Best household gifts under $300
Dreo TurboPoly Fan 513S
I’ve tried a few different models from the Dreo floor fan line, which is probably a bit more extensive than it needs to be, with only small variations between models. The Dreo TurboPoly Fan 513S is a smart fan and can be controlled via the included remote or the Dreo app for iOS and Android. It's got eight fan speeds, six wind modes and oscillates both horizontally and vertically. But what’s most impressive is that it’s both powerful and relatively quiet -- though it gets louder at top speeds, as you’d expect. It moves a lot of air and has an attractive design to match. If you don't need all the smart features -- or prefer a tabletop model -- Dreo has lots of fan options to choose from.
Solo Stove Ranger
Solo Stove fire pits are among the best smokeless fire pits out there, and while they work great and their stainless steel construction gives them a sleek appearance, the original models had one flaw: They weren't so easy to clean up. However, that changed with the newer Solo Stove 2.0 fire pits, which are available in the same three sizes -- Ranger 15 (small), Bonfire 19.5 (medium) and Yukon 27 (large) -- and have a removable ash pan, a feature missing from the earlier models. There's also now an even larger size, the Canyon 30.
Plufl
Billed as the human dog bed, the Plufl has been getting a lot of play on TikTok and other social media channels, so we decided to try one. The "bed" actually comes in four pieces: the cover, two fairly long tube-like pillows and a slim, oval "mattress" made out of memory foam. You stuff everything inside the cover -- assembly takes about 15 minutes -- and lo and behold, you're looking at a giant dog bed (or a plush life raft that doesn't float) big enough for a human. Not only is it quite comfortable for homo sapiens, but our family canine immediately sought refuge in this much larger, roomier version of his bed.
The Plufl is slightly more suitable for small or average-size humans, but as long as you aren't really tall, it should accommodate you. It comes in a few colors, and the cover is removable and washable.
Beast Mini Blender Plus
There are a lot of mini blenders, but the Beast is one of the best we've tried and it's also attractively designed. Equipped with a 600-watt motor, it's more capable and powerful than many mini blenders. You can buy just the blender for $100, but this Mini Plus model comes with a couple of extra "vessels," which is a fancy way of saying containers, so you can easily go from blending to drinking your smoothie concoctions (and taking them to go). The blender is available in a few different color options. It's also worth noting that Beast makes a slightly bigger blender simply called the Beast Blender that costs $165.
Cuisinart Pure Indulgence
No matter what anyone says, homemade ice cream is the best ice cream. CNET's David Watsky spent more than 25 hours testing eight industry-leading ice cream makers, and Cuisinart's Pure Indulgence model came out on top. "This model made the best sorbet and non-dairy vegan ice cream of the bunch, presumably because the double-insulated hull helped it turn custard into dense ice cream faster," he says.
Logitech Casa Pop-Up Desk
Available in three options, Logitech's Casa Pop-Up Desk is sort of the ultimate remote work accessory for laptops in that it combines a laptop stand with a low-profile keyboard and touchpad that you store inside the stand, which collapses into a textbook-sized book. The whole thing has a bit of heft to it (the stand is sleek and sturdy) and weighs more than some laptops at a little over 3 pounds. It's a nice portable setup, and both the Casa Keyboard and Casa Touch are solid performers. It is more mid-range than premium (there's no backlight, for example), and neither is quite up to the level of Logitech's Master Series of keyboards and mice, but I had little to complain about. Both have rechargeable batteries, shortcut keys such as Media Keys, Mic Mute and Emoji, and are compatible with the company's Logi Options Plus software.
Braun Series 7
Most guys secretly want an electric razor, even if they've never used one. The Braun Series 7 isn't the top-of-the-line Braun -- the Series 9 is -- but it's a good value at around $145 for the base kit. It can be used dry or wet -- it's fully waterproof -- and it comes with beard trimmers, a cleaning dock and a carrying case. Battery life is rated at up to 50 minutes on a full charge, and a quick five-minute charge will get you enough juice for a shave.
Logitech MX Master 4
We're fans of Logitech's earlier MX Master 3S, and its MX Master 4 improves on that model with even smoother performance, quieter clicks and new features, including haptic feedback (yes, the mouse buzzes in your hand), a gesture button and an action ring digital overlay that helps streamline your workflow. Available in graphite or pale gray, this is a top-of-the-line everyday work mouse that may be overkill for some folks -- at least in terms of the feature set -- but anyone will appreciate its precision and ergonomics (as long as you're right-handed).
Best audio gifts under $300
Bose SoundLink Plus
As Bose continues to expand its SoundLink portable Bluetooth speaker line, it's become harder to choose which device is best for your needs. That said, the SoundLink Plus ($269, £250, AU$430), which sits between the more compact second-gen SoundLink Flex ($149, £150, AU$250) and the beefier and pricier SoundLink Max ($399, £400, AU$600), may just be the best of the bunch, the goldilocks of Bose Bluetooth speakers. While it can't play quite as loud or deliver as much bass as the larger Max, it costs significantly less and puts out clear, potent sound that's a big step up from the Flex's sound. It strikes the right balance of performance and price, earning a CNET Editors' Choice Award in the process.
