A Guide to Micro USB Cables and Other Eco-friendly Wireless Chargers for Modern Smartphones: A Comparative Analysis of Case Recommendations

We have case recommendations for a few popular devices, like Samsung’s Galaxy S22 range or Google Pixel phones. It is smart to use a case on the glass sandwiches and a screen protection to keep the display free of scratches. Many phones don’t include the charging adapter which are a few other noteworthy accessories. Read our guide to find other recommendations.

There are a lot of wireless chargers on the market right now — we should know, having tested plenty of MagSafe-friendly options for our buying guide, plus very recent models like Nomad’s Stand One. If you’re an Apple or Amazon user who’s looking for a no-nonsense way to charge your phone at your desk or overnight, the 313 Wireless Charger is currently on sale for fifteen dollars. If you intend on using a phone that has a bigger screen than the newer iPhone model, it is advisable to use a Micro USB cable with the Qi charging stand. Just remember to pick up a wall charger if you don’t already own one.

The most attractive cables I’ve ever used are the PowerKnits. They feel durable, support up to 60 watts of power delivery, are BPA- and PVC-free, and are made from certified recycled plastic and aluminum, so they’re more eco-friendly than most cables out there. You can choose from three options.

Peak Design Everyday Case and Charger for 40: A WIRED Look at Amazon Prime Day e+ e- Spectator Deals

Peak Design Samsung and Pixel Everyday Case for $40: If you have a new Samsung or Pixel phone and you frequently mount your phone to a bike or scooter, you owe it to yourself to snag this case and Peak Design’s bike mount. The case snaps perfectly into the mount, and is easy to release, after months of riding. You can attach other accessories to the cases by Peak Design.

To find the best wireless chargers, we evaluated 31 and found the best of MagSafe and three-in-1 Apple chargers that can also charge an Apple Watch and AirPods case.

Another Amazon Prime Day sale, you say? It’s not called Prime Day Part 2. This one has been dubbed a Prime Early Access Sale. Whatever that name is, the game is the same, and WIRED has meticulously gone through all the deals to find the best one. These are our top picks from the likes of Samsung, Microsoft, Razer, Google, and more.

The WIRED Gear team tests products year-round. We sorted through hundreds of thousands of deals by hand to make these picks. Crossed-out products are out of stock or no longer discounted. Our Prime Day coverage and shopping tips will help you avoid bad deals. You can also get a 1-year subscription to WIRED for $5 here.

Introducing the Best Surface Laptops for Beginners and Professionals: The HP Victus as an Entry-level Gaming Laptop at Almost $300 Off MS Surface

The Surface Laptop range may not be as stylish as some of the brand’s flashy, flexible, transforming sets, but most people just need a laptop. This is our pick for the best Surface for most people. A flagship laptop from Microsoft now costs under $1,000, and has 16 gigabytes of ram and 128 gigabytes of solid state storage. This week Microsoft has a Surface hardware event where we could see a successor.

With consoles like the Xbox Series S, Nintendo Switch, and Steam Deck around, gaming laptops can look pretty expensive. They are the only options if you want strong PC specifications and a great display. This Dell G15 offers all this at almost $300 off. It’s perfect for mid-tier PC gaming and has one of the latest gaming chips along with 16 GB of RAM, a 512-GB SSD, and an Intel Core i9-9900K processor.

Many gaming laptops, even ones that you’d classify as entry-level, can creep over the $1,000 mark. Thankfully, this HP Victus is well under that. This model gets you an AMD Ryzen 7 5800H chip, Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050Ti, 16 GB of RAM, and a 512-GB SSD. And it’s all in an understated package that doesn’t scream “gamer.”

If you’re after a cheap laptop that’s versatile, HP’s 14-inch Pavilion machine is a good option. With this sale’s discount, you get a strong 11th-Gen Intel Core i5, 8 GB of RAM, and a 256-GB SSD. It’s a good combo for productivity users, such as students. The 360-hinge makes watching videos on this laptop a bit more comfortable too.

Some people will want to push Chromebooks hard, though they’re slated as devices for light web work. For that, the IdeaPad Flex 5i is our top choice for a ChromeOS powerhouse in our Best Chromebooks guide. The Intel Core i3 and 8 GB of RAM are more than enough to get a lot of performance from a Chromebook, with options for lower-powered Celeron chips and often 4 GB RAM. The display also offers an anti-glare finish to dodge any pesky reflections.

