While moviegoing has fallen on hard times during the pandemic, home video viewing has soared. These days, most viewers like to stream their entertainment, but in a dystopian future where the internet is banned, you’ll be happy to have your favorite movies on physical media.

All kidding aside, with studios moving away from physical discs in favor of streaming, now is the best time to grab some of the wonderful 4K and Blu-ray editions that are circulating out there—featuring the kind of nifty packaging, special features/commentary and collectible pack-ins you won’t get from a digital download.

Below are our top thirty 4K and Blu-ray gift ideas that were released in 2020. Check out last year’s list, too, for many more good ones. Watch for price drops and deals on Ben’s in the coming weeks (set deal alerts here)!

Note: Links below are to Amazon (or Best Buy in some cases due to availability). Street prices are listed in parentheses.

Modern Classics on 4K

2020 continued to see restorations and reissues of modern classics from the ’70s, ’80s, ’90s and ’00s released on 4K.

1. The Mask of Zorro (1998): This fun romp starring Antonio Banderas, Anthony Hopkins and Catherine Zeta-Jones gets the 4K (HDR10) treatment with dazzling results. ($23)
2. Total Recall: 30th Anniversary (1990): Ahnuld and Sharon Stone go to Mars in this violent Paul Verhoeven sci-fi action thriller. ($18)
3. Jaws: 45th Anniversary Limited Edition (1975): Steven’s Spielberg’s opus to monster movies receives an impressive 4K facelift from the original camera negative. ($20)
4. 300 (2007): Meme-worthy and innovative, Zack Snyder’s Battle of Thermopylae gets thoroughly amped up on 4K (HDR10) and Dolby Atmos. ($25)
5. Beverly Hills Cop (1984): Eddie Murphy solidified his place in the Hollywood firmament with this genre-busting comedy that shattered box office records. ($20)
6. Gladiator / Braveheart 2-Movie Collection (2000/1995): These two epics were separately released on 4K in 2018, but get the value combo treatment in 2020. ($28)
7. Mad Max (1979): The original post-apocalyptic action thriller established Mel Gibson as a worldwide star and over 40 years later gets a 4K Dolby Vision HDR upgrade. ($40)
8. The Hunt for Red October (1990): The late, great Sean Connery stars as a Russian sub commander in the best Tom Clancy adaptation yet made and never loses his Scottish burr. Deal with it. ($28)
9. Top Gun (1986): This 1980s time machine stars Tom Cruise in his superstar-making vehicle, while director Tony Scott’s inimitable style has never looked better in 4K. ($15)

Gift Sets

Gift sets are for the super fan who wants everything, but they will definitely leave a dent in the wallet.

10. The Office: The Complete Series (34-Disc Blu-ray): You can follow The Office from Netflix to Peacock in January 2021, or you can just own the whole series outright on Blu-ray. What say you?! ($112)
11. Game of Thrones: The Complete Collection (33-Disc 4K+Digital): Fans will be blown away by how good the series looks on a physical format (vs. streaming), whether or not they liked the final season. ($195)
12. Back to the Future: The Ultimate Trilogy (7-Disc 4K+Blu-ray+Digital): Go back in time with Marty and Doc in a souped-up 4K restoration (HDR10, Dolby Vision, HDR10+) with some new bonus features like the “Lost Audition Tapes.” ($40)
13. Bugs Bunny 80th Anniversary Collection (3-Disc Blu-ray+Digital): 60 Bugs Bunny animated theatrical shorts are included (30 of which have never been released on Blu-ray or DVD), plus a new “doc” (digital only) and a Bugs Bunny Funko figure. ($73)
14. The Lord of the Rings Motion Picture Trilogy (Extended & Theatrical, 9-Disc 4K+Digital): LOTR on 4K, it doesn’t get much better than this. Well, until summer 2021 when the Ultimate Collector’s Edition comes out. Hey, at least it’s not Star Wars on home video… ($90) Also available with a replica of The One Ring in a fancy book-style Collector’s Gift Set. ($150)
15. Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga (27-Disc 4K+Blu-ray+Digital): Star Wars on 4K, it doesn’t get much better than this. Wait, the original theatrical cuts of the OT are not included? Sigh… here we go again. ($200)
16. The Flintstones: The Complete Series (10-Disc Blu-ray): All 166 episodes of prime time’s first animated series are included in vibrant full 1080p HD. ($61)

Cult Classics & Genre Gems

Thanks to passionate fans, these special home video releases saw the light of day.

