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We’re five days away from Amazon’s Prime Early Access sale, and perhaps the best part about it is that other retailers are meddling in competing sales events of their own. The first standout is Target’s Deal Days and the best sale is on the Xbox Series S.

Here’s the deal: You can get the Xbox Series S console through an in-store pickup at your local Target for $249.99 (normally $299.99), and when you add a standard Xbox controller to your cart, it is thrown in for free. This includes the slightly more expensive red, blue and electric volt controllers, and the whole deal will save you up to $105 until it ends Saturday. You still get the usual white controller that comes with the console, of course.

The Xbox Series S is the digital entry-level option in Microsoft’s gaming stable. It may not have a disk drive and won’t have the most capacious 512GB internal SSD, but it’s a very capable machine that plays the latest games at 2560 x 1440 resolution with HDR and supports the handy Quick Resume function for almost instant reverts. jump into your game. It’s also a seriously little boy that fits anywhere and doesn’t look quite as thorny as the clunky black obelisk Xbox Series X or the gaudy PlayStation 5. Read our review.

$249.99

The Xbox Series S is much smaller than the 4K-capable Xbox Series X, but it can still handle the same digital games, albeit at a resolution of 2560 x 1440 QHD.

Amazon may be about to unleash a slew of deals on us next week (or, you know, it just might be good), but it’s already got some great deals on offer – most of which are available to everyone and some exclusive to Prime members. Last year’s Kindle Paperwhite e-reader retails for $99.99 ($40 off) in the ad-supported base model or ad-free for $119.99 (also $40 off). Both have the standard 8GB of storage, but that’s more than enough for the average reader. Most importantly, the Kindle Paperwhite offers an excellent E Ink display that can shift to a warm backlight for easier reading at night, and it has a handy USB-C charging port instead of its predecessor’s Micro USB. Read our review.

$99.99

Amazon’s new Kindle Paperwhite has a 6.8-inch E Ink display with adjustable color temperature for nighttime reading. It also features a faster processor, extra battery life, IPX8 waterproofing and – finally – a USB-C port.

And the Kindle deals don’t stop there. If you’re an Amazon Prime subscriber, you can get the ad-supported Kindle Paperwhite in an Essentials bundle that includes a cloth cover in one of three colors (black, blue, or lavender) and a USB-C charging plug for $117. .97 ($72 off the bundled price) or ad-free for $137.97 (also $72 off). It’s not a very fast charger, as it only delivers 9W, but luckily Paperwhite’s battery lasts for weeks.

With both this bundle deal and the standalone Paperwhite deal above, you can trade in an older device from a list of eligible options to get an extra 20 percent off Amazon.

$117.97

Amazon’s latest 6.8-inch Kindle Paperwhite with adjustable color temperature and IPX8 waterproofing in a bundle with a cloth cover and USB-C charger.

Another notable deal going on right now on Amazon hardware is the latest Echo Buds that are selling for just $69.99 (normally $119.99) at Amazon and Best Buy. This is the base model with a wired charging case, but if you prefer the convenience of a wireless charging case, that’s also $50 off and marked down to $89.99 at Amazon and Best Buy. Be sure to check out Amazon’s trade-in list of devices if you shop there and have some old earbuds or other eligible items to hand over, as that will get an additional 25 percent off.

These are Amazon’s latest model of wireless earbuds, with improved comfort over the first iteration and noise cancellation with a passthrough mode – which you don’t always see at these prices. They also support Amazon Alexa voice assistant. Read our review.

$69.99

Amazon’s second-generation Echo Buds improve upon the originals with a more comfortable design, improved ANC, and a more natural ambient sound mode. They also support hands-free Alexa commands.

If you don’t have an affinity for Amazon products or just want something a little more fun, the Sony WF-1000XM4 earbuds are on sale now at Amazon, Target, and Best Buy for $248 to $249.99. That’s about $30 off the regular price of $279.99 for these buds, which are still one of the very best pairs. They have excellent noise cancellation, great battery life and a wireless charging case, and I know the earbud design might not matter to some people, but come on, they look pretty slick.

This is the usual discount price we see for these Sony buttons. While it’s possible we’ll see a better price next week, as they dropped to $198 on a lightning deal during Prime Day in July, just make sure you know the price match policy of the store of your choice if you decide to jump. for them now. Read our review.

$248

Sony’s WF-1000XM4 has the best noise cancellation of any true wireless earbud, and the sound quality is second to none. The earbuds can now also be charged wirelessly and have a new design that is smaller and classified as IPX4. Amazon Prime members can get an additional $20 off an imported international model with a 90-day warranty by purchasing through the Woot app on August 20.