Gaming headsets can get expensive fast — just look at Turtle Beach’s latest flagship headset if you need a good case in point. Fortunately, budget-friendly wireless options do exist, offering a way for players to achieve more immersive sound quality without draining their bank account. This is especially true now that Microsoft’s Xbox Wireless Headset is seeing a rare $15 discount at Amazon, dropping the affordable headset down to a mere $85.
In terms of features, Microsoft’s official Xbox headset offers a lot of bang for your buck. The attractive matte black accessory is compatible with the Xbox Wireless protocol, meaning it works with both Xbox One and Xbox Series X / S consoles, and it even offers Bluetooth support for concurrent pairing with your tablet, laptop, and a range of other devices. What’s more, it sports a comfortable design and intuitive dial controls that allow you to fine-tune your game / chat audio mix on the fly. It lacks noise cancellation and more premium features found on higher-end headsets, but again, it’s hard to complain given the cost.
Read our Xbox Wireless Headset review.
Amazon Pet Day is here, and while it’s certainly no Prime Day in terms of deals, the ongoing two-day sale is a good time to stock up on treats, toys, and even tech through the end of the day. Right now, for instance, you can pick up Furbo’s 360° Dog Camera on Amazon for $147 instead of $210, which matches the lowest price to date on the treat-slinging device.
Furbo’s newer pet cam remains a favorite among Verge staffers (and rightly so). The tower-like gadget can rotate and automatically track your dog — or your feline friend — as they roam around your home, allowing you to keep a closer eye on your pet when you’re away via a mobile app. The 1080p gadget also offers a range of other features in addition to its wide-angle lens, including color night vision, two-way audio so you can chat with your pet, and the ability to fling treats on command. The latter means you can still shower your pooch with affection, or at least beef bites, when you’re not at home.
For those of us looking to focus on health and fitness as we emerge from our winter cocoons, the Oura Ring Generation 3 is seeing a rare discount. The gold heritage version of the latest Oura Ring is selling for $409 ($40 off) at Best Buy, where you can now go into a store to be sized. While there are cheaper versions of the Ring Gen 3 in a simpler silver or black, the gold offers a touch of pop and visual flare that may better blend in with your personal ensemble or stand out as an accent piece.
Style aside, the merits of the Oura Ring Gen 3 are in its health tracking, which is focused on sleep and heart rate monitoring, recovery, meditation, SpO2 measurements, period predicting, and some light exercise. The Ring may not have the more hardcore fitness tracking of a smartwatch, but in addition to being a good introduction to wearables, the Ring can make a great complement to your existing watch. You may even find that you don’t need to wear a smartwatch as often, which can be particularly freeing when you want to dress up and not wear a big honking computer on your wrist.
Read our review of the Oura Ring Generation 3.
A few more midweek deals to check out
- Newegg is still throwing in a digital download code for the newly released Star Wars Jedi: Survivor when you purchase an Xbox Series S for $299. Microsoft’s compact console isn’t nearly as powerful as the Xbox Series X — it’s confined to QHD gaming and only offers 512GB of storage — but it’s still a great Xbox Game Pass machine and the cheapest way to play the latest Star Wars title if you don’t already own a next-gen console or PC.
- While not “tech” in a traditional sense, the ChomChom pet hair remover is currently on sale at Amazon for just $20.36 (about $12 off) when you use promo code 20PETDAY23, nearly matching its best price to date. We recently highlighted the device in our guide to our favorite pet tech, and although it’s rather simplistic, it will save you from having to buy a three-pack of adhesive-laden lint rollers every month just to keep your couch clean.
- Petkit’s PuraX self-cleaning cat litter box, another mainstay we feature in our guide to some of the best pet tech, is down to just $439 ($361 off) at Amazon right now. That’s one of the better prices we’ve seen on the automatic litter box, which can convert your daily scooping duties into a simple once-a-week trash takeout while also keeping your living space free of unwanted odors that would otherwise wreak havoc on the vibe.
- A souped-up version of Apple’s M1 MacBook Air is on sale at B&H Photo in the gold colorway for $1,199 ($400 off) with 16GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD. We once crowned the 2020 Air as the best laptop you could buy thanks in part to its speedy performance and terrific battery life, two things it still has going for it despite the arrival of the newer M2 model.
- If you, like me, heat up your coffee four or five times over the course of the morning, a self-heating vessel like the Ember Mug 2 is the way to go. Thankfully, the ceramic mug, which lets you maintain a chosen temperature for up to an hour and a half or indefinitely using the provided charging coaster, is on sale in black and white for $99.95 ($30 off) at Best Buy.
- The Microsoft Sculpt ergonomic wireless keyboard and mouse bundle is $79.99 ($50 off) on a one-day deal at Best Buy. It includes a full-size split keyboard with a lifted center, wireless numpad, and a wireless mouse that angles your hand for better comfort. It may not be a fancy mechanical keyboard, but it’s an excellent value for anyone even remotely concerned about mitigating pain caused by endless hours working on a computer.
