Archives for 2021

Monday: Think Tank Photo, MeFoto, APC, IDX, Etc

Never fear, just like clockwork Mundane Monday is here and we start the excitement with a new set of B&H Photo daily deals good until Monday at 11:59pm ET (or earlier if sold out):

+ MeFoto GlobeTrotter S Carbon Fiber Travel Tripod for $166 in two color options
+ with this, you can be a GlobeTrotter, just not a Harlem GlobeTrotter 🙂

+ APC Back-UPS BN900M Battery Backup & Surge Protector for $65

+ IDX power options, $148 to $419

+ Think Tank Photo Video Rig 18 Rolling Case for $250

UPDATE #1: forgot about the Adorama daily deals, this duo is good until Monday at 10am ET:

+ iBower Smartphone LED Video Light for $20

+ Flashpoint Folding Wheeled Base Stand (Black/Chrome-plated, 11′) for $95

Sunday: Morphie, Tamrac, H&R, CameraMuzzle, NatGeo Telescope, Etc

Charge me up! That’s the theme of the day at the Sunday 1/31/21 [yup, just like that we ate up the first month of 2021] Meh daily deal. It’s a bundle of charging-related gear for $19 plus S&H (free S&H for Meh-meh-members). You get:

  • two Morphie 8000 mAh powerbanks with one USB-A and one 3A USB-C output ports (today’s phone flagships are too hungry for this, but can be great for smaller/older phones and other not-very-hungry electronics (Kindle e-readers, headphones, etc)
  • four 1-slot USB-A car charges
  • one 3-port 21W AC Wall charger

Then we head on to the B&H daily deals where we find a 7-pack of offerings good until 11:59pm ET on Sunday {or earlier if sold out}:

+ Camera Muzzle Sound Blip for $80
+ because there’s always someone in the room that is finely tuned to the camera-sounds and likes to complain about it early and often 😉

+ Ruggard Lux Strap with 3/8″ Connector for $7

+ Tamrac Stratus 10 Shoulder Bag (Black) for $60
+ a Dodge Stratus is NOT included in the bag 😉

+ National Geographic 50mm f/12 AZ Refractor Telescope for $40

+ H&R Block 2020 Deluxe + State Tax Software (Digital) for $22.50 in either Windows or Mac
+ all apologies for reminding you of taxes so early in the tax year BUT if you are expecting a nice refund…

+ Conair Travel Smart TS35Q Ladderkart for $60

+ 10pk Blizzard disposable KN95 masks for $20
+ I wonder what will happen to the billions of masks currently residing in homes and offices and warehouses if/when/after COVID is gone
+ I know, start working on your viral videos and listicles, “10 Ways to Repurpose Masks”, “5 Surprising Uses of Single-Use Masks”, “Out of Coffee Filters, You Got Masks!”

UPDATE #1: it’s a mix of things at the Woot daily deals for Sunday headlined by Samsung TVs (yes, SuperBowl season is fully upon us, $180 to $5600), $30 Kindle Paperwhite e-readers (but the 2013 model, aka 2nd generation – current model is 4th generation, see Wacopedia), and consumer lighting (table and floor lamps, $25 to $55), and some A/V action too with Logitech Harmony Ultimate One for $55 and a Vizio sound bar for $100…

Saturday: Sunpak, Intel i9/i7, Sandisk, WD, Apples, Etc

The current iteration of Adorama daily deals is good until Sunday at 10am ET (or earlier if sold out) and it is headlined by the Sunpak VideoPro-M 4 Tripod with True Fluid Pan Head and Case going for $55 with free US shipping…

Meanwhile at the Saturday 1/30/21 Woot daily deals they have yet another iteration of the Apple sale (iMacs, MacBooks, iPads) and the LG V30 for $200 among others…

Off we go to the Best Buy dailies where the headliners are Intel i9 and i7 processors. They also have the 12TB WD external USB 3.0 HDD for $200…

You can’t buy scrambled eggs there despite the name, but the Saturday NewEgg daily deals include a 2TB Sandisk SSD and Nintendo microSDXC, Intel i7, 8TB Seagate internal, WD Red, Acer Aspire 5, etc…

PS: is it me or is it easier to write the correct year this COVID year #2? I rarely catch myself writing x/x/20…

Now shipping: Sony Xperia PRO 5G smartphone with HDMI Input

Smartphones have beautiful screens these days but very few companies have thought of using the smartphones as external monitors for actual digital cameras. One of those very few just came out, from a company that makes both cameras and smartphones, SONY! It is the brand new Sony Xperia PRO 5G smartphone. It comes with an actual HDMI input, opening its 4K OLED display to your cameras and anything else that outputs on HDMI. And that’s its defining characteristic! And it has optional wireless streaming kits for select cameras (not just select Sony Alphas but also the Nikon Z6 III and Canon R5).

