Friday's Best Deals: Xbox Live Gold, Humble Monthly, Laundry Pods, and More

PublishedApril 6, 2018

Score deals on 12 months of Xbox Live Gold, an artistic smart lighting system, laundry pods, and much more.

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TOP TECH DEALS

$100 camera drones aren’t all that uncommon these days, but most of those cameras could be charitably compared to smartphones circa 2009. They produce images, yes, but maybe not anything you’d want to look at.

The Force1 F100 Ghost Drone though includes a 1080p action camera that actually looks pretty good, but you can also swap in a GoPro HERO3 or HERO4 in its place for even better shots. Plus, you get a couple of extra shells and two batteries. There’s no gimbal, and the range won’t compare to a DJI drone, but for $100, it’s a solid package. Just note that this is a Gold Box deal, meaning this price is only available today, or until sold out.

Nanoleaf Rhythm Starter Kit | $180 | Home Depot

Update: Sold out

Most smart lighting systems are basically enhancements of the light bulbs we’ve been using for decades, but why not use all that technology to make something more artistic?

The Nanoleaf Rhythm is a smart lighting system based on a series of flat, interconnected triangles that you can arrange on your wall in any pattern you want. They probably won’t be your primary source of light, but with a little creativity, they can be a centerpiece of your home’s decoration. The included microphone allows the light panels to react to ambient sounds or music, or you can create custom recipes and trigger them with your smartphone, Google Home, or Alexa-enabled device. It’ll even work with IFTTT, so you could, say, light up your triangles your team’s colors whenever they play.

The starter kit includes a controller and nine panels (you can add up to 21 more, sold separately), and it’s down to $180 at Home Depot right now, down from its usual $230.

$32 is a pretty good price for any 45W USB-C Power Delivery charger, but this one also includes four regular USB ports for phones, tablets, and the like. It’s a little too big for travel, but it would be great for a desk or nightstand where you charge a MacBook, Nintendo Switch, or any other USB-C-powered gadgets. Save $11 at checkout with promo code KINJAXY1.

Despite its tiny size, the GoPro HERO5 Session includes 4K recording and voice commands just like its bigger sibling (though obviously, it lacks a touchscreen), and you can get a refurb from GoPro’s official eBay storefront for just $120 today. That’s a full $80 less than buying it new, and you get the exact same manufacturer warranty, so I’d say it’s $80 well saved.

Verizon just kicked off a big sale offering up to 50% off the latest and greatest phones when you trade in another device. As you might expect, there are a lot of caveats, and Lifehacker broke them all down here. But if you have an eligible device to trade in, and don’t mind sticking with Verizon for two years, this could be a great opportunity.

Anker makes smart plugs now, because Anker makes everything, and the compact model is down to an all-time low $19 today, while supplies last.

Like pretty much all of these things, you can control or schedule the Eufy Smart Plug Mini with both your phone and with Alexa, and its built-in energy monitoring feature is a great inclusion at this price. Plus, its slim design means it won’t block the other outlet on a receptacle, so you can plug something else in (including a second smart plug).

Update: Now even cheaper, just $53 with promo code KINPB058

USB-C Power Delivery battery packs are magical devices that can charge MacBooks and Nintendo Switches no matter where you are in the world, and one of the most popular options out there is on sale today with promo code 26800MON.

$56 gets you RAVPower’s 26,800mAh battery pack, complete with a 30W USB-C port that can power a MacBook or Nintendo Switch at basically full speed, plus two regular USB ports as well, making it the ideal companion for a long flight.

Anker’s SoundBuds Curves were a runner up in our recent affordable headphone poll (they were only beat out by Anker’s own SoundBuds Slims), and you can grab a pair for just $21 today, down from $28.

The SoundBuds Curve are the sportiest member of the SoundBuds family, and are designed with active users in mind. Their ear wings ensure they stay put while you exercise, and an internal hydrophobic coating means your sweat won’t fry them. Their best spec though? 12.5 hours of battery life, which is basically unheard of in the space. Even if you already have Bluetooth headphones you like, it might be worth grabbing an extra set to keep in your gym bag.

Anker’s reader-favorite PowerLine charging cables have blossomed into an entire line of different products, and it hasn’t always been clear which one was the best:

PowerLine - The original. Rubber-wrapped, and kevlar-reinforced.

PowerLine+ - The same, but wrapped in Nylon for added durability, less tangling, and a better feel.

PowerLine II - A more durable version of the original, and backed by a lifetime warranty, but without the benefits of nylon wrapping.

