By Elissa Sanci
Elissa Sanci is a writer on the discovery team. She has found that clear ice makes carbonated drinks taste better, and citronella candles don’t work.
It’s not too early to start holiday shopping—come December, Future You will be grateful for the head start. Here are some of the best deals we’ve found on gift-worthy Wirecutter picks that we’re excited to give (and maybe even receive ourselves) this holiday season.
Amazon Kindle Paperwhite Kids E-Reader (11th Gen, 16 GB)
Amazon Kindle Paperwhite Kids E-Reader (11th Gen, 16 GB) — Another Good Option
Amazon deal price: $110; street price: $170
What we like: Our former top pick for the best e-reader. Crisp, easy-to-read text and clear images. Side-lit screen provides even illumination for low-light situations. Offers adjustable color temperature to lower eyestrain. Included cover provides waterproofing. No ads. (If you don’t mind ads, the standard Kindle Paperwhite is $10 cheaper from Target).
Other things to know: Identical to the Paperwhite but ad-free and covered with a longer, two-year warranty (versus the standard version’s one year). Comes with one-year subscription to Amazon Kids+. Select colors. A great deal, since removing ads from a Kindle is still $20.
Read our review of the best e-reader.
Brother P-touch Cube Label Maker
Brother P-touch Cube Label Maker — Budget Pick
Amazon deal price: $45; street price: $60
What we like: Our simple and easy-to-use budget label maker pick. A good option for occasional label making. Produces the same high-quality labels as our top pick and uses the same great design suite.
Other things to know: A stripped-down version of our top pick. Lacks an automatic cutter and built-in rechargeable battery. Recurring deal price, but rarely drops lower.
Read our review of the best label makers.
AncestryDNA Test Kit
AncestryDNA Test Kit — Top Pick
Amazon deal price: $49; street price: $99
What we like: Our top pick for the best DNA testing kit. Makes it easy to explore your ethnic roots. Largest family-matching database. Thorough reports and interface. Presents test results in a clear manner with useful historical context. Straightforward instructions.
Other things to know: Can’t differentiate between maternal and paternal lineages. AncestryDNA may monetize your DNA data if you opt in to its research program. All DNA testing kits have privacy risks that you should take into account. Amazon Prime membership is required from Amazon, also available from Walmart.
Read our review of the best DNA testing kit.
Stasher Reusable Silicone Bag Multi-Pack
Stasher Reusable Silicone Bag Multi-Pack — Our Pick
Amazon deal price: $39; street price: $55
What we like: Our pick for the best reusable silicone bags. Helps reduce single-use plastic consumption. Durable, versatile, and dishwasher-safe. Seals securely and stores flat to maximize storage space.
Other things to know: Set of four bags includes one half-gallon size, two sandwich size, and one snack size. Street price has risen over the past year.
Read our guide to reusable produce bags, beeswax wraps, and other ways to reduce plastic waste.
Tile Mate Bluetooth Tracker (2022)
Tile Mate Bluetooth Tracker (2022) — Our Pick
Best Buy deal price: $18; street price: $25
What we like: Our pick for the best Bluetooth tracker for Android users. Impressive local Bluetooth range. Large, anonymous crowd-finding network. Loud alarm volume. Simple setup. Built-in keychain loop.
Other things to know: Battery is not replaceable (Tile promises a three-year effective working lifespan). Short-range precision worse than that of Apple AirTags. Choose store pickup to avoid shipping fees. Available only in white.
Read our review of the best Bluetooth tracker.
Fujifilm Instax Mini Link 2 Instant Photo Printer
Fujifilm Instax Mini Link 2 Instant Photo Printer — Top Pick
Amazon deal price: $90; street price: $100
What we like: Our top pick for the best instant photo printer. Ultra-portable and compact. Quickly delivers vibrant, credit-card-sized, film-like prints. Easy to set up and use with an intuitive app.
Other things to know: Printer body feels fragile. Prints take four to six minutes to fully develop and may lack fine detail and clarity. Uses the same film packs as Fujifilm’s Instax cameras. Recurring deal price, but has yet to drop lower.
Read our review of the best instant photo printer.
Hedley & Bennett Crossback Apron
Hedley & Bennett Crossback Apron — Our Pick
Amazon deal price: $79; street price: $99
What we like: Our top-pick crossback apron. Favorite among our testers for our guide to kitchen aprons. Comfortable, durable, and gender neutral. Highly adjustable, fits people of many different sizes and heights. Large pockets perfect for stashing cooking tools or a phone.
