Month: May 2023

The X1 Carbon's fingerprint reader. (credit: Casey Johnston)

Among other things, Memorial Day marks the unofficial start of summer. Hopefully, you're headed to the mountains, a beach, or at least grilling something during the long weekend. It's no time for Dealmaster to take it easy, though—retailers know you're off work. So lots of companies have launched deals and discounts.

This weekend is a great time to get a new smartwatch for tracking your outdoor activities or a blender to whip up a protein shake after your workout. Our favorite deal, if you're in the market for a new laptop, comes from Lenovo's sale on various ThinkPad and gaming models. There are also sales on new TVs, headphones, robot vacuums, and other practical tech accessories.

Laptops and tablets

The deck has a fingerprint reader/power button above the keyboard. (credit: Scharon Harding)

• Lenovo Legion Pro 7i Gen 8 (16-inch) with 13th Gen Intel Core i9, RTX 4090 for $3,190 (was $3,600) at Lenovo
• Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 31 (15-inch) with 13th Gen Intel Core i3 for $460 with MAYOFFER coupon (was $660) at Lenovo
• Lenovo Slim 7i (14-inch) with 13th Gen Intel Core i5 for $826 with SURPRISES coupon (was $1,180) at Lenovo
• Lenovo Legion Pro 5i Gen 8 (16-inch) with AMD Ryzen 7 7745HX, RTX 4070 for $1,600 (was $1,900) at Lenovo
• Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga (13-inch) with 11th Gen Intel Core i7 for $800 with THINKVICW1 coupon (was $2,099) at Lenovo
• Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 10 (14-inch) with 12th Gen Intel Core i7 for $1,804 with THINKMEMDEALS coupon (was $3,609) at Lenovo
• Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 11 (14-inch) with 13th Gen Intel Core i5 for $1,415 with THINKVOCW1 coupon (was $2,319) at Lenovo
• Apple MacBook Pro (16-inch) M2 with 1TB SSD for $2,449 (was $2,699) at Amazon
• Apple iPad Air (5th Gen) with M1 for $500 (was $600) at Amazon | Best Buy
• Apple iPad Pro 12.9-inch with M2 for $1,049 (was $1,099) at Amazon
• Microsoft Surface Pro 9 for up to $200 off various models at Microsoft
• Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 for up to $300 off various models at Microsoft
• Razer Blade 14 with AMD Ryzen 9 6900HX, RTX 3070 Ti for $2,200 (was $2,600) at Amazon

Desk organization and home office accessories

Various cable management solutions. (credit: Leon Kaye)

• 192-piece cable management kit for $15 (was $20) at Amazon
• 100-piece reusable cable ties for $7 (was $14) at Amazon
• 50-piece self-adhesive cable management clips for $12 (was $14) at Amazon
• BenQ ScreenBar LED monitor light bar with auto-dimming for $98 (was $109) at Amazon
• Govee smart LED light bars for $42 (was $50) at Amazon
• Govee rope light for $51 (was $60) at Best Buy
• Govee outdoor light strip for $68 (was $80) at Best Buy

Headphones and headsets

Sony's WH-1000XM5 (left) and WH-1000XM4 (right) wireless noise-canceling headphones. Sony promises improved active noise cancellation and audio quality with the XM5s. (credit: Jeff Dunn)

• Sony WH-1000XM4 wireless noise-canceling headphones for $280 (was $350) at Best Buy
• Apple AirPods Max for $480 (was $500) at Best Buy
• Apple AirPods Pro (2nd Generation) for $200 (was $250) at Best Buy
• Sony LinkBuds S wireless noise-canceling earbuds for $150 (was $200) at Best Buy
• Sony WH-1000XM5 wireless noise-canceling headphones for $348 (was $400) at Amazon
• Yamaha YH-L700A wireless noise-canceling headphones with 3D sound for $411 (was $500) at Amazon
• Asus ROG Delta S wired USB-C gaming headset for $150 (was $200) at Amazon
• Logitech G733 Lightspeed wireless gaming headset for $138 (was $150) at Amazon
• HyperX Cloud II wired gaming headset for $69 (was $100) at Amazon

Home, health, and personal care

(credit: Garmin)