Apple AirPods Pro 3
While they look similar to the previous model, all the key elements of Apple's AirPods Pro 3, such as fit, sound quality and noise cancellation, have been noticeably leveled up along with single-charge battery. They're about as close as earbuds get to being complete: excellent noise cancellation, strong voice-calling performance and sound quality that rivals the very best. Few buds excel in all three areas -- and the Pro 3s manage it while packing in plenty of extra features, including their new heart-rate monitoring feature. Read my full review.
Soundcore by Anker Boom 2 Plus
I consider the smaller Boom 2 the best value among current Soundcore by Anker Bluetooth speakers because it delivers very strong sound for a speaker that costs a little more than $100. But the larger and more expensive Boom 2 Plus is a better-sounding speaker that plays louder and produces a bigger sound with more bass. While it costs around $250, the key thing about it is that it competes well with boom box speakers from JBL and Sony which cost upwards of $400.
This speaker has dual 50-watt woofers and dual 20-watt tweeters, Anker says, and charges via USB-C, which is nice. There is also a charge-out option to charge your devices and the Boom 2 Plus is rated for up to 20 hours of playback time at moderate volume levels. The speaker has both a handle and removable strap to make it easy to carry around and is IPX7 waterproof. It also floats should you drop it in a body of water and has a customizable light show option.
Sony ULT Field 5
In 2025, Sony released two new portable Bluetooth speakers: the ULT Field 3 ($200) and ULT Field 5 ($330), filling out its ULT line, which now includes six models. I liked both the ULT Field 3 and ULT Field 5. They're IP67 waterproof, dust-proof, rust-proof and shock-resistant. They include a removable shoulder strap and offer significantly improved sound over their predecessors, with more bass and better overall clarity. As you might guess, the larger ULT Field 5 delivers bigger sound with more bass than the ULT Field 3. While somewhat pricey, it's one of the best-sounding Bluetooth speakers I've tested in its size class, plus, it's also equipped with party lighting and a USB charge-out port. Battery life is rated for up to 20 hours at moderate volume levels (or 10 hour with party lighting on).
Shokz OpenRun Pro 2
The problem with bone-conduction headphones has always been that they just don't sound all that good. That is unless you plug up your ears, which defeats the safety benefit of their open-ear design and is why they're so popular with runners and bikers. Well, that just changed. Shokz has finally cracked the code on bone-conduction sound quality with a novel dual-driver design in its new flagship OpenRun Pro 2 headphones ($180).
With the OpenRun Pro 2, Shokz has solved the bass deficiency issue by adding a second, more traditional speaker driver that's tasked with firing bass frequencies toward your open ears. Shokz employed that same micro-speaker technology (it calls it "air conduction") in its first non-bone-conduction headphones, the OpenFit ($140) and Open Fit Air ($120) true-wireless earbuds.
Bose SoundLink Flex (2nd Gen)
When the SoundLink Flex speaker launched, Bose made some bold claims about its new Bluetooth speaker, particularly its bass performance. But it mostly lived up to the hype and is arguably the best-sounding wireless speaker for its compact size. A second-gen model quietly arrived in October 2024 that adds a few new features, including a new customizable shortcut button, Bose app compatibility (you can now tweak the sound profile with an equalizer and create a SimpleSync connection with another compatible Bose product) and support for the AAC and AptX audio codecs. It's also equipped with Bluetooth 5.3 instead of Bluetooth 4.2. While those aren't major upgrades, they do make an excellent portable Bluetooth speaker slightly better.
The second-gen SoundLink Flex is available in black, blue dusk, sandstone and a new alpine sage color. Like the original, it's equipped with Bose's PositionIQ technology to automatically detect the speaker's orientation and deliver optimized sound based on whether it's upright, hanging or flat on its back.
JBL Charge 6
JBL hasn't radically redesigned the Charge 6 on the outside -- it looks pretty similar to its predecessor and weighs the same (2.11 pounds) -- but it does feature better sound, battery life and lossless audio over a USB-C connection. One of the more noticeable external changes is to the new model's charge-out port (that port is why the speaker line is called "Charge"). Instead of a USB-A out port hidden under a gasket, there's a single exposed USB-C port that's both charge-in and charge-out. It allows you to use this fully waterproof and dust-proof (IP68) speaker as a power bank and charge devices like your smartphone while streaming music to the speaker. Additionally, JBL has added a removable handle to the Charge 6.
The larger Charge has always sounded significantly better than the smaller Flip, and that hasn't changed with the Charge 6, even as the Flip 7 has also improved its sound quality. The Charge 6 produces more bass and a bigger overall sound with minimal distortion at higher volumes (both speakers feature better overall clarity). While the Flip 7's smaller size makes it easier to carry around, the Charge 6 is worth the extra money if sound quality is a priority. I have some quibbles with its somewhat high price -- its list price is $20 higher than the Charge 5's -- but the Charge 6 is easily one of the best speakers in its size class.
Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro
If you're able to get a tight seal with one of the three sizes of included ear tips, there's little to complain about with Samsung's Galaxy Buds 3 Pro (read our full review). Yes, the noise cancellation might be a touch better, but the earbuds' excellent sound quality is clearly a step up from that of the Buds 2 Pro. Plus, they have a robust feature set, and their voice-calling performance is truly top-notch.
Best fitness gifts under $300
Theragun Mini 3rd Gen
Therabody makes some of our favorite massage guns for muscle relief. Our fitness experts tested out the second-gen Theragun Mini and appreciated its intensity and portability. This newer version is slightly smaller, but still delivers an impressive 1,750 to 2,400 percussions per minute. It also comes with three massage heads (standard ball, dampener and thumb attachments) and a travel case.
Chirp Halo (Double)
Physical therapists and doctors often use transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation and electrical muscle stimulation to treat a variety of injuries and provide pain relief. Home TENS devices have been available for years, though I've always found them cumbersome to use. But Chirp's new Halo system is different, and is the best electric stimulation system I've tried; it's well-designed and easy to use, even compared to Therabody's Powerdot Duo, which lists for $400. The base system includes several pad types with sticky gel to conduct electricity. You attach them to the Bluetooth-enabled Halo units (which connect magnetically) and pair everything with the Chirp app on your iOS or Android phone to start a session.
Note that while the pads are reusable and rated for 20 uses (just be careful to stick the plastic cover sheet back on nicely), you'll eventually need to buy more. This is what's included in the package:
- Two Halo units
- One rechargeable remote
- One charging & carry case
- One USB-C charging cable
- Two extension cables
- Eight muscle stimulator pads:
Two lower-back pads
Two large trigger-point pads
Four extension-spot pads
Rocky Talkie Mountain Radio
Ruggedized Rocky Talkie walkie-talkies come in a couple of versions. I tried the entry-level Mountain Radio, but there's also the step-up Expedition model ($360 list) that's more durable and fully waterproof, offers expanded range (it's a 5-watt GMRS radio instead of 2-watt FRS radio, and requires a license from the FCC to operate legally) and offers a day longer battery life.
Their maximum range is listed at 35 miles, but you'd have to be in an open plain to get that kind of range. In more mountainous environments, the range is more like 1-5 miles, according to Rockie Talkie. The radios are easy to use and are IP56 splash-proof and snow-resistant, with a shatterproof LED screen and thermoplastic protective covering. They come with a carabiner for clipping the radio onto a backpack along with a metal reinforced back-up leash. A bundle with two waterproof hand mics is also available.
Oura Ring 3
Oura's newest wellness tracker is the Oura 4, but the Oura Ring Gen 3, which currently costs a couple hundred less, offers largely the same features as the newer version, and it's still one of our favorite fitness trackers, thanks to its sleek, modern design and insightful health tracking. Keep in mind that to turn the ring into more than a basic tracker, your giftee will need to pay $6 per month for an Oura membership.
Apple Watch SE 3
If you want the latest and greatest Apple Watch, you should get the Watch Series 11 or the top-end Watch Ultra 3, but the third-generation SE remains the best value. It can also be ordered with LTE cellular service. It doesn't have some of the extra features of the Apple Watch 11, but the SE offers good performance for those who don't want to spend as much on an Apple Watch. Plus, it's available in two sizes: 40mm and 44mm.
Oboz Cottonwood Mid Waterproof
Oboz makes a variety of hiking boots and walking shoes, along with a bunch of other footwear. The Cottonwood, which comes in mid and low versions in three color options (it's available for men and women), is a very comfortable hiking boot that's waterproof and can be used for everyday wear whether you live in an urban, suburban or rural setting. The mid version I tried offered good support and I appreciated the O-Fit insole, which is as good as many off-the-shelf orthotic insoles sold online. The shoe fit true to size and really didn't require any breaking in. It's also worth mentioning that it's mostly made out of recycled materials.
Reliefband
The Reliefband is designed to help people who suffer from motion sickness. It's available in a few different versions, and the company behind the product says each model "gently stimulates" the underside of your wrist with an electrical pulse. The technology is also cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. You do have to apply conductive gel to your wrist before you put on the Reliefband (a small tube is included), and some models allow you to wear the Reliefband and an Apple Watch at the same time with an optional band. You can also adjust the intensity settings.
I've used Reliefband on a couple of fishing trips, and it did work for me (I don't get terrible motion sickness, but I do typically get a little). The entry-level Reliefband 50 hours ($100) and Reliefband Flex ($180) have nonrechargeable batteries, while the Sport ($250) and Premier ($280) feature rechargeable ones.
Sena R2 Evo
Sena's smart bike helmets are a little heavier than your typical bike helmets, but they feature built-in speakers and a microphone, along with integrated Bluetooth communications. An intercom feature allows you to communicate with other riders in your group wearing compatible Sena helmets as if you're using walkie-talkies. There's also an LED taillight, and you can listen to music, make calls and hear GPS directions when you pair the helmet with your smartphone. If you are buying multiple helmets for your family or riding group, note that the step-up R2 Evo uses mesh communication for its intercom protocol, while the standard R2 uses long-range Bluetooth. Check the intercom interoperability before getting two different models.
