Back to School Guide 2015: Picks under $300
It's that dreaded time of year when lazy summer days with their open invitation to sandals, surf and shirtlessness begin to give way to the crispness of fall, hoodies and the back-to-school doldrums. Ah, but there's hope on the horizon: You can always buy things to forget the scheduled machinery of life. And, oh, have we got some selections for you -- no matter your budget.
Prepare to empty out your wallets and slap down that plastic because this week's picks are decidedly more premium for the discerning academic.
You could sink a few hundred of those bucks you don't really have to spare into buying a "smart" Apple Watch. OR you could be a bit more sensible with your dollars and opt for a wrist-worn accessory that'll make people think you're smart.
May we introduce the Leatherman Tread. It's a stainless steel bracelet that wouldn't look out of place on MacGyver. The Tread's chock-full of tools: flathead and Phillips screwdrivers, SIM card tool, bottle opener, wrenches and more. And it's badass-looking to boot.
Price: $165 Cabela's
When it comes to Chromebooks, you get what you pay for, which is typically just laptop-lite. The ASUS Chromebook Flip's one of the few worthy entries that hasn't made our reviews editor want to flip a table. With a 10-inch touchscreen, more than 10 hours of battery life and a sturdy convertible hinge, this Flip's your best bet for computing on the go. Because, let's be real: You don't wanna look like one of those people typing on... tablets? Do you? Huh?!
Price: $249+ Amazon
It's light. It's waterproof. It's got great sound. It looks good standing up on your desk, pingpong table or dorm room common area. It's the UE Megaboom: a portable Bluetooth speaker with 20-plus hours of battery life that more than one Engadget editor's trotted out on a special work-related occasion. And if you've got more than one, you can daisy chain 'em for stereo sound... if you're into that sort of thing.
Price: $270 Amazon
Money can't buy you class, but it can buy you a sleek Sonos.
The company's compact Play:1 isn't a Bluetooth speaker. Instead, it connects to your home WiFi and, with the assist of a companion app, lets you control all of your streamed tunes whether they're from Spotify, Pandora, Google Music or Deezer. You can also network the Play: 1 to connect with other Sonos speakers around your room, fratpad or sorority house -- no wires, docks or confusing setup necessary -- so you can drown your housemates in Dave.
Price: $199 Amazon
Ew. Cable? What's that?
Everyone streams their TV content, or at least the younger generations do. So if you want a high-tech piece of streaming-TV kit to sidle up next to your flat-screen and the ability to game, well, consider the NVIDIA Shield Pro. The alien-looking black (and slightly green-tinged) box runs Android TV, giving you access to Hulu, Netflix and Google's own content library. Plus, it has the power to stream 4K videos, as well as PC games thanks to its Tegra X1 CPU (controller included).
Price: $300 for Shield Pro
Sure, it's not the freshest smartphone on the block, but if you're penny pinching and off-contract, the OnePlus One's worth a look. This affordable 5.5-inch Android handset packs a premium set of high-end specs into a customizable shell (yes, you can give it wood). And since its sequel's on the way in, you can now nab this sleeper smartphone with maxed-out storage (64GB) at a lower price.
It's the smartphone so good, it caused one Engadget editor to say "Bye, Felicia!" to his trusty iPhone.
Price: $299 (64GB) OnePlus
Listen, you're either Team Smartwatch or you're not.
If you do swear allegiance to that curious tech tribe of "intelligent" timepiece wearers, then cast your glance at the Moto 360. That circular watch face links up with your Android phone to deliver notifications and alerts; track your heart rate and steps; and even call you an Uber. You can also swap out its straps for a more fashionable metallic or leather look. The choice (and public scrutiny) is all yours.
Price: $150+ Motorola
What? You were expecting Beats by Dre?!
Nope. For cans you can rock around the quad or on the bus to your afternoon lecture, we recommend Sammy's Level On wireless headphones. These Bluetooth on-ear headphones will get you through a full working day with style, comfort and noise cancellation -- handy, when you're whiling away the academic hours at the library.
Price: $250 Amazon
It's not enough to play video games for an audience of your besties in the same room. Now, when you game, you gotta game for a global audience on Twitch or YouTube.
But not every console comes streaming-ready. For that, you'll have to rely on the mighty Elgato Game Capture HD60. This tiny peripheral hooks up with your PC or Mac and gaming console of choice to record, control and broadcast your latest Splatfest (in the glory of 60 fps) to a chatroom of donating devotees.
Don't knock it 'til you've tried it. You could end up being the next PewDiePie. And, as we've recently seen, it's very good to be the king.
Price: $160 Amazon
Would you rather: have a fingerprint sensor or $100 off?
We'll assume you chose wisely, young techie.
So the iPad Mini 2 may not have that very sci-fi fingerprint feature baked into its home button, but it's nearly spec-for-spec the same as its late 2014 refresh. You've still got a 7.9-inch, whizzbang Retina display (such buzzword, much blorg), access to all of Apple's curated apps and the user-friendly interface of iOS.
And it's an iPad so, if you get it, you can say things like, "One second, let me get out my iPad." Or: "I think I have that on my iPad." And even: "I was playing it on my iPad." Also: "Yes, my iPad's screen is cracked."
Price: $299 Apple
Now, when someone says: "That's a smart shirt!" it's possible they're not just using a Britishism to say you look dapper. In fact, it likely has to do with all the fitness-tracking tech you've got strapped to your chest, like in OM Signal's smart biometric shirt.
OM's compression sports shirt packs two sensors to keep tabs on your heart rate, step count and breathing. All of which it communicates, via Bluetooth, to a smartphone app for your tracking pleasure. So the next time you're still up on a Saturday morning and you're knocking back the gas station coffee while the more ambitious academics take to the sidewalks to jog away the previous night's PBRs, you can heckle 'em with smart fitness shirt recommendations. Or just heckle 'em because, eugh, joggers.
Price: $249 OM Signal
Care to photobomb that incessant Instagrammer harshing your mellow at the next campus shindig? Then do it with technology -- because SCIENCE!
Okay, so this hoodie was initially made to foil paparazzi photos, but its super-reflective coating is just as helpful in wrecking any old common person's shot. The glass nanospheres coating this garment will ensure you shine -- literally.
Price: $205 Betabrand
This one's got form AND function enough for all the design snobs out there:
The Aerelight is stylish, energy-efficient and it casts a natural, OLED glow on your homework -- what more could you want from a desk lamp?! Maybe touch dimming? It has that, too. Oh, and did we mention it packs Qi charging so you can rest your (compatible) phone on its base for a recharge? Yeah, we know, it's pretty sweet.
Bonus feature: Everyone looks waaay better in soft lighting.
Price: $299 Aerelight
Leatherman Tread
You could sink a few hundred of those bucks you don't really have to spare into buying a "smart" Apple Watch. OR you could be a bit more sensible with your dollars and opt for a wrist-worn accessory that'll make people think you're smart.
May we introduce the Leatherman Tread. It's a stainless steel bracelet that wouldn't look out of place on MacGyver. The Tread's chock-full of tools: flathead and Phillips screwdrivers, SIM card tool, bottle opener, wrenches and more. And it's badass-looking to boot.
Price: $165 Cabela's