Anker dove into CES 2026 with a slew of announcements that bring new chargers and accessories under its umbrella. The new accessories include improved visual interfaces, faster Qi2 wireless charging and “upgraded ecosystems” that support the latest iPhones. Some of the latest devices are even available to buy right now.
First up is the Anker Nano Charger with smart display, which features a tiny screen, 180-degree foldable prongs and provides up to 45W of power. The plug can identify the exact iPhone model connected and then deliver the right amount of power for your phone. Anker says the Nano uses three-stage power delivery and a “Care Mode” that the company claims keeps batteries cooler than some competing 45W chargers. It arrives in late January 2026 and will retail for $40.
For fans of wireless charging stations, the Anker Prime Wireless Charging Station offers a 3-in-1 solution for iPhone, Apple Watch and AirPods. It uses a “AirCool” system for “faster, safer performance” and offers up to 25W of Qi2 wireless power. The design is also foldable for compact travel. It’s set for release in Q1 2026 and will retail for $150.
The company debuted a clamp-on 10-in-1 Nano Power Strip with 70W of output and built-in surge protection. It sports two USB-C ports, two USB-A ports and six AC outlets. The Nano Power Strip is getting a late January release, and it will sell for $70.
Anker also unveiled a 13-in-1 Nano Docking Station. This serves as an all-in-one hub with support for up to three displays (with 4K resolution supported on a single display), up to 100W of upstream charging and 10 Gbps of data transfer between connected devices. It also features a removable 6-in-1 hub with SD and microSD card readers, a USB-A port and a 5 Gbps USB-C port. The Nano Docking Station is available now and retails for $150.
I’ve been onboard the wireless charging train for nearly a decade, and still remember being excited to finally have a device I could try it with when I bought my iPhone 8 in 2017. Wireless charging felt like magic,despite the fact that it was slow and unreliable, that it wasn’t all that unusual to pick up your phone to find it was both way too hot and hadn’t charged at all. We’ve come a long, long way since then.
The most recent innovation is Qi2.2, the latest version of the Wireless Charging Consortium’s MagSafe-based standard that requires chargers to feature a magnetic ring and be capable of outputting up to 25 watts of power to Qi2.2-compatible phones. That’s really good for wireless charging, although without some additional cooling, you can’t expect it to hit that rate for very long, if at all.
Enter the new Anker Prime Wireless Charging Station, one of the first Qi2.2 chargers on the market—and priced like it’s the only one, at $230. At first glance, it’s no different than any other 3-in-1 stand that you can hang iPhones, Apple Watches, and AirPods on for simultaneous charging. Yet there’s more to it than that: it’s got a cooling fan to keep your phone from throttling the charging rate. It also has a touchscreen, so you can check the charging power going to each device. You can also see that same info in an app that lets you tweak settings, set the time (its timeout screen shows a clock), and even update its firmware.
Anker Prime Wireless Charging Station (3-in-1, MagGo, AirCool, Dock Stand)
Anker’s 3-in-1 Prime Wireless Charging Station great multipurpose wireless charger held back by an obscene price.
Very fast wireless charging
Cooling fan keeps your phone chilly
Useful integrated display
Tilting Magnetic charger
Solidly built
Onscreen clock loses time easily
Too expensive
That’s all a lot, but the good news is that the Anker Prime Wireless Charging Station works well, especially when it comes to its big banner feature of fast wireless charging for your smartphone. I confirmed with my partner’s iPhone 16 that this charger can get up to 22.5W, as Apple says it and others in the 16 line can. And my own iPhone 15 Pro, which isn’t explicitly capable of that, still reached about 17W and held it for long-ish stretches. That’s all according to the stand’s own display; there’s not a good way to check it, otherwise. But the end result was a phone that could fully charge nearly as fast as when I charged with USB-C, yet was still cool—and sometimes cold—to the touch when I pulled it off the charging pad.
These sorts of charging stands—the kind with two stalks, one for a phone and one for an Apple Watch and a wireless charging pad for AirPods—aren’t usually pretty, but Anker sure tried! It’s sturdy and weighty, and the company used soft touch materials for the base and magnetic pad for iPhone charging. Its stalks are encased in shiny, reflective metal, the base has nicely grippy feet, and its display seems to sit beneath glass.
The phone pad is thick to accommodate the cooling fan and sports vents at the top and bottom to eject hot air through, and you can tilt it up and down for better viewing. The Apple Watch charger, like the AirPods pad, charges at up to 5 watts. Powering this apparatus are a braided USB-C cable and a 65W Anker USB-C wall adapter.
I am a sucker for screens on devices that don’t usually have them, even when they’re extraneous; thankfully, the one on the Anker Prime Wireless Charging Station is anything but. Besides offering key info about the charging wattage of each device sitting on it, you can also cycle through a few options to set things like the charging mode, the time and date, and screen brightness. The clock function is a little under-baked; it doesn’t account for daylight savings time in the U.S. (which happened to start while I was testing it), and if you unplug the device and plug it back in, it loses the time completely. You know, like a stove clock. Thankfully, all you have to do is connect to the charger via the Anker app and the time corrects itself. As for the display, it was barely visible under the bright fluorescents of IFA 2025, where I first saw it, but, thankfully, it’s perfectly visible in normal indoor lighting conditions.
