Become a Prime Day Pro With These Tips and 10 Early Deals
Shop Safely and Smartly: Use common sense when shopping. If a price is too good to be true, you don’t recognize a brand, an item doesn’t have many reviews (or too many five-star reviews), or a seller has just joined Amazon, you might want to avoid purchasing. Our articles on shopping safe on Amazon, deciphering star ratings, and what “Amazon’s Choice” means can help bolster your knowledge.
The Best Early Prime Day Deals
These Prime Day deals are already live. Usually, Prime Day drops Amazon devices down to the best deals of the year, but so far we haven’t seen any noteworthy discounts on Kindle devices, Fire tablets, or Fire TV sticks. Hopefully, Amazon surprises us with some when the sale kicks off.
Echo Buds
Photograph: AmazonThe Echo Buds (8/10 WIRED Recommends) offer good sound and have great app and Alexa integration. The noise-canceling isn’t quite on par with what you’ll get in Apple and Samsung earbuds, but it’s good enough for blocking out most ambient sounds. They come with a charging case and plenty of eartips and earfin sizes to ensure a good fit.
The Amazon Halo isn’t a useful fitness tracker, but it does something no other device we’ve tested will do: track your emotions. WIRED associate editor Adrienne So wore it for a month and found it interesting and ultimately helpful. At the same time, should any company, let alone Amazon, normalize the process of full-body strip-down scans for its customers? This is a good price, but there are some problems with this device. You should know what you’re getting into with this one.
This smart display was released in 2019 and goes on sale frequently. It isn’t one of the absolute best smart displays; we prefer larger sizes. This model’s 5-inch screen is more suited to a nightstand than a kitchen counter or front entryway. Still, if a compact design doesn’t irk you, $45 is a match of the best price we’ve seen for this model.
Echo Dot
Photograph: AmazonHere’s your chance to add Alexa to more rooms in your house without spending a fortune. The 4th-gen Echo Dot (8/10, WIRED Recommends) is the best Alexa smart speaker. This deal is only available if you buy two, and be sure to use the code PDDOT2PK at checkout to get the full discount. We saw a similar deal during last year’s sale. If you only need one Echo Dot, it’s likely that the single speaker will be dirt cheap once Prime Day officially begins.
There are two sizes and finishes to choose from, and shipping is free. You’ll need to upload the photos you want to print if you haven’t already, but this could be a good way to redecorate the fridge (or print out some cheap room decor).
If you haven’t tried Prime Wardrobe, this will get you $15 off a $100 purchase. Prime Wardrobe lets Prime members try on clothes and other items before buying. You have a week to decide to keep or return your items.
Amazon Launchpad highlights small businesses that sell products on its website. For Prime Day, Amazon is offering a free $10 store credit when you spend $10 with participating small businesses. The free credit will show up in your account on Prime Day and will automatically apply during checkout. Here are some more details.
Amazon Kids on a Fire Tablet
Photograph: AmazonNew subscribers can get in on this deal. Amazon Kids+ (formerly FreeTime Unlimited) gives youngsters access to age-appropriate books, movies, games, and more. The service also offers parents user-friendly parental controls to set screen time limits or manage web browsing. Usually, Amazon Kids+ costs $10 per month. Remember to cancel your subscription before the trial automatically renews if you aren’t interested in subsequent charges. It’s best paired with a Kids Edition Fire Tablet.
Free trials for Amazon Music Unlimited are nothing new, but typically, brand-new subscribers can only try the service for a month. This trial lasts for four. If you don’t cancel, it’ll renew at the normal rate of $8 per month. Amazon Music Unlimited offers ad-free music streaming, lossless audio, and more. It’s not one of the best music streaming services, but if you’re sick of Spotify, it might be worth a shot.
Kindle Unlimited offers free access to millions of Kindle ebooks. I (Louryn) highly recommend it. It usually costs $10 per month. This deal offers varying discounts for six-month, 1-year, and 2-year subscriptions. If you’re already a member, this is a good way to save on renewals, but it also might come in handy for those that have been pining for a reason to join. As a reminder, you don’t need a Kindle to read these books—there are free apps for iOS, Android, macOS, and Windows—but a Kindle discount will likely pop up during the event for folks in the market.
Retailer Sale Pages
If you’d like to peruse the deals yourself, here are some links to all the sales going on this week.
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