17. The Last Starfighter: Special Edition (Blu-ray): Arrow Video restored this beloved 1984 sci-fi movie from a 4K scan, and threw in a bunch of new extras, including commentary with Lance Guest.
18. The Goonies (4K+Blu-ray+Digital): Spielberg produced this Gen-X childhood favorite about treasure hunting kids in Oregon. ($25) Also available with collectibles in a Special Edition Gift Box. ($50)
19. Popeye (Blu-ray+Digital): This very underrated 1980 musical, starring Robin Williams as the titular comic character and Shelley Duvall as Olive Oyl, is finally being released on Blu-ray. ($10)
20. The Godfather Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone (Blu-ray+Digital): Director Francis Ford Coppola got the go-ahead to recut 1990’s much-maligned Godfather Part III to closer approximate author Mario Puzo’s original vision. ($17)
21. Flash Gordon: Limited Edition (4K+Blu-ray): Flash, ah-ahhh! You remember the Queen song, and the rest is… well, interesting. Nonetheless, it underwent an extensive restoration under supervision of director Mike Hodges. ($20) Also available with collectibles in a Limited Edition Box Set. ($40)

Golden Age Movies in 4K

These classical Hollywood pictures got brand-new life in beautiful 4K restorations.

22. Spartacus (2-Disc 4K+Blu-ray+Digital): After a long wait, the spectacular 4K restoration of Stanley Kubrick’s 1960 epic is finally seen on 4K disc (HDR10, Dolby Vision) in the film’s original 3+ hour running time. ($18)
23. Columbia Classics 4K Ultra HD Collection: Volume 1 (17-Disc 4K+Blu-ray+Digital): Includes Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Dr. Strangelove, Gandhi, A League of Their Own, Jerry Maguire and most notably, for the first time on 4K disc, David Lean’s masterpiece Lawrence of Arabia. ($165)
24. The Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection (8-Disc 4K+Blu-ray+Digital): Includes 4 of Hitch’s most well-known Hollywood pictures for the first time on 4K—Rear Window, Vertigo, Psycho (2 versions) and The Birds—all in a collectible digibook.

New Releases in 4K

Tenet is the one “new release” on this list that actually debuted in theaters in 2020. The rest are from 2019, but the home video versions were released this year.

25. 1917: Winner of the 2020 Golden Globes for best motion picture (drama), this showy “single take” WWI epic can also stand in as your 4K reference disc. ($18)
26. Tenet: Acclaimed director Christopher Nolan’s cerebral sci-fi thriller hit theaters during a pandemic but will undoubtedly find new life on home video. ($30)
27. John Wick: Chapters 1-3: The individual movies have been previously released on 4K, but now all you John(ny)-Come-Latelys can get the value combo pack. ($28)
28. Jumanji: The Next Level: The totally unnecessary sequel to 2017’s surprise hit Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle is still a mostly fun movie when it focuses on the four main leads. ($20)
29. Ford v. Ferrari: Director James Mangold captures the visceral excitement of race car driving in the 1960s, and the fantastic Dolby Atmos soundtrack is a treat. ($15)
30. Frozen II: Regardless of whether it lived up to its high expectations, this sequel is still a hit with kids and the 4K transfer is beautiful to behold. ($20)

Check Ben’s for the latest 4K & Blu-ray deals

2020 Gift Guide: Top 30 4K & Blu-ray Gifts for Movie and TV Fans

2020: A year of seismic changes. But in the world of TVs, it was a year of incremental change. 8K TVs haven’t made much inroads in the consumer market—content is very sparse and prices haven’t dropped appreciably to justify their expense. I don’t recommend an 8K TV, especially when 4K prices keep going lower and lower and, hey, 16K is already here (seriously).

If you get in lost in the technical TV jargon like full array local dimming (FALD), HDMI 2.1, refresh rate, input lag, mini-LED, QLED and so on, just remember there’s really only one thing you should know, and it is this: LG OLEDs have the best picture quality, period.

Yes, OLED TVs cost more, but if you want to be totally happy with how your TV looks, buy OLED. This year, Vizio jumped onto the OLED bandwagon and will have a 55-inch model (#2 below) on sale for under $900 at Best Buy this Black Friday (page 5 of the ad).

