Now shipping: Pixel 3a Smartphone with 3.5mm headphone jack ($299 to $379)

The time has come 3.5mm headphone jack fans! It’s a brand new Google Pixel smartphone with a 3.5mm headphone jack. But it’s not the flagship. It’s the “a” model, the affordable model, with the Pixel 3a going for $299 right now with free US shipping at B&H Photo, while the larger Pixel 3a XL goes for $379. There are no other storage options. Only the color scheme of the phone.

They have 4GB of RAM, the modern 18.5 : 9 aspect ratio, the SnapDragon 670 processor, 64GB of on-board storage but sadly no memory card slot, Bluetooth 5.0 for those who have newer bluetooth headphones, Wifi Direct (not to be confused with the totally different protocol “Wifey Direct”), NFC [when there are connection dogfights in the air between multiple devices in your household/office], Android 9, 3-years of updates, unlimited Google Photos storage, factory unlocked with USA warranty and so forth…

Mayhaps this is the closest Google has come to making a Nexus phone in the Pixel era. If I was buying a phone right now I would consider it in this price range ~ assuming you can live with just 64GB of storage that is. Because even with streaming (eg Spotify) you have the option of downloading (frequently played) music because 5G is coming but the carriers are still hoarding data like giant corporate dragons in their lairs 😉

UPDATE: speaking of daily deals, one of the 100 Kindle e-books offered for this day is Leonard Cohen’s “The Flame: Poems Notebooks Lyrics Drawings” (288 pages) going for $4.

March 22, 2020 Filed Under: digital audio players Tagged With: , ,

Now shipping: various Monoprice Stereo Tube Amps [Planar headphones still delayed]

More of Monoprice’s stereo Tube amps are now in-stock and ready to ship, some of which are bundled with speakers or headphones. The bundle with their new planar headphones is not available for purchase yet, as neither one of their new planar headphones are in-stock (see bottom of this post for more on them). You can see the new in-stock stereo tube amps using the Fancy A/V-magazine style Monoprice page or the old school list of products page.

PS: the latest estimates on the Monoprice planar-magnetic headphones are November 21 (2016) for the $200 M560 and February 9 (2017) for the $300 M1060. Neither one can be ordered/pre-ordered as of the time of writing.

November 15, 2016 Filed Under: amps and dacs Tagged With: , ,

Back In-Stock: Focal Elear for $999

They are back in-stock again, these wallet-killers, the new condition open-back over-ear made-in-France Focal Elear headphones, going for $999 with free shipping by Gramophone thru Amazon. They ship directly from Gramophone (Maryland), so they are not eligible for Prime. As of the time of writing, they have two units available.

But that’s not all, the detailed listings also show that two more authorized retailers have them in-stock for the same price, AudioLAB and ListenUP. These two ship directly, they are not Prime eligible.

November 4, 2016 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: , ,

Now shipping: Fiio X1 2nd Generation DAP for $100

The second generation Fiio X1 digital audio player (with added Bluetooth streaming) is now in-stock at multiple retailers for its starting price of $100. A number of retailers have it in-stock for this price at Amazon (and Prime eligible) in three colors: black color and Gold color and silver color.

This too had been added to our new Headphone Tracker so you can find some of the latest new arrivals in one spot.

PS: if you feel like officially eBay-haggling, “Best Offer” is enabled on its listing by PitBull Audio’s eBay store.

October 28, 2016 Filed Under: digital audio players Tagged With: ,

[DEAD] Back In-Stock: Focal Elear for $1000

AS of 10/21/16 re-check, these sold out again… For future updates, check the brand new Headphone Tracker…

and if you are looking for the new Focal Elear, we have some good news for you. As of the time of writing, there are two units in-stock for $1000 with free shipping by AudioLAB thru Amazon. These ships directly from AudioLAB, so they are not Prime eligible… Yesterday the brown color of the Sony MDR-1000X was in-stock but as of this update, it has gone out of stock…

If you have any headphones you are interested and you want me to track them, please leave a comment or use the contact form. Twitter account coming during the weekend.

October 20, 2016 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: , ,

Shipping now: FiiO Multifunction Dock (DK1) for $25 w/free S&H

If you need to get the brand new FiiO Multifunction Dock (DK1), as of the time of writing, it is in-stock and ready to ship for $25 with free shipping by Pitfull Electronics thru Amazon (not Prime eligible) or $30 by Tinbel Store fulfilled by Amazon (Prime eligible) with a limit of three per customer. This fits some of their latest DAPs (X7, X5 II, X3 II, X1) along with the E17K.

October 1, 2016 Filed Under: accessories Tagged With: ,