Cheap stuff that doesn’t suck, take 3

From fancy OLED TVs to robot vacuums with arms, we tend to cover a lot of cool stuff here at noti.group that, unfortunately, often costs as much as a month’s rent (or more). But with the ongoing tariff situation in the US and a global memory shortage pushing up the cost of, well, everything, we’re well aware that not everyone can spend that kind of money right now.

So, as we did last year, we asked noti.group staff to share some of their favorite gadgets under $50. These are the gizmos that don’t fall apart after a few weeks, as cheap stuff often does, and quietly improve our lives. Some are practical purchases, like portable power banks and backup bulbs, while the rest are useful in other ways. After all, who doesn’t want a dirt-cheap Bluetooth speaker, a feature-packed pair of earbuds, or a fitness tracker that punches well above its weight?

If you’re curious, you can check out our favorites below.

This keychain thingy costs less than seven bucks, is about the size of an actual key, and clips onto your keyring with a built-in carabiner latch. It’s perfectly suited for opening boxes, popping bottlecaps, or tightening a screw or a bolt in a pinch. While it’s not as good as a dedicated tool — or even a larger multitool like a Leatherman — at any of those things, I’m also way more likely to have it on me when I need it. — Nathan Edwards, senior reviews editor

When it comes to earbuds, my daily drivers are a pair of AirPods Pro 3. However, given how often I find myself sitting in my car due to my extracurriculars (I volunteer with search and rescue), I decided to pick up a pair of Nothing’s CMF Buds 2A as a backup for my bag. The budget earbuds are often on sale for a tenth of what the Pro 3 cost, and while they certainly can’t compete with Apple’s high-end earbuds, their pack-in features and overall performance make them a terrific value.

For $49, you get decent sound and customizable touch controls, along with up to eight hours of playback on a single charge (or up to 35.5 hours with the included USB-C charging case). They also support Google’s Fast Pair feature, carry an IP54 rating for water and dust resistance, and offer a touch of active noise cancellation. They’re not going to drown out sharper sounds or all subway chatter — you only get about 42 decibels of noise reduction — but it’s a hell of a lot better than going it alone. — Brandon Widder, senior commerce editor

Want a more secure grip on your phone? You can find countless rings that magnetically snap onto your phone, then physically slip onto your finger. But the Syncwire AirGrip is better than that — it’s got magnets on both sides of the ring, so it can snap your device to any ferrous metal surface: your car mount, your fridge, your filing cabinet, you name it. Depending on which design you buy, I’ve found it has the right amount of magnet strength for these tasks, and while you can’t wirelessly charge through it like its OhSnap competition, it also costs much less. The best part might be the built-in ratchet, though: you can securely spin the inner ring 360 degrees while it makes an incredibly satisfying clicking sound. — Sean Hollister, senior editor

Before I moved closer to the coast, I relied on Vornado fans to survive inland Southern Californian summers, where temperatures regularly push past 100 degrees for much of the summer and early fall. I’ve used them through intense heat waves, buying multiple when my AC stopped working entirely for a week, and they’ve never let me down. The Vornado 133 is one of the smaller models I own, but it’s still impressively powerful. It’s ideal for placing on a desk or a nightstand when you need a strong, focused blast of cool air during those ridiculously hot days when a fan across the room just isn’t enough. — Sheena Vasani, commerce writer

If you’re searching for a thin, magnetic wireless power bank that’s among the fastest out there (both in terms of wireless and wired output), Iniu’s P781 Magnetic Portable Charger is worth $49.99. It can deliver up to 25W wireless charging to iPhone 16 and newer phones, as well as the Pixel 10 Pro XL. What’s more, its braided USB-C cable — which doubles as a lanyard — supports up to 45W, and it can simultaneously charge devices both wired and wirelessly with the press of a button. There are a number of similar wireless power banks out there, but this one delivers good specs at a more digestible price point. — Cameron Faulkner, commerce editor

There are many better-sounding Bluetooth speakers on the market that also offer upgraded features, from dedicated woofers and tweeters to waterproofing, stereo pairing, and even solar-powered charging. What Ikea’s wireless Kallsup speaker has going for it is a simple design, bright colors, and a $10 price tag. noti.group’s John Higgins preferred the sound from the Kallsup over the “thin-sounding built-in speakers” in his MacBook Air, and if you need to crank the volume, you can pair up to 100 of them together to better fill a room with sound. — Andrew Liszewski, senior reporter

The beauty of a cheap knife is that I never fear using it for dirty jobs — like cutting through the endless strips of box tape and cardboard boxes that wind their way to my door. But my favorite knives are lightweight and effortless to open and close one-handed, and cheap utility knives usually aren’t!

