A mouse pad, portable SSD, and more are discounted today

Whether you’re looking for new tech gear or household items, we’ve got you covered.

We found plenty of great deals today that include big discounts on the Essential Phone, the SteelSeries mouse pad, a portable SSD, and more!

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If you want to know about the deals as soon as they are happening, you’ll want to follow Thrifter on Twitter, and sign up for the newsletter, because missing out on a great deal stinks!

Slip an unlocked Halo Gray Essential Phone into your pocket for $280

One of the best prices we’ve seen.

We’ve seen deals on the Essential Phone in the past, and while this isn’t quite as good as Prime Day pricing, it’s still a heck of a deal. Right now you can get the phone in Halo Gray (the best color) for just $279.99.

It comes with 128GB of internal storage, a dual camera system on the back, and it’s powered by the Snapdragon 835 processor. You can also add the exclusive Essential 360 camera. Essential has already released the Android Pie update for the device as well, so you’ll be able to install that as soon as you receive yours!

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The best cases for the Moto G5 Plus

Because metal scratches too easily.

Motorola’s 2017 budget phone, the Moto G5 Plus, is a great option if you’re looking to get a metal phone at plastic prices. (In other words, it’s a great product.)

If you recently bought a Moto G5 Plus at a discount, you should reinvest some of that money you saved on a case to keep it in tip-top condition. We’ve rounded up a wide variety of cases here —from heavy duty and rugged to slim and sleek — so you can find the one that fits your lifestyle best!

• Ringke FUSION case
• Supcase Unicorn Beetle Pro
• Spigen Rugged Armor case
• Incipio NGP case
• TUDIA Ultra Slim case
• Cimo clear case
• Poetic Revolution rugged case
• LK Leather Wallet Flip case

Ringke FUSION case

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Striking the right balance between protection and thickness, the Ringke Fusion series is one of the most popular for a reason. Get the Moto G5 Plus version in three colors for just $10.

Ringke has a good reputation as a solid case manufacturer, and for good reason: its Fusion series always fits and protects well without adding too much bulk.

The Moto G5 Plus version, available in Clear, Rose Gold Crystal, or Smoke Black colors, is no exception. All versions leave a clear back while the two colored options merely accentuate the sides of the phone. The case covers the ports with little flaps, preventing water from getting inside, and the TPU covering is reinforced at the corners to ensure MIL-STD 810G drop protection

Supcase Unicorn Beetle Pro with Built-in Screen Protector

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The Supcase Unicorn is thick and bulky for a reason: it’ll protect your Moto G5 Plus from anything life throws at you. It comes with a built-in screen protector, too. Get it for $18.

Do you regularly head out into the great outdoors with your phone and need a case that’s rugged enough to take on the elements? Supcase offers its Unicorn Beetle Pro case, which features rugged, dual-layer protection and a built-in screen protector.

It combines a rugged polycarbonate shell with soft TPU to create a durable case with a sporty design. Supcase brags that this case exceeded military shock standards by surviving a 4-foot drop test 26 times so if you’re prone to dropping your phone this is the case for you. All the ports are covered to keep out dirt and lint with access to the phone’s ports and buttons, and also comes with an optional swiveling belt clip holster. It comes in sleek all black, or premium color cases.

Spigen Rugged Armor case

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Spigen’s Rugged Armor lineup offers a great balance between style and functionality without adding a ton of bulk to your phone. This is one of the most popular cases in the world for a reason. Get it for $13.

This one-piece case is made from flexible TPU with an internal spider-web pattern to help disperse the shock from drops along with Spigen’s Air Cushion technology in the corners. The screen is protected with a raised lip around the front, and on the back, you’ll find a precise cutout around the camera along with glossy, carbon fiber textures at the top and bottom of the case which increases your ability to maintain a solid grip on your phone.

Precise cutouts around the ports and raised tactile buttons ensure the functionality of your phone is never impeded. For a great, lightweight case that offers rugged protection, you really can’t go wrong with Spigen.

Incipio NGP case

See at Amazon

If you’re looking for a lightweight rugged case, Incipio’s NGP case is the right voice for you. It’s a no-fuss choice that provides considerable protection, specifically around the sides and back. Get it starting at $14.

