The end of the year can be an expensive season with a lot of travel, gift-giving, and kids cooped up inside the house. While you’re not going to find too many high-end tech devices for under $25, you can find a lot of accessories and peripherals to help you make the most of the tech you already have.
These deals can make for impressive stocking-stuffers or secret Santa gifts. If you’ve got a lot of family coming to your home for the holidays, it can also pay to be well-equipped to charge their phones, tablets, and gaming systems when they get there. Charging cables also have a tendency to walk away with enough visitors, whether intentional or not.
Keep your tech charged and ready to use
Power banks and fast chargers can keep your devices running
Power banks can help keep your phone or tablet going for another few hours when it’s just not convenient to stop and find an outlet. With a power bank, you’ll want to make sure you have enough capacity to charge your devices a couple of times and enough power to charge them quickly. Most smartphones have batteries in the 4,000 to 5,000mAh range with support for 25W or higher charging, so anything over 5,000mAh should be good for a complete charge on most phones.
Anker Nano Power Bank
$15.99 $29.99 Save
$14
This Anker Nano power bank features a foldable USB-C connector so you don’t need to worry about bringing a cable either. With an extra USB-C port on the side, you can also power another device with a cable. The 5,000mAh battery and 22.5W charging aren’t great for multiple devices, but can just about double the battery life of most smartphones.
Belkin BoostCharge Power Bank 10K
$14.98 $29.99 Save
$15.01
The Belkin BoostCharge power bank has a 10,000mAh capacity and up to 15W of power delivery. While it’s not exactly a fast charger by today’s standards, it makes up for it with tons of capacity. It has two USB-A ports, with a USB-A to USB-C cable in the box, and a single USB-C cable so you can charge your phone, smartwatch, and earbuds all at once. You can also get it in nine different colors.
Anker Zolo Power Bank
$15.59 $25.99 Save
$10.4
What may be a pro to some is a con to others, and if Belkin’s USB-A ports are feeling a bit old-fashioned, the Anker Zolo could be a better fit. This 10,000mAh power bank has a built-in USB-C cable that also acts as a lanyard with up to 30W of power delivery. Another USB-C port can be used for another output, or for charging the power bank itself. Passthrough charging is supported so you can top up your Anker Zolo and phone at the same time.
Shargeek Retro 35 Wall Charger
$19.9 $29.99 Save
$10.09
Power banks need to get their power from somewhere and the Shargeek Retro 35 is one of the cutest ever made with a design reminiscent of a classic Macintosh and up to 35W of output with USB-C. The screen lights up yellow, blue, or green to show the charging speed as well. This compact charger is great for travel thanks to its small size and folding prongs.
Anker 735 Charger
$23.99 $29.99 Save
$6
If you’re looking for a bit more power, or to just charge multiple devices at once, the Anker 735 is a 65W charger with two USB-C and one USB-A port. It can charge a single device at up to 65W, and can still deliver up to 40W from the top USB-C port with two or three-port charging. This charger has enough power for some of the fastest phone charging or even a laptop, like a Chromebook or a MacBook.
Anker 321 Power Strip
$17.99 $29.99 Save
$12
Power Strips are extremely convenient when you’ve got a desk or entertainment center with a lot of tech. Unfortunately, many of those power outlets end up playing host to a row of charging bricks, taking up a lot of space. This Anker 321 power strip has not only three power outlets but two USB-A ports and one USB-C port on a 10-foot extension, with a 5-foot variant available. With up to 20W of power from USB-C, this is plenty of power for a wireless charger, topping up any other tech.
Anker 333 USB-C to USB-C 100W Cable 3-Pack
$12.99 $22.99 Save
$10
USB-C cables have a way of being everywhere when you don’t need them, and nowhere when you do. The solution is always more USB-C cables and these 100W braided cables from Anker and a solid choice for most people with up to 100W of power delivery, plenty for phones, tablets, laptops, Nintendo Switches, and Steam Decks. These cables are not good for data transfer with only USB 2.0 speeds, but for charging a power bank or keeping in a car, they’re a strong choice.
Improve your audio experience
Louder and clearer audio than your phone or tablet alone
Whether you’ve got a backlog of podcasts to get caught up on or just can’t live without music, a Bluetooth speaker or headset could be a great way to spend $25 this year. When you get a few hours into the journey, be it on a plane, train, or automobile, having your own audio source can be transformative. If you’ve got your kids beside you, they could also do with their own headset with on-ear options protecting their hearing. Just because you’ve got the audio portion of most episodes of Paw Patrol memorized doesn’t necessarily mean you want to hear it again.
JBL Tune 510BT
$24.95 $49.95 Save
$25
On-ear headphones are nice for casual listening when you don’t want to be too closed off from the world. The JBL Tune 510BT Bluetooth headphones are a solid option with an impressively low price. The battery lasts up to 40 hours, which beats wireless earbuds. There’s a microphone built-in for calling, and they can be folded flat for storage. If you’ve got a backseat full of kids, there are four colors so each kid can have their own, which is one less thing to argue about.
Anker Soundcore Mini
$19.19 $23.99 Save
$4.8
Feeling a bit like a baseball in the hand, the Soundcore Mini is a potent little Bluetooth speaker with a strong battery life of 15 hours and even a built-in microphone. One interesting feature is an FM radio, so if Grandpa wants to listen to the race, he can have his own personal speaker. For the rest of us, it’s great for bringing around the house when cleaning or under the car, because that oil isn’t going to change itself.
OontZ Angle 3 Bluetooth Speaker
$21.99 $39.99 Save
$18
Tiny speakers a great, but if you like your music with some more bass, you’ll be better served by an Oontz. The Oontz Angle 3 has been a budget favorite for years with a big sound, water resistance, and up to 24 hours of playtime. This little speaker is perfect for campfires or bringing life to the kitchen as the smell of Turkey starts to bring the rest of the family in.
Don’t forget the accessories
Batteries and storage are a must
Energizer Recharge Pro
$14.99 $29.98 Save
$14.99
A lot of devices, especially toys, still need heaps of AA batteries, so why send dozens to the landfill when you can get some that recharge? This Energizer battery charger comes with four AA batteries with 2000mAh of capacity. There are bigger batteries if you want them later on as well. Charging can take up to five hours but can be a lot better than driving to the store for another pack of batteries that will just end up in the trash.
SanDisk Extreme microSD card
$21.49 $27.99 Save
$6.5
If you’ve got a Nintendo Switch or a Steam Deck, your storage space can run out quickly, especially if you have some gift cards for the holidays. This Sandisk Extreme 256GB microSD card has plenty of speed for gaming on a handheld console as well as a phone if you’ve got a budget Android phone that still ships a microSD card slot.
There are still plenty of Black Friday tech deals to check out
Black Friday has come and gone, but many of the best Black Friday deals are still available. Whether you’re looking for a new phone, tablet, or even a Chromebook, these accessories can help you make the most of them with convenient charging solutions to keep your new tech powered up. If you’ve got a bit more to spend, there are some impressive deals around $50, including tablets and streaming tech worth checking out as well.