And given the benefit and costs of alternative solutions, Sony has priced it very “pro”, $2500 for the smartphone kit, and about $150 to $175 more for the camera-specific wireless streaming kits. Needless to say, this is a purpose-built smartphone for photographers and videographers and YouTubers/streamers and such…

AS of the time of writing it is in-stock and ready to ship at B&H Photo at its starting price of $2500 (not a typo!)… It has a mid-Februry in-stock estimate at Amazon itself and it is in pre-order status at Adorama.

Note that this is built up on the Xperia 1 Mark II. If you only want a smartphone and not its defining HDMI input feature, you are better off with the Xperia 1 Mark II or any other modern smartphone OR you can wait for the upcoming Snapdragon 888 smartphones that include the upcoming Sony Xperia 1 Mark III…

For a brief overview of the Xperia PRO 5G used as an external camera monitor, here’s Mr Mobile’s take on it after about 1.5 weeks of use:

GVM, Watson CX AA Rechargeables, Porta Brace, Etc [UPDATED]

Friday’s daily deals at B&H Photo last until Saturday at 11:59pm ET, but as usual, no ordering between Friday PM and Saturday PM {check website for exact times}. On to the offers then:

+ Watson CX AA Rechargeable NiMH Batteries (1.2V, 2000mAh)
+ 8pk for $7.50, 8pk for $15

+ Porta Brace PR-C3B Projector Case for $138~

+ GVM Aluminum 5-Section Monopod with Video Fluid Head for $99

+ Apexel 4K HD Mobile Phone 5-in-1 Camera Lens Kit for $35

+ KJB Automatic Digital Thermometer & Sanitizer Dispenser for $85

+ Google Pixel Buds (1st generation) for $59

UPDATE #1: among the current iteration of the Adorama daily deals they have the Alter Rapid Filtering system (with lens mounting ring), available in 55mm to 72mm, starting at $20…

UPDATE #2: among the Friday Amazon USA Gold Box offers they have a “Need Workstation” office desk sale featuring a soccer team of options (eleven of them with prices ranging from $79 to $119…

Buying Trade-Offs on a Pricepoint: Old Flagship vs Latest Entry

Now that we have about 20 years of consumer-accessible interchangeable lens cameras, the options in the used and new market are numerous! And that can trigger some interesting buying trade-offs. Especially if buying on a price-point, and you are fine comparing “apples and oranges” regardless of camera size, sensor size, camera type and so on. For example, would you buy an older flagship or a newer “latest technology” model? And how far back in time would you go?

Such a question was just posed (and answered [no spoilers in the text here]) at the Hyun Ralph Jeong YouTube Channel with two actual cameras, the legendary Canon 5D Mark II versus the all new Canon M50 Mark II. That’s over a decade in age difference, and obviously they are different types of cameras, BUT for someone buying at a price-point and wanting to see what their options are, this is an interesting theoretical and/or practical exercise.

As of the time of writing, the M50 Mark II starts at $600 as body-only in new condition (eg B&H Photo, Adorama) while the Canon 5D Mark II body-only ranges from $470 to $660 at KEH Camera and (obviously) has a wider range on eBayLandia

Needless to say, you can’t take pictures with a body only, so you’d have to figure in the price of a lens, and that opens more comparison threads, eg both with a prime lens, both with a zoom lens, each one with the best available lens money can buy at your designated price-point, and so on…

The possibilities are not infinite, but they can be headache inducing. For example, with an older camera (lots of 5D Mark II used options) you could go for a more beat-up body so you can spend more on the lens… OR you can go the way of adapters with the M50 II… A whole website could be devoted just on this type of a buying comparison (not by me though; that’s your project) 🙂

Thursday: 256GB Samsung EVO Plus SDXC for $32 [limit 3]

A Samsung storage sale is one of the Thursday 1/28/21 Amazon USA Gold Box deals of the day featuring two internal SSDs ($48 and $112) but of photography interest the headliner is the new condition 256GB Samsung EVO Plus SDXC going for $32 with up to three per customer… This is a new-ish line of SD cards; as of the time of writing this averages 4.6 out of 5 based on 123 global ratings….

