My 8 favorite Amazon gadgets

I love discovering the gizmos that I use every day

I love Amazon Prime Day just like I love Black Friday. I love a good deal. I hate paying full price and rarely do. I buy a lot of my everyday stuff on Amazon, but my favorite purchases are the gadgets I discover. These are things that I didn’t know I needed but end up using every day.

However, this is not a list of things on sale. It’s just the “holiday” and I’m sharing my favorite gizmos.

I’m writing this before Amazon Prime day, so I don’t know if these things will be discounted on July 12 and 13. I’ll update this page if they are.

*UPDATE: I changed the prices below for the gadgets that went on sale since I wrote this on Monday.

1. elago ear hooks for AirPods $9.99 $7.99 click here -on sale

2. Zyllion Shiatsu Back and Neck Massager $59.95 click here - on sale $49.25

3. Cube Timer $12.69 $9.90 click here

4. Portable charger with built-in cables $31.99 click here ($3 off coupon has to be clicked)

5. IPOW Stainless Steel Paper Clips $13.29 $10.63 click here

6. Anker Cordless Handheld Vacuum Cleaner $51.99 $35.99 click here

7. Shaker balls stainless steel (6 pcs) $5.46 click here

8. Owala FreeSip Clear Water Bottle with Straw 25oz $14.54 click here

I’ve listed them all here and then written below about why I love them.*

elago ear hooks for Airpods

I love Airpods but they just never stay in my ears, and I kept losing them until I found these plastic gizmos on Amazon for $7.99, and they work perfectly to keep the pods in my ears. I love them most often when I’m running because they keep such a tight grip to hear the music.

You slide the hooks on the bottom of the pod and then twist the hook over your ears. You have to take them on and off to put in the case, but I’ve gotten used to doing it. Somehow I never lose these tiny plastic hooks.

After two years of wearing them, they had gotten yellow. I saw Amazon had a new, more expensive version with the Elgo brand name. I wanted to upgrade so bought them for $9.99. Well, it turns out they were the exact same product in a better box for marketing. See this:

Zyllion Shiatsu Back and Neck Massager

I love this massager for my upper and lower back because the rotating balls really get into the knots. I’ve had it for years and use it most nights. I also use it on my hamstrings after a run.

I even took it in the car with me when I drove back from Texas to D.C. because it has a car charger. I actually drove with it powered on my back because sitting for that long was painful.

I’ve given it away as a gift many times because it’s like almost getting a real massage on your sofa.

Cube Timer

I struggle to have a sense of time, especially when I’m reading and writing. So I use this simple timer block to help me know when I’ve been at my desk too long and need a break.

It has 15-20-30-60 minutes set on each side. I flip on the 30 minutes and work until the alarm goes off and then flip to the 5-minute side for my stretch break.

I recently read about Pomodoro Timer and have been trying to follow that method to work in two hours blocks. Since I bought my cube, they’ve added a new one that has the 5 min/25 min segments, so I’m getting that next.

I also use the timer for things I do NOT want to do like cleaning. I’ll flip it to 15 or 20 minutes and start vacuuming and end up doing more than without it. I think the psychology is I don’t waste time dreading the task.

Portable charger with built-in cables

I take this thing everywhere with me because the cable is built into the charger for my iPhone. I never have to remember both pieces. It also has a cable for those things that charge with c cable. Plus it has a very long charging life.

I also carry my charger around my house and can charge my phone and my mini speakers and whatever else runs out of charge along the way. And I never need cables. It’s genius. I’ve used it for years.

As I’m writing this pre-sale, it says there’s a $3 off coupon to clip. But it always goes on deeper sale, so put it in your cart and Amazon will notify you next time it’s a better price.

IPOW 10 Pack 3 Inch Wide Stainless Steel Paper Clips

There are some days I use these stainless steel clips and think to myself, this is my favorite possession. And I’m talking about a clip that cost $1.30, which tells you much they make things feel better.

I used to hate those ugly, plastic “chip clips” to keep snacks and other kitchen bags closed. They were always dirty and ugly pastel colors.

I found these heavy-duty, stainless steel clips on Amazon and use them for everything. I use them in the kitchen for anything that needs a quick seal- salad bags, snacks, carrot bags. I use them instead of saran wrap on some square trays. I use them in the freezer too because they give such a good hold.

Once I had secured the clips all over my kitchen, I started using them in my office to clip together papers and packs of index cards. I even use them outside to secure bags of potting soil. They’re just so heavy and solid and make the littlest thing feel high quality.

eufy by Anker Cordless Handheld Vacuum Cleaner

After my last cordless vacuum cleaner died, I tried to replace it many times but I couldn’t find one that wasn’t ugly. I don’t know why these vacuum manufacturers think we want giant purple or red spaceship-looking vacuum cleaners charging in the corner of our rooms. I spent a long time using a regular vacuum for small messes just so I wouldn’t have one ugly one.

Then I discovered the beauty that is this Anker handheld vac. She looks so nice that I keep her on my counter. It’s sleek and disappears into the dark tile of my kitchen. She does a great job of vacuuming up crumbs and messes. There’s a cup on the end so it stands upright instead of laying on the floor. It charges by USB, and I’ve not yet cleaned so much that I ran out of charge. There is an attachment that makes cleaning upholstery much easier.

Since I bought mine, they came out with a white version that would look perfect against a white wall.

Shaker Balls stainless steel 6 PCS 2 inches

I spent a lot of time trying to find shaker bottles that weren’t ugly and not expensive. They don’t exist. Those ugly plastic bottles with the silver shaker inside can cost more than $20, and unless you wash it immediately, you need a few of them.

Finally, I found my system to have attractive plastic bottles with quality stainless steel shaker balls to make my mixes. This pack of six balls at Amazon was the key to my system. These stainless steel balls are 2” across and really well made. I put one in a bottle and carry it around with me.

I use them for electrolyte powder, pre-workout powder and even mixing drinks since they work so much better than the bar tools. The bottles for them are next…

Owala FreeSip Clear Water Bottle, 25-Ounce

The only plastic water bottles I use are Owala FreeSip Clear Water Bottle with Straw for Sports and Travel in 25-Ounce. The clear one with the green straw. This isn’t a gadget as much as a gizmo because of the “FreeSip spout” thingy that lets me sip instead of pouring all over my face. It also comes with a straw so I can actually sip like it’s a drink.

The shaker bottles fit inside perfectly, so I use these for the gym and anything outside when I want to add in my electrolyte mix. They easily go in the dishwasher, and I haven’t seen the plastic dull. I put the shaker balls on the top rack and on top of one of the spikes so they don’t fall through.

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I have a lot more gadgets of all types that I love, so if you’re interested, let me know in the comments and I’ll keep adding to the list. And check back on Amazon Prime Days to see if these things when on sale and I’ll update this at the top.

*I’m not sure if I need to do a disclosure or not, so I’m doing it to be on the safe side. If you’re reading this on the Substack website (not by email), then there may be affiliate links in the products listed. Affiliate links mean I get a small percentage back from Amazon for your purchase, like 2%-5%.

But Substack scrubs the links from its emails and possibly the website (it’s not entirely clear anywhere) because they want us to make money only from paid subscriptions — from which they get a cut. Their platform, their rules.

I use affiliate links when I post stuff I buy on social media since I already bought the product, so I might as well try to make a few bucks from the seller for my free advertising. I think the biggest check I got from Amazon was $26 for one month about a year ago. Most months I don’t make any money from links. Frankly, I think Substack should let writers use whatever they can to make more money because very few people on this platform are making a living from it, and I’m not one of them. End of full disclosure.