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Dreame’s L20 Ultra robovac is an unbeatable deal for $280

3 June 2026 at 15:53
Dreame L20 Ultra against a yellow background.
Dreame’s L20 Ultra robot vacuum can clean itself. | Image: The Verge

The Dreame L20 Ultra isn’t the company’s newest model, but it’s still a great robovac / mop hybrid that offers strong performance while requiring very little day-to-day maintenance thanks to its included trash bin and AI obstacle avoidance. Verge readers can get for its best-ever price right now. Originally $1,400 when it launched in 2023, it’s down to $279 from Wellbots with code L20VERGE.

What makes the L20 Ultra so great at this price is that it can do a lot on its own — so much more than other robovacs at this price point. The included base station automatically empties the vacuum’s dustbin, washes and dries the mop pads, and refills the robot’s water tank between cleaning sessions. The L20 Ultra also offers reliable AI-powered obstacle avoidance and can quickly map your home’s layout, meaning you don’t need to babysit it as it cleans. Thanks to its large dust bin, you can ignore it for up to 75 days without having to empty it yourself. 

The robovac does a good job of cleaning up carpets and hardwood floors alike, thanks to its 7,000Pa of suction power. What’s more, its dual oscillating mop pads extend when needed to clean along baseboards and in corners. It can lift the mop pads over carpets, or return to its base station to have them removed.

Of course, being a three-year-old robot vacuum, it lacks some of the upgrades found on newer models. For example, the $1,349.99 ($150 off) Dreame X60currently one of our favorite robovacs — offers a whopping 35,000Pa of suction, two rubber brushes, and a motorized swing arm that can climb over taller thresholds between rooms. Even without them, the L20 Ultra still offers a lot of premium features that aren’t typically offered at this price.

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Three more ways to save

  • Through July 16th at 2:59AM ET, Prime members who are new to Audible can get three months of Audible Standard for free, a savings of roughly $27 compared to paying the regular $8.99 monthly price. The plan gives you one credit to purchase a new audiobook each month from Audible’s vast library, which includes bestsellers and classics, and they’re yours to keep forever, even if you end the subscription. You’ll be renewed at the regular $8.99 per month price unless you cancel at the end of the promotional period.
  • Woot is selling the last-gen Bose Soundlink Flex portable Bluetooth speaker in refurbished condition for $69.99 with a one-year Bose warranty. That’s $80 less than its original retail price. The portable Bluetooth speaker isn’t all that different from the newer model, and can deliver surprisingly expansive sound quality for its size. It also boasts a rugged IP67-rated design for dust and water resistance, and it lasts up to 12 hours on a single charge. Its controls aren’t the most intuitive we’ve used, and it lacks support for higher-res AAC and aptX codecs, but we think those flaws are easy to overlook at this price.
  • You can buy two Ring Cam Indoor cameras for $49.98 (normally $99.98), making the second camera free, at Amazon. The wired 1080p cameras sport physical privacy covers that turn off audio and video recording. They also include an adjustable mount, a built-in siren, color night vision, and two-way talk. If you subscribe to a Ring Protect Plan, which starts at $4.99 a month per device, you’ll get notifications for people, packages, and vehicles, as well as access to recorded video history.

SwitchBot’s acquisition of Nanoleaf is about more than lighting

Nanoleaf has made a name for itself by developing smart color-changing LED lighting products, including wall panels, TV mirroring, and display cases. | Image: Nanoleaf

Smart lighting company Nanoleaf has been acquired by OneRobotics, the parent company of SwitchBot. In an exclusive interview with The Verge, Nanoleaf CEO Gimmy Chu says the company will remain independent and that he and his cofounder and COO, Christian Yan, will continue to run it. "Nothing is changing operationally," says Chu, adding that there are plans for product integrations between the two smart home companies.

The sale, which Chu characterized as "more of a merger," will provide Nanoleaf with significant resources, including a cash infusion that will, among other things, help the company grow its team at its Toronto headquarters. I …

Read the full story at The Verge.

