World enews: The HP Envy x360 2-in-1 is on sale for its lowest price ever at Best Buy

Our collection of deals this Friday includes a variety of sales on laptops and phones. Our first contestant today is the HP Envy x360 15, which typically goes for $1,029.99 but is on sale at Best Buy for $729.99, its lowest price ever. This 2-in-1 is definitely starting to show its age but remains an excellent value for a convertible laptop.

The Envy x360 is an amazing application of AMD hardware in HP’s compact and sturdy 2-in-1 form factor. The 15-inch, 1080p touchscreen display is backed up by an AMD Ryzen 5 5700U CPU and 8GB of RAM, lending it more than enough power for most productivity applications. However, even with AMD’s integrated graphics, the Envy 15 is capable of pulling its weight in the gaming space, too.

In addition to a pair of USB-A ports, the Envy also includes a USB-C port and a microSD card slot. However, the USB-C ports lack Thunderbolt 3 support. This, unfortunately, limits this laptop’s data transfer speeds, But unless you need a laptop that you’re planning to dock regularly at a desk, the Envy x360 2-in-1 is a solid recommendation at this price point. Read our review.

HP Envy x360 15 2-in-1

HP’s Envy x360 is a gorgeous laptop with solid performance and battery life. This configuration includes an AMD Ryzen 5700U, 8GB of memory, and a 512GB SSD.

Best Buy has discounted the HP Spectre x360 14 2-in-1 laptop to $1,479.99 from its usual $1,729.99 price. This is the lowest price we’ve seen for what we consider to be the best 2-in-1 you can buy. This 14-inch 2-in-1 is a gorgeous combination of form and function, boasting great battery life and a bright OLED display with a 3000 x 2000 resolution. A handy magnetic stylus even comes packaged with this laptop out of the box to take full advantage of its touchscreen and can be conveniently attached to the side of the laptop when not in use.

The Spectre x360 is powered by an Intel Core i7-1195G7 CPU and 16GB of RAM. Some additional hardware featured by this configuration includes 1TB of SSD storage in addition to 32GB of Intel Optane memory. The inclusion of Optane memory allows for better performance and transfer speeds for your most important applications.

A number of versatile connectivity options help round out this laptop, with a pair of Thunderbolt 4-compatible USB-C ports, a single USB-A port, and a microSD card slot. Despite the inclusion of some bloatware out of the box and a slightly stiff touchpad, the HP Spectre x360 is an excellent productivity laptop for anyone who’s cool with its slightly higher price. Read our review.

HP Spectre x360 14

The HP Spectre x360 14 is the best Windows laptop. It comes equipped with a 3:2 OLED display, but it also offers excellent performance and comes with a stylus that attaches magnetically to the side of the chassis.

Normally $499.99, the Lenovo Chromebook Duet is currently on sale for $379 at Best Buy, the laptop’s lowest price to date. The 13-inch Duet might be a little too chunky to be a good tablet, but it handles well as a Chromebook in most situations thanks to its detachable keyboard. The 1080p OLED display is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 7c Gen 2 CPU and features 128GB of onboard storage. The 8GB of RAM is also more than enough for most multitasking applications, especially when working within the Chrome OS ecosystem.

There are some missed opportunities here, though, such as a lack of biometric authentication and the absence of a pre-packaged stylus to take full advantage of its touchscreen display. However, the included keyboard attachment is perfect for getting work done while away from your desktop — especially when you consider that the Duet is capable of running for up to 12 hours between charges. It also features a 5MP webcam and a pair of USB-C ports for charging and additional connectivity. Read our review.

Lenovo Chromebook Duet

The Lenovo Chromebook Duet is the best affordable Chromebook of 2022. The portable 2-in-1 device offers a detachable keyboard and kickstand cover as well as long battery life.

The 256GB model of Samsung’s foldable Galaxy Z Flip 3 is on sale at Amazon for $849.99, matching the lowest price we’ve seen on what would otherwise be a $1,049.99 smartphone. The Z Flip 3 collapses into a 4.2-inch square with a 1.9-inch cover screen on the front that allows you to quickly check notifications. However, this phone’s neatest trick is the ability to flip open to reveal a 6.7-inch 120Hz OLED display.

The Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 processor lets the Flip 3 keep pace with other phones in this price range, however, its less than stellar collection of cameras could be a dealbreaker for some. Its long-term durability has yet to be proven, too, but if you’re looking for a foldable phone that almost feels normal, the Flip 3 is worth looking into. Read our review.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3

Samsung’s sleek, stylish Galaxy Flip 3 can be folded in half for easy carrying in your pocket and has a useful outer display for checking your notifications when it’s closed. The phone is also water resistant, has excellent performance, and includes wireless charging.

The last-gen model of the 64GB iPad Air is currently discounted to its lowest price ever at Walmart. This lightweight tablet normally retails for $599.99, but you can currently snag it for $469 at Walmart. The 2020 iPad Air has been sitting at this price for a while, which isn’t strange given the age of this tablet, but is still worthy of consideration.

This older model of the Apple tablet may not have a blazing-fast M1 chip, but its A14 Bionic processor is still capable of delivering plenty of power and should be fast enough for most apps. The tablet is also compatible with various iPad Air accessories, which allow you to transform it into an ad-hoc laptop using add-ons like Apple’s Magic Keyboard. The 10.9-inch tablet offers a terrific Retina display with 2360 x 1640 resolution and a wide color gamut as well, not to mention a USB-C port for charging. Read our review.

The new iPad Air with Magic Keyboard and Apple Pencil

2020 iPad Air (64GB, Wi-Fi)

The 2020 iPad Air includes thinner bezels around the display and has relocated the Touch ID fingerprint sensor to the power button at the top of the device.

Some sales on Bluetooth speakers and earbuds

If the weather is warming up where you are, it might be worthwhile to invest in a Bluetooth speaker. Right now you can find both the JBL Flip 5 and Go 3 on sale at Amazon. The larger JBL Flip 5 normally sells for $129.95 but is on sale for $99.95, while the pocket-sized JBL Go 3 is on sale for $29.95 instead of its usual $49.95. Both of these speakers feature an IP67 weatherproof rating, making either one ideal for outdoor excursions.
You can pick up the Anker Soundcore Liberty 3 Pro on sale at Amazon right now for $129.99, down from their usual price of $169.99. This matches the best price we’ve seen on the well-rounded pair of true wireless earbuds, which offer decent noise cancellation, powerful sound, and Bluetooth connectivity. They even support the LDAC audio codec, which allows for higher quality audio over Bluetooth. Read our review.