Right here within the US – in addition to many different components of the world from my understanding – Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving) has morphed from a one-day shopaganza right into a week-long occasion. Reductions abound, making it a good time to by presents for others – and even your self! On this submit, I am excited to let you know about a couple of tech gadgets that look particularly fascinating!
Grime Low-cost 3D Printer Filament
Poking round on Amazon, I used to be capable of finding gray ANYCUBIC PLA filament for simply $11.99 for a 1KG spool. One may notice that least expensive is not all the time greatest, however the critiques on Amazon are fairly good, and the accuracy is +/- .002mm. It may definitely be price a glance!
OTOH, if you wish to spend a bit extra, I’ve bought this ZIRO marble and blue marble PLA filament a complete of 12 occasions! IMO, the marble look type of minimizes printing defects, and the blue fashion is particularly nice.
Sub-$200 Ender 3 3D Printer
The Ender 3 is a stable printer, accessible at a (Black Friday) value of $173.60. Whereas I do not assume this printer is nearly as good as what you may get from Prussa or Bambu Lab, their choices will set you again a number of(s) of the Ender 3’s value. There’s something to be stated for getting a very good printer, however my (earlier era Ender 3 V3 Neo) has been an actual workhorse for practically 2 years now, proven in motion above.
Indie Electronics and Extra on Tindie’s Cyber Sale
In an obvious celebration of “consumption week,” Tindie is having their annual(?) Cyber Sale. You may discover all of the on-sale gadgets right here, together with 648 merchandise as of this writing! I additionally promote my wares there, although I haven’t got any particular offers happening.
Raspberry Pi Pico 2
Whereas I do not know of any Black Friday offers on this merchandise, the Raspberry Pi Pico 2 is out there from retailers reminiscent of Adafruit and Digikey for a slim $5 price ticket (it is additionally on Amazon, however count on to pay a bit extra). This board options an upgraded RP2350 microcontroller, together with double the FLASH reminiscence of its (simply Pico) predecessor.
Smartwatch/Health Tracker
In the event you’ve been contemplating shopping for a wise watch/health tracker, this can be the time to make the leap. A good friend despatched me a hyperlink to this Garmin vívoactive 5 Well being and Health GPS Smartwatch, which seems to have an excellent display and an uber-week battery life.
If a watch appears too cumbersome, you might as a substitute go for a wise ring, OTOH, any onboard consumer interface would essentially be restricted. As a remaining semi-DIY possibility, you might contemplate putting in a Sensor Watch improve for traditional Casio wristwatches!
Knipex 4-Inch Mini Water Pump Pliers
OK, another merchandise: pliers. And maybe not really a cut price. In reality, these pliers are fairly costly for what they’re: $31.03 on Amazon as of this writing. Nevertheless, if you’re aware of Knipex instruments, they’re constantly properly constructed, and it is laborious to not be tempted by this neat little gadget. I’ve one myself and actually prefer it. Definitely this might be an excellent present for an engineer or tinkerer, because it’s one thing that is tough to justify in many instances, even when it is one thing that you just really need!
Pleased buying and joyful holidays!
Whether or not you are buying Black Friday(ish) for your self or another person in your life, I hope I’ve offered a enjoyable concept or two in your consideration. Pleased holidays, and I hope this stuff deliver pleasure to a number of individuals in 2025 and past!
*Amazon hyperlinks are affiliate
