News Scrap

Black Friday, you may have noticed, is no longer a specific date on the calendar. This year especially, with a late Thanksgiving in the US, it’s a vibe. The deals started arriving well before Friday and they’ll last all weekend, just like turkey leftovers. If the new vibes-based Black Friday means shopping for discounted phones and accessories online any day you please rather than standing in line at the mall, well, that’s a vibe I can relate to.

The second-gen AirPods Pro improve upon Apple’s original pair with much better noise cancellation, sound quality, and onboard volume controls. The latest refresh also ships with a USB-C charging case, as opposed to Lightning. Read our review.

• Moft is offering between $10 and $60 off your order of phone accessories like its combination phone stand/wallet, which is a favorite of this phone-case-hater.
• AirTags, which are always a good stocking stuff, are on sale in a four-pack for $24.99 (down from $29.99) at Amazon, Target, and practically everywhere else you can find them.
• Target has Apple’s 20W USB-C charging brick for $14.99, which is $5 off the full price.
• Otterbox is offering 30 percent off cases on Amazon, so you can get its Commuter series case for the iPhone 16 starting at $31.46 or the Pixel 9 starting at $25.15.

Verizon is offering up to $1,000 off an iPhone 16 Pro or iPhone 16 Pro Max and up to $830 off an iPhone 16 when you trade in any phone in any condition, provided you’re signed on to a “select Unlimited plan.” AT&T is also offering $1,000 off the iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max or $830 off an iPhone 16 with trade-in. You can get the same Verizon and AT&T deals through Best Buy, in which case you’ll get a $100 Best Buy gift card with your purchase.

The Galaxy S24 Ultra is just loaded with goodies including a big, beautiful display, an integrated stylus, and two telephoto cameras. Read our review.

• The Galaxy Z Fold 6 is on a steep discount too, down to $1,317.32 from $1,899 at Amazon, which is the lowest price we’ve seen. The long, narrow outer screen isn’t my favorite format for a folding phone, but it has plenty of fans and its multitasking UI is excellent.
• The Galaxy A35 5Gcome with a robust IP67 rating for dust and water resistance, meaning it should survive a brief swim in a puddle or… you know. Coupled with a strong software support policy with five years of security updates promised, it’s a great deal in the under-$500 class. It’s $299 ($100 off) at Amazon, Best Buy, and Samsung’s online store.

Google’s new Pixel 9 has a slightly larger 6.3-inch OLED display than its predecessor, along with a new Tensor G4 processor, a bigger battery, 12GB of RAM, and a dual rear camera setup with a new 48-megapixel sensor for its ultrawide. Read our review.

• Google’s Pixel 8A is a heck of a deal at $399 ($100), its current price at Amazon and the Google Store. It’s part of the previous generation of Pixel phones, but it’s only six months old since it came out halfway through the 8 series’ product cycle.

The 2024 Razr Plus is Motorola’s best foldable yet, with an improved cover screen UI and one of the biggest front displays on any modern flip phone. Read our review.

The OnePlus 12 retails for $100 more than its predecessor, but it comes with upgraded Hasselblad cameras, improved water resistance, and wireless charging. Coupled with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 and up to 16GB of RAM, it holds its own against the top smartphones of 2024. Read our review.

• Amazon doesn’t have the 128GB version of the OnePlus 12R in stock, but it is offering the 256GB variant for $499.99 ($100 off). You can also find that deal at OnePlus and Best Buy.
• The OnePlus Open is going for $1,199.99, down from $1,699.99, which is an excellent price for a great folding phone. It’s a year old at this point, but it should still receive another four years of security updates. You can get an extra $100 off with a trade-in if you go through OnePlus directly, but the discounted price is also available from Amazon and Best Buy.