Source: https://www.wired.com/story/best-amazon-prime-day-laptop-tv-phones-tech-deals-2022/

A Review of the Best Cheap Phones: The 10th Generation, the 10th-Generation, and the Google Pixel 6A (8-10)

The combo Touch can be used with a variety of iPad Pro generations. It’s one of our favorite ways to get some light work done because it adds a keyboard and a trackpad. Not only is the case slim and the keys pleasing to type on, but the keyboard can also be removed when you don’t need it, keeping the iPad Pro’s supreme portability intact.

If you’re looking to pick up an affordable Apple tablet, we typically recommend the ninth-gen model. The latest iPad is on sale at both Best Buy and Amazon, matching its lowest price to date, so if you want a cheaper iPad, this is the one to consider. The 10th-gen model has a FaceTime camera on the long edge of the screen, as opposed to the short side, and it’s powered by a A14 Bionic chip. If you make the leap from the cheaper model to the bigger one, you won’t be responsible for the home button and a headphones jack, although it will cost you less. Read our review.

Most people will find this a good deal on their iPad. It’s the lowest price that we’ve seen. That said, Apple has updated the iPad around this time of year for the past three years. There could be a new model out soon, and that new model could be on sale for Black Friday.

Amazon recently debuted a new Fire HD 8, which is available for preorder, but if you’re in the market for a cheap tablet, this 2020 model is still a good deal. While the Fire HD 8 series is smaller, it’s still nearly as capable as the larger sibling. It is portable, so you don’t have to carry it around with you when you are away, and the screen won’t hurt your eyes when you watch Netflix. You can use our guide to install the search giant’s store, it’s more capable than it is out of the box.

Our top pick for the Best Cheap Phone is the Google Pixel 6A (8-10), which is our favorite Android phone. This is the lowest deal we have ever seen. Even when it’s not on sale, the Pixel 6A offers incredible value, with great performance, excellent cameras, impressive battery life, and a nice display. If you’re in the market for a new smartphone, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better deal than this. If you want better cameras and a bigger device, the price of the Pixel6 Pro is $250 off.

The lowest price we’ve ever seen on the S22 Ultra is here. This device has an S Pen built in, so it’s great for doodling or writing notes. It also has a 10x optical zoom camera, so you can take stunningly sharp pictures from far away.

It costs a fortune. But it folds open. And believe it or not, that extra screen real estate really is nice. Android 12L also makes life on a bigger screen easier thanks to its improved multitasking. The battery life is good, and the screen is bright and smooth.

The Flip 4 feels like a normal phone when it is folded, but it will slip into some small pockets when folded up. It’s almost like a StarTak, but with a real screen. The battery will get you through the day, but not much longer. Still, if you’ve been wanting a folding phone, this deal is the cheapest we’ve seen.

This OnePlus phone (7/10, WIRED Recommends) is speedy, has a bright 120-Hz screen refresh rate, and has a pretty good software support window. Its cameras are not as good as the likes of the Pixel 6 or Galaxy S22. It’s worth noting that this is still more expensive than the newly-announced Google Pixel 7.

It’s not cheap but this is a big discount for one of the best TVs you can buy. If you’ve got a big family and a home with plenty of windows, this might be the move. The 120 Hz refresh rate is for game players looking to get the most out of their consoles.

One of our favorite soundbars is now under $200 and can be used to upgrade your TV setup. The Signa S4 is our most popular package, and it includes both a speaker and a soundbar. The combo gives you the right vibes by offering a variety of options to get the right vibe. The addition of a subwoofer makes this ideal for when you want big sound, whether it’s a house party or your fave action flick.

A Top Pick for the Best Noise-Cancelling Headphones: The WH-1000XM5, Google’s Wireless Earbuds, and the T7 Shield

This is a top pick in our Best Noise-Canceling Headphones guide. The advanced microphone array blocks out noise and the digital signal processing can find its way to your voice. They are comfortable and have a strong battery life. Like many top noise-cancelers, they don’t come cheap, so getting more than $100 off is a great deal.

Stick with Sony if you’re looking for the best overall headphones. The WH-1000XM5 (9/10, WIRED Recommends) sound amazing, has great noise cancellation, and are just plain comfortable to wear.

Google’s latest wireless earbuds got a stellar review from WIRED associate editor Parker Hall (9/10, WIRED Recommends), with the Buds Pro getting props for comfort, great sound, seven hours of battery life with active noise cancellation (ANC), and pricing that’s now even further below that of the Apple AirPods Pro (9/10, WIRED Recommends). There is room for improvement in the microphones and mid-tones.