As for those charging modes, they are Ice Mode, which sets the phone charging pad’s cooling fan to full blast; Boost Mode, which is a balanced charging mode in which the fan doesn’t run as high; and Sleep Mode, which turns the fan off and is probably best if you use the charger at your bedside. It’s nice to have the choice, but also, the fan is already so quiet even in Ice Mode that I didn’t bother changing it after testing the various options.
It’s my firmly held belief that the screen is good enough that the Anker Prime Wireless Charging Station never needed an app at all, but the Anker app connects to it, so we might as well talk about it. When using the app, you’ll connect to the charger via Bluetooth, giving you a screen that shows you a picture of the Prime Charging Station, current output wattage, voltage, and amperage, and a “Real-Time Data” line graph. Tap on that, and you can see a few hours’ worth of charging history for each of the charging points.
It’s great that Anker has decided to come out of the gate swinging with its first Qi2.2 charging station. The Prime Wireless Charging Station is inarguably nice and certainly worth more than your average no-name Amazon charger. And the company seems like it’s really trying to justify the price with the features that this thing comes with. I really like this charging stand and don’t mind calling it one of the best 3-in-1 charging stands you can buy today.
The thing that Anker has to contend with here is that the vast bulk of its value is derived from the raw convenience of its tree-style form factor, not from its fast charging, its cooling fan, its touchscreen display, or any of the other niceties. It’s just too convenient to have one easy place to plop an iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods case at the end of the day, and the bar to improve on that is a lot higher than I think any of Anker’s extra features reach. I just can’t see myself paying $230 for this.
Anker seems to know that’s perhaps too much, and has already discounted the charger to $150 (as of this writing) within less than two months of it being announced. But that’s still more than what competing 3-in-1 Qi2.2 chargers cost; see Belkin and its own cooling fan-equipped Qi2.2 charging stand for $130, or Kuxiu, with its tri-fold Qi2.2 travel charger that’s fanless and much more vulnerable to thermal throttling in my testing, but also only costs $100. I think you’d have to be a real Anker super fan to buy the Prime Wireless Charging Station for full price or anywhere close to it. Still, it’s a great device, and it’s totally worth checking its price during Black Friday.
It’s true: October Prime Day 2025 is over. But you can’t expect a site like Amazon to shut down every deal — the company was built on the discount. Today, we hunted down the tech deals under $50 that are still available. While there’s a lot fewer deals than there were yesterday (we counted 59 on Wednesday and just 19 today) some decent brands, like Ugreen, Anker, Lego and Roku are still in stock. Interestingly, a few of the current-model Echo smart speakers are still discounted, too, likely as a way to get the new Alexa+ into as many homes as possible. Who knows how long these sale prices will stick around. But if you miss them, don’t fret, Black Friday is just around the corner.
Best Prime Day tech deals under $50 still available
UGREEN
PNY microSD Express (128GB) for $39 ($6 off with Prime): If you’ve gotten yourself a Switch 2 (or planning to gift one for the Holidays) you may want to get a couple microSD Express cards. They’re the only type that work with the new console, which you can read all about in our guide to Switch 2 storage. This is one of the cards we recommend.
Audible subscription (three months) for $3 ($42 off): From now through mid-December, you can get Amazon’s audiobook subscription for just a dollar a month for three months. Note that it will auto-renew at $15 per month after that, but you can cancel at any point.
UGreen Revodok Pro 109 USB-C Hub for $39 ($16 off with Prime): The top pick in our guide to the best USB-C hubs has a good array of ports, including an HDMI 2.0 connection that supports 4K monitors at 60Hz, plus three USB-A ports, Ethernet and one USB-C (plus another for delivering 90W of power to your device.
Lego Star Wars Advent Calendar 2025 for $31 (30 percent off): ‘Tis the season for advent calendars. They’ve flooded the internet, as they usually do this time of year, and there are plenty to choose from (and stock up on) before we get to December. Lego has a bunch, and this Star Wars one will be fun for everyone, not just kids, to open up each day at the end of the year.
Amazon
Razer Basilisk V3 gaming mouse for $30 ($40 off): Some prefer a wired connection when playing games. Razer’s Basilisk V3 is our top budget pick for a wired mouse in our gaming mouse guide. It’s comfortable, well-built, accurate and a good value — particularly with a Prime Day discount.
Anker Nano portable charger for $20 ($10 off with Prime): It looks like an oldy timey lipstick case and can deliver a partial refill to any small device with a USB-C port. We named it a good pick after testing it for our battery guide.
Echo Pop smart speaker for $25 ($15 off): The half sphere Pop is the most affordable Echo speaker in Amazon’s lineup. The sound won’t be as full as its larger siblings, but will do a fine job of bringing Alexa’s help to smaller rooms. Just note that it went as low as $18 for Black Friday and October Prime Day last year.
Elden Ring (PS5) for $30 ($20 off): If you somehow haven’t yet played the action-RPG Elden Ring, here’s a chance to do so for less money. It’s challenging yet accessible if you want plus it’s darkly funny and one of our favorite games.
Samsung Fit Plus 256GB for $23 (30 percent off): We named this thumbdrive one of the best SSDs you can buy. This configuration has 256GB of storage and read speeds of 400MB/s. It’s also built to resist water, extreme temperatures, magnets and even radiation.
Roku Streaming Stick HD for $18 ($12 off): If you don’t care about 4K (or your screen resolution isn’t that high anyway) you can still get the same simple-to-use Roku OS with this device. The best thing about Roku streaming sticks is the access to all the free content — so this is an affordable way to get it.
