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22
Sep

Wireless earbuds, robotic vacuums, 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 Eufy’s robotic vacuum cleaner, microfiber towels, the Orbi mesh networking router, and more!

View the rest of the deals

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!

22
Sep

Replace the band on your 46mm Samsung Galaxy Watch


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The Galaxy Watch is a great match for any Android phone, especially since you can easily make it your own. Not only can you choose from a number of watch faces, the watch bands are easily replaceable to better match your style. Here are the best replacement bands for the Samsung Galaxy Watch 46mm!

Totally metal

V-MORO 22mm Stainless Steel Strap

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This strap from V-MORO is made of heavy duty stainless steel, and it can go on in an instant with the built-in clasp. It’s available in black or silver to better match your watch, and it can be installed with the quick-release pins.

$16 at Amazon

Wooden wonder

LDFAS 22mm Wood Band

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This band will definitely help you stand out from the crowd, with the red sandalwood in between each link. You can get this band in either black or silver steel, and both look great with the red wood. There’s a clasp to get the band on and off your wrist, and quick release pins to join the band and watch.

$30 at Amazon

Super stretchy

Speidel Stainless Steel Watch Band

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These stretch watch bands are my personal favorite because they’re super easy to slip on and off, and they’re the perfect fit. You’ll likely need a jeweler’s help to get that perfect fit, but it’s worth it. This one from Speidel comes in either a straight end for easier installation or with a curved end to better match the contours of your watch.

$35 at Amazon

Lovely leather

Berfine 22mm Vintage Genuine Leather Watch Band

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Few things are as classy as a nice leather watch band, and this one from Berfine is plenty stylish. It comes in black, brown, or dark brown, and it’ll fit your Galaxy Watch perfectly. You get a heavy metal buckle and lighter stitching, so your watch pops even more.

$18 at Amazon

A bit less expensive

Fullmosa Genuine Leather Watch Band

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If you prefer thinner leather — or just want to save a few dollars — this band from Fullmosa is great as well. You can choose from 10 different bands and buckle color combinations to best match your style, and there’s an included installation tool to get the band on your watch. The buckle is heavy metal, so it’ll be nice and sturdy on your wrist.

$11 at Amazon

A different style

EACHE 22mm Genuine Leather Watch Band

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This band from EACHE is still leather, but a bit different style than the other picks. There are 14 different bands and buckle color combinations that’ll fit your Galaxy Watch, and all of them will look great. There’s no visible stitching along the sides of the band. Instead, it’s closer to where the band attaches to the watch.

$16 at Amazon

For the fitness gurus

KADES Silicon Replacement Strap

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The Galaxy Watch comes with a silicone band so it can be used when you work out, but this band is going to be a little better. There are more perforations on the band, so your wrist will breathe a bit easier. More perforations also mean a more exact fit, definitely important if you’re monitoring your heart rate. The strap comes in nine different colors, and there are bundles if you want to get multiple colors.

$10 at Amazon

Totally secure

PBCOBE NATO Strap

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If you want a watch band that won’t budge, you want a NATO strap. This one from PBCODE is made of heavy-duty nylon, and it comes in eight different colors. The only buckle color is silver, so keep that in mind if you want one for your Galaxy Watch.

$16 at Amazon

Mix and match

CIVO NATO Strap 4 pack

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If you want to swap out different bands to change up your style, this set from CIVO is for you. You get four straps of different colors and patterns, and there are 15 different bundles to choose from. The kit includes an installation tool, and a few replacement pins to keep the bands attached to your watch.

$14 at Amazon

No matter what your style is, it’s easy to find a replacement band for your Galaxy Watch. The watch takes standard 22mm straps, so any band that size will also fit your watch. And since watchmakers have used that size for centuries, it shouldn’t be hard to find the perfect watch band for you.

22
Sep

Canada Daily Deals: All-new Echo Bundles, GPS running watches, and more


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 newly-announced Amazon Echo devices, Polar GPS running watches, countertop AeroGardens, and much more!

View the rest of the deals

Each day, the Thrifter Canada team scouts out and shares amazing deals on products you know and love, helping you find the best prices on the ‘net.

For more Canadian deals coverage, be sure to keep an eye on Thrifter CA and follow the team on Twitter.

22
Sep

Belkin Introduces BOOSTUP Wireless Charging Dock With iPhone XS/XS Max/XR and Apple Watch Series 4 Compatibility


Belkin today introduced its BOOSTUP Wireless Charging Dock for wirelessly charging an iPhone and Apple Watch at the same time. There is also a USB-A port for charging a third device like an iPad via Lightning cable.

Belkin BOOSTUP Wireless Charging Dock
The dock is compatible with the new iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR, with wireless charging up to 7.5W, and all Apple Watch models at 5W/1A. It also works with the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X. The extra USB-A port also has an output of 5W/1A for wired charging of other devices.

The dock is certified under Apple’s Made for iPhone program, compliant with the Qi standard, has the ability to charge through iPhone cases up to 3mm thick, and is compatible with Nightstand mode on the Apple Watch. The dock plugs into a wall outlet with a 45W AC adapter included for instant setup.


Belkin says the dock will be available in December at Apple Stores worldwide, priced at $159.99 in the United States.

Belkin also plans to introduce an updated PowerHouse Charge Dock for the iPhone and Apple Watch, for customers who prefer to charge their iPhone via Lightning connector. The new dock looks virtually identical to the previous version, but with a red-colored dial to raise and lower the Lightning connector.

