Holidays Shopping 2016 - TinkerTry Tech Savings

Posted by Paul Braren on Nov 19 2016 (updated on Nov 28 2016) in

The information in this article is subject to change through year end. Press Ctrl+F5 to refresh your browser, to be sure you're viewing the latest info & images.

Most of the on-sale items featured in this article are about products I've blogged about extensively. None are perfect, but they are quite good. If you read the articles, at least you will be a well-informed shopper.

A few of links in this article are affiliate links that help keep the lights on and reviews going at TinkerTry, at zero cost to you. Full disclosure appears below every article. US dollar prices, not sure which of these offers is available outside of the US.

READ THE REVIEWS

First, the articles, which read less like a press release or typical first-look review, and more like an IT Pro's long-term ownership stories.

replaced-linksys-with-eero-after-also-testing-luma

Replaced my Linksys router with an eero 3 pack after also testing Luma mesh surround Wi-Fi, faster wireless in every room has arrived!
Aug 21 2016, updated Nov 18 2016

My ecobee3 HomeKit WiFi themostat with remote motion/temperature sensors makes sense/cents
Jul 19 2015, updated Oct 31 2016

HOW TO SAVE, AND WHEN

The gift of time that uses tactile wrist taps for iPhone alerts

Know when you're getting calls or alerts, even when your iPhone is in your pocket or purse. See Apple's product page, and iMore's Which Apple Watch should you buy: Series 1 or Series 2?. I travel a lot, with my old self-setting watch never really self-setting. I also miss a lot of calls and alerts because I don't notice my pocketed iPhone 7 Plus's alerts when I'm on the go. On Nov 23rd, ordered my Series 1 42mm Space Gray Aluminum Case with Black Sport Band from Macy's. It said 40 days for delivery with no local store pickup option available in my area, and no further details in order status. ~~So you've been warned, Macy's might not be the way to go, if getting the larger 42mm model by Christmas is important to you.~~ Nov 24th update, just got shipping notice, ETA is Dec 1st! Nov 27th update, it's now out for delivery, Monday Nov 28th!

Macy's:
$229 Apple Watch Series 1 42mm Space Gray Aluminum Case with Black Sport Band

Save $70 at Macy's, free shipping.
Sale started, and ends Fri Nov 25th.

Kohl's (smaller sizes only):
$269 Apple Watch Series 1 38mm Space Gray Aluminum Case with Black Sport Band

Save $105 (in Kohl's cash) at Kohl's.

$369 Apple Watch Series 2 38mm Space Gray Aluminum Case with Black Sport Band

Save $75 (in Kohl's cash) at Kohl's.
Kohl's sale started, and ends Fri Nov 25th:

Source.

Mini tablet with a lot of storage space

$374.99 Apple - iPad mini 4 Wi-Fi 128GB - Space Gray - see also product page.

Save $125 at Best Buy online versus Apple's Store's $499 price, at roughly the same price as the $379 64GB refurb!
This sale has already started, not sure how long it runs.
Rumor has it that the larger iPad models might be refreshed in March 2017, as for the mini, probably not.

Blanket your entire home in Wi-Fi

$399.99 eero 3-pack - see also product page.

Save $100 at Amazon or eero, but read my review first.
$399.99 price is available from between Wednesday Nov 23 and Saturday Nov 2, time unknown, source here.
See also single and multi-packs that might not currently be sale priced.

Keep home and home office cozy using a remote temperature sensor

$199 ecobee3 smarter wi-fi thermostat with one remote sensor - see also product page.

Save $50 at ecobee shop, but read my review first.
$199.00 price is available from between Friday Nov 18 2016 at 12:01am ET and Monday Nov 28 at 11:59pm ET.
Various ecobee3 boxes that include varying numbers of remote sensors are also found at Apple Store, Amazon, Best Buy, ecobee shop, Home Depot, and Lowe's.

Virtualize your PCs

I've upgraded one of my laptops to Workstation 12.5 Pro, for a VM I must take out and about with me. I'm an advanced user who needs snapshot capability and advanced vSphere integration, but most folks would do fine with VMware 12.5 Player that can create VMs too. While Player is no longer free, at least the prices are temporarily reduced.

Save up to 40% on a variety of VMware's software products at store.vmware.com.
discounts avaialble now until Nov 27 2016 at 21:00 PM (US Pacific Time).

The list includes VMware:

Workstation 12.5 - 40% off
Workstation 12.5 Player - 30% off
Fusion 8.5 Pro - 40% off
Fusion 8.5 - 30% off
Parallels - 55% off
Workstation Pro and Fusion Pro - 50% off
VMware Training and Certification - 25% off

Store your stuff on 1TB of SSD goodness

$249.99 Samsung 850 EVO 1TB - see also product page.

Save ~$60 at Amazon and Samsung, see also my many articles including Samsung 850 EVO 2TB SSD revisited - 6 months of time, 40TBs of writes, and one firmware later....
As of Nov 26 2016, on sale already, unsure if or when price will change again, see camelcamelcamel for Amazon price tracking.

Create great content

I've used Camtasia for many years, see Camtasia 9 video editor finally arrives with a new UI, 4K support, and 64 bits on PC or Mac. Worth the wait? and Camtasia Studio for screen recording and Snagit for screenshots - some tips, along with hundreds of sample videos on TinkerTry's YouTube Channel.

TechSmith Camtasia 9 and/or Snagit 13 - see also product pages.

Save 20% at shop.techsmith.com, but read my review first.
Special pricing only on Monday Nov 28 2016 to Tuesday Nov 29th, sale end timezone unknown.
Special pricing only for new commercial Camtasia or Snagit licenses, I would encourage you to contact TechSmith Sales directly to discuss your licensing options.