Anker Soundcore Select 4 Go speaker for $26 ($9 off with Prime): This is one of our top picks for Bluetooth speaker. It gets pretty loud for its size and has decent sound quality. You can pair two together for stereo sound as well, and its IP67-rated design will keep it protected against water and dust. It went for $23 during the sale.
Amazon Echo Spot for $45 ($35 off): Amazon brought the Echo Spot smart alarm clock back from the dead last year with a new design and improved speakers. In addition to being able to control smart home devices and respond to voice commands, the Echo Spot can also act as a Wi-Fi extender for those that have Eero systems. It went as low as $45 for Black Friday last year.
Maybe you’re not looking to snag an iPad, a robot vacuum or a VR headset this Amazon Prime Day because you’re set with what you already have. Instead, though, consider picking up a few discounted “essential” gadgets, or really, devices you don’t want to be left without in a pinch. Charging gear falls into this camp, and Anker makes some of our favorite power banks, cables, wireless chargers and more.
A bunch of Anker’s gear is on sale for October Prime Day, making now a great time to stock up. Personally, I always end up getting an extra charging cable or surge protector for my house, or I take stock of the gifts I’ll need over the next couple of months and pick up a power brick while they’re deeply discounted. Here, we’ve collected all of the best October Prime Day deals on Anker devices and other charging accessories so you don’t have to go searching for them.
Anker Prime Day deals: Power banks
Power banks are not as straightforward as you might think. They come in all shapes, sizes and capacities and can have extra features like magnetic alignment, built-in kickstands, extra ports and more.
It’s worth considering how you’ll use a power bank before you decide on the right one to buy. Smartphones don’t need huge-capacity bricks to power up a couple of times over; a 5K or 10K portable charger should be plenty if that’s all you’re looking to support. If you want a more versatile accessory that can charge a tablet, laptop or gaming handheld, consider a brick with a higher capacity — and more ports so you can charge multiple devices simultaneously.
Anker Prime Day deals: Wireless chargers
A good wireless charger can lighten your cable load. While wired charging remains faster and more efficient, wireless chargers can clean up your space by eliminating a few of those cables that constantly trip you up.
We recommend thinking about where you’ll use a wireless charger before buying one. Those outfitting a home office with new tech may want a wireless charging stand that puts their phone in an upright position that’s easier to see while it’s powering up, while those who want a wireless charger for their nightstand might prefer a lay-flat design or a power station that can charge a smartphone, smartwatch and pair of earbuds all at once.
Anker Prime Day deals: Charging gear
Plenty of other charging gear is on sale for Prime Day. It’s never a bad idea to pick up a few 30W USB-C adapters so you always have what you need to reliably power up your phone. Same goes for extra USB-C (or USB-A) cables that can live in your car, in your office at work or by the couch.
You may not be looking to spend big on tech this October Prime Day, but it’s still a good idea to look for tech essentials during the shopping event while you can get some at good discounts. Anker makes some of our favorite charging gear and I always end up picking up an accessory or two during Prime Day to ensure I have what I need when I need it most, and I feel better knowing I didn’t spend full price on it.
For example, in sales past, I picked up a couple of extra USB-C charging cables so I could keep one in my carry-on luggage so I always have one when I travel. My partner will likely be upgrading to an iPhone 17 this year, so we’ll have to get a few more USB-C cables now that Lightning is officially banished from our home. Also, every year it seems I need yet another surge protector, so even though I picked one up the year before — but one can never have too many. Here, we’ve collected all of the best October Prime Day deals on Anker devices and other charging gear we could find, and we’ll update this post as the event goes on with the latest offerings.
Anker Prime Day deals: Power banks
Power banks are not as straightforward as you might think. They come in all shapes, sizes and capacities and can have extra features like magnetic alignment, built-in kickstands, extra ports and more.
It’s worth considering how you’ll use a power bank before you decide on the right one to buy. Smartphones don’t need huge-capacity bricks to power up a couple of times over; a 5K or 10K portable charger should be plenty if that’s all you’re looking to support. If you want a more versatile accessory that can charge a tablet, laptop or gaming handheld, consider a brick with a higher capacity — and more ports so you can charge multiple devices simultaneously.
Anker Prime Day deals: Wireless chargers
A good wireless charger can lighten your cable load. While wired charging remains faster and more efficient, wireless chargers can clean up your space by eliminating a few of those cables that constantly trip you up.
We recommend thinking about where you’ll use a wireless charger before buying one. Those outfitting a home office with new tech may want a wireless charging stand that puts their phone in an upright position that’s easier to see while it’s powering up, while those who want a wireless charger for their nightstand might prefer a lay-flat design or a power station that can charge a smartphone, smartwatch and pair of earbuds all at once.
Anker Prime Day deals: Charging gear
Plenty of other charging gear is on sale for Prime Day. It’s never a bad idea to pick up a few 30W USB-C adapters so you always have what you need to reliably power up your phone. Same goes for extra USB-C (or USB-A) cables that can live in your car, in your office at work or by the couch.
You may not be looking to spend big on tech this October Prime Day, but it’s still a good idea to look for tech essentials during the shopping event while you can get some at good discounts. Anker makes some of our favorite charging gear and I always end up picking up an accessory or two during Amazon’s Big Deal Days to ensure I have what I need when I need it most, and I feel better knowing I didn’t spend full price on it.