That’s why I love my dirt-cheap Workpro EDC: one push of the side-mounted button, and I can flick it into or out of action. It takes standard utility knife blades, and one pull of a spring-loaded plate lets you swap for a new razor-sharp blade after the old one gums up. (I don’t want to dull my SOG Ultra C-Ti or A.G. Russell FeatherLite’s Japanese steel on all that cardboard!) You can make the Workpro even easier to open if you replace the money clip with a small washer or two: just push the button and let gravity do the rest.

Just know the push button isn’t easily reversible for left-handers, since its spring is held in by a rivet. I also haven’t tried the newer version with a thicker comfort handle; let me know if that one’s even better? — Sean Hollister, senior editor

Given that our own Sean Hollister recently did a deep dive into Zepath’s rechargeable lithium-ion AAs, I won’t wax poetic here. What I will say is that I actually prefer Zepath’s option over more traditional integrated USB-C batteries, which I’ve always found to become somewhat finicky to charge over time. When you need to top them off, Zepath’s 1.5V batteries easily slot into the included clamshell charger, a la a pair of wireless earbuds, letting you charge up to eight batteries at once with a single connection. I wouldn’t necessarily want to take the case with me on the go — it’s bulkier than a multi-headed USB-C cable — but I’m perfectly content with it sitting on my laundry room shelf alongside the rest of my tools. — Brandon Widder, senior commerce editor

For several years, I kept losing the power cable for our baby monitor behind a shelf whenever I unplugged it, which meant I had to fish for it before plugging it back in. The same thing happened every day. I knew that cord wrangling devices existed, but I was wary about sticking an adhesive-backed gizmo to my furniture. I eventually got a couple of eight-packs of Lamicall’s magnetic-clasping cord catchers, which were under $10 a pop, and I haven’t looked back. Now, my cords don’t fall, and I don’t have to bend over as much. I’m extremely late to the party here, but you don’t have to be. — Cameron Faulkner, commerce editor

I’ll be the first to admit I buy more flashlights than I’ll ever need, and the problem has only gotten worse as flashlight makers pack more features into smaller designs. The most recent addition to my stockpile, the Wuben G5, squeezes a lot of functionality into a Zippo-sized flashlight that’s just $25. It’s got a rechargeable battery that lasts up to 65 hours at the lowest setting, or the G5 can be maxed out at up to 400 lumens using a wheel to dial in an exact brightness. Its lamp rotates 180-degrees, there’s an adjustable clip and a magnetic base for hands-free use, and a second LED that cycles through or flashes multiple colors. — Andrew Liszewski, senior reporter

I picked up the Amazfit Band 7 after my colleague Victoria Song recommended it as a budget fitness tracker back in 2023, and it has lasted me far longer than I expected. I’ve mostly used it for basics like tracking steps, heart rate, and sleep quality, but it offers far more than that. It can alert you to abnormal heart rates, integrates with Amazon Alexa, tracks your menstrual cycles, includes a random Pomodoro timer, and features a colorful OLED display with some genuinely cute watch faces.

The only real downside is the strap, which started to feel flimsy after a few months and eventually fell off after a year and a half of use. The good news is that it’s easy and relatively cheap to replace. Still, for something that held up for a couple of years and still works to this day, it’s hard to complain. I eventually upgraded to a Fitbit Charge 6 after getting one as a birthday gift last year, but I still have the Amazfit Band 7 lying around as a backup. — Sheena Vasani, commerce writer

Do you have Game Boy cartridges (and savegames) from childhood like me? Either way, the GB Operator has become one of my favorite gadgets for connecting those carts to a Windows PC, a Mac, or even a Linux machine like my Steam Deck. You can play carts “directly” on those computers (it’ll technically dump the ROMs first), back up old battery-backed Pokémon save games before the battery dies (except most Gold, Silver, and Crystal carts whose batteries infamously died too soon), and rip games so you can use them in emulators on your PC or other handhelds. You can even transfer savegames back to your genuine cartridges and pick up where you left off on original hardware.

