Prime Day has officially started, and just as we expected, most of these early Prime Day deals have carried over into the big event itself. Amazon’s own devices and in-house brands are still where you’ll find some of the biggest discounts, but now you can shop many more Prime Day deals (including dozens of Strategist-approved Prime Day deals). We’ll be rounding up the best of these deals over the next two days, so bookmark our home page and follow us on Instagram and Twitter to get real-time updates. If you want even more sales coverage, including more Prime Day updates, sign up for our email newsletter. (And don’t forget: You’ll only get these discounts if you’re an Amazon Prime member. It costs $14.99 per month, or $139 annually, and Amazon is running a promotion right now in which new members can try Prime free for 30 days.)
Best Echo deals
We’ve described the Amazon Echo as “the brain of your entire smart-home operation.” It plays music, tells you the weather and news updates, and manages your smart-home system — including adjusting thermostats and locking your doors. And we’ve never seen the Echo Dot, Amazon’s most basic smart speaker, this cheap.
Some of the best early Prime Day deals right now are on bundles that include the Echo and another gadget. So for just $5 more, you’ll get this very satisfying smart plug to go with your new Echo Dot. Smart plugs like this one let you quickly turn on anything from lamps to fans to TVs without ever finding a remote or switch. You can also schedule them to turn on or off at a specific time.
This bundle features an Echo Dot Kids that will pair perfectly with the Echo Glow, a smart multicolor lamp. The Echo Dot Kids also includes a year of Amazon Kids+, which gives kids access to thousands of hours of kid-friendly Audible books, interactive games, and educational skills.
This twilight-blue Echo Dot comes bundled with a Bluetooth-enabled lightbulb. You’ll be able to easily control your lights by saying, “Alexa, turn on the lights.”
Recently, lots of Echos with screens went on sale, so if you’re looking to upgrade your Echo experience, try this touchscreen version that will also let you make video calls and watch videos.
If you missed out on Google Glass, try these (futuristic) smart glasses that will let you make calls, listen to podcasts or audiobooks, set reminders, and add items to your to-do lists.
Best Prime Day smart-home deals
If you’ve been looking for an easy way to turn your regular television into a smart one, this Fire TV Stick is Amazon’s latest model, and it’s a steal at less than $20.
Switching from a traditional thermostat to a smart thermostat will let you control your home remotely — and even cool your house down on your way back from vacation — but you’ll need an Amazon Echo to manage it with your voice.
Ring was one of the first big names in video doorbells, and the company was acquired by Amazon in 2018 for over $1 billion. That means it will seamlessly connect with your existing suite of Amazon smart-home products. You can even stream doorbell footage to an Echo Show or interact with the doorbell (by talking to someone at your door, for example) via Alexa.
If you don’t already have an Alexa-enabled device but want to give this video doorbell a shot, this bundle includes the Echo Show for just $10 more.
Best Kindle deals
Though this is not Amazon’s latest tablet offering, the Fire 7 tablet has practically all the same bells and whistles as many of the newer Fire tablet models. With up to ten hours of battery life, you’ll have plenty of time to read, browse the web, watch Netflix, and listen to your favorite music.
This version of the Fire 7 tablet is made just for kids. Parental controls allow you to set educational goals, create time limits, and filter web content. If the case isn’t enough to protect against drops and bumps, Amazon offers a two-year warranty: If it breaks, you can return it, and they will replace it for free.
This smart tablet, which is recommended for 6-year-olds and older, is a little more advanced than the one listed above. The biggest difference is that kids can browse independently — but with some guardrails. With dual cameras, kids can also make video calls to approved contacts with the Alexa app.
Best early Prime Day TV deals
The last — and only — time this 50-inch TV was so cheap was Black Friday. It isn’t quite as spec’d out as the M550 above, but it does have 4K resolution (and if you’re a casual viewer, you probably won’t notice a difference).
Other Prime Day deals
Of all the slippers we’ve written about on the Strategist, UGGs are some of the most often mentioned, and these fluffy ones are similar to the pair that TikTok star Addison Rae wears both in and out of the house.
If you’re looking for the perfect (affordable) white tee, designer Sandy Liang told our friends at the Cut that Hanes’s boys’-cut tees have the best fit.
This sleek Fitbit is an activity-tracker, step-counter, heart-rate monitor, and plenty more. And right now, it’s the cheapest it has ever been.
Rated our best (less expensive) blow-dryer brush, Revlon’s One-Step brush is even more affordable right now. This newer version of the old One-Step features a round-brush design and is so popular that it has more than 100,000 reviews on Amazon.
We’ve said Roombas are as “synonymous with robot vacuums as Kleenex is to tissue,” but there’s good reason for it. This model will learn your cleaning habits and your voice thanks to Google Assistant and Alexa.
We know some devices in the robot-vacuum category can lead to anxiety about whether they really covered your entire floor, but this one by Anker features a phone app that allows you to create a handy map of your space and track the Eufy’s progress across it.
Recommended by experts as the best overall baby monitor, this device includes an “over the crib” Wi-Fi camera that offers standard video monitoring, plus it utilizes data tracking to provide sleep metrics through Nanit’s app.
We’ve been fans of Casper’s mattresses and pillows, so it’s no surprise that this is rated our No. 1 best dog bed. Praised for its easy-to-clean microfiber cover, it’s also available in three colors and three sizes.
The Strategist is designed to surface the most useful, expert recommendations for things to buy across the vast e-commerce landscape. Some of our latest conquests include the best acne treatments, rolling luggage, pillows for side sleepers, natural anxiety remedies, and bath towels. We update links when possible, but note that deals can expire and all prices are subject to change.