For example, in sales past, I picked up a couple of extra USB-C charging cables so I could keep one in my carry-on luggage so I always have one when I travel. My partner will likely be upgrading to an iPhone 17 this year, so we’ll have to get a few more USB-C cables now that Lightning is officially banished from our home. Also, every year it seems I need yet another surge protector, so even though I picked one up the year before — but one can never have too many. Here, we’ve collected all of the best Prime Day Anker deals and discounts on other charging gear we could find, and we’ll update this post as the event goes on with the latest offerings.
Anker Prime Day deals: Power banks
Power banks are not as straightforward as you might think. They come in all shapes, sizes and capacities and can have extra features like magnetic alignment, built-in kickstands, extra ports and more.
It’s worth considering how you’ll use a power bank before you decide on the right one to buy. Smartphones don’t need huge-capacity bricks to power up a couple of times over; a 5K or 10K portable charger should be plenty if that’s all you’re looking to support. If you want a more versatile accessory that can charge a tablet, laptop or gaming handheld, consider a brick with a higher capacity — and more ports so you can charge multiple devices simultaneously.
Anker Prime Day deals: Wireless chargers
A good wireless charger can lighten your cable load. While wired charging remains faster and more efficient, wireless chargers can clean up your space by eliminating a few of those cables that constantly trip you up.
We recommend thinking about where you’ll use a wireless charger before buying one. Those outfitting a home office with new tech may want a wireless charging stand that puts their phone in an upright position that’s easier to see while it’s powering up, while those who want a wireless charger for their nightstand might prefer a lay-flat design or a power station that can charge a smartphone, smartwatch and pair of earbuds all at once.
Anker Prime Day deals: Charging gear
Plenty of other charging gear is on sale for Prime Day. It’s never a bad idea to pick up a few 30W USB-C adapters so you always have what you need to reliably power up your phone. Same goes for extra USB-C (or USB-A) cables that can live in your car, in your office at work or by the couch.
Maybe you’re not looking to snag an iPad, a robot vacuum or a VR headset this Amazon Prime Day because you’re set with what you already have. Instead, though, consider picking up a few discounted “essential” gadgets, or really, devices you don’t want to be left without in a pinch. Charging gear falls into this camp, and Anker makes some of our favorite power banks, cables, wireless chargers and more.
A bunch of Anker’s gear is on sale for October Prime Day, making now a great time to stock up. Personally, I always end up getting an extra charging cable or surge protector for my house, or I take stock of the gifts I’ll need over the next couple of months and pick up a power brick while they’re deeply discounted. Here, we’ve collected all of the best October Prime Day deals on Anker devices and other charging accessories so you don’t have to go searching for them.
Anker Prime Day deals: Power banks
Power banks are not as straightforward as you might think. They come in all shapes, sizes and capacities and can have extra features like magnetic alignment, built-in kickstands, extra ports and more.
It’s worth considering how you’ll use a power bank before you decide on the right one to buy. Smartphones don’t need huge-capacity bricks to power up a couple of times over; a 5K or 10K portable charger should be plenty if that’s all you’re looking to support. If you want a more versatile accessory that can charge a tablet, laptop or gaming handheld, consider a brick with a higher capacity — and more ports so you can charge multiple devices simultaneously.
Anker Prime Day deals: Wireless chargers
A good wireless charger can lighten your cable load. While wired charging remains faster and more efficient, wireless chargers can clean up your space by eliminating a few of those cables that constantly trip you up.
We recommend thinking about where you’ll use a wireless charger before buying one. Those outfitting a home office with new tech may want a wireless charging stand that puts their phone in an upright position that’s easier to see while it’s powering up, while those who want a wireless charger for their nightstand might prefer a lay-flat design or a power station that can charge a smartphone, smartwatch and pair of earbuds all at once.
Anker Prime Day deals: Charging gear
Plenty of other charging gear is on sale for Prime Day. It’s never a bad idea to pick up a few 30W USB-C adapters so you always have what you need to reliably power up your phone. Same goes for extra USB-C (or USB-A) cables that can live in your car, in your office at work or by the couch.
We can all be honest and say that carrying around a bulky power bank almost makes it seem like your phone dying isn’t so bad. Between the heaviness and any necessary cords, they can just be a pain. So, we were intrigued when Anker debuted a new, very thin power bank this summer: the Anker Nano 5K MagGo Slim power bank.
Now, both Anker and Amazon are running sales on it, dropping the price from $55 to $46. The 16 percent discount a new low for the power bank and available in the black and white models. It’s just about a third of an inch thick and attaches right to your iPhone. On that note, it works with any MagSafe compatible phone with a magnetic case.
Anker
Anker’s Nano 5K MagGo Slim is our pick for best, well, slim MagSafe power bank. It took two and a half hours to charge an iPhone 15 from 5 percent to 90 percent. However, it could boost the battery to 40 percent in just under an hour. Overall, though, the minimalist design and easy to grip matte texture, really sold it to us.
We can all be honest and say that carrying around a bulky power bank almost makes it seem like your phone dying isn’t so bad. Between the heaviness and any necessary cords, they can just be a pain. So, we were intrigued when Anker debuted a new, very thin power bank this summer: the Anker Nano 5K MagGo Slim power bank.
Now, both Anker and Amazon are running sales on it, dropping the price from $55 to $46. The 16 percent discount a new low for the power bank and available in the black and white models. It’s just about a third of an inch thick and attaches right to your iPhone. On that note, it works with any MagSafe compatible phone with a magnetic case.
