The best way to catch up on the day’s most important product releases and stories.
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Today in Gear is our daily roundup of all the latest product announcements, drops and deals. Comments or concerns? We’d love to hear from you at [email protected].
Is This Tiny EDC Flashlight Too Small?
A company called Malboro and Kane just claimed to have created the smallest EDC flashlight ever, but is the light too tiny?
This Sophisticated Japanese Brand Is Now Available Stateside
Founded in 1978.
These Are the Waterproof Rival to AirPods
Jaybird’s second-gen wireless earbuds are fully waterproof and sweatproof, designed to handle the sweatiest of ears.
Casper’s New $89 Night Light Is Very Smart Indeed
Casper’s new night light, the Glow, was designed to help you fall asleep. But perhaps its biggest calling card is its functionality beyond the nightstand.
J.Crew Is Now Making Sustainable Jeans for Under $100
Made at the cleanest denim factory.
Orient Symphony Gen II Dress Watch
Save $180: Orient makes some of our favorite affordable dive and dress watches, often for unbelievably low prices. Take the Symphony Gen II Automatic dress watch as a case in point: it features a 41mm stainless steel case, black or white dial, Orient’s in-house cal. 48743 21-jewel movement with a 40-hour power reserve and date complication, and a sapphire crystal. Polished silver hands and indices lend the watch a classic mid-century look, and 50m of water resistance means that you don’t have to worry about getting caught in the rain with it. — Oren Hartov
Chandler BondurantLodge Cast-Iron Cookware
Save 33% Today on Sierra Trading Post, a load of Lodge’s cast-iron cookware is on sale. The marked down pots and pans are varied — a single-steak 8-inch skillet for $7, an enameled Dutch oven for $30 and a grill pan for $17. But the standout is the classic 10.5-inch skillet marked down to just $10. Don’t forget to buy extra oil for seasoning. —Will Price
T-Fal Non-Stick Skillet
Save 52% Why do we buy high-priced stainless steel cookware? Well, it lasts longer, performs better, is (probably) used more than all your other cookware and provides greater value over its lifespan than cheap alternatives. Non-stick cookware does not follow these same rules.
Perhaps most importantly, non-stick cookware is not used nearly enough to warrant the pricetags more premium brands place on it. Its greatest feats are flippable eggs and its delicate treatment of fish. There’s also the simple fact that all non-stick pans have an expiration date, whether it’s advertised or not (the closest you’ll get is a warranty duration).
This is because — through heating, cooling, flipping, scratches and cleaning — all non-stick pans eventually shed their precious non-stick coating, making them completely worthless to cook on. Most even have a number of “releases” they’re good for (how many eggs you’ll be able to flip), but rarely make this information public.
This all adds up to a very happy ending — in the world of non-stick cooking, you’re better off buying cheap and simply replacing your pan when the coating begins to flake or food doesn’t want to come off it. And if you’re in the market now, T-Fal’s perfectly satisfactory 12-inch non-stick fry pan is more than 50 percent off on Sierra Trading Post today. That’s down from $25 to $12. —Will Price
Due Preparation for the Polar Vortex
Save 25% on Winter Boots from Sorel If you don’t have a warm pair of waterproof winter boots, now would be the time to get them. Luckily, a number of options from Sorel are on sale for 25 percent off at East Dane right now.— Justin Fenner
Uniqlo Seamless Down Parka
Save 33%: In a way, down jackets (and their synthetic alternatives) are a bellwether for innovation in outdoor gear. Ever since Eddie Bauer patented his feather-filled Skyliner nearly a century ago, down jackets have been a keystone item for outdoor survival and recreation. They’re incredibly lightweight yet sufficiently warm — and any time a brand can increase these qualities, along with durability and packability, it’s usually a sign that other things like tents and outerwear might follow suit. These advancements come with a price tag though, which is why it’s notable that Uniqlo’s Seamless Down Parka only costs $150, and is currently marked down to $100.
The main innovation is right in the jacket’s name: seamless. Even after decades of existence, most traditional down jackets use stitching and seams to create the baffles that hold down fill in place. Stitching not only creates minor cold spots by isolating the fill into groups but is also a common point of failure on jackets that are well-loved over many seasons. Outdoor companies are just recently innovating ways to do away with them, usually by welding the fabric together or by weaving the shell material to create the baffles. This construction is generally apparent in only the highest tier down jackets though.
Uniqlo, though, uses that zero-stitch construction in its affordable parka. The company doesn’t specify the fill power of the down inside, but categorizes the jacket as “extra warm.” The jacket is windproof and has a DWR coating for precipitation though, and $100 is as affordable as down jackets get. — Tanner Bowden
Nike Gear and Apparel Sale
Save 25%If you’ve recently been swept up in the Marie Kondo Netflix series, Tidying Up with Marie Kondo, or you recently re-discovered her Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, it’s possible your drawers are looking a little empty. Her message will help you clean out apparel that you haven’t worn in years, thus leaving plenty of room for new gear. What better way to spark joy than to fill the void with new gym shorts and shirts? Right now, you can save 25 percent on a variety of Nike essentials. Whether you’re in the habit of stopping by the CrossFit box or enjoy a game of pick up on the weekends, this gear will see you through it all. — Meg Lappe
Tile Mate
Save $15 The Tile Mate is a small plastic square you hook to things to ensure those things are never lost again. Inside, a Bluetooth-enabled chip sits dormant until you’ve signalled your Tile as lost on the company’s smartphone app. Once marked as lost, the chip will ping your phone when you’re within 150 feet of it. If it’s not found in the immediate vicinity, Tile uses other phones on the greater Tile network to locate it. This means the more people on the Tile app, the easier it is to find stuff.
The Mate, the company’s flagship tracker, is marked down from $25 to $10 on Ebay today. —Will Price
4 Things to Consider Before You Buy a New Chef’s Knife
Buying a knife isn’t all about how sharp it is.
We Tried Road Tubeless Tires, and We’re Never Going Back
Looking for a faster, lighter and more comfortable ride? Ditch your traditional tires and go for a tubeless setup.
Editor’s Picks: Our Favorite Watches of SIHH 2019
If we each had to choose one watch to own from SIHH 2019, this is what we’d end up with — and it was no easy choice.
Audi Q8 Review: All-New, All-Around Appealing, Solid Value
A sportier and more stylish alternative to the seven-passenger Q7 that sticks it to the “coupe” styling of the Mercedes GLE and BMW X6 SUVs.
VWThe 2016-2019 VW Golf GTI May Be the Best Ever
The Mk1 version debuting in 1975 became an icon. The latest, the Mk7, should prove a collectors’ item in its own right.
The 50 Best Boots for Men
This guide to the best boots for men covers ten categories, including work boots, Chelseas, chukkas and more.
Like Tiny Knives? Here Are 4 Coming Out This Year
Knifemakers just revealed their new blades for 2019, and a handful of the most compelling models are super-small.
Chase PellerinShould You Buy Fake AirPods on Amazon?
How bad could they be, right?
10 Vehicles Have Been Named the Best Value in America
The list of well-built cars, trucks and SUVs is populated, thankfully, by a terrific number of truly desirable picks.
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