My Prime Day picks are mostly boring, but that's also why they're worth buying

No one really enjoys Prime Day anymore. The days of finding a needle-in-a-haystack deal are long over, and now it’s more about whether you have the patience to wait until Amazon applies minor discounts to the stuff you really want.

To that end, I usually use the month of June to store things in the “Save it for later” section of my Amazon cart for items that have caught my eye throughout the year but haven’t been cheap enough yet to justify ordering.

Over the years, I’ve accumulated some products that I use every day, that have withstood travel, kids, and time’s daily abuses. Some of them are tech-related, or tech-adjacent, and others are just nice things that I really enjoy.

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I use two phones on a regular basis, both of which are not particularly practical, but they suit my life perfectly.

When I’m on an Android kick, I use the Moto Razr Ultra (2025), which has proven to be one of the most fun devices I’ve owned in years. Motorola really nailed the basics here: performance is superb, the cameras are decent, and the software is (mostly) functional. Over the years I’ve tried to make myself a book-style foldable guy, but the truth is that I just don’t use the inside screen enough to justify the additional size and weight. The flip-style foldable, though, has proven increasingly useful as fatherhood has stuffed my pockets with ever more crap. At $685 over Prime Day, the Razr Ultra 2025 is actually a bargain, particularly because the 2026 successor is basically the same phone for twice the price.

When I’m on iOS, I use the iPhone Air, which I thought I would hate but ended up feeling the exact opposite about. Yes, it’s limited in some truly irritating ways, particularly in the areas of camera and battery, but the tradeoffs make sense after the thing just disappears into a pocket or nestles into a hand. Its virtues are hard to grok without holding it first, but if you happen to be near an Apple Store soon, give it a try. Or you could buy a Renewed Premium model off Amazon for $800.

My smartwatch of choice isn’t a smartwatch at all; it’s the MoonSwatch and a Fitbit Air. I have been trying to minimize distractions throughout the day, and though originally a smartwatch was meant to minimize the number of times I took out my phone by allowing me to triage notifications, the reality was quite different. I ended up spending too much of my day being interrupted by those same notifications and then taking out my phone to do something with them. So I decided to split the difference and the responsibilities; the time-telling would come from a watch I love (it was a gift from my good friend, Chris) and the fitness tracking from the dedicated sensors on the Fitbit Air, a product I’ve grown to adore over the past few weeks.

A few other computer-y things I love: the Logitech MX Master 4is the best mouse I’ve ever used, period. The Keychron Q1 HE is not the best mechanical keyboard I’ve ever used, but at $190 its pre-built body and magnetic switches put it among the best budget decks I own, particularly with support for both Bluetooth and 2.4GHz wireless. I also just bought this massive Razer Gigantus desk pad, which was mainly for the name but also because my old one was really gnarly.

I just picked up a Nomad Tracking Card Pro to fit in my wallet, and this Statik MagStack Pro magnetic breakaway USB-C cable is surprisingly handy to throw in my bag since it never gets tangled. The Belkin MagSafe Power Bank (10,000mAh) also lives in my bag. It’s slim enough to keep in my pocket when attached to a MagSafe-compatible phone or case, the kickstand is genuinely useful for watching video on a plane, and the Qi2.2 25W support makes it future-proof for any quick-charging iPhone or Pixel out there.

For my desk, the Anker Nano Power Strip with Desk Clamp solved a problem I didn’t know I had: clamping to the edge of my desk instead of taking up surface space. 6 AC outlets, 2 USB-A, 2 USB-C, and 70W total USB-C output with a 1500J surge protector for $56.

I work from home, so my relationship with coffee is as much about ritual and experience as it is about taste and caffeine. Every morning, while I make my family’s breakfast, I brew a pour-over using locally roasted beans, and every night I look forward to the next one. It’s a delicious virtuous cycle.

If you’re looking to make some coffee-brewing upgrades, my recommendations stick to the affordable side of things without sacrificing on quality.

The Ember Smart Mug 2 is one of those products that feels frivolous until you use it, and then becomes absolutely indispensable. Coffee stays exactly at drinking temperature for as long as it takes me to actually finish a cup — which, with two young kids, can be a while. While $93 may seem like a lot to pay for a coffee mug, I can genuinely say it’s one of the best “I’m an adult and I can spend money on nice things” purchases I’ve ever made.

(I’ve never used it, but I’ve heard good things about the Nextmug Temperature-Controlled Self-Heating Mug. Same 14oz capacity, same auto-temperature control.)

The OXO Brew Adjustable Temperature Kettle ($90) is the gooseneck kettle I’ve been using for the better part of a decade. It heats quickly, holds a steady temperature within one degree, and pours with perfect control. I’ve gone through a number of electric kettles in my day, and the OXO is the only one whose fuse hasn’t blown or capacitor hasn’t melted.

My recommendation for pour-over is and always will be the cheap-and-cheerful Hario V60 Plastic Dripper, while the Baratza Encore Grinder is the grinder recommendation I’d give anyone who asks me where to begin. While I’ve moved onto a more expensive option, the Encore is reliable, consistent and, perhaps most importantly, easily repairable.

The Hario V60 Pour Over Starter Set bundles the dripper with a glass server, scoop, and filters if you want everything in one box for $25.

The Sennheiser Momentum 4 Wireless ($180) headphones have been succeeded by what appear to be the significantly-improved Momentum 5s, but they’re $400 and not twice as good. Instead, I recommend you enjoy the excellent sound, decent ANC, and superb 60-hour battery life of the 2022 model, and spend the extra money on a Sonos Era 100 SL speaker ($159). This is the Era 100 without the microphones, which is fine since it no longer supports Google Assistant anyway.

For earbuds, the Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 Pro ($210) are simply the best earbuds and biggest surprise of 2026 for me. They sound incredible, have amazing ANC, are way more comfortable than the previous gen (while also looking less like knockoff AirPods with light strips)… and did I mention they sound great?

If “wired” and “audiophile” are more your jam, I’d be happy to recommend the combination of Topping DX5 II DAC/Amp and Hifiman Edition XV, which I’ve been using happily for the past couple of years. Topping’s amps produce clean, rich sound for their relatively low price, and I’ve been thrilled with the above combination. This is my third pair of Hifiman headphones after starting with the Sundara and upgrading a few years ago to the Edition XS, but the XV look better, sound better and, most importantly, are way more comfortable for long listening sessions.

That’s it for now, but I’ll continue looking for decent deals on products that I love and use, and may update this post accordingly.