Anker
Anker’s Nano 5K MagGo Slim is our pick for best, well, slim MagSafe power bank. It took two and a half hours to charge an iPhone 15 from 5 percent to 90 percent. However, it could boost the battery to 40 percent in just under an hour. Overall, though, the minimalist design and easy to grip matte texture, really sold it to us.
Whether you you intend to pick up the new iPhone Air or just need some extra juice for your existing iPhone, a MagSafe power bank is an essential accessory. Luckily, Anker both makes some of our favorites and has great sales going on right now on just this kind of gear. One of the most affordable is the Anker 622 Magnetic Battery, which is 42 percent off and down to $28 right now. This steep discount is also available at Anker’s online store with a coupon code that the company provides. This model has a 5,000 mAh capacity, strong magnets and a slim design that even includes a foldable stand built in.
Anker
Close to a record low price for this slim and portable MagSafe compatible charger.
Anker says the 622 Magnetic Battery can recharge a dead iPhone 16 or 16 Pro to just over 80 percent, and an iPhone 16 Pro Max to just over 60 percent. In our hands-on review of the portable charger, we liked the magnetic stand that folds out into a 30-degree angle. Users can rotate their phone to either portrait mode or landscape mode while charging.
The Anker 622 is an older charger, so it outputs a maximum of 7.5W when charging wirelessly. If you need to refill your battery faster than that, you might want to pick up one of the newer Qi2 power banks. Though a Qi2 power bank will, of course, cost more, some of our favorites are having great sales right now.
The Anker Ultra-Slim 10,000mAh battery pack can charge an iPhone 16 Pro to 50 percent in just 26 minutes, thanks to its Qi2-certified 15W of wireless charging. Right now it’s 25 percent off, priced at $60 down from $80. It’s got a bare-bones design, opting for a slim profile instead of a stand.
If you prefer one with a stand and you like the idea of a display that tells you how much charge your power bank has left, then check out the Anker 10,000mAh battery pack with smart display and foldable stand. In our rundown of the best power banks, this was our top pick for iPhones. Not only does this battery pack offer Qi2 wireless charging at 15W, it also offers 27W when using USB-C for fast charging.
Tech companies big and small now struggle to tantalize you with tech without telling you how much it will cost, or—hell—whether you can even buy it. The still-ongoing IFA 2025 tech conference in Berlin proved how merely shipping tech to the U.S. is more tenuous than at any time in the last few decades. From what I saw and heard both on the floor and off, it became clear that the era of plentiful, affordable, and cool shit will melt away in favor of an epoch of dull and ever-more expensive tech.
IFA’s timing lands early in September for tech companies to have the chance to promote their products before the holiday rush. It’s a big conference for European- and Asian-based companies, especially those that focus on smart home tech. For us journalists, IFA is also an opportunity to dive into the weird and wacky products that may or may not float to the U.S. from across the pond.
This year, the annual conference took a different tenor. IFA came months after U.S. tariffs had been causing havoc with pricing on existing products. Future devices won’t just be more expensive; more and more companies indicated they were holding off shipping to the U.S. or were writing off Uncle Sam altogether until things change. It was as if every public relations professional’s toothy smile hid a single word—tariff—whispered but never fully uttered through their teeth.
U.S. policies are leaving us guessing on price and availability
Some international tech giants bearing truly unique products are being barred completely from the States. DJI, the company most known for making drones, has found itself soft-banned from importing gear to the U.S. There’s a long and fraught history with DJI and the U.S. market, but the end result is Americans locked out of an entire line of products. At IFA, DJI had its new Osmo 360 camera proudly displayed. You can go to the DJI store page now, and it currently says “Out of Stock” if you’re checking in from the U.S. DJI has in-store availability slated for the rest of this year, but people in the U.S. won’t be able to easily buy it. At least Insta360 and its Antigravity A1 360-degree camera drone are still getting a U.S. launch.
Some tech companies have managed to cajole President Donald “I’m not a dictator” Trump by heaping praise and gaudy 24K gold statues on the capricious commander in chief. Those companies that haven’t kissed the ring find themselves on the outside. At IFA, we checked out several new products from Roborock, including a new robo lawnmower and a washing machine/dryer combo with a doggy door for a robovac. Neither are coming to the U.S. in the immediate future, the company told us. The U.S. has easily the highest demand for lawnmowers in the world.
Over and over again, I asked companies about U.S. pricing and availability, and was told they didn’t have those details available, at least not yet. Companies like Anker, Mova, and Dreame crafted their own blend of robotic suits for robovacs to help them climb stairs. The Eufy MarsWalker, Dreame CyberX, and Mova Zeus 60 should be around sometime next year. No, of course, there’s no suggested price. Want more wacky gadgets? Too bad. SwitchBot’s Kata Friends, an AI-powered family “pet” that looks like a teddy bear filled with several sensors, still doesn’t have a price or availability for U.S. consumers. The company simply wouldn’t suggest when its products will ever come to the U.S.
That’s not to say it was the case with all tech on the show floor. There are plenty of new gadgets, like these long-lasting Bose headphones, the updated Withings ScanWatch 2, Anker’s Prime power banks, and the massive Nebula X1 Pro will come to the U.S. Companies are more hesitant than ever to even mention prices. TCL’s new QM9K TV should be available “later this month,” but the company refused to provide an idea about price, which is perhaps the most important element of a renowned budget TV brand.