Meanwhile at the Adorama daily deals (change Friday 10am ET) they have:

+ CLAR Illumi Max 300 High Power 5600K LED Light (132,000 lux @ 0.5m) for $329

+ LetsFit ID152 Fitness Tracker Smart Bracelet with Heart Rate and Sleep Monitor, IP68 Waterproof for $17

Thursday: Nanuk, Anker, Genaray, Manfrotto, Etc

ThirstDAY aka Thursday is here and we have a new 6-pack of B&H daily deals good until 11:59pm ET (or earlier if sold out) as follows:

+ Genaray LED-6200T 144 LED Variable-Color On-Camera Light for $69

+ Manfrotto MK290LTA3-BHUS 290 Light Aluminum Tripod with Ball Head for $100

+ Nanuk 925 Case with Foam for $80 after $70 off automatic in-cart couponeaux

+ Anker 10,000mAh PowerCore Slim 10000 PD Portable Charger for $18
+ have the Rolling Stones yet licensed “Start Me Up” for charging eqiupment? “Charge Me Up!”

+ IndiPro 14.8V 95Wh Lithium-Ion Battery & Pro Charger Kit (V-Mount) for $150
+ the sun has near-infinite power, the rest of the light sources, not so 😉

+ reusable masks for childrenz

UPDATE #1: refurbished iPads starting at $70 (iPad 2) headline the Woot daily deals for Thursday, with a total of 17 options, including iPad 2 through 7, Mini 1 through 5, Air 2 and 3, iPad PROs 1 and 2… With a total of 25 (!!!) models as of the time of writing, Wikipedia may be in-order to sort-them-out… But that’s not all, under “Electronics” is another variant of the Fuji EnviroMax single-use battery sale with AAA, C, D and 9V options (the AA sold out)…

UPDATE #2: meanwhile at Best Buy’s they have the 256GB Sandisk Ultra Plus microSDXC for $45 [still not sure what the difference is between the “PLUS” and the non-PLUS), 5TB WD EasyStore External USB 3 HDD for $100, etc etc etc (including… Poo Pourri, a great troll gift!)…

Profoto Off-Camera Flash Kit (C/N/S/F), ASUS ROG, Sylvania Light Bulbs, Etc

A new round of Adorama daily deals has been launched, and this photo-centric set is good until Thursday at 10am ET (or earlier if sold out):

+ Profoto Off-Camera Flash Kit with A1X AirTTL On/Off-Camera Flash and Profoto Connect Flash Trigger for $795
+ in your choice of Canon, Nikon, Sony and Fuji

+ ASUS ROG Strix SCAR G532 15.6″ Full HD 240Hz Gaming Notebook for $1700
+ i7-10875H 2.3GHz, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER 8GB, Windows 10 Home

+ Explore Scientific FirstLight 70mm f/10 Alt-Az Refractor Telescope with Alt/AZ “U” Yoke Mount for $75

+ VIOFO A129 Pro 4K UHD 2160p Dual Band Wi-Fi Front Dash Camera with GPS Module for $150

Meanwhile at the Wednesday Amazon USA Gold Box, good until 11:59pm pacific time [or earlier if sold out] is a sale on Sylvania light bulbs, smart and otherwise, headlined by 24-packs of Daylight Color (A19, 60W-EQ (9W actual)) for $17 (limit three sets per customer) or Soft White Color for the same price…

Wedn: Lenovo i5-10400 Desktop for $449, Atomos, Zeapon, CLAR, Etc

And just like that we are almost at mid-week, Hump Day is here and we have a new 4-pack of B&H daily deals good until 11:59pm ET (or earlier if sold out):

+ Lenovo IdeaCentre 5 14IMB05 Desktop Computer for $449
+ you can’t get an Apple Silicon Mac Mini at this price 🙂
+ 2.9 GHz i5-10400 six-a-core, 8GB 2933 MHz DDR4, Intel UHD Graphics 630, 256GB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD, etc
+ processor ranks #320 at cpubenchmark.net
+ keyboard, mouse, power cord included
+ if they don’t include powerbricks with smartphones, why do they include semi-disposable keyboards/mice with desktops? They make the boxes larger and you may end up paying for the extra box size and weight!
+ they should instead include coupons towards useful keyboards/mice/accessories
+ Max RAM 24GB (2 user-replaceable slots, 2x of 4GB included)
+ DVD burner
+ two USB 3.0, four USB 2.0 (soy vey!), two USB-C
+ HDMI and VGA outputs
+ Ethernet, Wifi 5, bluetooth 5, 260W, 1-yr warranty
+ 5.8 kg = 12.79lb (desktop)
+ averages 4.6 out of 5 on 73 customer reviews as of the time of writing
+ option for a $20 off combined purchase discount with Microsoft 365

