Saturday, December 28, 2024

Deals: the Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro Fold arrive, iPad (2022) price drops

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The vanilla Google Pixel 9 and the flagship Pixel 9 Pro XL launched in late August, now in early September we welcome the other two members of the family – the small Pro and Google’s second generation foldable.

The Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold costs the same as last year’s model, which is to say that it is not cheap. But few of the horizontal foldables are (and none that are available in the US).

For reference, here’s the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold6. Another alternative available locally is the OnePlus Open, but that is almost a year old at this point, so you’d be better off waiting for the sequel.

Then there’s the Google Pixel 9 Pro – a relatively small flagship with the same high-end camera hardware as the Pro XL. It is larger than the Galaxy S24 and the iPhone 15 Pro, but with a 48MP 113mm periscope and 48MP ultra wide, it beats both, at least on paper. There is a 42MP ultra wide selfie camera too.

Of course, the vanilla Google Pixel 9 is very similar – same size, same Tensor G4 chipset, same main and ultra wide cameras (but no tele and a lower res selfie). The display isn’t an LTPO panel like on the Pro either. On the upside, the vanilla phone costs $200 less.

And here’s the large Pixel 9 Pro XL. It is essentially identical to the 9 Pro, except for screen size (6.8” vs. 6.3”) and battery (5,060mAh vs. 4,700mAh).

Apple recently dropped the price of the 2022 iPad to $300. That is for the 64GB model, of course, which can get pretty tight, depending on how you use it. And the 256GB version is quite pricey.

The older 2021 iPad (with Lightning instead of USB-C) is down to $200 for a 64GB slate.

If you prefer Android, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE is close in terms of pricing at $340. This buys you a 90Hz IPS LCD, not 60Hz like on the iPads, IP68 dust and water resistance and a microSD slot for easy storage expansion.

The Sonos Ace were unveiled recently. These are a comfy pair of over-ear headphones with Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) and a transparency mode. The unique feature here is called TV Audio Swap – if you have a Sonos Arc soundbar, you can easily send the TV audio wirelessly to the headphones (complete with spatial audio).

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