Unlike with CES, companies don’t have to come to IFA if they hope to make a splash. It’s not a sure sign there are internal or external struggles. But in conversations with companies, it’s clear the only answer they have to Trump’s tariffs is to delay release or obfuscate pricing. Asus launched several laptops at IFA 2024. The company told Gizmodo it was skipping the 2025 show. That wasn’t entirely true, though. Asus’ gaming-centric brand—Republic of Gamers—took up a corner booth space in the back of one of the halls with two Asus ROG Xbox Ally X handhelds on display. The company still refused to say how much it would cost. There’s a reason customers should be concerned.
Handhelds are one of the fastest-growing and most innovative markets for both gaming and PCs. At IFA, one company promised a handheld-laptop hybrid with a stereoscopic 3D display akin to the Nintendo 3DS. While we saw more handhelds at CES 2025, the situation post-tariffs is far more tenuous. Lenovo’s Legion Go 2 was all set to hit a home run with its OLED display. Then we saw the price. Lenovo said the handheld PC would start at $1,050. Things are worse when you look at the true costs. A version of the handheld with the higher-end processor, the AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme, starts at $1,350. The original Legion Go demanded $700 at launch late in 2023.
Few people want to spend over $1,000 for a device with only marginal performance gains. It does not bode well for the Xbox Ally X, which contains the same Ryzen Z2 Extreme chip. We were also hoping to see Acer finally drop details on its Nitro Blaze 7 and Nitro Blaze 11 handhelds. While the handheld has already been on sale in various countries in Asia, Europe, and the Middle East, Acer told me it had “no updates for U.S. on handhelds.” Acer was also unwilling to share any pricing for its upcoming laptops, like the ultra-light Swift 16 Air.
Tech companies may be taking a wait-and-see strategy, but there’s no sign Trump will end his love affair with import taxes, at least for those U.S. firms unwilling to give up a stake in their company—like Intel has—or go Nvidia’s route and be stuck agreeing to ever-more unfavorable demands. Trump’s fascistic tendencies naturally lean on the industry, but those who can’t or (increasingly rarely) won’t give themselves to Trump will simply have to avoid the U.S. and its many gadget-hungry consumers. Nobody knows how this will all shake out, but U.S. users better get used to holding onto their aging gear for far longer.
Anker showed off a few powerful charging and computer accessories at IFA 2025 this year, and they put out just a wacky amount of power. That’s especially true of the Prime 300W Power Bank and the Prime Docking Station, which features what the company calls “the first triple display charging dock with stable 8K display output.”
The Prime 300W Power Bank has enough juice to charge two laptops and a phone at once using its two USB-C and single USB-A ports. Its screen—which was hard to see under the bright lights of the IFA hall I was in, but seemed bright enough indoors—tells you how much power is left, how many watts it’s outputting, and the charger’s current temperature.
You can cycle through those using a button on the side of the device. The Anker app lets you do things like prioritize which devices you’d rather send more power to (a single USB-C port can provide up to 140 watts). And you can recharge it up to 50% in just 15 minutes, as it can take up to 250 watts at once—though you’ll need to use two power adapters and both of its USB-C ports for that. (Handily, Anker sells a 160W Prime Charger that’ll get you there.)
Then there’s the Prime Docking Station, a 14-port dock with a screen, single SD and microSD card slots, and three USB-C ports on the front, each capable of up to 140W output, while the remaining ports are on the back. Those are a 140W USB-C port for powering your laptop, along with these ports: three USB-C, three USB-A, two HDMI, one DisplayPort, one ethernet, one audio jack, and two SD card slots. According to a member of Anker’s product team, the device uses HDMI 2.1 and DisplayPort 1.4, and it can only output to one 8K screen at a time and up to 4K on two others. You’ll want to use DisplayPort for 8K output at 60Hz, though—the HDMI ports only output 8K at 30Hz.
The display functions like any other Anker Prime device, giving you information like current USB-C output, status on your data transfers, its current display signal, and the dock’s temperature. A knob on the side lets you cycle through the options. One of those is the settings menu, where you can run through a few options like screen brightness, clock format, and even adjust which direction of knob turn does what. (I love tiny detailed settings like this.) I wanted to see some things, like the file transfer status, in action, but Anker wasn’t really equipped to show that off.
You can connect to the Prime Docking Station with an Anker PC app to monitor devices connected to it or adjust display settings. While a lot of powerful docks use passive cooling, Anker stuck a fan in the Prime Docking Station to keep the device from throttling under heavy load. Anker said in its press materials that the Docking Station will be $299.99 in the U.S., although it’s currently listed at $269.99.
Besides the Power Bank and Docking Station, the Prime series also includes that 160W charger I mentioned above. Even this has a display, where you’ll check how much power it’s supplying through each of its three USB-C ports, which are capable of outputting up to 140W each (not simultaneously, mind you). You can also cycle through three charging modes with a button on the front or connect to it with Bluetooth and use the Anker app for other modes and adjusting things like screen brightness or setting how long it takes before the screen turns off. That’ll be $149 when it comes out on Sept. 25.
Finally, Anker has a new three-in-one Prime Wireless Charging Station, a Qi2.2 wireless charging station with a wireless charging base for things like AirPods, along with two stalks: one for your Apple Watch and one with a 25W magnetic charger that has a built-in fan to keep your phone cool while it charges. Anker says this lets it get an iPhone 16 Pro Max up to 80% in 59 minutes—something you wouldn’t necessarily expect from a normal MagSafe charger, since excess heat can cause your phone to throttle charging speed.