The new PowerHouse Charge Dock
The new PowerHouse Charge Dock will be compatible with all iPhone models with Lightning connectors, including the latest iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR, as well as all Apple Watch models. Belkin says it will be available at select retailers in November, priced at $99.99 in the United States.

The existing Belkin Valet Charge Dock for Apple Watch + iPhone and PowerHouse Charge Dock for Apple Watch + iPhone are not compatible with the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR, according to Belkin.

Related Roundups: Apple Watch, watchOS 5, iPhone XS, iPhone XRTag: BelkinBuyer’s Guide: Apple Watch (Buy Now), iPhone XR (Buy Now)
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22
Sep

MacRumors Giveaway: Win a Rain Design mBar pro or mBar pro+ Portable Laptop Stand


With several of our recent giveaways focusing on Apple’s new iPhone models that are launching today in the US and several other countries, today’s giveaway goes back to the Mac. Rain Design is kindly offering its portable aluminum stands for the MacBook and MacBook Pro to ten lucky winners.

Rain Design is offering 5 of each of its mBar pro and mBar pro+ folding aluminum laptop stands. The mBar pro (see our review) raises a laptop by 3 inches and the mBar pro+ elevates one by 5.5 inches. Both are made of anodized aluminum and come in silver and space gray to match Apple’s MacBook and MacBook Pro models. Both also come with a carrying sleeve.

The mBar pro retails for $54.90 and the mBar pro+ retails for $64.90.


To enter to win, use the Rafflecopter widget below and enter your email address. Email addresses provided will be used solely for contact purposes to reach the winners and ship the prizes. You can earn additional entries by subscribing to our weekly newsletter, subscribing to our YouTube channel, following us on Twitter, or visiting the MacRumors Facebook page.

Due to the complexities of international laws regarding giveaways, only U.S. residents who are 18 years or older and Canadian residents (excluding Quebec) who have reached the age of majority in their province or territory are eligible to enter. To offer feedback or get more information on the giveaway restrictions, please refer to our Site Feedback section, as that is where discussion of the rules will be redirected.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
This contest will run from today (September 21) at 12:00 pm Pacific time through 12:00 pm Pacific time on September 28. The winners will be chosen randomly on or around September 28 and will be contacted by email. The winners will have 48 hours to respond and provide a shipping address. The prizes will be shipped to the winners for free.

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22
Sep

Apple Stores Experiencing ‘Global’ Issue With iPhone and Apple Watch Reservation Pickups


We’re hearing from a number of readers over the past hour or so that Apple’s retail stores are having problems completing in-store reservation pickups for the new iPhone and Apple Watch models. Multiple customers have been told there is a “global” issue affecting Apple’s systems and we’re hearing there are some long lines building up as customers wait for the issues to be resolved.

Pickup line at Manhattan Village store in Manhattan Beach, California
Some customers have reportedly been told to cancel their existing reservations and make walk-in purchases from available stock, while others are simply being told to wait things out while staff members discuss how to handle the situation.

We’ll update this post if we hear more about the situation, but if you have an upcoming pickup window, you might want to be prepared for some delays.

Related Roundups: Apple Watch, watchOS 5, iPhone XSBuyer’s Guide: Apple Watch (Buy Now)
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22
Sep

A hot dog cooker could pull CO2 out of the air to help reverse climate change


Chemists working at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have demonstrated a new, energy-efficient method of pulling carbon dioxide (CO2) directly from the air. It could potentially be used to help fight back against the effects of climate change, which is partly the result of increased atmospheric CO2 concentration due to human activity. What magical, cutting-edge technology did the researchers use for their tech demo? An off-the-shelf air humidifier and a solar-powered hot dog cooker.

“First, we employed environmentally friendly amino acid sorbents, together with a household air humidifier to quickly absorb CO2 out of the air and convert it into carbonate ions,” Radu Custelcean, the ORNL chemist who conceived of the technique, told Digital Trends. “Second, we reacted the loaded sorbent with a simple guanidine compound (read: guanidines are naturally found in proteins and strongly bind negatively charged ions like carbonate), which stripped the carbonate ions from the sorbent solution and converted them into highly insoluble crystals. Finally, the carbonate crystals were gently heated with the solar oven to release the CO2, so it can be sent out for long-term geologic storage, and regenerate the guanidine.”

Currently, this technique has only been demonstrated in the lab, but it poses immense possibilities in the event that it can be scaled up and optimized. It could help address the problem of climate change by reducing the atmospheric CO2 concentration spat out by humans — and do so in a more efficient way than other methods.

“Scaling up should be feasible,” Custelcean continued. “Of course, we would not use a hot dog cooker at a million ton of CO2 scale, but the same principle could be translated at a much larger scale using standard parabolic-trough solar concentrators. At the same time, for the CO2 absorption step, one could use larger air-liquid contactors, such as those used in cooling towers.”

The next step for the project is for the researchers to find an industrial partner to work with. As Custelcean noted, to make an impact on climate change, the scale of CO2 removal would have to be in the order of 100 million tons a year. This would mean multiple such plants removing billions of tons of CO2 from the atmosphere every year in order to have a hope of stabilizing the climate.

A paper describing the research was recently published in the journal Nature Energy.

Editors’ Recommendations

  • The best humidifiers for your home or office
  • Beat the heat this summer with an affordable air conditioner
  • ‘Waterworld’ no longer seems sci-fi, so an artist designed your future gills
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  • This CO2-sucking rock takes eons to form naturally. Now we can grow it in weeks