Featuring a textured back and bumper to ensure you maintain a solid grip, this one-piece polymer case is designed with enhanced drop protection — you’ll notice the honeycombed interior which helps to disperse the shock when your phone inevitably hits a table or floor.

Precise cutouts mean you’ll have full access to the charging port and headphone jack as well as the volume and power button on the side.

Tudia Ultra Slim case

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Tudia’s carbon fiber Ultra Slim case is the perfect way to cover your Moto G5 Plus with minimal bulk. A stylish and inexpensive solution at $11.

Tudia’s Ultra Slim case for the Moto G5 Plus is a very stylish option for protecting your phone. It features stylish carbon fiber designs at the top and the bottom of the backplate, which both looks great and helps with grip.

Made with high-quality TPU, this sleek case won’t add much bulk to your phone, while the raised edge around the screen help keep your phone protected when it’s face down on a surface. It’s available in three color options: black, grey and navy blue.

For a really stylish and slim option for protecting your Moto G5 Plus, the Tudia Ultra Slim case can’t be beaten.

Cimo clear case

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Cimo’s cases are some of the highest quality you can find, and this clear case shows off the Moto G5 Plus’s excellent looks. Grab it for under $10.

Cimo’s cases always fit really well and their clarity is excellent. Made from flexible TPU, these cases have a great in-hand feel that’s not slippery, so you won’t be fumbling your Moto G5 Plus all the time. There’s a raised bezel around the front of the case to protect your phone’s screen when you lay it face-down, and the ports and buttons are cut out precisely. It’s important to note that clear TPU will almost always yellow after some time due to the way it absorbs sunlight. But for around $8, you might as well grab a few.

Interested in checking out other clear case options? Check out the best clear cases for the Moto G5 Plus.

Poetic Revolution

See at Amazon

If rugged protection is the name of the game for you, you’ll want to consider this Poetic Revolution case for the Moto G5 Plus. It offers full protection for your phone, including a front plate with a built-in screen protector that also adds water resistance to the mix. Starts at just $13.

This two-piece case combines polycarbonate and TPU on the back to provide a balance of shock absorption and scratch protection, while the front plate is made of solid PC and includes a screen protector to keep your screen protected better than any other case on this list.

There’s a lot of smart design elements in play here, including grippy textures along the side edges of the phone, lint/dust flaps over the ports at the bottom, and ‘edgy’ corners that give the phone a fresh and unique look. Despite all the features and protection built into this case, the profile remains relatively slim so you’re not carrying around a plastic brick in your pocket.

LK Leather Wallet Flip case

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If you’re looking to keep your phone, ID, credit cards and cash all in one place when you’re heading out for a night on the town, the LK wallet case is your best bet. Pick it up for just $7!

Available in both black and brown color options, this case features three card slots on the inside cover, including a windowed slot that’s perfect for your ID, and also includes a pocket for carrying cash as well. Your phone is held in place via a soft TPU shell that offers quality protection in the spots you need it most: the corners. Fold over the front cover to use it as a kickstand for viewing, then use the magnetic clasp to keep your screen protected in your pocket.

Do note that some of the Moto G5 Plus’ functionality may be impeded when the front cover is closed, including the twist and chop gestures for launching the camera and flashlight respectively. Those require the infrared sensor to work properly which is covered by the case when closed. It certainly shouldn’t be a dealbreaker for most, but it’s worth mentioning before you make the purchase.

Updated August 2018: We’ve updated pricing for these awesome cases.

Moto G5

• Moto G5 Plus review
• Moto G5 Specs
• Top 10 things to know about the Moto G5 + G5 Plus
• Moto G5 Plus vs Moto G4 Plus
• Join our Moto G5 forums!

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It’s OK not to be hyped about 5G

You may have heard that 5G is going to change everything. That it’s going to enable the next 10 years of wireless innovation and completely upend how we use our mobile devices. That everything from watches to VR headsets to cars and even hospital operating rooms will be powered by ultra-low-latency wireless networks with enough bandwidth to negate the need for wired connections.

5G is coming, but it’s less about phones than the sensors phones communicate with.

If you’ve been following along with the 5G hype narratives from companies like Qualcomm, Huawei, Ericsson, Nokia, Verizon, T-Mobile and others that have considerable skin in the game, once the standard becomes ubiquitous, our lives will never be the same.