The Prime Wireless Charging Station’s display is for checking real-time charging stats. A little spot at the bottom of the screen is a touchpad that you can slide your finger on to cycle through settings or double-tap to put it in sleep mode so the fan isn’t making too much noise. (I could feel it but not hear it at full blast, but to be fair, IFA is loud.) The app also lets you set that mode, as well as configure charging schedules. Anker doesn’t say in its press materials when this will be available, nor how much it will cost.
I was already impressed enough with Anker’s SoundCore Nebula X1 projector when I saw it back in April. We all dream of having our own full theater in our homes, or at least something transportable enough that we could hang a bedsheet in our backyard and pretend we’re at the cinema. It was one of the first projectors with its own internal liquid cooling system to keep it from overheating. Then came along the Nebula X1 Pro, a projector so big it could be a Star Wars droid that’s large enough to pack famed R2-D2 actor Kenny Baker inside (RIP).
Anker already shared a few details for the Nebula X1 Pro, but the company is showing it off for the first time at IFA 2025 in Berlin. The beastly all-in-one projector and speaker system is as tall as a 10-year-old and comes with its own retractable handle plus two wheels to roll it out when it’s time for family movie night. The device is truly the all-in-one projector setup nobody truly knew they wanted. It supports both Dolby Vision for HDR (for better contrast and brighter highlights) and Dolby Atmos sound through its pop-out wireless speakers.
The projector specs are very similar to the existing Nebula X1—which is to say it’s impressive. The Nebula X1 Pro uses a U-shaped optical laser system that supports 4K resolution up to 3,500 ANSI lumens. That will be plenty bright for dark rooms or nighttime operation. For playing movies during the day, it may still offer quality colors and deep contrast. Whether that will be better than a TV for its high price will be up to each user. The projector has automatic sizing, focus, and obstacle avoidance features to make the picture appear in the best frame possible.
The Nebula X1 Pro hides four fully wireless speakers you can set up around your living room or backyard. The 7.1.4 speaker setup includes four pop-out front and rear speakers connected to the main projector through 12-channel RF chips. The X1 Pro’s main body acts as the 8-inch, 80W subwoofer. Each speaker should have an 8-hour battery life—long enough to entertain your friends in a full-day movie marathon, though it won’t last long enough to watch all three Lord of the Rings movies (the extended editions, of course). If your space is more constrained, you could use the two front speakers as a soundbar. The lid comes up to reveal two microphones if you’re keen on having a karaoke night.
The projector’s bottom comes packed in with a 6.6-foot retractable power cord. You’ll still need an extension cord nearby, especially if you’re bringing this droid projector outside. There’s a lot to consider with projectors, more than with TVs. This giant box promises the full cinema experience, and that’s already enticing enough. But it’s going up on Kickstarter Sept. 22 for between $4,000 and $5,000, according to Anker. The Nebula X1 Pro can handle screen sizes up to 300 inches. You can get a smaller, high-quality QD-OLED TV from the pricier brands like Samsung and still save close to $1,000. We’ll want to see for ourselves if all the wireless speakers make it the droid we’ve been looking for.
Anker makes some of our favorite charging gear, and now you can save on a bunch of wireless power accessories from the brand. Whether you’re going back to school soon or want a new charging station that can power up a few devices at once, there are discounts here worth considering. One of the best is this 3-in-1 MagSafe charging station, on sale for a record low price of $63. The Qi2-certified charger wirelessly charges your compatible iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods on one compact and convenient dock. Qi2 boasts 15W of power, so you can take advantage of fast charging on compatible devices.
This means the station can charge an iPhone 16 Pro Max to 20 percent in just 20 minutes and an Apple Watch Series 10 from zero to 100 percent in just over an hour. The magnetic stand for your iPhone is adjustable with 45 degrees of vertical rotation and 360 degrees of horizontal rotation, so you can always find the perfect angle for your phone while charging.
Anker
Being able to wirelessly charge these three daily devices at once might remind you of Apple’s wireless charging pad that never was, but Anker’s 3-in-1 charging station offers an elegant solution. We tend to like Anker’s charging products, and we’ve found they make some of the best charging stations on the market.
Anker’s products can be a bit pricey, though, which is why the best time to pick them up is during these sales. The company actually has a slew of its charging products on sale right now. Its 3-in-1 wireless charging cube is 31 percent off right now and down to $104. If you’re a Prime member and have a Qi2-compatible iPhone, then you might also look at Anker’s simple Qi2 charging pad, which is 35 percent off for a two-pack right now.
The headliner of Anker’s new Prime multi-device chargers. The Prime Docking Station has three USB-C and one USB-A charging port that can deliver up to 160W of total output. It also has a 1Gbps Ethernet port and two HDMI ports that can output up to 4K/60Hz, along with two 10Gbps USB-C ports, one 10Gbps USB-A port, and three 480Mbps USB-A ports.
Anker wisely set out to make the most out of the overpowered USB-C chargers we have today. The 2-in-1 USB-C to USB-C Cable 140W (yep, that’s its name) can charge two devices using a single charging port. It also stops juicing fully charged gadgets and provides up to 140W PD charging for one device. It has a durable braided cable and comes in 1ft and 3ft lengths.
Some Anker and Soundcore products are being recalled due to a manufacturing defect that could cause fires. Anker issued a recall for its (PowerCore 5K, A1112) this week, saying, “The lithium-ion battery in the affected power banks can overheat, potentially causing melting of plastic components, smoke and fire hazards.” Its audio brand, Soundcore, issued a recall for its in Black as well.