That confusion can now become a thing of the past, because they’ve combined the best of all of their cables into the new PowerLine+ II, and you can save on the 6' Lightning version today for the first time ever. It’s incredibly durable, it’s wrapped in nylon, and it comes with a lifetime warranty, meaning it’s probably the last Lightning cable you’ll ever have to buy. Get it in any color you want today for $12, or about $6 less than usual, with promo code ANKER453.

The advent of USB-C is largely a positive force in the world, but it does mean that the days of just plugging an HDMI cable directly into a computer are coming to an end. So when you want to connect your laptop to a TV or projector, this $16 dongle is exactly what you need, and nothing more. Get it for $16 today with promo code KINJAUC1.

So you’ve got some big-ass computer monitors at work now, like an omnipotent hacker or a coked-out stockbroker from the movies. Congrats! But the effect isn’t truly complete until you mount those monitors to arms that let you move, articulate, and even rotate them in any direction, depending on the situation. These 4.4 star rated models from North Bayou (one monitor | two monitors) are both down to great low prices today.

DirecTV Now is one of the better over-the-top cable replacements out there, and with this deal, there’s very little reason not to give it a try.

For a limited time, if you prepay for three months of the service at $35 per month, you’ll get a 4K Apple TV included for free. That Apple TV costs $179 normally, so you’re basically getting a $74 discount on the box, plus three months of live TV. No brainer.

VPNs have been in the news, and whether you want to get around video geoblocks, circumvent proxy filters, or just keep prying eyes out of your browsing data while using sketchy public Wi-Fi, reader-favorite Private Internet Access has a deal to fit your needs.

Last month, they offered our readers $10 off two year memberships, but this time around, you get a few more choices, ranging from a quick taste of the service to an extended commitment with additional savings:

One month for $6 | Usually $7
One year for $35 | Usually $40
Three years for $90 | Not offered to the general public at all

These deals are only for our readers, but we aren’t sure how long they’ll be available, so go ahead and sign up while you can.

TOP HOME DEALS

It’s almost barbecue season, and you can be ready with a set of Char-Broil potato screws, now marked down to an all-time low $8 for six. As you might have guessed from the name, you screw these stainless steel corkscrews into potatoes, and throw them on the grill. The screws make them easier to grab with tongs or gloves, and help transfer grill heat to the inside of the potato, which makes them cook faster.

They may not look quite as tasty as Tide Pods (due to a lack of artificial dyes or brighteners), but Amazon’s Presto! brand laundry pods are a lot cheaper today (even with a Tide Pod sale going on), at just $14 for 90. That’s down from the usual $20. And with a 94% USDA certified biobased formula, you can actually feel good about doing laundry.

Amazon makes its own snacks now, and a bunch of them are on sale today for some of the best prices we’ve seen. The giant bags of various nuts are a no-brainer purchase, but you’ll also find some snack-sized packs, herbal tea, and several flavors of matcha green tea powder, which is a superfood that you can add to just about everything.

Clip the 15% off coupon and get this 5-pound bag of Trolli gummi worms for just $12 today. You can divide them up into little snack-sized bags, or if you’re having a bad day, follow Lauren’s method:

This Sterline spiralizer can cut your favorite fruits and vegetables into versatile stings and strands, and includes three different blades, and even suction cups on the bottom to keep it locked to your counter. Today’s $10 price tag (after clipping the $1 coupon) is one of the best prices we’ve ever seen on one of these things, making it the perfect gift for the home chef who has everything.

If you like having green things in your home, but struggle to keep them alive, succulents are made just for you.

While supplies last, Amazon’s running an extremely rare $5 discount on a collection of 12 succulent plants shipped right to your door. Each plant is unique and comes in a 2" pot, but many of them will be ready to transfer to a larger arrangement. Just remember, the green ones do well indoors, while purple and orange plants will be happier on your patio.

Gorilla ladders are some of the most highly regarded out there, and when it comes to buying ladders, you don’t want to skimp. This 22' model can support nearly 400 pounds, and can be used in a ton of different positions to suit your needs. At $99 from Home Depot, it’s an absolute steal.

You probably looked at that image up there and laughed. But let me tell you, there’s nothing funny about turning on the bathroom light in the middle of the night. Because as soon as you hit that switch, you know you’re not getting back to sleep for another hour.

The GlowBowl Fresh fits on just about any toilet, is motion activated, and can even output 13 different colors of light at five different brightness levels. This particular model also includes an integrated air freshener, which just makes sense. It normally sells for about $15, and is worth every penny, but you can pick one up from Amazon right now for $12.

Just note that it runs off AAA batteries, so we recommend picking up rechargeables if you don’t already own them.