Much like the change from analog to digital networks, or from 2G to 3G, which introduced high(er)-speed mobile data to smartphones, 5G is expected to initiate a sea change of new technological possibilities when it arrives next year.

According to Qualcomm, the company most effusively pushing this narrative, 5G will be nothing short of “a unifying connectivity fabric for our society,” a way for people to connect more intimately and for businesses to build dynamic experiences that will make them more productive and, ultimately, more profitable.

Blah, blah, blah — right? It’s OK, I get it. I feel it, too. Even though we’re a few months from companies like Verizon launching an actual 5G-powered home broadband service, and less than half a year from the first 5G-enabled mobile products, it’s still unclear how the hyperbole, the relentless grandstanding, will change our lives. Because our lives are already upended. We do everything on our phones, and when we don’t have super-fast LTE to facilitate those things, we fall back on the comforting ubiquity of Wi-Fi.

And, I mean, is 5G really necessary when all we’re doing is scrollin’, scrollin’ through Instagram and sending a bajillion WhatsApp messages? Do we need super-fast networks to watch more YouTube, or unlimited bandwidth when we’re just playing a couple rounds of Clash Royale?

The issue with 5G is that, aside from the odd frustrating experience with our carrier or our phone, it’s difficult to perceive the improvements in something that hasn’t amazed us yet, and the potential of something that’s right now just a bunch of whitepapers and breathless marketing. Back in June, Qualcomm tried to get ahead of this narrative by putting together a document outlining the real-world changes we’re sure to see out of 5G. It highlights vast improvements to agriculture efficiency — more wheat! — and more efficient public transit — fewer delays!

It preaches that shopping will be more personal, and that 5G will make augmented reality truly useful and even indispensable. And what about the average person? Faster networks with unlimited bandwidth at ultra-low costs, with the ability to capture, share, and instantly upload 4K video or even high-resolution virtual reality footage. Others, like Huawei, say the same sorts of things. More connections! Lower latency! Faster signals! More, more, more.

These things all sound super great, really, and I’m sure they will be. Even the technology behind the initial 5G standard, called 5G NR, is fascinating. In addition to existing low- and medium-range signals, it takes advantage of ultra-fast microwave signals (called millimeter waves) that are incredibly difficult to route long distances, or through walls, or without major interference in general. The radios sending the signals need to be lower to the ground than existing cellphone towers, and there need to be more of them.

The signals, finicky things that they are, use a process called beamforming to essentially lock onto your phone and bend around objects. And when the signals do inevitably crash into things — buildings, cars, people — they have enough intelligence to use that interference to its advantage, breaking into pieces and reforming, Terminator-style, on the other side.

T-Mobile signed a $3.5 billion deal with Nokia to build out a massive 5G network in the U.S.

The amount of work that’s gone into creating the 5G standard is extraordinary. The things that it can and will do are, too. But right now it’s admittedly hard to see what all the fuss is about. The hype is enormous, and the expectations even more so, which makes it even more difficult for the stakeholders to follow through.

Most people just want faster speeds with higher data limits at a lower price. Businesses just want to make more money. City officials just want fewer road accidents and lower maintenance costs. Governments just want their networks to be reliable and secure.

One of 5G’s major promises is real-time, high-quality roomscale VR, and that could be transformative. For some people.

Right now, it’s hard to see how 5G will magically make everything better. That’s OK, because right now it’s just an idea, a promise of progress. When it finally does lurch towards its inevitable pervasiveness, it’s less likely to wow us than encourage us to evaluate our relationships with the technology that we’ve come to take for granted. The phone is still the central thing in our lives, and that’s not likely to change, but 5G promises a radio in everything, which will lead to more connectivity, more fragmentation and, like it or not, more frustration.

Early adopters like me, who are keenly following every 5G milestone, do not represent the average person. LTE’s relatively seamless and transparent rollout — hey, my new phone is faster! — was, like all mobile innovations, concurrent with the rising popularity of apps and tools that were made possible. But whereas streaming video, and lots of it, will be LTE’s legacy, it’s not obvious to me, despite a plenitude of examples, how the average person will perceive 5G’s abundance.

Which is why it’s OK not to be hyped about 5G right now, because mobile data in all its forms is no longer meant to be exciting. It just is, and with that mundanity comes a narrowing of scope. 5G will be awesome, and it will be everywhere, but right now it’s just a lengthening of an existing tendril.