+ Apexel Gorillas Tripod for $18

+ Atomos Connect 4K for $49

+ Zeapon Micro 2 Micro Rail Slider with EasyLock 2 & Ball Head Bundle for $200

Next up we have the Adorama daily deals (change Wednesday 10am ET) headlined by the CLAR Basic 2-Light LED Softbox Kit going for $80… There’s also single-use 3-ply masks. Masks and more masks. !@#$!@#$!@#$ COVID 🙂

Tuesday: Macro Ring Flash with Transceivers (C/N/S), Etc

Tuesday aka Toonsday aka Tunesday is here and with it we have a new round of B&H daily deals good until 11:59pm ET (or earlier if sold out) as follows:

+ BOLT TTL Macro Ring Flash with Transceiver Set with Additional Transceiver for $300 in your choice of Sony, Nikon or Canon system options

+ Carson JC-1000 2.4″/60mm Refractor Telescope Kit for $60

+ IDX batteries, two options, $230 to $550

+ Letscom fitness tracker for $13

Meanwhile at the Woot daily deals there’s a $100 Chromebook and a $46 coffee machine that brews both K-cups and traditional basket-style… Either way, you may risk expulsion from the Hipster Coffee Club unless you exclusively make PourOver coffee 🙂

Rokinon 24mm T1.5 Cine for $229 [N]

It’s a lens day of the Nikon F kind at the Adorama daily deals, good until Tuesday at 10am ET (or earlier if sold out) you can get the new condition Rokinon 24mm T1.5 Cine for $229 with free US shipping… The other three options go for a lot more as of the time of writing…

Monday Camera and Photo Lightning Deals

It’s been a while since we dove into the Amazon USA Gold Box, more specifically to take a look at the Camera and Photo Lightning Deals. This is an “instant reaction post”, I’m writing it as I see it for the first time… << cue suspense music >>

And as of the time of writing there are 127 items participating. Now let’s see some highlights:

+ stabilizery things including sliders and gimbal stabilizers and tripods

+ LED panel lights

+ monocular-telescope creature

+ ring lights of different kinds including macro and selfie and twins

+ binoculars and action cams

+ studio background and lighting kits
+ if the sky is blue and water is wet, these are in the lighting deals too

+ monolights and on-camera flashes

+ green screen green suit for humans

+ generic camcorder and time-lapse camera

+ Neewer reigns supreme once again, challenging Cal Ripken Jr’s record 😉

Prime Only: Fuji Instax Mini 9 Clear Camera for $50

Good until the end of January 2021 (or earlier if sold out) Woot is running a …running Prime members only sale. You have to login with a Prime account through Woot in order to buy these. And surprise surprise, there is a camera among them!

It is the new condition Fuji Instax Mini 9 Clear Camera in the yellow color scheme going for $50 with up to three per customer. It comes with a 90-day Woot warranty. Since this is a Prime-only offer, you get free shipping by default (one of the many Prime benefits)…

UPDATE: among the Monday Amazon USA Gold Box deals of the day (these are open to everyone, not Prime only) you can get:

+ HiSense 43″ Android TV with Remote (2020 model, 43H5500G) for $200

+ Fire Stick TV Lite with Alexa for $22

Monday: Porta Brace, Sirui, Netgear, Vanguard, Etc

Mundane Monday is back and the Meh daily deal (jigsaw puzzles) brings us to the “(Useless) Photography Tip of the Week”: print your beautiful landscape and nature pictures as puzzles 😉

To the B&H daily deals we go now, with this round running until Monday at 11:59pm ET (or earlier if sold out):

+ PortaBrace Carrying Case for DSLR Camera, Multiple Lenses and Accessories for $100

+ SirUI SUP224SR Carbon-Fiber Photo/Video Monopod for $130

+ Netgear Orbi Pro AC3000 Wireless Tri-Band Gigabit Wi-Fi System for $270 after an automatic in-cart coupon

+ Motorola Verve Loop 200 Wireless In-Ear Headphones for $12

Meanwhile at the Adorama daily deals (change Monday 10am ET) they have:

+ Pictar Smart Light for $35

+ Vanguard ALTA PRO 2 263AP 3-Section Aluminum Tripod with Alta PH-32 3-Way Pan Head for $100

UPDATE #1: the headliner of the Woot daily deals for Monday is a sale of factory-reconditioned Samsung curved LED monitors with prices ranging from $130 to $300, and screen sizes being either 27″ or 32″. They come with a 90-day Samsung warranty…

REI Mastercard: $100 Gift Card, Rewards, Cellphone Protection, Non-Profit Donations, and Other Benefits

REI hippies and hipsters of the world unite and take over! REI’s e-newsletter is promoting the current promotion for their REI Mastercard credit card (powered by US Bank). If you apply and get approved and make a purchase within 60 days, you will earn a $100 REI gift card as a bonus. The card has a rewards program, 5% on REI purchases, 2% on mobile wallet purchases and 1% on everything else.

These rewards are stackable and separate from the REI Annual Dividend program for REI members (membership is a one-time lifetime-activity, not an annual fee milking).

The card also offers a no-cost cellphone protection (damage or theft) if you pay your cellphone bill with this card. There is a $50 deductible, up to $800 per claim, two claims per year, up to $1000 per 12-month period. Details at the Cellphone Protection page…

Other benefits include “extra savings” on REI travel, automatic REI donation to non-profit nature projects, and no foreign transaction fees, and such, within of course limitations, terms and conditions and such.

Speaking of which, be sure to read up on all of them before applying. And the usual caveats, use credit responsibly, etc, etc, etc…

Spend $25+, Get $6 Kindle Store Credit (Jan 21-28)

Reading is fun-da-mental! If you are a fan of Kindle e-reading, their 25-6 promotion is back. Once you activate it, the promotion runs between January 21-28 in 2021. Better yet, this runs retroactively for the time period. The terms are as before. If you spend $25+ in Kindle ebooks, you will earn a $6 promotional Kindle e-store-credit…

This is especially of interest for photography ebooks and camera e-guides, since they tend to be of the more expensive kind…

Sunday: Nanlite, Morphie, IOgrapher, Outdoor Photographer, Etc

If you have rechargeable devices that are low in power requirements, then you may be interested in the Sunday Meh daily deal, it is a 4-pack of 3000 mAh Morphie powerbanks for $19 total plus shipping for non-Meh-members…

Next up we go to the B&H Photo deals du jour where we have the following offers good until Sunday at 11:59pm ET (or earlier if sold out):

+ Vello HSA-PVU Hot Shoe Adapter with Safe Voltage Conversion for $15

+ NanLite MixPad 11 Tunable RGB Hard and Soft LED Panel for $84

+ Magnus VPH-10P Three-Way Pan and Tilt Head for $25

+ Apexel 4-in-1 Cell Phone Camera System for $18

Next up we go to the Discount MAGS weekend sale (sometimes it ends Monday night instead of Sunday night) where the theme is a multi-year sale, and of photography interest, VideoMaker is around the “default sale price”, but “Outdoor Photographer” is below $5/year, it goes for $13 for a prepaid 3-year subscription. These are printed magazines delivered to USA addresses old-school-style. No auto-renewalings…

Meanwhile at the Adorama daily deals (change Sunday 10am ET) they offer the iOgrapher Filmmaking Multi Case for Smartphones for $40 with free US shipping…

UPDATE #1: at the Best Buy dailies they have the 128GB Sandisk Extreme PLUS microSDXC (V30, A2, U3, C10, UHS I) for $33, and headlined by AKRacing gaming chairs…

Sunday is Samsung Day at the Woot daily deals headlined by the new condition unlocked with 1-year warranty Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G (128GB) for $850 (one per customer). There’s also Samsung tablets ($90 to $430) under “Computers” and “Galaxy Buds Live” for $110 under “Electronics” and such…

Anker, Peak Design, Pelican, Sachtler, Etc [UPDATED]

Friday is also known as FryDay, because it’s a traditional day to fry everything you eat or drink 😉 PS: the previous sentence has not been fact-checked!

