Photo by Dan Seifert / The Verge
Microsoft’s intriguing Surface Laptop Studio with an articulating display and a plinth platform to keep cool is seeing its first decent price drop since its release a few months ago. The base configuration that normally costs $1,599.99, and comes with an Intel Core i5-11300H processor, 16GB of RAM, and 256GB of storage, is down to $1,399.99 at Best Buy for today only. That’s more than a tithe off the plinth, though you’ll need to have a free Best Buy account to get this deal.
This is a good price if you want a laptop that has a display that can be positioned in multiple arrangements, much like the Surface Studio desktop. Though, this deal isn’t for everyone to whom the Surface Laptop Studio tries to appeal, namely creative types who need a lot of horsepower. The discounted configuration has integrated Intel Iris Xe graphics, which are no slouch for some light gaming, but it doesn’t compare to the RTX 3050 graphics (in addition to a more powerful CPU) found in the $2,099.99 configuration. Read our review.
Also at Best Buy, you can get a huge 75-inch Samsung QN84A Neo QLED 4K TV for $1,100 off its retail price, plus you’ll get a $500 Best Buy gift card with purchase. The final cost is $1,699.99, which is a solid price for a 75-inch TV that — based on its specs — should deliver a lot of bang for the buck. While it lacks HDMI 2.1 ports to play Xbox Series X, PS5, or PC at 4K resolution and 120 frames per second, it has a native 120Hz refresh rate.
More importantly for some, it has full array local dimming for an accurate-looking picture, and its “Quantum HDR 24X” spec claims to reach very high brightness levels of up to 2,400 nits. This TV has four HDMI 2.0 ports, and it supports HDMI ARC, which makes it easy to funnel audio from the TV into a soundbar via HDMI instead of needing extra cables.
Make way for even more Samsung deals offered at Best Buy. The new Galaxy Buds 2 that released this fall are just about $50 off their original $150 price in the black colorway. We’ve seen competitive offers at sites like Woot, but that site typically offers the international version of this product, which lacks a one-year warranty for US customers — that’s not the case with the model available at Best Buy.
In our review, Chris Welch was impressed with the size reduction from generation to generation, along with good audio quality and extra features (that aren’t a guarantee at this price) like active noise cancellation and a wireless charging case. Read our review.
The final Samsung / Best Buy combo I’m delivering today is on this Samsung Galaxy Book Flex2 Alpha 2-in-1 laptop that’s steeply discounted. Normally $1,049.99, it’s $749.99 today. The Flex2 features a 13.3-inch FHD QLED screen, Intel’s Core i7-1165G7 CPU, 512GB of storage, and 16GB of RAM. This model released over the summer, and it seems like a capable machine for the price. In terms of ports, it sports one HDMI port, a charging plug, two USB-A ports, one USB-C port, and a microSD card slot.
Other deals you might be interested in
Razer’s Barracuda X wireless gaming headset that includes a USB-C wireless transmitter (and supports Bluetooth and 2.4GHz) is $79.99 at Amazon, $20 off its usual price.
If you purchase any of these Vizio TVs through GameStop (starting at $428), you’ll get a $100 GameStop gift card.