While OLED again leads our list of favorite TVs, there are other outstanding displays that have excited Ben’s editors and visitors alike in 2020. Our top choices this year are all 4K HDR Smart TVs with capable, even outstanding, Smart TV platforms, reducing the need for set-top streamers.

Plus, if you’re in the market for next-gen consoles like the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, you will find excellent TV counterparts for them below. (Low input lag is your friend!)

Most importantly, we expect to see big discounts on these TVs over the course of the month-long Black Friday deals this year, so be sure to set deal alerts!

LG CX Series 4K HDR Smart OLED TV (2020)

The LG OLED TVs have been on this list year after year because they boast the best black level of any TV on the market, and the CX Series continues that tradition of excellence. Everyone from CNET to RTINGS heaps praise on this TV.

Pros: Amazing picture, and the price is lower than its predecessor—the 2019 C9 Series OLED. Low input lag for gaming. Supports FreeSync. webOS is an excellent Smart TV platform. Cheaper price compared to previous years, with holiday discounts nudging it closer to the step-down BX series. Excellent remote.

Cons: Still expensive. No longer has DTS support. A small, but possible, risk of burn-in (shared by all OLEDs).

Starts at $1400 @ Amazon Check Deals on Ben’s

Vizio OLED Series 4K HDR Smart OLED TV (2020)

Vizio’s OLED Series is their first OLED TV, and it doesn’t disappoint. It has some nifty features, like supporting 4K gaming at 120 FPS, and the slick design belies its budget label.

Pros: Great price for OLED. During Black Friday week at Best Buy, the 55-inch will go down to $899! Low input lag for gaming. Variable refresh rate.

Cons: Not as bright as the LG OLED. A small, but possible, risk of burn-in (shared by all OLEDs).

Starts at $1300 @ Best Buy Check Deals on Ben’s

Sony BRAVIA X900H Series 4K HDR Smart LED TV (2020)

The Sony X900H Series is among the best LED panel TVs currently on the market. It meets all the expectations of discriminating Sony fans and will definitely complement this fall’s hotly anticipating gaming console, the PlayStation 5.

Pros: This model has won a lot of praise for its fantastic non-OLED picture and great HDR performance. Sports the sleek, high-end Sony design aesthetic. Features HDMI 2.1 support. Gamer (and PS5) friendly: low input lag and HDMI will support 4K @ 120 fps via firmware update.

Cons: Premium Sony price tag. No HDR10+.

Starts at $998 @ Amazon Check Deals on Ben’s

Samsung Q80T Series 4K HDR Smart QLED TV (2020)

Samsung’s mid-range Q80T Series acts very much like its flagship sibling the Q90T, but is a much better deal. Its fantastic Smart TV platform (Tizen) has a new feature that allows you to cast your phone side-by-side with the main TV image.

Pros: Fantastic option for gamers: very low input lag, fast response time and support for AMD FreeSync.

Cons: Design is average. No Dolby Vision.

Starts at $850 @ Amazon Check Deals on Ben’s

Hisense H8G Quantum Series 4K HDR Smart ULED TV (2020)

The Hisense H8G Series is feature-rich but at a much lower price than sets from the big names like LG, Sony and Samsung. Plus, it sports a stunning design with “barely there” bezels.

Pros: Budget pricing but still has full array local dimming, Quantum dots, Dolby Vision HDR and Dolby Atmos. Uses Android TV, same as in Sony models. Low input lag for gaming.

Cons: Viewing angles not great. No DTS support.

Starts at $430 @ Best Buy Check Deals on Ben’s

TCL 6 Series (R635) 4K HDR Smart Mini-LED QLED TV (2020)

TCL has been a leader in budget TVs for several years, and the new TCL 6 Series (R635) does not disappoint in terms of both price and performance. It is also a delight for fans of Roku, which is still the most user-friendly Smart TV platform.

Pros: Cutting edge “Mini-LED” technology for great contrast/brightness. Roku remote with voice search. THX game mode. Plenty of local dimming zones.

Cons: Viewing angles not great.

Starts at $650 @ Best Buy Check Deals on Ben’s

Samsung The Sero 4K HDR Smart QLED TV (2020)

You have to give Samsung credit for innovating where other manufacturers play it safe. Samsung’s Frame TVs have passionate fans, and now the company has introduced The Sero, which is basically a regular 4K TV that sits on a rotating stand. It seems like its high price tag has gone entirely into the stand, but for some heavy social media users, this feature just might find a niche in the years to come. We will see…

Pros: When you need TikTok or Instagram on a 43-inch display. The TV will auto-rotate (depending on the app). There’s also a “rotate” button on the remote.

