This Week The Trend (Issue 38)
This week's picks include a smart thermostat, rechargeable batteries, and a blower.
How I’d spend $500: Aqara W200 Thermostat
The Aqara W200 is the latest smart thermostat. It has Matter and can integrate well with all the various platforms from Google, Amazon, and SmartThings. But it might work best with Apple. The thermostat is one of the first to have Apple's Adaptive Temperature, which uses a family's iPhones to determine whether people are home or away.
Price: $160 (link)
Value Score: Good
Even if you're not fully committed to the Apple ecosystem, the W200 has a lot of sensors and integrations that make it well worth its retail price. It may not come in a lot of fancy colors, but it offers a good value compared to other companies' entry-level thermostats.
How I’d spend $150: Shark BlastBoss
The Shark BlastBoss is a small, 1.4-pound, handheld blower. Instead of being single-purpose, it sets itself apart by being versatile enough to clear debris from a keyboard and leaves from a driveway. It comes with three attachment heads to cover various tasks. What I'm curious to see in my hands-on time is whether it's as powerful as it is good-looking.
Price: $150 (link)
Value Score: Poor
With a $150 retail price, the BlastBoss is much more expensive than other small household blowers. Where it gets interesting is if this blower can really do it all, so you don't need to buy and store multiple devices all doing the same thing.
How I’d spend $50: Zepath Rechargeable AA Batteries
Rechargeable batteries have been around for a long time. There are even AA batteries with USB-C ports right on each battery. The Zepath AA 3600mWh eight-pack of batteries, however, lasts longer. When you do need to charge them, there's a USB-C port on the included case.
Price: $20 (link)
Value Score: Good
At $2.50 each, these batteries are a cost-effective way to keep from running through AAs with devices that have a tendency to drain them.
The winning pick: Aqara W200 Thermostat
The Aqara W200 Smart Thermostat is just a good device and a good value. I've been using it recently—kind of. Once it's set up, it can pretty much run on autopilot through Adaptive Temperature or Aqara's mobile app.
Are you looking for even more picks this week? Here are a few things worth considering.
An expensive pick: Fujifilm X-Half
The impression from every review I've read is that the Fujifilm X-Half camera is that it's not a great product for its full $850 price, but that it is a fun camera. So, now that the camera is down to $650, the film modes or combining two photos into one might be more attractive. The X-Half is small and portable, and by all accounts, it can get some really great images.
Price: $650 (link)
Media pick: Alabama Shakes - "American Dream"
Got the E.P.A., sure is hot today
Low grade fever, lower wage people
How many folks got shot this week
It’s enough to make you wanna go back to sleep
The American dream
I wanna go back to sleep now
This week's other interesting deals and product news
- Dyson is now selling its new handheld fan, the Hushjet Mini Cool, for $99.
- Google is adding its NotebookLM research tool into Gemini.
- Satechi has a new foldable 25W wireless charger.
- Marshall is now selling a cream-colored version of its Monitor III headphones.
This week's published stories
- Aqara W200 Thermostat review [Yahoo]
- TCL NXTPAPER 70 Pro review [Yahoo]
- Jury Duty Presents: Company Retreat review [Yahoo]
- BenQ MA270S 5K 27-inch monitor review [How-To Geek]
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