Lenovo launched a new smart clock at CES earlier this year, and it improved upon its previous models by giving it a pogo docking pin at the bottom and support for Amazon's Alexa. If you've been thinking of picking it up but haven't gotten the chance to until now, you may want to head over to the device's listing at Best Buy. Lenovo's Smart Clock Essential with Alexa is currently on sale for $45 on the retailer's website only for today -- there's less than 20 hours left for the deal as of this writing. The Smart Clock Essential with Alexa retains the brand's Smart Clock 2 cloth design. While its predecessors only supported Google Assistant, though, this model only supports the Alexa voice assistant.

CES might look a little different this year, but that hasn't stopped Lenovo from doing what it does best: using the industry to event to launch many, many new products. In addition to the usual laptops, the company is showing off a new smart clock, the Smart Clock Essential with Alexa. Aside from a minimalist cloth design that clearly borrows from last year's Smart Clock 2, the new Essential improves on the old by adding a pogo docking pin at the bottom and, well, support for Amazon Alexa. The original Essential clock only worked with Google Assistant, and while I was hoping this new device could handle both, the new Essential with Alexa truly is Alexa-only, while the original remains available as a Google smart clock. As an object that's meant to sit on your bedside table, there really isn't much to the new Essential. The fabric comes in either a muted "Clay Red" or pale "Misty Blue," with the entire front face given over to the 4-inch LED display.

You might have an easier time deciding on a Google Assistant smart display this Black Friday. Lenovo's Smart Clock is on sale now at Best Buy for $35, an all-time low and less than half its original $80 asking price. You can get it for the same price at Walmart. And if you don't need a touchscreen, the Smart Clock Essential is on sale for $25 (half its usual price) at Best Buy and Walmart. Both smart screens are very focused, and that's mostly a good thing.

The holiday shopping season is in full swing -- and yes, we know it's only early November. Retailers like Amazon, Walmart and Best Buy have already kicked off the first rounds of their big sale events, and there will be more to come in the lead-up to Black Friday. This week, we saw AirPods drop to a new all-time low; a great price for Samsung's Galaxy Watch 3; and a bunch of worthwhile deals at Walmart for Instant Pots, robot vacuums and more. Here are the best deals from this week that you can still get today. Now's the time to grab Apple's classic AirPods for someone on your list, or for yourself.

A smart clock is a great addition to a bedroom. Not only does it tell the time and other pertinent information, but it's also smart enough to dim at night and brighten up in the morning. Plus, they usually don't have cameras, making them better than a typical smart display for intimate spaces like your bedside. Lenovo's Smart Clock series features Google Assistant integration, too, so you can easily control your connected devices or get weather and traffic reports by speaking to the device. When the company's basic Smart Clock Essential launched this year, it was pretty affordable at just $50.

November hasn't even started yet and Best Buy has already kicked off its early Black Friday deals. Sure, the retailer had a number of "Black Friday guaranteed" prices on its website already, but a slew of new deals are available today through November 1. Among them are some of our favorite headphones and earbuds as well as Amazon devices that were discounted last week for a limited time -- some of those deals are back. Feel free to shop the entire sale but we sifted through the batch and picked out the best deals we could find to make things a bit easier for you. Our favorite pair of wireless ANC headphones is down to a new all-time low. Sony's excellent WH-1000XM4 headphones are $278 right now, which is $72 off their normal price.

One of our favorite gadgets from 2019 was the Google-powered Lenovo Smart Clock. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles of a typical Google smart display, but its alarm clock features, affordable price point and small form factor more than make up for it. Recently, however, the company debuted an even simpler version of the device, appropriately called the Lenovo Smart Clock Essential. With the Essential, the pretense of a smart display is gone altogether; the LCD screen has been replaced with a basic LED display. As a result, I don't quite like it as much as the original Lenovo Smart Clock, but it's also $30 cheaper (the Essential retails for $50 while the original Smart Clock is $80) and if all you really want is an alarm clock with some Google Assistant smarts, then the Essential certainly fits the bill. At its core, the Lenovo Smart Clock Essential is simply a Google-powered smart speaker with a built-in alarm clock.

If you aren't shopping Amazon Prime Day with a specific product in mind--maybe you're looking for holiday gifts for the whole family--it can quickly get overwhelming and pricey. Thankfully, there are quite a few options under $50 to choose from. We've narrowed down some of the best we've seen from Amazon and other stores, and we'll update this as the final day of Prime Day (yes, it stretches from Tuesday through Wednesday, October 14) stretches on. Note: We strike through items that sell out or rise in price as we update this guide. You'll need a subscription to Amazon Prime to get most of these deals. Updated October 14: We added the Roku Streaming Stick, Logitech Mouse, changed some links, and struck out some sold out deals.

If you aren't shopping Amazon Prime Day with a specific product in mind--maybe you're looking for holiday gifts for the whole family--it can quickly get overwhelming and pricey. Thankfully, there are quite a few options under $50 to choose from. We've narrowed down some of the best we've seen from Amazon and other stores, and we'll be updating this as the sale goes on. Note: We strike through items that sell out or rise in price as we update this guide. You'll need a subscription to Amazon Prime to get most of these deals.

When Lenovo's Smart Clock first arrived, we were charmed by the tiny minimalist design, clock-centric features and Google Assistant-powered smart home features. The original $80 price was also a plus, but Best Buy just made it a lot more interesting -- it's selling the Smart Clock at $40, or half off. Aside from the cute design and cloth covered body, we appreciated Lenovo's Smart Clock features like the ambient light sensor and sunrise alarm, which gradually brightens the screen thirty minutes before the alarm sounds. Swiping from the top reveals a "play music" button and a toggle for any smart lights, and you can set a "good night" smart home routine that can automatically adjust the temperature and turn off the TV, for instance. All of these actions also work via Google Assistant voice commands.