Car charging fans, the Friday Meh daily deal is for you, it is a 2-pack of Anker 5-port 50W car chargers for $19 total plus shipping. That’s under $10 per charger. Now those long commutes have a utilitarian silver lining: charging everything that could be charged 🙂

Meanwhile the B&H daily deals are, as usual, good until Saturday at 11:59pm ET with the caveat that orders are not accepted Fri PM to Sat PM {check their website for exact times}:

+ open-box Peak Design Shell Form-Fitting Lens Rain and Dust Covers, two options, $20 to $25

+ Pelican ProGear 1810 LED Keychain Light for $6
+ now you can light paint no matter where you are

+ Vello hot-shoe bubble-levels, four options, $6 to $10

+ MiGGo Splat Flexible Tripod 3N1 for $18

+ AmazFit GTS smartwatches, six options, for $90 each

+ reusable masks

+ flash deal: Sachtler Shell Camera Backpack for $96~

+ no teaser for the next flash deal

UPDATE #1: the Friday Best Buy daily deals are headlined by a Razer gaming sale (including mechanical keyboards). There’s also a 1TB WD external USB-C SSD for $140, a 27″ LG IPS FHD monitor for $250 (HDR, DisplayPort), a Samsonite mobile duffe for $70, Rexing dash cams, a $5 wired keypad (could be handy for data entry on laptops without OR with USB OTG dongles on compatible smartphones/tablets), and on and on…

UPDATE #2: at the Woot daily deals they have open-box MacBooks, former-flagship refurbished scatch-n-dent Android phones starting at $60 ($60 = Galaxy S6)… A point of potential consumer confusion in the “Grocery” sub-Woot, the “matcha” they advertise is not matcha. It’s loose leaf tea with matcha sprinkled in. Matcha, by definition, is tea leaves ground to powder and you drink the whole thing. Unlike instant-coffee, (real) matcha does not dissolve (but rather suspends) in water because it’s actual pieces of tea leaf (and not chemical instant coffee that dissolves)…

UPDATE #3: the new incarnation of the Adorama daily deals (change Saturday 10am ET) includes:

+ StabiLens Cinematographer Kit for $120

+ H&A Elite Pro 15′ XLR M to XLR F Microphone Cable with Rean by Neutrik Gold Connectors for $6

Tokina Opera 16-28mm f2.8 for $529 [C/N]

Prepare to sing, prepare for a Night at the Opera at the Adorama daily deals, it is the new condition Tokina Opera 16-28mm f2.8 FX zoom lens going for $529 with free US shipping in your choice of Canon or Nikon DSLR systems… Sale ends on Friday at 10am ET or earlier if sold out…

PS: this is “typo-certified” to be Tokina, not Tamron 🙂

Thursday: refurb Sony Cybershot H300 superzoom for $85

Zoom-zoom at the NewEgg daily deals, good until Thursday 1/21/21 at 11:59pm pacifc time, or earlier if sold out, marketplace seller VIP Outlet is offering the refurbished Sony Cybershot H300 superzoom for $85 with free US shipping. This is sold and shipped by the marketplace seller, not by NewEgg itself…

Thursday: Sigma 10-20/3.5 EX DC HSM for $299 [N], Zeapon, CamCase, Sirui, Elements 2021, Raspberry PI, Etc [UPDATED]

Hooray, hooray, Thirstday is LENS DAY at the B&H daily deals good until 11:59pm ET on Thursday 1/21/21 or earlier for anything that may sell out ahead of its designated expiration time and place…

+ Sigma 10-20mm f3.5 EX DC HSM for $299 in Nikon F only!
+ the Canon EF and Sigma SA remain at regular prices

+ SirUI W-1004 Waterproof Aluminum Alloy Tripod for $100

+ ZeaPon Micro 2 Micro Rail Slider for $150
+ Scott Bakula NOT included

+ CoreSWX TorchLED Bolt 300 On-Camera Light for $150, another option for $399
+ Bolt-On, not to be confused with the infomercial that keeps repeating “apply directly to the forehead”

+ Xcellon 6-in-1 Multiport USB Type-C Docking Station for 10.9, 11 & 12.9″ iPad Air and Pro for $35
+ someone needs to write a summer-y Jimmy Buffet style song called o/~ dongle life o/~

+ CamCase CC5 Mirrorless Camera Case for $119 in two color options
+ the bag is indeed mirrorless, but then almost all bags are mirrorless (unless it’s one of those fashion bags that have a small vanity mirror inside?)