Cons: Expensive for its size, but we’ve already seen The Sero as low as $1K on Amazon. No Dolby Vision. No local dimming. No Ethernet. Picture quality is just OK compared to others in its price range. Dependent on a smartphone to maximize the gimmickry, and not surprisingly, Samsung phones work better with it than iPhones.

Starts at $1700 @ Amazon Check Deals on Ben’s

Check Ben’s for the latest TV deals

2020 Gift Guide: These Are Some Of Our Favorite TVs

Ahhh… it’s that time of year. Awkward family gatherings, chestnuts roasting on an open fire, shopping for TVs…

TVs have long been the centerpiece of Black Friday and holiday sales. Their big flickering displays have the wow factor and people love to (literally) fight over them.

What is it about the venerable TV that bedazzles us after so many decades? Is it the 4K, 8K, HDR, HLG, HDMI 2.1, 120Hz, OLED, QLED, Ultra HD, Smart LED alphabet soup that seems to grows every year?

Whatever it is, TVs are one of our favorite product categories on Ben’s, and if you must pick just one alphabet soup feature, then pick OLED. OLED is the best TV panel on the market, and because it’s so good, we have two LG OLED TVs on our list this year.

Now let’s take a look at our top 10 favorite TVs of 2019. Watch for price drops and deals on Ben’s in the coming weeks (set deal alerts here)!

Best of the Best

That’ll Do Nicely

Penny Pinchers

First on the Block

Check Ben’s for the latest TV deals

2019 Gift Guide: Our Top 10 Favorite TVs

Smartphones are the most rapidly evolving space in the consumer tech world these days. It’s always, but…what’s around the corner?

2020 will be the year of the foldable phone (for reals this time), so you’ll need to wait a little longer. Sure, the $1,980 Galaxy Fold crashed and burned, but smartphone makers seem determined to get it right. The just-announced next-gen Motorola Razr is on the horizon at a cool $1,500 (pre-orders begin December 26), and yes, shockingly, the Galaxy Fold 2 is rumored to appear next year. Even Apple may join the fold (sorry).

5G is also on the near horizon, with the next slate of iPhones rumored to have it. The soon-to-be-announced Samsung Galaxy 11 is expected to have a screen with no bezels. That’s right, just a floating display in your hand! Plus, you will see crazy high display resolutions on flagship phones across the board.

For now, we must make do with the current technology in smartphones, and we’ve seen some great advances, especially on the camera side. Black Friday will make that “bitter” pill easier to swallow since it’s definitely the best time to buy a phone.

As in previous years, many retailers, like Walmart, Target and Costco, will be offering huge gift cards for popular phone purchases. Walmart will give away $450 gift cards for the Galaxy S10, S10+ or Note 10+ and $300 gift cards for the iPhone 11, 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max. See our Black Friday ads for more details!

Now let’s check out what smartphones wowed us in 2019… and won’t go obsolete in 2 months. Watch for price drops and deals on Ben’s in the coming weeks (set deal alerts here)!

The Big Kahunas

People Pleasers

Penny Pinchers

Niche Bros.

2019 Gift Guide: The 10 Best Smartphones of the Season

The humble budget laptop is one of our favorite and most popular product categories on Ben’s. While it’s still the rule that laptops under $500 are meant for light work and casual web use and not heavy gaming, Photoshop or huge spreadsheets, some things have improved in this space over the years. All of the budget laptops on this year’s list have full HD (or better) display resolution, and all have flash storage rather than the traditional hard disk drive. You won’t see any chunky cheap machines here, either: all of these laptops measure at or under 0.8-inches thin and weigh at or under 4 lbs.

Because manufacturers are managing to squeeze more premium features into budget laptops every year, only 2 laptops from 2018 made this list. The rest were released in 2019.

It still remains true that choosing an AMD processor (vs. Intel) and/or Chrome OS (vs. Windows) saves you money. AMD’s Ryzen chips have received a lot of praise in the last couple years, and Chrome OS has gotten better with age. AMD processors and Chromebooks are definitely your best options to get the most bang for your buck.

Most of the Windows laptops on this list are running the streamlined Windows 10 Home in S Mode, which only allows you to use apps from the Microsoft Store. That sounds annoying and inconvenient, but it’s free and fairly easy to switch to standard Windows 10 Home (details here).

