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Today’s best deals: Google Chromecast, Audible Premium Plus, and more

 2 years ago
source link: https://arstechnica.com/staff/2022/06/todays-best-deals-google-chromecast-audible-premium-plus-and-more/
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Dealmaster —

Today’s best deals: Google Chromecast, Audible Premium Plus, and more

Dealmaster also includes LG OLED TVs, Eero mesh WiFi systems, and tons of video games.

Ars Staff - 6/29/2022, 7:37 PM

Today’s best deals: Google Chromecast, Audible Premium Plus, and more
Ars Technica

It's Wednesday, which means it's time for another Dealmaster. Our latest roundup of the best tech deals from around the web includes the Google Chromecast back down to $40 at various retailers. While we've seen this deal a handful of times this year, it's still $10 off Google's MSRP, making it another solid opportunity to save on what we consider the best 4K streaming stick for most people.

Compared to competing devices from Amazon and Roku, we still find the Chromecast's interface to do a cleaner job of organizing and proactively recommending content you might want to watch. There are more powerful 4K set-top boxes on the market, but the Chromecast's performance still gets the job done for casual browsing, works with all the major streaming services, and supports both Dolby Atmos and HDR video (via Dolby Vision, HDR10, and HDR10+).

The main complaints are that Google's UI isn't especially customizable and that Google TV's curation is only so savvy because you're sharing your browsing information with the company. That said, the latter is an issue with almost every major streaming device; Google's platform is just better at using that data to make browsing more convenient. The device also doesn't support Google's newer, more efficient AV1 video codec, though that shouldn't be a deal-breaker for most. A new Chromecast model that supports AV1 is reportedly on the way, but it's expected to be limited to 1080p streaming.

If you don't need a new streamer, our roundup includes an early Prime Day deal that gives Prime members three months of Amazon's Audible Premium Plus service at no cost. Amazon's terms say you'll also need to be a new subscriber to qualify, unfortunately, but if you've been thinking of giving the service a shot, this is a savings of $30 compared to the usual one-month free trial period.

As a refresher, Premium Plus is the upper tier of Amazon's on-demand audiobook service; apart from granting full access to the company's audiobook library, it allows you to keep one title of your choosing from a curated selection each month. Just note that the deal will set your membership to auto-renew by default, so it might be worth setting a reminder to cancel before the trial is up if you only want the free period.

Beyond that, we also have strong discounts on a couple of excellent OLED TVs from LG, mesh Wi-Fi routers from Eero, Google's Nest Hub smart display, Apple's AirPods Max, lots of recommended video games included in Steam's Summer Sale, and much more. You can see our full curated list below.

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Featured deals of the day

The Google Chromecast with Google TV is <a href=our top pick among 4K media streamer under $50." />
Enlarge / The Google Chromecast with Google TV is our top pick among 4K media streamer under $50.
Jeff Dunn

Electronics deals

Apple's AirPods Max <a href=offer top-tier sound quality and active noise cancelation for a wireless headphone, though they'll best used with an iPhone." />
Enlarge / Apple's AirPods Max offer top-tier sound quality and active noise cancelation for a wireless headphone, though they'll best used with an iPhone.
Jeff Dunn

Laptop and desktop PC deals

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Our <a href=review called Microsoft's Surface Pro 8 "the best Surface for people who love the Surface."" />
Enlarge / Our review called Microsoft's Surface Pro 8 "the best Surface for people who love the Surface."
Andrew Cunningham

Gaming deals

8BitDo's SN30 Pro generally <a href=finds the sweet spot between modern utility and SNES-style nostalgia. " />
Enlarge / 8BitDo's SN30 Pro generally finds the sweet spot between modern utility and SNES-style nostalgia.
Jeff Dunn

Video game deals

The witty puzzler <em>Portal 2 </em>launched in 2011, but holds up just fine today. It remains a fun <a href=couch co-op experience, too." />
Enlarge / The witty puzzler Portal 2 launched in 2011, but holds up just fine today. It remains a fun couch co-op experience, too.
Valve

<em>Ape Out </em>is a stylish and surprisingly soulful top-down beat-'em-up <a href=we recommend." />
Enlarge / Ape Out is a stylish and surprisingly soulful top-down beat-'em-up we recommend.
Devolver Digital

<em>Kirby and the Forgotten Land</em> is a <a href=charming and easygoing platformer for the Nintendo Switch." />
Enlarge / Kirby and the Forgotten Land is a charming and easygoing platformer for the Nintendo Switch.

Accessories and miscellaneous deals


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