Keep out the sunshine with the help of these discounted AmazonBasics blackout curtains. They have several color and size options to pick from with prices ranging between $21 and $31, a good $10 - $20 discount from the usual. Unfortunately not all the color and size combinations are on sale, so we’ve highlighted a couple of options in this post, but if you’d like to see them all, head over to Amazon.

Contigo’s Autoseal West Loops have long been our readers’ favorite travel mugs, and you can add two of them to your collection for $26 today. That’s one for you and one for your significant other, or it just means you’ll have a spare mug while your other one is in the sink.

These mugs are cupholder-friendly, easy to clean, and will maintain a hot beverage hot for up to five hours, or a cold drink for up to 12.

If you’re the new owner of a Nebula Capsule or any other projector, you’re going to need to get an outdoor screen. Just imagine it, you can use it to play video games, show a slideshow at an event, or watch movies from the comfort of your yard.

This 92" screen is made of durable nylon, includes all the stakes and string you’ll need, and it’s just $99 on Woot today, which is about $45 less than its Amazon price. But, showtimes for this deal end at the end of the day or when the product sells out, so don’t let this deal pass you by!

If you’ve ever spent more than 5 seconds sorting through your mismatched food containers to find the right lid, it’s time to throw them all out and upgrade to the uber-popular Rubbermaid Easy Find Lid system.

These containers come in six different sizes, and yet you only have to deal with three different lids, making it much easier to find the right one. The 42 piece set is on sale for $17 today on Amazon. We’ve seen better prices in the past, but this set has been selling for around $20 pretty consistently this year, so this is worth picking up if you have a need for it.

It’s 2018, and your lighter doesn’t need fuel anymore; it just has to charge over USB. This discounted arc lighter isn’t really pocket-friendly, but its long, flexible neck makes it ideal for lighting candles, camp fires and other awkwardly-placed flammable things. Just charge the built-in battery, and you’ll be good to go for up to 1,000 uses before you have to plug it in again.

Get it for $12 today with promo code 4STI6479, matching a deal we saw on it back in February.

No matter your favorite flavor of Tide Pod, it’s probably discounted with today’s $3 coupon on Amazon.

Most of the deals require a Prime Pantry order, but these two do not. There’s also a Gain Flings option included in the sale, but let’s be honest, that’s like a Newman-O to Tide’s Oreos.

Save a couple of bucks on this pack of four multi-functional silicone kitchen pads, which can be used as pot holders, trivets, jar openers, and spoon rests. You can even wrap one of these around a clove of garlic, roll it around for a few seconds, and you’ll have peeled garlic. Nifty! These are priced about $2 less than they usually are, so why not?

Very similar to the best-selling Takeya cold brew coffee maker, this carafe makes 1.3 quarts of highly-concentrated, cold brew coffee without most of the acidity of traditionally-brewed coffee. After you clip the $1 off coupon, this is only $17 today, which means this thing will pay for itself very quickly if you’re used to buying cold brew at coffee shops.

When you’re not using it for coffee, you can fill the mesh insert with fruit or tea bags for homemade infused water and tea.

A good hand vacuum is just one of those things every home needs, if only for cleaning up quick messes without plugging in a full-sized vacuum, or vacuuming up car seats where a real vacuum can’t reach. This one from Black & Decker is just $30 today, the best price ever.

Cool more cookies without sacrificing counter space. This normally-$20 3-tier cooling rack will set you back just $14 today. Plus, it folds flat for easy storage.

Pad the floor of your home gym, workshop, or playroom with these foam tiles. They’re lightweight, water-resistant, and easy to clean up. A 6-pack of 2' x 2' gray tiles is just $20 today, which is about $4 less than the typical price.

If you want to experience a wide swath of what Italy has to offer, Great Value Vacations’ newest package is worth a look.

Starting from $1,097 per person, you get roundtrip flights into Rome and out of Venice, a rental car, daily breakfast, and hotel or apartment rental nights in Rome, Tuscany, and just outside of Venice for eight nights (extendable up to 10). There are no tour groups or strict itineraries with this trip (other than the number of nights at each location), so you’ll have the flexibility to enjoy the week however you wish.

Prices seem to be lowest out of JFK in October, but you can price it out from basically any airport and date, subject to availability.

What if you could apply a coat of Rain-X to your car just by pulling on your windshield wiper stalk? This bottle of washer fluid additive is just $4 today after you clip the $1 coupon, and mixes with your existing washer fluid to encourage water beading. And with a 4.3 star review average from over 450 customers, it seems to actually get the job done.

TOP LIFESTYLE DEALS

Sephora isn’t known for their discounts and deals like other retailers, but they’re trying something new this year with their Weekly Wow deals. Every Thursday, Sephora will drop a bunch of deals and offers for one week only. This week includes:

Snag yourself one of these Sunbeam wraps to soothe sore muscles without straining your wallet. The larger wrap heats and massages, and will cost you just $39 today, matching the best price ever. The smaller wrap doesn’t massage, but does have four temperature settings, plus is discounted ~$8 today.