While the LaCie Rugged SSD ($496) is our top pick for a rugged drive in our Best Portable SSD guide, the T7 Shield is our favorite alternative, and it’s far cheaper right now. It’ll bat away dust and water with an IP65 rating and is rated to survive drops up to 9.8 feet. If you would like to spend more or less, there are other sizes to choose from.

Source: https://www.wired.com/story/best-amazon-prime-day-laptop-tv-phones-tech-deals-2022/

Smartwatches: Top Ten App Stores and the Best Accessories Guide for Home-Dressed Laser Cardiology and Medical Diagnosis

We’re big fans of this model’s top battery life and we’re in the Best Smartwatch guide. It employs Wear OS and is slated to get the Wear OS 3 update later this year. It’s responsive, delivers notifications, counts steps, and features 24/7 heart-rate monitoring, all with an AMOLED display and two-day battery life. There’s a new TicWatch Ultra on the way with Qualcomm’s new wearables chipset.

The newest Apple watch, the Series 8 is our favorite, and it’s already on sale. (The 41-mm version is also on sale for $349.) Most people will be fine with the new second-generation Watch SE, but this model includes an electrocardiogram, an always-on display, a skin temperature sensor for better period tracking, a more accurate heart-rate monitor, and the ability to measure blood oxygen levels. For more recommendations, check our Best Apple Watch accessories guide.

This useful label printer features in our all-encompassing work-from-home guide and is a great way to save a couple of dollars on your shipping. This printer avoids the regular hassle of having to use ink, using heat instead. You’ll find useful instructions to get the sizing of your label when you print just right and, then, you’re ready to go.

Some stores are offering deals that don’t require an Amazon Prime membership. Here’s a list of merchants that may be getting in on the action.

The Anker 313 Magnetic Wireless Charger Pad, Qi Charger, and Wall Adapter for Interiors and Landscapes (and Other)

For that very specific use case, the Anker 313 Magnetic Wireless Charger Pad is pretty good! It has a 5-foot cord, which is 2 more feet than Apple gives you, it’s only a little larger than the MagSafe charger and instead of costing $30 to $40 without a USB-C wall adapter, it’s $23 and comes with a 20W USB-C charger that costs around $15 by itself. It costs about $8 to use the charging pad. Eight bucks!

The powered pad has a squircle shape, matt finish and 4 color options, which work well with modern and contemporary decor. It has a white status light in the dark that stays on even if you don’t want to look at it, but it isn’t very bright and doesn’t blink, so it’s safe to use in dark rooms.

The best looking multi- device Qi charging system we tested was the Logitech powered 3-in-1 Dock, though it takes up a lot of room and is expensive. The pad and stand can each charge at up to 10W at the same time (7.5W for iPhones, 9W for some Samsung phones), though small phones (like the iPhone 12 Mini) can’t charge on the stand. Amazon reviewers complain that the watch charger angle is too vertical, so Apple Watches with heavy bands fall off, though I didn’t experience this with my (lightweight) Sport Band. The proprietary AC adapter is a bit bulky but has a 6-foot cable that helps with positioning.

The Otto Q is four inches in diameter, which makes it one of the largest charging pads we tested. A grippy rubber ring around the Qi coil helps with phone placement, and a white LED on the front of the pad blinks when your device is charging.

Charging indicators: A status LED can tell you if your phone is charging, if an obstacle is detected or if it’s fully charged. A dark room with a too brightLED or one that blinks can distract you, and one in a weird place may be blocked by the device. Many chargers we tested turn off their status LEDs after a few seconds, which is nice for bedrooms but does mean that if your phone isn’t aligned properly, you may not realize until morning that it didn’t charge.

The Belkin BoostCharge 15 W: a fine wireless charging stand with 15W+USB-A and 16W-PD

The Otto Q is powered via USB-C, and requires an 18W or higher USB-PD charger. The cheapest one to buy if you don’t already have one is the Anker 571nano (priced at $13.59; AMAZON.COM). We prefer USB-C rather than USB-A because powerful USB-C chargers are smaller and cheaper than their USB-A equivalents. If you want to accidentally plug into an underpowered adapters, you should have a 20Wusb-c or 18Wusb-a charger around.

The Belkin BoostCharge 15 W is a fine charging stand. It isn’t exciting, per se, but it lacks the shortcomings of many other stands we tested. First, it connects via USB-C rather than Micro USB like the Anker PowerWave Stand or the 10W Belkin. Unlike the Anker and the YooTech X2, it comes with a USB adapter, in this case 24W USB-A. It supports charge rates up to 15W, if you happen to have an LG V40 or OnePlus 9, or one of the few other Android phones that can hit 15W on a standard charger; it’s also one of the very few wireless charging stands that can exceed 5W on a Google Pixel 3, though few people have those anymore.

