My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: Amazon Echo Buds With ANC

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As we get closer to the big sales from Walmart, Target, and Best Buy that October Prime Day brings, early deals start popping up. Right now, you can find many early deals on Amazon and Amazon-owned brands, many of which are matching Prime Day prices (and you don't need to be a Prime Member to take advantage of them). The Active Noise Canceling (ANC) Amazon Echo Buds are one of the best earbud deals right now, currently $34.99 (originally $119.99) after a 71% discount, the lowest price it has ever been, according to price-tracking tools.

(2021 release, 2nd gen) | Wired charging case | Black
Amazon Echo Buds with Active Noise Cancellation
Amazon Echo Buds (2nd Generation)
$34.99 at Amazon
$119.99 Save $85.00

The best and most distinguishing feature of these ANC earbuds is the hands-free voice-assistant control. With Alexa, Siri, or Google Assistant on your phone, you'll be able to stream music, podcasts, or audiobooks hands-free by just asking your virtual assistant. You can also make calls, set reminders, skip songs, and do basically everything else you can do with a voice assistant.

These Echo Buds also have a multipoint pairing feature that can connect to two devices at the same time and seamlessly transition to whichever is playing media. You'll get up to five hours of battery and an additional 15 hours from the case (whether it's wireless or not). They're also rated IPX4 for water resistance. You can read the full PCMag "excellent" review here to learn more about their specs and features.

These earphones were eclipsed by the third-generation Echo Buds in 2023, which are a more budget-friendly version without ANC. Both are good headphones, but for just $10 more, it's worth getting the version with ANC, unless you're just trying to spend the least amount possible.

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Oura Rings Finally Get a Charging Case

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Oura has finally answered my biggest (yet perhaps pettiest) complaint about its iconic smart ring—it’s now getting a battery-powered charging case so you can top up the battery when you’re away from your home. There are also new ring colors available, and finally, multi-ring support so you can switch between rings.

In addition, Oura has announced Health Panels, a feature that lets you book a blood draw at a Quest lab and view your results in the Oura app. Whoop recently announced a similar feature, and Ultrahuman launched its Blood Vision earlier this year. 

Why I’m excited for the charging case

In all the time that I’ve been using Oura rings—since generation 2—the charger has worked the same way: You have a little circular stand that lives on your nightstand, and you set the ring on top of it, fitting it around a little cylinder shape that sticks up from the base. I’ve never loved this format; it’s too easy to send the ring flying if you catch your foot on the cord in the dark. It’s also not the most convenient for travel. 

Now, however, the Oura ring has a charging case. The case holds about five charges’ worth of battery, so you can top up the charge on your ring by popping it into the case, then closing the case and sticking it in your pocket. Or gym bag. (Weightlifting workouts are my favorite time to charge the ring.) Traveling with the charger is now simple, and you don’t have to worry about losing the ring if the charger gets knocked over. 

Now for the bad news: This puppy is $99, and it’s a separate add-on; you can’t get it in place of the nightstand charger when buying a new ring.

Like the nightstand chargers, it’s specific to the size of your ring. For example, you need a size 8 charger for a size 8 ring. The new charging case doesn’t seem to be available on Oura’s website yet, but it should be coming soon. (If you can’t wait, or want to save a few bucks, I found this third-party case that holds your nightstand charger—either generation 3 or 4. It's not as sleek as the official one, though.) 

You can now swap between rings

Today Oura announced a new collection of ceramic rings in four different colors: white, navy, pastel green, and pink. The new rings have the same internals as the metallic Ring 4, so this isn’t a new generation of ring, just a new appearance. (Oura also notes that the ceramic rings should be more resistant to scratches, and each one comes with a polishing pad to keep its shine.) All colors are $499, the same price as the gold and rose gold finishes of the regular Ring 4.

With so many color options, Oura seems to hope existing members will splurge on a second ring. The company is rolling out multi-ring support for the app, another feature I'm surprised they didn’t have before. (When I’ve tested the gen 3 and 4 rings to compare, I've had to completely reset my ring to switch over, or else use two different accounts.) Oura says you’ll need to select in the app which one you’re wearing, so it’s not quite as seamless as the way Garmin or Apple handles multiple devices. (Garmin has me choose a “priority device” and then I can switch at will; Apple just sets you free to swap as you like, and it does its best). 

If you are done with your old ring after upgrading, Oura now has a ring recycling service that gives you a shipping label to send back your old ring. Any Oura ring can be recycled through this program, including old or broken ones. (You should factory-reset the ring first.) Rings you recycle won’t be eligible for returns or refunds.



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A Lifetime Subscription to Babbel Is on Sale for a Huge Discount Right Now

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Practicing a new language can be fun, but premium language apps can be expensive. Babbel makes it easier with practical, bite-sized lessons designed for real-life use, focusing on conversations you’d actually have—ordering food, chatting with the locals, asking for directions (read PCMag's in-depth review of Babbel to learn more)—and right now, its lifetime subscription is on sale for a huge discount: A lifetime subscription to Babbel is on sale for $159 with promo code LEARN. The sale ends October 2. It's a one-time payment—no recurring fees, no monthly charges—for lifetime access to all 14 languages (including French, German, Italian, and Spanish), making it cheaper than Babbel’s regular one-year plan at $300.

Babbel’s lessons take just 10 to 15 minutes, so you can squeeze your practice into a commute or coffee break. And, unlike other language-learning apps that rely on repetitive vocabulary drills or random gamified exercises, Babbel follows a structured, linguist-designed curriculum that progressively increases in difficulty, so you don't plateau after the basics (earning itself a place in PCMag's "The Best Language Learning Apps for 2025" roundup). Plus, it’s not just passive learning—you get writing, speaking, and listening exercises with speech recognition technology to fine-tune your pronunciation, creating a far more immersive experience.

Of course, dedication is still key, and no app will make you fluent, but if you’re willing to put in the effort, this Babbel lifetime subscription gives you the tools to succeed without the burden of ongoing costs.



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My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: Amazon Echo Buds With ANC

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Did you know y...