It’s just $32.49 to fix your Switch’s Joy-Con drift with Hori’s Split Pad Compact

I love the Nintendo Switch’s Joy-Con, but they develop stick drift way too easily, and people with ham-sized hands like mine can’t play for long before cramps set in. They’re also pretty expensive to replace. I’ve personally settled on Hori’s Split Pad Pro Joy-Con replacements to remedy all of that, but it makes my Switch too bulky to fit comfortably in my smaller everyday carry. The Hori Split Pad Compact offer a nice balance between size, affordability, and added grip, and you can get a pair in white / yellow for only $32.49 (about $18 off) at Target.

The Split Pad Compact suffers from the same deficiencies as most third-party Joy-Con replacements: you’ll forsake rumble, NFC, and motion control, and you can’t use them individually as mini controllers. While those features are all nice, there’s no game in the Switch’s library of thousands that require them. The Split Pad Compact does have some tricks of its own, however, like programmable rear buttons and a turbo function.

Most of my friends swear by gaming headset brands like Turtle Beach and Astro, so much so they refuse to try anything else. That’s their loss — SteelSeries makes some of the most comfortable gaming headsets you can buy with their unique ski band comfort strap and thick ear padding. Plus, I think their 40mm drivers produce better sound than anything I’ve tried. That’s why I’m considering buying a second pair of the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless forXbox and PC, now down to $279.99 ($70 off) at SteelSeries when you use code GET20. You can also buy a set designed for PlayStation and PC for the same price using the same code.

The headset is pricey even after the discount, sure, but it may be the last pair you’ll need to buy for a long while. The base station has an OLED display with a dial that makes it easy to manage audio levels, chat mix, and customize the 10-band equalizer (you can also make adjustments directly from the headset). Perhaps my favorite feature is the integrated charging bay for the spare battery it ships with to swap batteries midgame. I find it much more convenient than any wired charging model.

If you buy the version designed for Xbox and PC, the base station allows it to work with nearly everything. You can connect it via USB to Xbox consoles for 2.4GHz wireless, and there’s a second USB port that lets you connect other systems like a PC or Nintendo Switch. With Bluetooth, you can add PlayStation and mobile devices into the mix. There are also line-in and line-out ports for mixing in other audio sources or streaming. The Arctis Nova Pro Wireless is even suitable for daily outdoor wear thanks to a sleek and unassuming design, a retractable noise-canceling microphone, and active noise cancellation with transparency mode.

Other tech deals you can’t miss

• Anker’s 533 10,000mAh power bank is $29.99 ($20 off) at Amazon. The 30W portable battery has two USB-C Power Delivery ports and a USB-A port, and there’s an integrated LED display that shows remaining battery level and estimated recharging time.
• The Ring Video Doorbell Plus is $119.99 ($30 off) at Amazon and Best Buy. We named it our best battery-powered video doorbell because it’s faster and more responsive than other battery-powered models we’ve tested, and with a $3.99 monthly subscription, you can tap into most of the same essential features that more substantial models offer, like motion and package detection, night vision mode, Alexa commands, and two-way audio. The battery needs recharging after a couple of months and it lacks pre-roll recording and animal / vehicle detection, but you can add premium functionality like local storage recording and 24/7 emergency response later with a Ring Alarm Pro Base Station ($249.99 at Amazon) and a Ring Protect Pro subscription (about $20 monthly).
• Lego Ideas’ Sonic the Hedgehog Green Hill Zone set is $59.99 ($20 off) at Best Buy. Once assembled, the 1,125-piece model depicts the loopy segment of the series’ iconic first stage, complete with collectible rings, hostile creatures, checkpoint markers, powerups, jump pads, Dr. Eggman in his Egg Mobile, seven Chaos Emeralds, and the speedy blue hedgehog himself. It’s a big assembly job that’s only recommended for adults.
• There’s a lot to like about the Mobvoi Ticwatch Pro 5, which is down to $277.49 (about $123 off) at Amazon. Victoria Song is The Verge’s wearable expert, and even at full price, she loves the 80-hour battery life afforded by the ultra-low power display (which takes over for OLED while it’s sleeping). The comprehensive assortment of health tracking and navigational features makes it our favorite fitness watch for Android. There’s also a digital crown that makes it easy to navigate the long list of preinstalled apps. We’re hoping Mobvoi eventually updates it to Wear OS 4 and adds missing features like Google Assistant. Read our review.
• Prime members can get a three-pack of Ugreen’s 6.6-foot 60W USB-C cables for $9.99 (about $6 off) at Amazon. Ugreen makes some of the best charging tech and most reliable cables you can buy, though this set isn’t using the durable nylon-braided wiring protection that’s become popular of late.