Amazon's Mid-Year Sale has plenty of good cheap robovacs, but there are some models you should definitely avoid

A variety of robot vacuums are steeply discounted on Amazon right now, but it helps to know what to look for so you spend your money wisely, and I've picked four to help you get started.

Thermacell’s latest smart mosquito system is bigger and more expensive

Liv 2.0 is the next generation of Thermacell’s Wi-Fi-connected mosquito protection system. | Image: Thermacell

Thermacell has launched Liv 2.0, the next generation of its Wi-Fi-connected smart mosquito protection system. It features new hardware and can cover a larger area, and Thermacell says its formula can now deter no-see-ums. But it's also more expensive and requires professional installation.

Liv 2.0 uses the same setup as the original Liv - a central hub with a wired repeller system containing its metofluthrin-based repellent - but it features entirely new hardware. Pricing starts at about $1,746 for a system with three repellers, a six-pack of repellent refills, and coverage of up to 900 square feet. That's twice as much as the original, wh …

Read the full story at The Verge.

Smart light company Govee apologizes for “white supremacy” marketing imagery

27 May 2026 at 18:00

Smart lighting manufacturer Govee is apologizing after a pair of books showing only the words “white supremacy” were featured in a marketing image on its website.

The books were visible in an image (shown above) on Govee’s US website for bedroom lighting. Disturbingly, the books sat under toy animals on a shelf just above a child’s bed. Only the books’ spines were visible.

The Verge was the first to report on the controversy after a reader contacted the publication. The publication reported that it contacted Govee, which subsequently removed the image but didn’t respond to the site's queries before it published its initial report.

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IoT gadget maker AcuRite shares reasoning for killing customers’ favorite app

21 May 2026 at 23:26

AcuRite must kill its customers’ favorite companion app due to “obsolete technology," VP of product development Jeff Bovee tells Ars Technica.

AcuRite, which makes smart weather-monitoring devices, announced this month that the My AcuRite iOS and Android app that has been around since 2016 won’t be available after May 30. After that date, device owners must use AcuRite NOW, which AcuRite released in June 2025, to control their gadgets.

The announcement has frustrated long-time AcuRite users, largely because the new app lacks some of its predecessors' capabilities. For example, AcuRite NOW doesn’t allow renaming multiple temperature sensors, organizing on-screen sensors, or reporting temperatures as anything other than whole numbers (AcuRite says it's working on adding some of these features).

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© AcuRite

Smart light company Govee apologizes for “white supremacy” marketing imagery

27 May 2026 at 18:00

Smart lighting manufacturer Govee is apologizing after a pair of books showing only the words “white supremacy” were featured in a marketing image on its website.

The books were visible in an image (shown above) on Govee’s US website for bedroom lighting. Disturbingly, the books sat under toy animals on a shelf just above a child’s bed. Only the books’ spines were visible.

The Verge was the first to report on the controversy after a reader contacted the publication. The publication reported that it contacted Govee, which subsequently removed the image but didn’t respond to the site's queries before it published its initial report.

Read full article

Comments

© Govee

IoT gadget maker AcuRite shares reasoning for killing customers’ favorite app

21 May 2026 at 23:26

AcuRite must kill its customers’ favorite companion app due to “obsolete technology," VP of product development Jeff Bovee tells Ars Technica.

AcuRite, which makes smart weather-monitoring devices, announced this month that the My AcuRite iOS and Android app that has been around since 2016 won’t be available after May 30. After that date, device owners must use AcuRite NOW, which AcuRite released in June 2025, to control their gadgets.

The announcement has frustrated long-time AcuRite users, largely because the new app lacks some of its predecessors' capabilities. For example, AcuRite NOW doesn’t allow renaming multiple temperature sensors, organizing on-screen sensors, or reporting temperatures as anything other than whole numbers (AcuRite says it's working on adding some of these features).

Read full article

Comments

© AcuRite

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