to play, with conversions nearing $1,555. The moment I unboxed the Xiaomi 15 Ultra, I knew I was in trouble. While the flagship had launched in…

ZDNET’s key takeaways Lenovo’s fifth-generation ThinkPad T14s is available now for $2,119. It’s a particularly hardy laptop and boasts solid battery life. However, the Intel chipset delivers puts a cap on high-end performance. more buying choices Lenovo has seven distinct ThinkPad categories on its website, each with a unique style. The T Series, for example, specializes in “highly durable” business laptops with long battery lives. No other model exemplifies this concept than the fifth-generation ThinkPad…