It supports Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance carts, up to and including things like the Game Boy Camera, which you can even turn into a PC webcam using an OBS screen capture trick. — Sean Hollister, senior editor

Power outages have started happening frequently enough in my neighborhood for me to start seriously looking into a whole home backup power solution. Until I choose one and sign a big check, Globe’s 800-lumen LED light bulbs have at least been a useful way to avoid stubbing my toe when the power goes out. They’re slightly more expensive than a basic LED bulb at $35 for six, but they feature built-in backup batteries that recharge whenever a lamp or light socket is turned on. When the power goes bye-bye, the bulbs automatically turn on and will glow for up to 10 hours straight. They also work without being screwed into a socket and can be attached to the included handles so you can carry them around like a flashlight. — Andrew Liszewski, senior reporter

We’ve got this power outlet near our fridge that has just one spare outlet for a USB-C wall adapter to charge our laptops and iPad. Now, I could get a speedy, new adapter that has multiple USB-C ports so I can charge them all at once. Or you could do as I did: buy Anker’s affordable 2-in-1 USB-C cable that can charge two devices at once. The six-foot cable costs $19.99 (sometimes less) and is capped at 140W of peak passthrough charging speeds with the right wall adapter. It can automatically divvy up the power from your adapter or battery to deliver the optimal amount of juice to your devices, too, making it the perfect cable for overnight charging. — Cameron Faulkner, commerce editor

I keep thinking a new notebook would fix me. It hasn’t worked yet, but I still really like this one. Like other Mnemosyne notebooks, it has really nice paper that’s great for my intermittent fountain pen experimentation because there’s very little feathering and less bleedthrough than, say, a Leichtturm or Moleskine. It’s meant as a bullet journal, and it has all the features you’d want there: a four-page index at the front, page numbers, multiple bookmarks, and dot grid markings with guide marks so you can easily divide pages by thirds or quarters, horizontally or vertically. It also just looks good. — Nathan Edwards, senior reviews editor

If you play a lot of games on the Nintendo Switch 2 or Steam Deck, you’re likely all too aware of how long it can take to download titles over Wi-Fi. Like “I need to find another activity to keep myself busy” long. Luckily, there’s another way if you don’t mind welcoming another dongle into your life. Ugreen’s ethernet to USB-C adapters (which usually retail for less than $15) connect to an ethernet cable, then plug it directly into your handheld to get the fastest-possible download speeds. I’ve had what would have been 30-minute wireless downloads take around two minutes when wired up with this dongle. — Cameron Faulkner, commerce editor

I originally bought the Glocusent Rechargeable LED Neck Reading Light for my mom, whose eyesight isn’t great and lives with me in a very dim apartment. She only used it a couple of times while reading and attempting to knit before abandoning it, so I picked it up, and now it’s like my go-to hands-free flashlight. I like that it offers both warm and cool lighting, and while it’s great for nighttime reading, I’ve also found it useful during power outages, walking down the dark hallway to the bathroom at night, while traveling, or really just anytime I need a little extra light. — Sheena Vasani, commerce writer

For $35, you can turn your smartphone into a Game Boy-like handheld so you can play retro titles without the frustrations of finicky touchscreen controls. GameSir’s Pocket Taco is a wireless Bluetooth controller, but instead of functioning as a standalone gamepad, it clamps onto the bottom of your phone, adding a physical D-pad and action buttons to the bottom half of the screen. The lack of thumbsticks makes it better suited for playing games on older consoles predating the PS1. It also has its own battery, so while it is another accessory you’ll need to remember to charge, it won’t drain your phone’s battery while you play. — Andrew Liszewski, senior reporter