• Garmin Epix Gen 2 sports watch for $800 (was $1,000) at Best Buy
• Garmin Instinct sports watch for $250 (was $350) at Best Buy
• Garmin Instinct 2 sports watch for $350 (was $450) at Best Buy
• Garmin Venu Sq smartwatch for $120 (was $200) at Best Buy
• Garmin Forerunner 45 sports watch for $130 (was $170) at Best Buy
• Hyperice Hypervolt 2 percussion massager for $199 (was $299) at Hyperice
• Hyperice Hypervolt Go 2 percussion massager for $129 (was $199) at Hyperice
• Vitamix Explorian Blender for $290 (was $329) at Amazon
• Vitamix Ascent A2300 smart blender for $500 (was $550) at Amazon
• Nespresso Vertuo Next Coffee and Espresso machine for $130 (was $209) at Amazon
• Nespresso VertuoPlus Coffee and Espresso machine for $127 (was $159) at Amazon
• Roborock S8 robot vacuum and mop for $600 after coupon (was $750) at Amazon
• Ninja AG301 Foodi indoor grill with air fry for $183 (was $230) at Amazon
• Ninja OL501 Foodi 14-in-1 pressure cooker for $149 (was $280) at Amazon
• Ninja BL610 Professional countertop blender for $87 after coupon (was $100) at Amazon
• Oral-B iO 9 electric toothbrush for $280 after coupon (was $300) at Amazon
• Sensibo Pure smart air purifier for $159 (was $169) at Amazon
• ecobee Smart Thermostat Premium with sensor for $219 (was $250) at Amazon

Toys and games

At $380 it's not cheap, but the real thing is 9,736 times more expensive. And sold out. (credit: Lego)

• LEGO Architecture Collection: The White House for $95 (was $100) at Amazon
• LEGO Icons Back to the Future Time Machine 10300 for $180 (was $200) at Amazon
• LEGO Technic McLaren Senna GTR for $40 (was $50) at Amazon
• LEGO Star Wars Obi-Wan Kenobi's Jedi Starfighter for $24 (was $30) at Amazon
• LEGO Star Wars TIE Bomber for $61 (was $65) at Amazon
• LEGO City Lunar Roving Vehicle for $32 (was $40) at Amazon
• LEGO Ideas 21312 Women of NASA for $56 (was $60) at Amazon
• LEGO Super Mario Adventures with Mario Starter Course for $48 (was $60) at Best Buy
• LEGO Star Wars Luke Skywalker (Red Five) Helmet for $56 (was $70) at Best Buy
• LEGO Technic Formula E Porsche 99X Electric for $40 (was $50) at Best Buy
• LEGO Technic App-Controlled Transformation Vehicle for $127 (was $150) at Best Buy
• LEGO Technic Lamborghini for $400 (was $450) at Best Buy
• LEGO Super Mario Adventures with Luigi Starter Course for $48 (was $60) at Best Buy

Thunderbolt 4, USB-C cables, and chargers

Thunderbolt 2 is picking up another feature. (credit: Chris Foresman)

• Belkin BoostCharge Pro Flex braided 10-foot USB-C cable with PD for $25 (was $30) at Amazon
• Baseus braided 3.3-foot 100W USB-C cable with PD for $10 (was $12) at Amazon
• Lionwei 6-foot Thunderbolt 4 cable for $31 after coupon (was $44) at Amazon
• Brilocea braided 6.56-foot Thunderbolt 4 cable for $25 after coupon (was $36) Amazon
• Apple 1.8-meter Thunderbolt 4 Pro cable for $119 (was $129) at Amazon
• UGREEN 200W USB-C 6-port GaN desktop charger for $140 after coupon (was $200) at Amazon
• UGREEN 140W USB-C GaN laptop charger for $77 after coupon (was $110) at Amazon
• Baseus 65W USB-C GaN charger for $34 after coupon (was $50) at Amazon
• UGREEN 145W Power Bank with 25000mAh for $106 after coupon (was $150) at Amazon

TVs

• Insignia 55-inch Class F30 4K LED Fire TV for $260 (was $400) at Best Buy
• Samsung 55-inch Class Q60C 4K QLED for $700 (was $800) at Best Buy
• Sony 65-inch Bravia XR A80K 4K OLED Google TV for $1,800 (was $2,000) at Best Buy

Enlarge / Korea's Nuri rocket launched for the third time on Thursday. (credit: KARI)

Welcome to Edition 5.40 of the Rocket Report! I would like to congratulate Virgin Galactic on its successful return to space on Thursday morning above the state of New Mexico. It has been a long period, nearly two years, since the company's last human spaceflight. Here's hoping the company can reach a regular flight rate soon.

As always, we welcome reader submissions, and if you don't want to miss an issue, please subscribe using the box below (the form will not appear on AMP-enabled versions of the site). Each report will include information on small-, medium-, and heavy-lift rockets as well as a quick look ahead at the next three launches on the calendar.

Virgin Galactic takes to the skies again. On Thursday morning Virgin Galactic successfully returned to human spaceflight after a nearly two year hiatus. In a news release, the company said its VSS Unity spacecraft reached an apogee of 87.2 km before landing at Spaceport America in New Mexico. Virgin Galactic says it is now readying the vehicle for the start of long awaited commercial operations, with the "Galactic 01" mission planned for late June.