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Today’s deal is a rerun, but in my world reruns mean one awesome thing: a lower price!
Back in 2015, Invoxia rolled out an interesting product called the Triby. It’s a speaker, speakerphone and message center designed to mount on a fridge, effectively becoming a sort of family hub. It’s also highly portable thanks to its rechargeable battery and carrying handle.
But owing to its high price and semi-meh features, I’d sort of written it off. Then, earlier this year, Triby got smart — like, Amazon Alexa smart. Now the speaker comes close to matching the capabilities of an Echo.
It originally sold for $199.99, but today only, while supplies last, Woot has the Triby for $79.99, plus $5 for shipping. The last time I shared this deal, it was $99.99. Once again the Triby is new, not refurbished, and comes in your choice of three colors.
It looks a bit like a Playskool toy, a nearly all-grill speaker surrounded by a plastic bezel. Strong magnets keep it firmly adhered to your fridge, but the handle allows for easy toting. It has play/pause and volume buttons up top and various shortcut buttons on the front — the latter flanking a 2.9-inch e-ink screen.
That screen displays not only various status messages, but also custom messages — text and/or drawings — sent from the Triby app on your phone or tablet. Gotta say, it’s pretty cool.
When a new message arrives, a little yellow flag slides out from the side, accompanied by a musical notification. The screen also flashes a few times while the e-ink updates, reminiscent of early-generation Kindle e-readers. These flashes can get annoying, as they occur every time the screen updates itself — even for simple things like volume changes.
If you want to learn more about the Triby, check out my hands-on coverage from last year (pre-Alexa), then read Dan Ackerman’s coverage of the Alexa update. Bottom line: We both liked this weird little gadget, despite its flaws, but we both found it overpriced.
Today, at $79.99, it’s a much more compelling buy. Your thoughts?
Cool trick!
Photo by InateckBonus deal: I’m always on the lookout for interesting cases, especially those that can perform extra tricks beyond mere protection. If you’re an iPhone 6/6S owner, here’s one you may want to check out: the Inateck all-in-one case, car mount and phone stand for $3.99 when you apply promo code H5EJKJ9Z at checkout. That price includes a tempered-glass screen protector as well.
As you can see in the photo, this case has a unique rear piece that curls back to become a kickstand. In theory, it would also slip into an air vent, though I’m not sure what would keep it in place if you went over a bump or took a hard corner. Still, the kickstand feature alone makes this worth $4, in my humble opinion. Just wish they had an iPhone 6 Plus version!
Bonus deal No. 2: If you already own a 4K TV, it probably has built-in apps. Ah, but are they any good? Are they slow or clunky? Perhaps you’ve longed for your beloved Roku box — if only it could do 4K! Well, here’s one that can: For a limited time, and while supplies last, J.C. Penney has the Roku Premiere+ for $67.49 shipped when you apply coupon code 44BUYNOW at checkout. Update: Because the universe hates me this month, it appears this is already out of stock.
Pro tip: Ebates is currently offering 12 percent rebates on J.C. Penney purchases, so if you start your shopping trip there, your effective (i.e. post-rebate) total will be $59.39! Read CNET’s review of the Roku Premiere+ to find out if it’s the right Roku for you. (Spoiler alert: it “hits the sweet spot.”)
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