The company has apparently started notifying who may own one of the affected devices via email, but you can double check the serial numbers — which are printed on the bottom of each device — using the above links to be sure. Anker says the issue applies only to a small number of devices manufactured between March and April of 2023. Also affected is a workplace conferencing device, the speakerphone, according to a . If you have one of these devices, the company advises you immediately stop using it and dispose of it properly at a facility that takes lithium batteries.
Anker’s upcoming Bluetooth speaker is for people who often make calls in noisy environments, such as at home or in public places. The S600 uses AI to learn the sound of your voice and prioritize it in calls. Anker claims the S600 recognizes and cuts down over 300 kinds of background noise. Lifehacker tried a demo unit and came away impressed.
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Crowdfunded projects pose a degree of risk for buyers, so be sure to do your research before paying your hard-earned money.
Anker’s compact MagGo power bank delivers up to 15W wireless charging for Qi-compatible devices. The 10,000mAh portable charger can also recharge devices via USB-C. Its sturdy folding stand makes it easy to use your device while charging, and its compact display shows its remaining capacity by percentage and duration.
I’ve been one of the those “I don’t own a TV” people for a long time. Really my entire adult life, excepting those times when I shared my living space with someone who brought their own to the party.
My exact motivation is a bit hazy all these years later, but at a certain point, it’s a lifestyle you kind of settle into — one that can occasionally make your job as a hardware reviewer a bit of a hassle.
The truth is, however, that the distinction between owning and not owning a television has grown increasingly blurry over the past decade. Perhaps as blurry as the definition of television itself. Think of this cord cutter’s journey as a sort of set top Ship of Theseus. At some point along the way, we’ve severed our final ties first to terrestrial television and then to the cable companies.
Movies, live television, sports — all of these familiar paradigms have adapted to the digital age. Ultimately how much you want your own home setup to resemble previous models is entirely up to you. Personally speaking, I have no allegiance to live television, and Oakland Athletics owner John Fisher has personally seen to the severing of my main connection to professional sports.
All of my home movie/television viewing first occurred on a laptop, followed by a tablet. In the intervening years, any stance I might have initially taken against owning a television was effectively rendered arbitrary, save for two: space and money. Of course, the price of televisions has continued dropping over time — though that doesn’t factor in things like sound systems and all the other ephemera. Space, on the other hand, will be a concern for as long as I live in a city like New York on a journalist’s salary.
I’ve contemplated projector life over the years — I’ve also tested some here and there. There’s something very appealing about a big screen you can stash away when not in use. Until fairly recently, however, it seemed that price and ease of use lagged greatly when compared to the far more popular television option.
In the dozen years since it was founded in Shenzhen, Anker has grown into an accessory powerhouse. By and large, the company has done a good job balancing price, quality and creative design. I’ve recommended plenty of their products over the years and have been tempted to check out an Anker Nebula projector for some time.
Just ahead of the holidays, I contacted the company to check out a review unit, and shopped around for a decently priced projector screen. My initial goal was picking up something in the 70- to 80-inch range, entirely unsure whether anything larger would fit in my living room and/or bedroom. Even the low end is significantly larger than the average TV set, which sits somewhere between 30 and 65 inches.
The story of how I ended up with a 100-inch projector screen in my bedroom is an entirely unexciting combination of pricing, comparison shopping and reading reviews. But here we are, from watching all of my TV shows and movies on an iPad to have to step around a movie screen every time I wake up in the middle of the night to use the restroom.
Image Credits: Brian Heater
Screens are like so many other things in tech, however: Once you get used to it, you suddenly wonder how you managed to survive so many years without it.
Released earlier this year, the Anker Nebula Capsule 3 is more or less exactly what I’ve been looking for in a projector. It’s extremely compact (the company compares it to the size and shape of a soda can), simple to use and extremely self-contained. The question of price is an interesting one here. The device retails for $800 (though you can routinely find it for $50 less on places like Amazon).
You can find a 60-inch 1080p smart TV for a couple hundred. As with any big ticket purchase, one must do a cost-benefit analysis here. A 100-inch TV will likely cost you more than a grand, while the Capsule 3 outputs up to a 120-inch image. Factor in the projector screen and that’s another $70 in my case. Like many screens, mine is effectively a PVC pipe frame holding up a taut, silky white sheet.
The Capsule has a decent Bluetooth speaker and Chromecast built in, which are points in its favor. Actively working against it, though, is the fact that even with a laser projection system, the image only gives you the desired effect in an entirely dark room. You also need to find the right spot to place the projector that avoids potential obstacles. There’s also a calibration process you’ll have to deal with every time you move the projector or the screen.
That last bit is less daunting than it sounds. The system does a decent job auto-calibrating and shrinking the screen size to avoid obstacles. Oftentimes, however, I’ve found myself using either the included remote or the Nebula app to better fit it to my screen’s dimensions.
Image Credits: Brian Heater
As far as compact design and portability go, you can’t beat the Nebula right now. I’ve exclusively used it at home, so it’s largely plugged in. But it can get around 2.5 hours of playback on a charge, so that will get you through plenty of movies not directed by Martin Scorsese. When the weather warms up, the idea of rolling up the screen and taking the projector outside is certainly appealing.
At $800, it should probably be regarded as more of a television replacement, rather than a secondary screen. For many, the need for complete darkness and issues around the calibration process are enough reason to recommend against it. If you’ve been seriously considering a home projector and want something portable and easy to use without spending a fortune, the Capsule 3 is easily your best bet.