Now let’s take a look at our top ten favorite laptops under $500 for 2019. Watch for price drops and deals on Ben’s in the coming weeks (set deal alerts here)!

Windows Laptops

Chromebook Laptops

2019 Gift Guide: Our 10 Favorite Laptops Under $500

Are we in the twilight of physical media? It seems so: the MPAA reported earlier this year that sales of discs have dropped 50% over the past 5 years, while DVD (gasp) still accounts for nearly 60% of all disc sales worldwide… with 4K Blu-ray at a piddling 5.3%. Yikes! Plus, Samsung dropped out of producing new 4K Blu-ray players… and we’re starting to see digital-only 4K releases for catalog titles like Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and Lawrence of Arabia.

Meanwhile, this year saw the introduction of streaming services from big hitters like Disney and Apple, joining an already crowded field filled with Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, CBS, Paramount and more. Even boutique label Criterion now has a streaming service. HBO is coming out with a beefed-up new service called HBO Max that will be WarnerMedia’s spearhead into the streaming wars. The studios are betting big on digital media, the new cash cow.

If you’re a home theater enthusiast, you know physical media still offers the very best in picture and sound. We probably won’t ever see 8K on disc, but studios will continue to make these discs if fans like you keep buying them. Criterion and Scream Factory are still producing titles loaded with bonus features, and retailers like Best Buy and Target are selling “exclusives” like SteelBook editions and special gift sets like the epic MCU Infinity Saga set (see below).

And now, without further ado, here are our top thirty 4K and Blu-ray gift ideas this year. Watch for price drops and deals on Ben’s in the coming weeks (set deal alerts here)!

Lavish Box Sets

The Big Bang Theory: The Complete Series Limited Edition

All 279 episodes of Sheldon, Leonard and friends plus 12 hours of bonus footage, collector’s pop-up book and episode guide. [Blu-ray + Digital] 11/12

($200) $180 | Buy on Amazon

The Infinity Saga Collector’s Edition

All 23 movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, from Iron Man (2008) to Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019) are collected here in this individually numbered mega box set, exclusive to Best Buy. [4K + Blu-ray + Digital] 11/15

$550 | Buy at Best Buy

Scooby-Doo Where Are You! The Complete Series 50th Anniversary Limited Edition

Includes all 41 episodes of the original cartoon show that premiered back in 1969, plus a 32-page encyclopedia and Pocket Pop! vinyl figure keychain. [Blu-ray + Digital]

($90) $70 | Buy on Amazon

Godzilla: The Showa Era Films (1954-1975)

Criterion has collected all 15 original Godzilla films from the Showa era in this 8-disc set, stuffed with the usual bevy of new interviews and special features, plus a hardcover book.[Blu-ray]

($165) $112 | Buy on Amazon

 

Twin Peaks: From Z to A

The entire Twin Peaks universe is here on 21 discs: the original 1990s series, the 2017 Limited Event series, the movie Fire Walk with Me plus its deleted scenes The Missing Pieces. Other goodies include bonus features, 5 x 5 printed cards and die-cut acrylic figure. [Blu-ray + Digital] 12/10

($156) $133 | Buy on Amazon

  

Monty Python’s Flying Circus: The Complete Series: Norwegian Limited Edition

Years in the making, this 7-disc set is a meticulous, uncut HD restoration of the entire original Monty Python’s Flying Circus sketch comedy show that first aired on BBC in 1969.[Region-free Blu-ray]

($140) $115 | Buy on Amazon

New Release Hits

 

Alita: Battle Angel

This imaginative and innovative “cyberpunk” adventure from Robert Rodriguez and James Cameron is based on the 1990s Japanese manga series of the same name. [4K + Blu-ray 3D + Blu-ray + Digital] or [Blu-ray + Digital]

$27 | 4K on Amazon$20 | Blu-ray on Amazon

 

Avengers: Endgame

Marvel wraps up the saga with a 3-hour panoply of every single character in the MCU, tear-jerking moments, goofy humor and big budget CGI. [4K + Blu-ray + Digital] or [Blu-ray + Digital]

$29 | 4K on Amazon$24 | Blu-ray on Amazon

 

John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum

Keanu Reeves embellishes his Charles Bronson / Liam Neeson vengeance phase in this violent saga that’s captured audiences worldwide. [4K + Blu-ray + Digital] or [Blu-ray + DVD + Digital]

