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According to Time, these are the best consumer electronics you can buy
If anyone on your holiday shopping list is one of those "they already have everything, so what do you gift them" type people, maybe Time can help. It just released its annual Best Inventions list — and the Best Inventions of 2026 list includes 300 inventions, plus 100 special mentions, selected after nominations from Time editors, correspondents and outside applicants, and evaluated for originality, efficacy, ambition and impact. Consumer electronics gets its own section, spanning smartphones, laptops, cameras, audio gear and some category-defining accessories.
Some of the headliners are definitely not impulse buys — like Apple’s iPhone Duo, its first foldable iPhone (which opens for preorder tomorrow, Oct. 16, at 5 a.m. PT). Time also highlighted the Akai Pro MPC Live III, which puts an entire portable music studio into one touchscreen device, and GoPro’s tiny 8K Mission 1 Pro ILS, a cinema-quality camera you can take anywhere.
For gadget upgrades, consider the Lenovo ThinkPad P1 Gen 9, which has a first-of-its-kind high-density silicon-anode battery that can power an entire day of meetings, the impossibly thin "Wallpaper Series" LG OLED Evo AI W6 smart TV and Samsung’s privacy-minded Galaxy S26 Ultra. Or the dual-screen Asus Zenbook Duo or HP’s EliteBoard G1a Next Gen AI PC, which manages to put an entire computer inside a keyboard.
In this article: Anker Prime Charger, Brick and Clicks Power Keyboard
While many of the gadgets feel pretty aspirational, some solve everyday problems — and even come with price tags that are in reach for the average shopper. Those are the ones we've focused on below: Time-approved gadgets that are pretty realistic to add to your cart.
Time's best (and most affordable) consumer electronic inventions of 2026
Anker Prime Charger 23% OFF
Anker’s three-port Prime Charger delivers up to 160 watts total, with a single USB-C port capable of up to 140 watts on its own. Its built-in smart display shows real-time power distribution, and it offers touch controls and GaNPrime 2.0 technology for managing charging across all your devices.
Brick puts a physical step between you and distracting apps: Simply tap your phone to the device to activate a custom blocking mode, then tap again when you’re ready to restore access. The subscription-free system also lets you create different blocking modes for work, studying, family time or downtime.
Time highlighted Clicks’ universal Power Keyboard, and this option fits iPhones 17 and 17 Pro to offer tactile typing with a built-in physical keyboard and compatibility with magnetic wireless charging so you don't have to remove the case to use wireless chargers.
Fender’s Audio Mix headphones offer hybrid active noise cancellation, spatial audio and a modular design with unusually long battery life: up to 100 hours without ANC or up to 52 with it. The included USB-C transmitter also supports 96kHz/24-bit lossless audio and a low-latency mode for gaming.
Fosi Audio’s MD3 is designed as a high-strength magnetic panel that snaps to the back of your phone — no dangling dongles. It weighs just 50 grams, includes a 1.28-inch circular display, supports simultaneous USB-C charging and playback, and offers both 3.5-millimeter and 4.4-millimeter headphone outputs.
Fujifilm Instax Mini Evo Cinema
This Instax Mini Evo Cinema bundle includes Fujifilm’s hybrid instant camera, plus all the extras you need to start shooting and printing. It includes 20 sheets of Instax Mini instant film, a 32GB SD card and a USB card reader.
The XTEINK X4 Pro packs an e-reader into a 4.3-inch format with both touchscreen controls and physical buttons. Its adjustable front light can be adjusted to fit your reading conditions, and the 1,100mAh battery and magnetic charging support its compact design, which weighs just 2.5 ounces.
Nothing’s Ear 3A earbuds offer 45-decibel hybrid active noise cancellation, plus 12-millimeter drivers and six microphones. Their Audio Snapshot feature can save short clips of what you’re hearing, and they also offer call recording that can capture longer conversations or meetings directly through the earbuds.
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NotePin S is a wearable voice recorder built for meetings, interviews and other situations where taking notes can be distracting. It records, transcribes and summarizes speech through its companion app, supports 112 languages and comes with four wearable accessories, plus Find My support for locating the device if you misplace it.
UAG x DRYOUT Recovery Phone Pouch 14% OFF
UAG’s recovery pouch is designed for that awful moment after a phone or other small device gets soaked. Its reusable moisture-absorbing technology lives inside a lightweight polyester dry bag sized for items like phones, smartwatches, battery packs and key fobs, helping you save small electronics when disaster strikes.
Prices listed reflect time and date of publication and are subject to change.
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