Other things to know: Expensive but lasts a long time. On sale in the Denver brown canvas only. Amazon Prime membership required.
Read our review of the best kitchen aprons.
EarFun UBoom L Portable Bluetooth Speaker
EarFun UBoom L Portable Bluetooth Speaker — Runner-Up
Amazon deal price: $49; street price: $80
What we like: Our runner-up pick for the best portable Bluetooth speaker. Offers good sound quality, solid durability, and USB-C charging. Runs for about 10.5 hours on a charge. IP67 rated, can withstand dust and immersion in 1 meter of water for 30 minutes.
Other things to know: Our testers liked the sound and design of our top pick more. Clip the on-page coupon and use code UBOOMLWC to get the deal price.
Read our review of the best portable Bluetooth speaker.
Big Claw Clips (8-Pack)
Big Claw Clips (8-Pack) — Staff Favorite
Amazon deal price: $6; street price: $8
What we like: A staff-favorite claw clip for wrangling curly and unruly hair. Stays put even during sleep. Extremely durable and sturdy.
Other things to know: Includes a total of eight soft matte-plastic clips in two styles and multiple colors. Clips measure 4.33 by 1.85 by 1.97 inches and open to 3.54 inches. Other eight-packs are available for $7. Amazon Prime membership required.
Read our review of our favorite hair ties, scrunchies, bows, and clips.
Aura Carver Mat Digital Photo Frame
Aura Carver Mat Digital Photo Frame — Pick Variant
Walmart deal price: $143; street price: $180
What we like: A variant of our top digital photo frame pick. Offers easy setup, vivid display, pleasing design, and nearly zero pillarboxing. Loading photos and videos remotely is a breeze. Features two frame layers that give the look of a matted picture frame.
Other things to know: The 16:10 aspect ratio differs from our preference, 4:3. Free Aura app works with iOS and Android phones. Available in two frame colors with the white mat. Amazon Prime membership required from Amazon, also available from Walmart.
Read our review of the best digital photo frame.
Panel Sound Pickleball Paddle Set with Four Indoor Balls
Panel Sound Pickleball Paddle Set with Four Indoor Balls — Staff Favorite
Amazon deal price: $25; street price: $40
What we like: A staff-favorite pickleball paddle set. Grippy handles and rubbery faces absorb some of the ball’s velocity.
Other things to know: New low for this set of two. Comes with four indoor balls, a carrying case, and two cooling towels. Clip the on-page coupon for deal price. Other colors are also available for a few dollars more.
Read our review of the best home pickleball sets.
Glocusent Bookmark Style Reading Light
Glocusent Bookmark Style Reading Light — Top Pick
Amazon deal price: $12; street price: $15
What we like: Our top-pick reading light. Chic and compact, with the most light settings of all our picks. Power indicator on the front makes monitoring the charge easy. Simple to twist and adjust brightness and light temperature.
Other things to know: Small. Buttons can be a bit too sensitive when you’re adjusting clip placement. Amazon Prime membership required.
Read our review of the best reading light.
Parker Jotter Stainless Steel Ballpoint Pen
Parker Jotter Stainless Steel Ballpoint Pen — Also Great
Amazon deal price: $10; street price: $15
What we like: Another good option from our guide to the best pen. Relatively inexpensive pen is attractive enough to give as a gift. Slim, tapered design. All-metal pen has the most satisfyingly clicky knock of any pen we tested. Remarkably affordable compared with other “high-end” pens. Great for everyday use.
Other things to know: We tested the ballpoint and gel-ink versions and love them both. First-time deal.
Read our review of the best pen.
Paperage Lined Journal
Paperage Lined Journal — Budget Pick
Amazon deal price: $8; street price: $12
What we like: Our budget pick for the best notebook. Simple journal-style format in a medium size with a hard cover. Nice, thick paper feels good to write on. Notebook has silky ribbon bookmark, back pocket with secondary slot for cards, and spine and title-page labels.
Other things to know: Cover feels a bit cheap. Paper significantly thicker than typical composition-notebook paper, which some people dislike. On sale in dark gray, lime green, red, royal blue, and white in the 160-page size.
Read our review of the best notebooks and notepads.
Meet your guide
Elissa Sanci is a senior staff writer for Wirecutter’s discovery team based in Denver. Her byline has appeared in The New York Times, Woman’s Day, Marie Claire, and Good Housekeeping. When she’s not testing TikTok-famous products or writing about car garbage cans, you can find her hiking somewhere in the Rockies or lying on the couch with a bowl of chips balanced on her chest. There is no in-between.