This story is part of Holiday Gift Guide 2021, our list of ideas, by topic, by recipient and by price, to help you discover the perfect gift.
Everything seems to be on a Black Friday sale, even as we begin transitioning to Cyber Monday. What really matters is finding what’s worth buying. We’ve been giving you our expert opinion for the past many hours, days and weeks on what to buy, but it’s always nice to take a moment and see what is actually the most popular stuff being bought. That’s what we’ve done here. We don’t know what our individual readers are buying, but we get aggregate data. So based on that data, here’s what CNET readers bought on Amazon during the Black Friday period, in order of popularity.
With just a few exceptions, almost all of these products are still available at their Black Friday prices.
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Perhaps the biggest “get” of Black Friday 2021 were AirPods Pro. The dipped as low as $159 as Amazon matched Walmart’s price, but even at $11 higher (as they are now), they’re a great deal.
Amazon
The third-gen Echo Dot has spent the better part of the last year selling for around $50 and more recently dropped down to closer to $30 on its own. Right now, you can bundle the smart speaker with a color smart bulb for just $20, which is the same price Amazon is offering just the Echo Dot for during Black Friday. These bundles tend to sell out fast, so be sure to grab one now.
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If you’re looking for a speedy device, look no further than the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max. The Max loads 4K content apps almost immediately, and navigating around the system is swift and smooth. Even better, the Max supports Wi-Fi 6 and nearly all the latest playback standards, including Dolby Vision. The downside to the Max is its Fire TV platform — we like Roku better — and the fact that ads are featured prominently throughout.
The Fire TV Stick 4K Max is the best Fire Stick on the market and now is down to an all-time low of $35, slightly more expensive than the original Fire TV Stick 4K. For those looking for the best streaming experience Amazon has to offer, it might be worth spending the extra $10 to pick up the Max.
Megan Wollerton/CNET
Amazon Blink’s Mini security camera — an indoor, plug-in device notable for its super-low $35 price tag — was even less for Black Friday and it’s staying at its low $20 price for Cyber Monday, too.
In CNET’s review of the camera, we celebrated its budget-friendliness and solid performance and knocked the lack of free cloud storage (which comparable devices like Wyze’s have). That said, at this price, paying a little extra for cloud storage isn’t the end of the world.
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With the Roku Streaming Stick 4K you get 4K HDR video along with quick and easy access to Netflix, Hulu, Disney Plus and tons of other streaming services, so you can watch all of your favorite shows and movies through Roku’s excellent interface instead of whatever your TV has built-in.
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Ring’s Video Doorbell Wired offers 1080p video with motion-detection features and two-way talking from either your phone or an Amazon Echo. You can hear the chime on both your phone and an Echo when someone comes near or when the doorbell is pressed, depending on your settings. And the same video features you’ll find handy during the day work at night too, thanks to a night vision mode.
This is the latest Echo Show 5 that was just released a few months ago. It offers improved cameras for video calls, still has a physical camera shutter to protect your privacy and more. It’s currently at its lowest price ever and you can add a Blink Camera for $5 more if you bundle them together as well.
Dig deeper into your family history this holiday season with an AncestryDNA Traits genetic testing kit. AncestryDNA + Traits helps you learn how your genes influence appearance, fitness, nutrition and personal characteristics — as well as ethnicity estimates, geographic detail and historical insights that better complement Ancestry’s family tree features and records.
Amazon’s Smart Plug essentially lets you add Alexa voice controls to anything you plug into it. It normally sells for $25. While Amazon dropped the price to $15 for Black Friday, Target had it for even less at only $10 — and it’s currently still at that price.
Amazon
If you are in the market for a power bank, the Anker 10,000-mAh one might just be the right fit. It is currently 43% off. The product offers a 20W USB-C port that can charge an iPhone 12 to 50% in just 30 minutes. Meanwhile, if you also need to charge a second device, you get a 12W USB port for it.