Technologies

I Was Not Ready for How Good These Early Black Friday Motorola Deals Are, Especially the Razr

Motorola makes some of the best Android smartphones on the market, and right now you can score them for as much as $500 off ahead of Black Friday.

Looking for a new smartphone? The holiday season is usually the best time to upgrade with incredible savings all around. This year, Motorola is kicking off early Black Friday sale with some of its biggest discounts for 2025. This Black Friday, you can save up to $500 off the full Razr lineup.

There’s more — we found major savings on Motorola’s Edge and Moto G families, too, making these deals a solid choice for everything from a stocking stuffer to a personal upgrade. Whether you want a premium foldable, a clean Android phone with smooth software, great battery life or just an affordable smartphone that covers the essentials, these discounts make it a lot easier to hit the purchase button.

Some of the biggest savings are to be had on the Razr family of phones. Right now, you can pick up the top of the line 1TB model of the Motorola Razr Ultra for just $999, knocking off $500 from the phone’s usual $1499 list price. That’s an impressive price drop for one of the most premium compact foldables on the market. Between the bright cover display that can handle full apps, and a high refresh rate main screen that folds with almost no crease, you can’t go wrong with the hardware. Similarly, the 512GB variant off the phone can be had for just $899.

Eyeing something a bit more affordable? The Motorola Razr Plus 2025 gives you a slim foldable phone for just $649. The Motorola Razr 2025 brings that price down even further to just $599 while keeping much of the same feature set.

Steeper savings can be had by opting in for Motorola’s bundles. For example, a $400 bundle nets you a Motorola Razr 2024, the Moto Watch Fit as well as the Moto Buds Plus. Put together, that’s a $400 in bonus value. Elsewhere, the Motorola Edge is getting a solid discount too. The Motorola Edge 2025 can be had for just $400, which gives you a bright curved display, fast charging and the same clean Android experience as the rest of the line up.

Looking for something even more budget friendly? The Moto G line up is what you are looking for. Holiday savings mean that you can snag the Moto G Stylus for just $300. That phone remains a top budget pick thanks to its unique features like a built-in stylus and a large display.If battery life is a priority, you’ll want to take a look at the Moto G Power 2025, currently discounted to just $199. And finally, if you need an entry-level smartphone for basic calling and texting, you can’t go wrong with the $150 Moto G 2025. Clearly there’s something for everyone.

And if you are on thelook out for more Black Friday deals on tech and beyond, CNET’s team is rounding up the best steals this holiday season on everything from headphones to Apple products and more. Don’t give it a miss.

MOBILE DEALS OF THE WEEK

Get an iPhone 17 Pro Free With Trade-in and Qualifying Plan at T-Mobile
Samsung Galaxy S25 FE 256GB Unlocked Phone (JetBlack):

$650 (save $60)
Google Pixel 9 128GB Unlocked Phone (Obsidian):

$499 (save $300)
OnePlus 13R 256GB Unlocked Phone (Nebula Noir):

$551 (save $50)
Motorola Edge 256GB Unlocked Phone (2024 Model, Midnight Blue):

$250 (save $300)

Deals are selected by the CNET Group commerce team, and may be unrelated to this article.

Why this deal matters

These are some of the best Motorola deals you will find this holiday season, and it covers everything from high-end foldables to ultra-affordable picks. If you’ve been thinking about upgrading your Android phone or gifting one, these Cyber Week savings go a long way toward making it easier to save before the holiday rush hits.

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Technologies

Quadrantids Is a Short but Sweet Meteor Shower Just After New Year’s. How to See It

This meteor shower has one of the most active peaks, but it doesn’t last for very long.

The Quadrantids has the potential to be one of the most active meteor showers of the year, and skygazers won’t have long to wait to see it. The annual shower is predicted to reach maximum intensity on Jan. 3. And with a display that can rival Perseids, Quadrantids could be worth braving the cold to see it.

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The show officially begins on Dec. 28 and lasts until Jan. 12, according to the American Meteor Society. Quadrantids is scheduled to peak on Jan. 2-3, when it may produce upwards of 125 meteors per hour. This matches Perseids and other larger meteor showers on a per-hour rate, but Quadrantids also has one of the shortest peaks at just 6 hours, so it rarely produces as many meteors overall as the other big ones.