The glossy black base and soft touch top are offensive, as is the ovoid stand. It has a white pinpoint charging LED in the front. It doesn’t look as low-budget as the Yootech X2, and the design isn’t as polarizing as the framework stand of the 10 Belkin BoostCharge we tested.

The only way you can control a charger with an active cooling fan is from a phone. The status LED goes red when the phone is charging correctly.

Don’t get it. The magnets are much weaker than any other magnetic Qi charger we tested and barely hold in place. It comes with one of Mophie’s magnetic ring sticker adapters, which you can use to make a non-MagSafe phone compatible with magnetic Qi chargers, but it barely sticks to those either, and they interfere with other accessories.

Anker’s charging pad and cord are less bulky than the one on the Belkin Wireless Magnetic Charger, and its magnets are much stronger than the Mophie Snap+. If you want a bedside or couchside charger with longer reach than Apple’s MagSafe and don’t mind the slower charging, it’s a good deal.

Does anyone need a wireless charging bowl with yellow underglow, fake wood grain on the outside and fake copper (or faux terra cotta?) on the inside? I don’t know. But I tested 28 wireless chargers for this article and the Tylt Bowl was the only one that sparked joy.

The Tylt is a 7 inch diameter, plastic bowl with a 10 watt charging device in the middle. The inside is of copper colored plastic, while the outside has a wood grain pattern. A golden light shines down into the bowl from the stand when your phone is charging.

The light will probably be too much if you charge your phone in your bedroom at night. I keep my phone away from the bedroom because it will get caught in the bedroom light, but I charge mine in the bathroom, so the underglow gives me a perfect night light, the bowl is a great holding place for my wallet, and I don’t mind wearing a lot of The overall effect is a bit like a video game loot drop, or someone trying to make a point about the veneration we give our phones.

Source: https://www.cnn.com/cnn-underscored/reviews/best-wireless-chargers?iid=CNNUnderscoredHPcontainer

Anker PowerWave 3-In-1: Rethinking the Zens, AirPods, and Google Watch Charging Particles

The Pro Kit is black with white prices starting at $199.95, as tested. It consists of a 10W Qi charging pad; Apple Watch charging module; the Vert, which holds three devices vertically and has an 18W USB-C port and two 12W USB-A ports; and the EndCap, which adds another 18W USB-C port and 12W USB-A port. The BaseLynx kit is almost 6 inches deep and has modules that are more than 13 inches wide. But we were able to charge a Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra on the Qi pad, an Apple Watch, an iPad, an iPhone 12 Mini, an iPhone 11 and a Google Pixel 3 at the same time. We could fit a second charge for the Apple Watch before we ran out of power.

There’s no divot, dimple or other easy way to align a headphone case to either charging pad — we had some trouble getting a set of AirPods Pro to charge at first — but both pads can charge at up to 10W, rather than limiting one to 5W, as most charging stations do. This adds to the Zens’ longevity. The 45W USB-PD charger and braided USB-C cable are also usable elsewhere. Not that you should buy a charging pad you’re planning to part out, but it’s much more sustainable than, say, the Logitech Powered 3-in-1 or the Mophie 3-in-1, which both cost over $140 and have proprietary AC adapters and nonremovable Apple Watch chargers.

If you’d prefer to look at your phone in horizontal mode, and don’t mind getting your own Apple watch charging puck, the PowerWave 3-in-1 is for you. It’s a step down from the Zens in most respects — its charger is less powerful, the headphone charging area is limited to 5W and partially blocks the view of the Apple Watch and it doesn’t include an Apple Watch charging cable. If the Zens are not available at the current steep discount, then it is the next best option.

The Anker PowerWave 3-in-1 has a 10W Qi charging stand, a 5W Qi pad for wireless AirPod cases and a stand with a slot for an Apple Watch charger. The Apple Watch charger isn’t included. Instead, Anker provides an internal USB port under the bottom cover, along with a clever routing system for the 3-foot charging cable the Apple Watch comes with.

Unfortunately, the AirPod charging area is right in front of the Watch charger, so the headphone case will partially block your view of the Watch in nightstand mode. There’s also no divot or indicator to help with AirPod case placement; you just have to make sure the pad’s charging indicator lights up.

Source: https://www.cnn.com/cnn-underscored/reviews/best-wireless-chargers?iid=CNNUnderscoredHPcontainer

The Anker, the AirPods and Zens: Where do you stand? How easy to place a smartphone on a charging strip with TP-Link

The Zens may be a better buy if the price isn’t heavily marked down, but if you don’t want to wait for a MagSafe phone, the Anker is the better choice.