Sorel is one of your favorite winter boot brands, and the Tofino was the one to beat. But if you were looking for something a little different from Sorel, this sale is for you. Take up to 65% off a couple different boot styles, including waterproof boots that you can easily wear even when it’s not gross out (whenever that’ll be). Use the code SORAPR18 at checkout.

Preorder Baubax 2.0 | $129-$149 | Kickstarter

Baubax is back with its second multifunctional jacket, ~~the Go Go Gadget Jacket~~ the Baubax 2.0, and you can save by preordering as its stupid-successful Kickstarter campaign winds down.

The Baubax 2.0 is actually a line of four different jackets: a hoodie, a bomber, a windbreaker, and a vest, but all four feature most of the line’s impressive list of over 25 features (though each has at least one omission). Now, a lot of those features could be categorized as different sizes of pockets, and indeed, these jackets have a lot of pockets, especially on the inside. But a few others are really unique.

There’s the retractable keychain (not included in my sample), the microfiber cloth tethered to a pocket, the zipper with a detachable pen and stylus. They all even hide inflatable neck pillows inside the hood (tucked underneath an eye mask, naturally). It’s a little bulky to keep inside the hood all the time, but it’s a clever storage solution when you’re traveling.

You can head over to Baubax’s Kickstarter page to see all of the features in action, and then preorder the jacket of your choice for $129-$149, depending on the style, with delivery estimated for August.

Amazon’s back at it again with another sample box, this time featuring 10 more samples of high-end men’s grooming supplies for $20, plus a $20 credit that you can spend on eligible items afterwards. Assuming you use the credit, that’s like getting samples of fancy shaving cream, toothpastes, colognes, and more for free.

Even without discounts, Dorco offers some of the best deals in shaving, and now you can try their six-blade Dorco Pace 6 razor for just $10, complete with a handle, six cartridges, and even some shaving cream.

Just use promo code KINJA43X at checkout to save $10.

TOP MEDIA DEALS

Add these angsty 80's classics to your Blu-ray collection for $15, or just $5 per movie.

This set includes The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, and Weird Science, so you can watch all the quirky awkwardness and be grateful your teenage years are behind you.

TOP GAMING DEALS

Xbox Live Gold is basically a requisite add-on for your Xbox One, but don’t get suckered into paying the full $60. While supplies last, here’s an entire year for $45.

The clock just reset on Humble Monthly, and next month’s early access games are Kerbal Space Program, Dead Rising 4, and Ruiner. As always, Humble Monthly is only $12 per month (or less if you prepay for longer time periods), and includes a cache of PC games each month, plus 10% off in the Humble Store, and extra benefits on certain Humble Bundles. The best part? Even if you cancel your membership, every game you add to your Steam library is yours to keep.

So if you sign up now, you’ll get the three aforementioned games, plus a bunch more when the month unlocks in early May, all for $12. I have to add, landing on Mun for the first time in Kerbal Space Program is a top 3 all-time gaming moment for me.

Update: Sold out

If you can’t wait for Avengers: Infinity War to come out, you can pass the time with this awesome LEGO set, now back in stock for $56, or $14 less than MSRP.

You get the Guardians of the Galaxy ship, Iron Man, Gamora, and Star Lord mini figs, a Thanos big figure, and of course, the Infinity Gauntlet and detachable Infinity Stones. Naturally, you can integrate this with other LEGO Avengers set, and the ship even includes an attachment point for the Guardians of the Galaxy Mining Pod included in this set.

Feel nostalgic about all the junk food you ~~still regularly~~ used to eat with this 1,000-piece colorful puzzle. Featuring the the old-school packaging of Cap’n Crunch, Cheez-Its, Kraft Mac & Cheese, Tasty Kakes, and more, this puzzle will set you back just $13 and zero calories today.

While it may lack some of the name recognition of other gaming peripheral manufacturers, this UTechSmart mechanical gaming keyboard has great user reviews, fully customizable backlighting, and a price tag of only $60 with promo code BOQ86MDD, which is a great deal for the features you’re getting.

This is from the same company as the cult-favorite UTechSmart Venus MMO mouse, if aren’t sure of the company’s bona fides.

If you’re going to buy a console from the 3DS family in the age of the Nintendo Switch, the New 2DS XL is probably the one you should get. It normally costs $150 (half the price of a Switch), but Amazon’s marked that down to a $130 today, which leaves you with an extra $20 to spend on SNES Virtual Console titles.