Fresh off the Meh-a-thon, the Thursday Meh daily deal is the Vistatech 2.4GHz Live-Streaming WiFi Video Drone offered for $35. This includes three batteries. It is model DR0N35-0N-4ND-0N. Sounds like a Radio Shack type of a brand name? 🙂

UPDATE #1: it’s name brand electronics at the Thursday Best Buy daily deals including:

+ Adobe Photoshop Elements 2021 for $60
+ 2TB WD EasyStore for $60, 16TB for $300
+ 400GB Sandisk Nintendo microSD for $90Ad
+ Uncharted Supply survival system
+ Acer Predator gaming laptop for $1200
+ b0bsweep robot vacuum thing (also pet toy) for $150

UPDATE #2: the Woot daily deals are headlined by an AmazonBasics luggage sale (20 options, one sold out already, no camera bags), while “Computers” has CanaKit Raspberry PI kits from $50 to $70…

Fuji Instax 210 Instant for $50 (also: 2pk 32GB Lexar CFast 2.0 cards, LG 24″ monitor)

This new incarnation of the Adorama daily deals is all name-brand, and it is good until Thursday at 10am eastern (or earlier if sold out):

+ Fujifilm Instax 210 Instant Photo Camera with Reverse Galilean Style Viewfinder for $50

+ 2pk 32GB Lexar Professional 3500x CFast 2.0 cards for $40
+ if my math is correct, that’s $20 per card 🙂

+ 24″ LG (model 24ML600M-B) 16:9 Full HD IPS 3-Side Borderless Monitor with Dual HDMI for $100

Deal History: List of all 100+ Tuesday Woot-Off deals (for Reference Only)

Now this paragraph is of historic interest. The Tuesday Woot-OFF is OVER. But during the Woot-off on Tuesday there were some technical difficulties. To counter that, for a few hours, Woot launched all the Woot-OFF deals at once. This is a list of 100+ items. If you were always curious to see what items are offered in a Woot-OFF but didn’t want to sit through it throughout the day, this list is a pretty good indicator of what they offer. This was the “Clearance/Sellout” sub-Woot Woot-Off…

Yes, this is the launch of our new “Deal History Channel” 🙂 We’re also planning a “Deal Shark Week” and a “Mega Deal Twilight Zone Marathon” 😉

Wedn: Meh-a-Thon, Nanlite, Zhiyun, Manfrotto Nitro, Etc

Countering the Tuesday Woot-Off (more on that in the next post above this), Meh is running its own variant of the Woot-off, a Meh-a-thon at the Meh website. One deal at a time, with a visible countdown clock on it. I have no clue what is in the pipeline, so YMMV…

No flash deals today either, but there are four items in the B&H daily deals for Wednesday 1/20/21 at 11:59pm ET (or earlier if sold out):

+ Nanlite MixPad 27 Tunable RGB Hard and Soft LED Panel for $219

+ Manfrotto 612 Nitrotech Fluid Video Head and Carbon Fiber Twin Leg Tripod with Middle Spreader for $800 after a whooping $500 off in-cart automatic coupon

+ Zhiyun Crane-2 3-Axis Stabilizer with Focus Motor for $359 with FREE Zhiyun-Tech Remote Control for Crane 2

+ Pelican 1637 Air Case (Orange) for $200
+ neither vitamin C nor beta-carotene are in it 😉

UPDATE #1: among the Woot daily deals for Wednesday there’s a random accessories sale which includes a variety of self-rings, power banks, and, well, accessories of all kinds 🙂

Woot-OFF Tuesday 8am to 10pm Central

A Woot teaser reveals that on Tuesday 1/19/21 between 8am and 10pm central time there will be another incarnation of the Woot-OFF at the Woot website. The teaser does not indicate which sub-Woots will participate ~ it will be revealed when it goes live on Tuesday at 8am central time…

UPDATE: among the Tuesday Best Buy daily deals is the recurring Joby GorillaPod Creator Kit offered for $50…

UPDATE #2: to the Amazon USA Gold Box we go where they have on sale the Fire HD 8 and HD 10 tablets, but the headliner of today’s deals is the new condition Acer Spin 5 convertible laptop for $840 with up to two per customer at the sale price. This is 13.5″ IPS Touch (2256 x 1504), i0th gen Core i7-1065-G7, 16GB RAM, 512GB NVMe, backlit keyboard, fingerprint, Active stylus (with Wacom AES 1.0), Wifi 6, promised long battery life, various USB ports (two Thunderbolt 3), microSD card reader, Bluetooth 5, HDMI 2.0, 360-degree dual torque hinge, 2.65 lbs, etc, etc, etc…

Since it’s limit two, you can buy one for yourself and send one to me too 😉

UPDATE #3: the latest round of Adorama daily deals is good until Wednesday at 10am eastern:

+ Kodak 10″ Touch Screen Rechargeable Digital Photo Frame Wi-Fi Enabled with HD Photo Display for $120

+ Zendure A2 6700mAh Crush-Proof Portable Charger for $15

Tuesday: Oben, Intel i7, Think Tank, Ziv, Etc

Tuesday is now officially called ToonsDay or TunesDay, or if you have free/available time, you are empowered to watch all the cartoons/anime you want, and listen to all the music you want ~ even Adult AC 😉

Meanwhile this round of B&H daily deals is good until Tuesday 1/19/21 at 11:59pm ET or earlier for anything that sells out ahead of time…

+ Oben CTM-2500 5-Section Carbon Fiber Monopod for $65

+ Intel Core i7-8700K 3.7 GHz 6-Core LGA 1151 Processor for $260
+ OR you can buy an Apple M1 computer 🙂
+ funny how things change, especially when you start milking the clock instead of pressing on with innovation; Intel went from having a virtual monopoly to getting owned by AMD/Ryzen, dramatically losing on mobile to Qualcomm/MediaTek/etc, and getting humiliated by the Apple M1 chip

+ Think Tank Video Transport 18 Carry-On Case for $230

+ Impact 5-in-1 Collapsible Oval Reflector with Solid Gold (42×72″) for $50

+ ZIV TTL Cord with Focus Assist for Nikon (Coiled, 3′) for $15

+ SirUI PB-10 Multi-Axial Panoramic Head for $100

Meanwhile at the Adorama daily deals they have Coleman 10×25 Signature Waterproof Roof Prism Binocular offered for $50 with free US shipping… They also have a 50pk of 3-ply single-use masks for $8…

Monday: Nanuk, Mefoto, Acronis, Etc

Our Linguini Experts suggest Monday got its name from the french phrase “Mon Dieu I have to go back to work again”. Disclaimer: the previous sentence has not been fact-checked 🙂

The current round of B&H Photo daily deals is good until 11:59pm ET or earlier if sold out…

+ Nanuk 920 Hard Utility Case with Foam Insert for $80 after automatic $40 off in-cart coupon
+ with purchase, you are contractually obligated to say “Nanu Nanu” Robin Williams style every time you open or close it

+ MeFoto RoadTrip S Travel Tripod in alumin(i)um for $80 in five delightful summer fruit colors

+ Acronis True Image 2021 (1 Windows or Mac License, Download, Standard Perpetual Edition) for $18

+ Dhale 552 Professional Rotary Trimmer (20″) for $129

+ LetsCom ID131Color HR Fitness Tracker for $15 in three color options

+ 50pk 3-ply Kids masks for $5
+ one way to tell how the markets see the ending of COVID (in sight) is the ongoing discounting of masks and other COVIDalia (sanitizers, forehead thermometers, etc)
+ with disposable masks dropping in price, multi-use masks lose favorability because they too have their costs (you have to wash and disinfect them, and that’s not free either ~ costs in terms of water use, power use, time/effort, and detergents)
+ welcome to our new COVID 2021 mini-blog 😉

Meanwhile the Adorama daily deals, whose current incarnation ends on Monday at 10am ET features:

+ StabiLens Gimbal Stabilizer Starter Kit, Includes Gimbal Ring, 10x Tungsten Alloy Weights for $80

+ Sirui 82-95mm Nano MC Step-Up ND Filter, 10-Stops for $15

+ Sirui Aluminum Ultra Slim S-Pro Nano MC UV Filter 86mm for $20

+ contrary to popular belief, a Filter CD or a “Hey Man Nice Shot” digital download is NOT included with the purchase of a filter 😉

Marumi DHG 37mm Super Circular Polarising Filter for $21

As part of a Woot Plus Leftovers sale that ends on 1/18/21 at 11:59pm central time [or earlier if sold-out], Woot is offering the new condition Marumi DHG 37mm Super Circular Polarising Filter for $21 with up to three per customer. Only this filter-size is available. IT comes with a 90-day Woot warranty…

Single Use Batteries sale (Sony, Fuji, Energizer) [exp 1/31]

If you are fond of single-use batteries from Sony Stamina Plus or Fuji EnviroMAX or Energizer MAX, various sets of various options of these are on sale until 1/31/21 (or earlier if sold out) at this Woot Plus batteries sale. Free shipping for Prime members or flat shipping for non-members…