It costs $150 and takes up a lot of space with a base that is not much bigger than the phone. But thanks to its slim metal support arm, it doesn’t look bulky. The Apple Watch Series 7 isn’t supported by it, though the new 3-in-1 will.

Faster charging isn’t available with the phone. It will charge faster if it’s at 25W or more and its wireless charges can hit 15W. The iPhone 13 has a capacity of up to 20W via cable, 15W on MagSafe and 7.5W on a standard wireless charge. If you’re in a hurry, plug it in.

We took the power draw from the wall and plugged it into a TP-Link smart power strip. To ensure each phone was getting its highest possible charge rate, we kept the batteries below 40% by running 3DMark’s Wild Life Extreme stress test, which devours around 10% of the phone’s charge in 20 minutes.

Ease of positioning: If your phone’s induction coil isn’t aligned with the charging coil, it could charge very slowly or not at all. We checked how easy it was to place each phone on each charger; for stands, we checked both portrait and landscape mode. For devices with multiple charging zones, we paid special attention to how tricky it was to align the case for the Apple AirPods Pro, which can charge via Qi or MagSafe.

A highpitched noise can be made by wall sockets and other devices when they are powered. Sometimes it is the individual unit that is the problem, as we have tested plenty of identical units where one unit does not whine and the other does. Some people do not hear coil whine, so not everyone is bothered by it. Still, we noted any coil whine we found.

The bar-shaped pad couldn’t deliver full power to the four phones we tried, and at 5.8 inches by 2.8 inches by 47 inches, is as large as many phones, which is what the Anker claims helps with phone alignment. It does not contain an AC adapter; it costs as much as a better looking option when you add one.

The catch:1 essentials 10W single device charging is beautiful and it comes with a cable and linen top. It has a white charging indicator at the back of the pad, next to theUSB port, that will not bother you at night, but it is difficult to see without rotating the pad.

At $40 without the AC charger, the Catch:1 Essentials is around the same price as the Moshi Otto Q, though because it uses a C to A cable instead of C to C, the Courant is a little less flexible. After you lose the color-matching you can always swap cables. If you like the style and don’t mind the price, it’s a good option, and may be the one linen thing in your house that doesn’t need to be ironed.

Source: https://www.cnn.com/cnn-underscored/reviews/best-wireless-chargers?iid=CNNUnderscoredHPcontainer

The Funnel Second-Generation Pixel Stand – Wireless Charging Stand for Android, iPhone, and Tablets vs. Smart Displays

The second-generation Pixel Stand only works with the two phones that support the wireless charging method: thePixel 6 and thePixel 6 Pro. You can take advantage of 23W wireless charging with either of those phones. You’ll also get some Pixel-exclusive features like the ability to customize the charging speed between three presets and turn your phone into a mini smart display when it’s docked. It can rotate through photos, act as a sunrise alarm and help to triage an influx of notifications. These proved handy in our testing and worked without flaw — additionally, it could save you some money if you opt for this instead of a fully functional smart display like the Nest Hub. Still, though, it’s not cheap at $79.99 and isn’t the only route to achieve fast wireless charging; most would be better served by one of our top picks.

The 609 has a blue, white and dark gray exterior and comes with a 20W power bank. There are plenty of more practical magnetic charging stands for iPhones, and some that are actually MagSafe certified. But this one’s fun, and it does what it’s supposed to. For plenty of people that’ll be enough.

All wrapped in leather, theNytstnd Quad has a wired Charging Area, an Apple Watch puck, and an optional valet tray. There is a MagSafe phone that can be charged using the Qi coil, which also has magnets, and there is a different version of the charging coil for tablets.

Unfortunately, the 36W wall adapter lacks the juice to charge everything at its full rate at once, unlike the Scosche BaseLynx. The fit and finish of the oak-stained version doesn’t justify its high price and the lack of an easy failure point is what makes the repair of the tablet dock seem easy.

UE Fits: A Low-Cost Ultra-wideband Bluetooth Tracker for Permanently Molding the Shape of Your Ears

If you’re someone who has a penchant for losing everything you own — your keys, fanny pack, what have you — a set of ultra-wideband Bluetooth trackers is a good bet for keeping tabs on your belongings. And right now, Apple’s handy AirTags are on sale in a four-pack at Amazon and Walmart for $89.99, a slight $10 discount but one we seldom see.

The UE Fits come with unique ear tips that permanently mold to the unique shape of your ears in just 60 seconds. This allows for a much better fit that is comfortable for hours on end.