$24 | 4K on Amazon$18 | Blu-ray on Amazon

 

Joker

Joaquin Phoenix’s original performance as the titular Batman villain has already generated Oscar buzz in this semi-homage to gritty 1970s movies like Taxi Driver. [4K + Blu-ray + Digital] or [Blu-ray + Digital] 12/17

$30 | 4K on Amazon$25 | Blu-ray on Amazon

 

Spider-Man: Far From Home

Feeling a bit like a fun diversion after the doom and gloom of Endgame, this second MCU Spidey outing has a clever villain and inventive set pieces. Also, audiences were introduced to Night Monkey (aka Spidey’s stealth suit)! [4K + Blu-ray + Digital] or [Blu-ray + DVD + Digital]

$20 | 4K on Amazon$19 | Blu-ray on Amazon

 

Once Upon A Time In… Hollywood

Quentin Tarantino’s “love letter” to Hollywood has major Oscar buzz and gets an extra 20 minutes of additional scenes as bonus. [4K HDR + Blu-ray + Digital] or [Blu-ray + DVD + Digital] 12/10

$28 | 4K on Amazon$25 | Blu-ray on Amazon

 

Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse

Late last year, Sony Pictures released an “alternate” non-MCU animated take on Spider-Man that quickly shot onto the short lists of people’s favorite superhero movie of all time. It also revived the long-lost Spider-Ham who originally appeared in the 1980s. [4K + Blu-ray + Digital] or [Blu-ray + DVD + Digital]

$19 | 4K on Amazon$13 | Blu-ray on Amazon

 

Chernobyl

HBO released this 5-episode miniseries depicting the events surrounding the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear reactor disaster to near universal acclaim from critics and audiences alike. [Blu-ray + Digital]

$35 | Buy on Amazon

Anniversaries & Restorations

 

It’s a Wonderful Life (4K Restoration)

The original 35mm camera negative of Frank Capra’s 1946 Christmastime classic was scanned in 4K for this meticulous restoration, which also has a featurette about Paramount’s restoration work. [4K HDR + Blu-ray + Digital]

$20 | 4K on Amazon

 

The Wizard of Oz: 80th Anniversary Edition (8K Restoration)

Warner newly scanned the original Technicolor camera negative in 8K resolution for the 80th anniversary with additional digital restoration. [4K HDR + Blu-ray + Digital]

$23 | 4K on Amazon

 

Moon: 10th Anniversary Edition (4K Restoration)

Moon is one of the best sci-fi movies of the 21st century, and for its 10th anniversary, the original camera negative was scanned in 4K with visual effects upsampled from the original 2K. [4K + Blu-ray + Digital]

$18 | 4K on Amazon

 

The Karate Kid: 35th Anniversary (4K Restoration)

Sony spruced up this ’80s classic and pop culture phenomenon, scanning the original camera negative in 4K and adding some new interviews with surviving cast members. [4K + Blu-ray + Digital]

$19 | 4K on Amazon

 

Gremlins: 35th Anniversary Edition (4K Restoration)

Another ’80s pop culture phenomenon gets the 4K treatment, with Warner scanning the original camera negative in 4K. [4K HDR + Blu-ray + Digital]

$22 | 4K on Amazon

 

Alien: 40th Anniversary Edition (4K Restoration)

For its 40th anniversary, the original theatrical version of this terrifying sci-fi classic was scanned in 4K, plus the 2003 Director’s Cut (in non-native 4K) is available via seamless branching. [4K HDR + Blu-ray + Digital]

$15 | 4K on Amazon

Apocalypse Now Final Cut: 40th Anniversary Edition (4K Restoration)

Francis Ford Coppola’s Vietnam fever dream was treated to a year-long restoration, with the camera negative scanned in 4K plus a new Dolby Atmos sound mix. Coppola oversaw this “Final Cut,” removing 20 minutes from 2001’s “Redux,” which is included here along with the original theatrical cut. [4K HDR + Blu-ray + Digital]

$23 | 4K on Amazon

 

Glory: 30th Anniversary Edition (4K Restoration)

One of the finest war movies ever made, this 1989 civil war story was remastered in 4K from the original camera negative. [4K HDR + Blu-ray + Digital]

$21 | 4K on Amazon

 

War and Peace (2K Restoration)

