Technology

I've recommended these 3 Amazon Black Friday deals to so many people – CNET


This story is part of Holiday Gift Guide 2021, our list of ideas, by topic, by recipient and by price, to help you discover the perfect gift.

A big part of my daily work right now is checking out the latest and greatest deals — and ensuring that things are actually discounted instead of just appearing to be discounted. We see a lot of the same deals regularly, and sometimes for Black Friday the deals are slightly better. (Sometimes they are worse.) A lot of my friends and family ask what deals they should be buying or what the best discounts are for Black Friday, and this year I find myself recommending a few of the same Amazon Black Friday deals over and over again.

These may not be the most popular products and may not be something that everyone finds use in, but these are all products that I use daily and paid more for with my own money than their current sale price right now. I’ve done my homework to make sure that these are the best prices and that we don’t expect the price to drop any further in the coming days, so rest assured knowing that you can buy these now as well without the risk of a missing out on more of a discount this week.

Here are three products I’ve been recommending to my friends and now I’m recommending to all of you.

Nespresso Vertuo Next with Aerocinno: $165 (save $45)

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Nespresso

I really like a good cup of coffee or espresso in the morning, and I know I’m not alone. For a while, my wife and I were going to Starbucks several times a week and spending upwards of $10 to $12 per visit, which adds up very quickly. For a while we were using a Keurig, and while it’s convenient the quality was not what we preferred. After realizing that we were spending around $35 each weekend on coffee, it was pretty clear that buying a Nespresso was worth it for us — and would pay itself off in about a month.

Right now, the Nespresso Vertuo Next with Aerocinno frother is on sale for just $165, one of the best prices we’ve seen on it in the past year. The frother itself sells for around $100 in most places, and it’s included in the bundle here for a little more money than buying the Nespresso by itself.

One of the things that I love the most about the Nespresso is just how simple it is to use. It doesn’t matter if you put in a coffee pod, a single shot of espresso or a triple shot, the machine knows how to brew it properly and drips out a perfect cup of coffee each time. The frother can be used to make hot or cold foam, which is great as well.

Since we’ve bought the Nespresso, we’ve only gone to Starbucks a handful of times and have saved a whole lot of money in the process. The pods are around $1 each, which is less than a cup of coffee and Nespresso offers a bunch of flavors that I’ve tried and found them to be great.

Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K: $25 (save $25)

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Sarah Tew/CNET

While most CNET editors prefer Roku, I really like the Fire TV interface and hardware. I’ve tried both and have alternated between the two for the past few years: Each time I use Roku, I end up longing for the Fire TV experience. When it comes down to it, both the Roku and Fire TV hardware accomplish the same task by allowing you to stream your favorite shows, but in my experience I have found that the Roku hardware slows down over time while the Fire TV experience for me has remained solid.

As part of the early Amazon Black Friday deals you can pick up the Fire TV Stick for just $25, which is a savings of 50%. You can upgrade to the new Fire TV Stick 4K Max for $10 more. The main difference between the two is that the 4K Max is said to be 40% more powerful and supports Wi-Fi 6. The Fire TV Stick 4K is no slouch, though, and will be plenty fast to load apps and stream your hardware.

What I like most about the Fire TV Stick 4K is that you can plug it into any TV and turn it into a smart TV without other upgrades. The remote offers voice control and has built-in shortcuts for some of the top streaming apps. You can use the Fire TV remote to power on and off not only the Fire TV Stick, but also your TV and control the volume level for your TV set. If you’re looking to cut the cord or tired of your current streaming hardware, give an Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K a try today.

Neato Robotics D6 Robot Vacuum: $302 (save $144)

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Chris Monroe/CNET

Whether you have a pet or not, vacuuming is probably a task that you don’t enjoy and perhaps never do quite often enough. When we moved into a larger home, we were vacuuming our hardwood floors every day because of all the animal hair, and I quickly grew annoyed at how much time I spent doing it when there are robots that could do it for me. I’ve tried about robot vacuum brands over the past few years, and none have worked as well (or as consistently) for me as Neato.

For Black Friday, you can grab the Neato D6, which is one of the midtier options, for just over $300 — nearly $150 less than it regularly sells for. I paid a lot more than that for my current one back in 2019, and I don’t regret it one bit.

One thing you’ll notice pretty quickly about the Neato robot vacuums compared to others is the shape, which resembles an uppercase D. This is intentional: It helps the vacuum get into corners better (and it works). What I love about Neato vacuums is how accurate the mapping feature is and how easily you can customize no-go zones. We are able to draw lines where we don’t want the vacuum to go, and I have it set to run on a designated schedule so I never have to think about it. The amount of time and effort it saves me is well worth the upfront cost.



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