The second-gen AirPods Pro look just like the originals, but there are improvements within. | Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge
The second-generation AirPods Pro earbuds have returned to their lowest price, first seen during Black Friday and Cyber Monday. You can get the latest top-tier wireless earbuds from Apple on sale for $199.99 at Verizon (normally $249.99). That $50 savings is as good as it gets on these earbuds, which significantly improve on the noise cancellation of the previous model and now support a handy new volume control — allowing you to slide your finger on the stem to easily increase or decrease the volume.
The pricier Bose QuietComfort Earbuds II may have better noise cancellation prowess, but those $300 earbuds are much pricier than this sale price on the second-gen AirPods Pro. Plus, if you use Apple devices, you get a much tighter software integration when you stick within Apple’s walled garden, such as support in the Find My app to locate your earbuds if you forget where you put them. The new case even has a built-in speaker, so you can make it chirp — helpful if you have a tendency to lose your buds within the couch cushions.
And when it comes down to listening, the overall sound quality of the new AirPods Pro is improved over its predecessor. There’s a lot to love in this deal for Apple fans, especially at this better price. Read our review.
If you’re shopping for a phone that’s a departure from the more typical offerings from Google, Apple, or Samsung, you might want to check out this deal on the 128GB OnePlus 10 Pro. Normally $799.99, Amazon has discounted the impressive smartphone to $549.99, matching its lowest price yet. The 10 Pro doesn’t blow away the competition but offers some impressive specifications alongside all of the flagship features you’d expect at a relatively low price point. While the camera array isn’t quite as powerful as those seen on flagship phones from Samsung or Apple, the 10 Pro still offers excellent performance thanks to its Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor and 8GB of RAM. There aren’t many Android phones that can match the overall performance of the OnePlus 10 Pro at this price, making it worth a look if your current phone is falling behind the curve. Read our review.
You can currently find discounts on a variety of Beats earbuds. Normally $149.95, the Beats Studio Buds are on sale for $89.98 at Amazon and Best Buy, while the Beats Fit Pro are also discounted to $159.95 at Amazon and Best Buy (normally $199.95).
The Studio Buds are the more budget-friendly option but offer a comfortable fit and solid sound quality at a relatively low price. They don’t have the same seamless integration with Apple devices and lack wireless charging, but they are still able to charge over USB-C. The Studio Buds also have some of the best integration with Android-specific features among Beats devices, offering features like fast pairing and compatibility with Google’s “Find My” network. Read our review.
If you’re looking for a slightly fancier pair of fitness-centric earbuds, the Beats Fit Pro might be more your style. We consider the Beats Fit Pro to be the best pair of workout earbuds you can currently get, thanks to their active noise cancellation, comfortable fit, and outstanding sound quality. While the lack of wireless charging is a bit of a bummer at this price, the earbuds offer a host of excellent features specifically for Apple users, including dynamic head tracking for spatial audio, hand-free Siri voice commands and integration with Apple’s “Find My” network. Read our review.
A couple more deals for your Monday
If you’re searching for a more Android-centric pair of noise-canceling earbuds, the Sony WF-1000XM4 earbuds are currently matching their lowest price ever at Amazon and B&H Photo. Normally $249.99, you can currently pick up a pair of our favorite noise-canceling earbuds for just $178. Offering a combination of excellent sound quality, battery life, and noise cancellation, the XM4 earbuds even received multipoint Bluetooth connectivity thanks to a recent firmware update. Read our review.
Currently, you can save on a variety of Anker charging devices at Amazon, including its new GaNPrime chargers. For instance, the Anker 735 65W charger is discounted to $39.99 (normally $59.99), while the similar 120W Anker 737 charger is on sale for $56.99 (normally $94.99). Also on sale is the clever Anker 615 power strip that’s available for $43.99 (normally $69.99), and the orb-shaped magnetic Anker 637 charging station is available for $63.99 instead of $99.99.
You can get a starter pack of Philips Hue White and Color Ambiance smart LED bulbs for $149.99 ($50 off) at Best Buy with a $60 gift card included. Once you use that gift card, it’s like you got the four bulbs and Hue Bridge for $89.99 — which is a steal. These Hue bulbs are the latest 1100-lumen version, and with the included Bridge, you can do all kinds of tweaking and scheduling of your lighting in the Philips Hue app.