Why You Can Trust CNET 5-deal Friday: Moto 360, Spectre x2 and more!
From the Cheapskate: Don't want to spend $150 on a set of Apple AirPods? How about wireless earbuds for just $40? Plus: A classic PC game is free for a limited time.
CNET's Cheapskate scours the Web for great deals on PCs, phones , gadgets and much more. Questions about the Cheapskate blog? Find the answers on our FAQ page. And find more great buys on the CNET Deals page.
Hi, cheeps! Let's kick off the weekend in style with five, five, five sweet deals.
1. Watch yourself, buddy
Everyone has different reasons for wanting a smartwatch. For me, it's notifications. For others: fitness. A crazy few just want to tell the time.
While supplies last, Daily Steals has the refurbished first-gen Motorola Moto 360 for $69.99 shipped. It's available in your choice of three styles: black with a black leather band, stainless steel with a matching metal band and stainless steel with a light stone leather band.
(There are some additional variants shown on the product page, but it appears only the first three are actually available to purchase.)
What can I say about the Moto 360 you don't already know? It's still one of the most beautiful smartwatches to date, and it does pretty much everything -- including heart-rate monitoring. I can't say I love the Android Wear OS, but it's no worse than the train wreck that is Apple 's Watch OS. This is a steal indeed.
2. Old games never die, they just become free
Electronic Arts ' Dungeon Keeper is widely regarded as one of the best strategy games of all time. Shockingly (to me, anyway), it's nearly 20 years old.
For a limited time, EA's Origin is offering Dungeon Keeper (for Windows) for free. You'll need an Origin account and the Origin desktop client, which is also free.
The game flips the usual dungeon-manager concept on its head: Your job is to muster and control monsters (by slapping them) in order to keep out invading heroes. In other words, you get to be the bad guy! Dungeon Keeper has a rabid fanbase -- here's your chance to see what all the fuss is about. For free.
3. An amazing Surface alternative
I was originally going to share a deal on a refurbished Microsoft Surface Pro 2, which seemed like a solid deal at $319.99. Then I noticed that the accompanying photo shows it with a keyboard, as most of Microsoft 's promo photos do, but the keyboard is definitely not included. So I got mad and decided to rerun one of the my favorite Surface alternatives.
While supplies last, Groupon continues to offer the refurbished HP Spectre x2 for $399.99 shipped (plus sales tax where applicable). That's already a killer deal given that it sold for literally twice the price just a few months ago.
However, if you start your shopping trip at Ebates, you can score a 9-percent rebate. That brings your final pretax price down to $363.99! (Don't have an Ebates account? It's free to sign up.)
I've gushed about the Spectre x2 before; it comes with a keyboard and affords the option of 4G LTE service via Verizon. Read CNET's review to learn more.
4. Wi-Fi. I repeat: Wi-Fi
Having trouble getting your Wi-Fi signal to reach all corners of your house? For many folks a repeater handily solves the problem.
Like this one: Today only, and while supplies last, Newegg has the Netgear WN3500RP wall-plug Wi-Fi range extender for $24.99 shipped. It's new, not refurbished, and normally sells for $50. Even a refurb is normally $35.
This works exactly the way it sounds: Plug it into a wall outlet, ideally somewhere near the spot you need a Wi-Fi boost, and presto: Wi-Fi boost. The WN3500RP has mostly favorable reviews on both Amazon and Newegg.
5. Like Apple's AirPods, but only $40
The D900 wireless earbuds recharge in their little wireless charging box.
If you like the idea of Apple's totally wireless AirPod earbuds but don't like the $150 price tag, check this out: Syllable Direct has the Syllable D900 Mini Wireless Earbuds for $39.99 shipped. That's after applying promo code 9ZHD9IF5 at checkout.
These little black buds have zero wires. One goes in one ear, the other in the other. They can play for only about two hours before needing to return to their charging box, but that box can recharge the D900s up to seven times before needing to be recharged itself.
How do they fit and how do they sound? No idea. The reviews are very positive, but Fakespot, a consumer review analysis site, gives them an 'F' because most seem to have been in exchange for a free or discounted product. I don't think that's always a fair indicator of the actual product quality, but it's something to consider.
I think if you want totally wireless 'buds, this is one of the most inexpensive options I've seen.
OK! Who's buying what today?