Boasting a cast of literally thousands, this Soviet-era equivalent of Gone with the Wind, Ben-Hur and Lawrence of Arabia rolled into one required over 10 years of painstaking restoration, assembling multiple partial negatives into the final 2K form. [Blu-ray]

$28 | Blu-ray on Amazon

Family Time

 

The Lion King (2019)

It’s been 25 years since Disney’s original Lion King ruled the box office to the tune of $1 billion, and this CGI remake surpassed the original’s box office take in less than 3 weeks. [4K + Blu-ray + Digital] or [Blu-ray + DVD + Digital]

$26 | 4K on Amazon$25 | Blu-ray on Amazon

 

How to Train Your Dragon: Hidden World

The story of young Hiccup the Viking and his pet dragon Toothless reaches its satisfying conclusion in this popular and well-made series from DreamWorks Animation. [4K + Blu-ray + Digital] or [Blu-ray + DVD + Digital]

$13 | 4K on Amazon$15 | Blu-ray on Amazon

 

The Secret Life of Pets 2

In unlikely casting, Harrison Ford plays his first-ever animated voice role in this sequel from Illumination, the same animation company that did the Despicable Me movies. [4K + Blu-ray + Digital] or [Blu-ray + DVD + Digital]

$28 | 4K on Amazon$21 | Blu-ray on Amazon

 

Shazam!

DC Films finally took a lighthearted approach to one of its comic book characters and it paid off, with Zachary Levi (“Chuck”) playfully chewing the scenery (and gum) in the title role. [4K + Blu-ray + Digital] or [Blu-ray + DVD + Digital]

$22 | 4K on Amazon$15 | Blu-ray on Amazon

 

Toy Story 4

9 years after Toy Story 3 (and 24 years after the original), Pixar once again brought its Midas touch to the franchise, but not without upsetting some viewers with its story choices. [4K + Blu-ray + Digital] or [Blu-ray + DVD + Digital]

$29 | 4K on Amazon$24 | Blu-ray on Amazon

Check the latest Ultra HD / Blu-ray deals on Ben’s

2019 Gift Guide: Top 30 4K & Blu-ray Gifts for Movie and TV Fans

While expensive tech toys like the Nintendo Switch and PS4 Pro always get lots of attention, there are a ton of awesome tech gifts that won’t bust your budget. We have put together a list of ten of the best gadgets under $100 that will keep your holiday spending to a minimum.

Buy This Gift for Someone That Loves Star Wars

The price on the Sphero BB-8 droid has fallen considerably since the release a few years ago. You can find the version with the Force Band as low at $40. The Force Band connects via Bluetooth and lets you control the Sphero Star Wars BB-8 droid using arm/wrist gestures instead of an app. (Alt. Option: BB-9E in black)

MSRP: $130 | Lowest Price on Ben’s: $40

Search Amazon for BB-8

Buy This Gift for Someone That’s an Amazon Prime Member

The 3rd gen Amazon Echo Dot (our full review) packs quite a punch for smart home voice control as well as multi-room music streaming and a whole-home intercom system. Beyond all that, call out “Alexa” and you can tell it to play music, check the weather, order items on Amazon or a huge number of smart home features assuming you have accompanying hardware.

MSRP: $50 | Lowest Price on Ben’s: $24 (You can also find the 2nd gen on sale for $20)

Check Price on Amazon

Buy This Gift for an Old-School, Retro Gamer

While the Switch is a fantastic console for new Nintendo games, you can hop in a time machine to take you back to the late 80’s with the Super NES Classic system. Updated with an HDMI port, the Super NES Classic comes preloaded with 21 games built-into the system. No need for blowing on cartridges anymore! (Alt. Option: PlayStation Classic for $99)

MSRP: $80 | Lowest Price on Ben’s: $80

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Buy This Gift for Someone That’s Really into Virtual Reality

While VR headsets like the Oculus can set you back hundreds of dollars, you can get into VR inexpensively with the Samsung Gear VR. Combined with a Samsung Galaxy smartphone, this cheap headset lets you play games or watch video content in apps like Netflix and Hulu in complete privacy. 

MSRP: $100 | Lowest Price on Ben’s: $20  (You can also find the 2017 version under $100, refurb for $65)

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Buy This Gift for Someone Who Loves to Watch Netflix & Hulu

Updated for 4K televisions, the Chromecast Ultra is a $69 HDMI dongle that plugs into your HDTV and allows you to stream 4K video content from your iOS or Android smartphone or tablet as well as computers. It’s significantly faster than the basic 1080p model and supports tons of great streaming video services like Netflix, YouTube, Google Play, Hulu, Pandora, HBO GO,  Showtime Anytime, Spotify, Plex and Starz Play. (Alternative option: Fire TV 4K stick can be found for $50.)

