As has become customary a few days ahead of the big sales event, Amazon has revealed a few of the deals that we will be seeing during Prime Day 2021. There will be many more Amazon device discounts than has been revealed today, but here are the specific deals that we know so far and how they compare to past sales. Read more ›
The Amazon Appstore has announced that it will be reducing its cut of developer revenue from 30% to 20% for developers that earn less than $1 million in revenue per year. The new terms, which Amazon is calling the Amazon Appstore Small Business Accelerator Program, will also provide developers with AWS promotional credit in an amount equivalent to 10 percent of the developer’s revenue if they earn less than $1 million in revenue per year. If a developer chooses to use those AWS credits, that brings their total Amazon Appstore revenue share up from 70% to an equivalent of 90%. Read more ›
Insignia, which is Best Buy’s house brand, has released a new batch of Fire TV Edition televisions as 2021 models. Like their predecessors, these new TVs run Amazon Fire TV operating system by default, which provides all the same features as a standalone Fire TV or Fire TV Stick, but with extra perks, like integrated over-the-air channels via the built-in tuner. Similar to Toshiba’s new 2021 Fire TV Edition models, which change very little over Toshiba’s 2020 models, these new Insignia TVs are very similar to Insignia’s models from last year but change even less than the Toshiba TVs. In fact, Insignia’s new 4K TVs are identical to previous models. Insignia’s biggest changes this year are found in its non-4K TVs which, finally, replace all 720p panels found in past models with 1080p screens across all sizes, even in the smallest 24-inch TVs. Insignia also increasd the screen size of its largest non-4K TV to 42-inches from 39-inches. Read more ›
Amazon has some great deals on a pair of Echos or a pair of Echo Dots for Prime members. Buying two Amazon Echos with promo code ECHOPRIME will drop the total price to $119.98. At $59.99 each, that would be the new lowest price that the Echo has ever been. I’m expecting a single Echo to be $69.99 during Prime Day next week, which is the lowest the Echo has been in the past. Similarly, buying two Echo Dots with promo code PDDOT2PK will drop them to $49.98 total. At $24.99 each, that is also the new lowest price for the Echo Dot. The lowest the Echo Dot has ever been in the past is $28.99, which is likely the price we’ll see for it during Prime Day. Echos and Echo Dots can both be grouped together to create a stereo pair if you’re planning to place them in the same room. Both the Echo and the Echo Dot can also be paired with Fire TVs and Fire TV Sticks (2017 or newer) to create a home theater speaker system.
The Echo Show 5 is on sale for $44.99 for Prime members as an early Prime Day deal. This is the 1st-gen Echo Show 5 but there is very little difference between it and the new Echo Show 5 that was released a few days ago. The new model has a 2MP camera, in place of the 1MP camera on this model that is on sale. This discounted Echo Show 5 does have a 3.5mm audio out port, which the new model does not. Everything else is identical between the two models. This sale matches the lowest price that the Echo Show 5 has ever been.
Amazon has put the Luna Controller on sale for $48.99 as part of its many early Prime Day deals. That is 30% off its regular price of $69.99. This is also the new lowest price that the controller has ever been, however, it’s just $1 less than the $49.99 introductory price that Amazon offered customers for months after the controller launched. The Luna Controller is unique in that it can connect via WiFi directly to the internet when used with Amazon’s Luna cloud gaming service. This allows it to work for Luna gaming through a number of devices, like Fire TVs, iPhones, iPads, Android phones, computers, and more, without connecting to those devices directly. The direct WiFi connection also results in less input latency than a traditional Bluetooth connection. However, the controller does still support Bluetooth connections, as well as wired connections via USB-C, if you want to use it for something other than Luna gaming.
Amazon will be allowing “priority access” to Luna, its cloud gaming service, during Prime Day, June 21-22. This probably doesn’t mean much to the vast majority of you reding this, since Amazon has already removed the need for an invitation if you own a Fire TV. However, if you have been wanting to give Luna gaming a try, the standard 7-day free trial will be open to all Prime members later this month.
Amazon kicked off their early Prime Day deals last week with 4 Fire TV Edition televisions going on sale. Those 4 deals have now ended and Amazon has replaced them with 10 more Fire TV Edition television sales. This new batch ranges from $99.99 for a 24-inch TV and up to $359.99 for a 55-inch 4K TV with Dolby Vision. Also included in this batch are a couple of 2021 model TVs that have never been on sale before today. Read on for the full list of TVs on sale exclusively for Prime members and how these sales compare to past deals. Read more ›
Amazon is having an Early Prime Day Deal on a bunch of Prime Video Channel subscriptions. All channels in this promotion are $0.99 per month for the first two months. The subscriptions on sale are AMC+, Paramount+, Discovery+, SHOWTIME, STARZ, EPIX, BET+, Noggin, PBS Masterpiece, PBS Documentaries, PBS KIDS, Acorn TV, MovieSphere, ALLBLK, UP Faith & Family, Lifetime Movie Club, Pantaya, and Motortrend. Remeber that you can cancel a subscription anytime, on this page, and continue watching until your current billing period ends. So, if you’re worried you’ll forget to unsubscribe before the regular price kicks in, you can subscribe now, then immediately cancel to enjoy one full month for $0.99. You must be a Prime member to subscribe to a Prime Video Channel. If you have a Prime Student account, the subscriptions for EPIX, SHOWTIME, or Lifetime Movie Club are $0.99 per month for the first 12 months.
Heads up that there is a good chance you have Amazon No-Rush Credit expiring tomorrow. You can check your balance and see when your credits expire on this rewards summary page. These are credits you earn by selecting slower shipping methods and they can be spent on digital goods like Prime Video rentals/purchases, Amazon Appstore apps, Amazon Music digital purchases, or Kindle eBooks. If you’re not sure how to spend your credit before it expires, a good place to start is the Prime Video Deals page where there are currently lots of deals on movie rentals for $1.99 each. Remmeber, no-rush credits automatically get applied to in-app purchases, so if you don’t want to digital goods, please consider supporting my Downloader app or Informer app through their in-app donation buttons.
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