The meteor shower comes to Earth courtesy of the 2003 EH1 asteroid, which is notable because most meteor showers are fed from comets, not asteroids. Per NASA, 2003 EH1 is a near-Earth asteroid that orbits the sun once every five and a half years. Science posits that 2003 EH1 was a comet in a past life, but too many trips around the sun stripped it of its ice, leaving only its rocky core. The Earth runs through EH1’s orbital debris every January, which results in the Quadrantids meteor shower.

How and where to see Quadrantids

Quadrantids is named for the constellation where its meteors appear to originate, a point known as the radiant. This presents another oddity, as the shower originates from the constellation Quadrans Muralis. This constellation ceased to be recognized as an official constellation in the 1920s and isn’t available on most publicly accessible sky maps.

For the modern skygazer, you’ll instead need to find the Bootes and Draco constellations, both of which contain stars that were once a part of the Quadrans Muralis. Draco will be easier to find after sunset on the evening of Jan. 2, and will be just above the horizon in the northern sky. Bootes orbits around Draco, but will remain under the horizon until just after 1 a.m. local time in the northeastern sky. From that point forward, both will sit in the northeastern part of the sky until sunrise. You’ll want to point your chair in that direction and stay there to see meteors.

As the American Meteor Society notes, Quadrantids has a short but active peak, lasting around 6 hours. The peak is expected to start around 4 p.m. ET and last well into the evening. NASA predicts the meteor shower to start one day later on Jan. 3-4, so if you don’t see any on the evening of Jan. 2, try again on Jan. 3.

To get the best results, the standard space viewing tips apply. You’ll want to get as far away from the city and suburbs as possible to reduce light pollution. Since it’ll be so cold outside, dress warmly and abstain from alcoholic beverages, as they can affect your body temperature. You won’t need any binoculars or telescopes, and the reduced field of view may actually impact your ability to see meteors.

The bad news is that either way, the Quadrantids meteor shower coincides almost perfectly with January’s Wolf Moon, which also happens to be a supermoon. This will introduce quite a lot of light pollution, which will likely drown out all but the brightest meteors. So, while it may have a peak of over 100 meteors per hour, both NASA and the AMS agree that the more realistic expectation is 10 or so bright meteors per hour.

Technologies

Today’s Wordle Hints, Answer and Help for Dec. 24, #1649

Here are hints and the answer for today’s Wordle for Dec. 24, No. 1,649.

Looking for the most recent Wordle answer? Click here for today’s Wordle hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Wordle puzzle is a little tricky, with a double letter that could confuse players. If you need a new starter word, check out our list of which letters show up the most in English words. If you need hints and the answer, read on.

Today’s Wordle hints

Before we show you today’s Wordle answer, we’ll give you some hints. If you don’t want a spoiler, look away now.

Wordle hint No. 1: Repeats

Today’s Wordle answer has one repeated letter.

Wordle hint No. 2: Vowels

Today’s Wordle answer has one vowel, but it’s the repeated letter, so you’ll see it twice.

Wordle hint No. 3: First letter

Today’s Wordle answer begins with S.

Wordle hint No. 4: Last letter

Today’s Wordle answer ends with L.

Wordle hint No. 5: Meaning

Today’s Wordle answer can refer to a cylindrical device upon which thread is wound.

TODAY’S WORDLE ANSWER

Today’s Wordle answer is SPOOL.

Yesterday’s Wordle answer

Yesterday’s Wordle answer, Dec. 23, No. 1648 was GLINT.

Recent Wordle answers

Dec. 19, No. 1644: MYRRH

Dec. 20, No. 1645: WHITE

Dec. 21, No. 1646: QUILT

Dec. 22, No. 1647: CONCH

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Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for Dec. 24, #457

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Dec. 24, No. 457.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition is a bit of a toughie, with a lot of proper nouns included. If you’re struggling but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but it does in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: What separates two entities.

Green group hint: Head to the mountains.

Blue group hint: Mitt makers.

Purple group hint: Kick it.