MSRP: $69 | Lowest Price on Ben’s: $49

Check Ben’s for Chromecast Deals

Buy This Gift for Someone Who Travels With Family Constantly

But, wait, more dongles! The SanDisk Connect Wireless Stick is basically a twist on the standard USB storage drive. Specifically, the device doubles as a wireless network drive compatible with Android and iOS devices. In other words, you could stream high definition video content to multiple devices in an area that doesn’t have Wi-Fi. This would be perfect for a family on a flight or an extended car ride, for instance.

MSRP: $100 | Lowest Price on Ben’s: $40 for 128GB version

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Buy This Gift for Someone Who Loves Shooting Smartphone Video

Ideal for anyone that’s trying to get a YouTube channel off the ground, the Ampridge MightyMic S shotgun microphone significantly reduces background noise when shooting in noisy areas. This type of mic is ideal for action shots, basically anything that will require quick movements with the camera. (If you are shooting interviews on the go, consider the Rode smartLav+ Lavalier  microphone.)

MSRP: $99 | Lowest Price on Ben’s: $45

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Buy This Gift for Someone Who Loves to Work Out

There’s no reason that you should be physically tethered to your mobile device by a headphone jack in 2018. Resistant to water and sweat, the Skullcandy Ink’d Bluetooth Wireless Earbuds with Mic offer 8 hours of playback on a single charge and include volume / playback controls along the sports band as well as a microphone for voice calls.

MSRP: $50 | Lowest Price on Ben’s: $30

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Buy This Gift for Someone That Isn’t Great with Wi-Fi Tech

Taking all the worry out of setting up a Wi-Fi network for the home, the Securifi Almond includes a touchscreen that walks someone through the process of setting up wireless access. Installation only takes a few minutes and all security settings are pre-configured to avoid open network issues. For anyone more familiar with home networks, it also doubles as an excellent Wi-Fi range extender if you are having trouble using Wi-Fi on the opposite side of your home. (Alt Option: TP-Link Router with Touchscreen)

MSRP: $99 | Lowest Price on Ben’s: $65

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Buy This Gift for Someone Who Loves to Read

The standard Amazon Kindle got a boost last year and is still a solid choice for a starter e-reader. It continues to receive positive praise due to the ability to read books in sunlight as well as its storage capacity. You can easily load up 1,000+ books on the device and take your entire library with you while on the go.

MSRP: $79 | Lowest Price on Ben’s: $50

Check Amazon for Basic Kindle

2018 Tech Gifts: Best Gadgets Under $100

When done right, the stocking can be one of the best parts of Christmas. There’s just something wonderful about digging into a packed stocking to find the nearly endless stream of gifts stuffed into that giant sock. With that in mind, here are a few stocking stuffer gift ideas for every type of person on your list.

Buy This Gift for the Burger-Flippin’ Grillmaster

Ideal for anyone that spends summers hovered over a gas grill, the Grill Gauge Propane Tank Scale will give your favorite grillmaster a visual indicator on when the ole propane tank needs a refill.

• MSRP: $15 | Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A

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Buy This Gift for Someone that Gets Lost in the Woods

Useful for campers, hikers or basically anyone with a horrible sense of direction, the Lifestraw can be a lifesaver when you run out of drinking water. Removing a minimum of minimum 99.9999% of waterborne bacteria and 99.9% of waterborne protozoan parasites, you can drink from a stream safely.

• MSRP: $25  | Lowest Price on Ben’s: $14

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Buy This Gift for the Master Chef

There’s nothing more annoying in the kitchen than attempting to peel skin off a garlic clove by hand. Enter the Tube Roller Garlic Peeler, a simple kitchen tool that strips garlic cloves of skin in seconds.

• MSRP: $10  | Lowest Price on Ben’s: $5

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Buy This Gift for Someone that Prefers Tea over Coffee

Peeking out of the top of your mug with a silly smile, the MANATEA Silicone Tea Infuser perches on the rim of your tea cup in order to make your tea. It’s made of silicone, thus the material won’t impact the flavor of the tea.

• MSRP: $11  | Lowest Price on Ben’s: $4

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Buy This Gift for a Funko Pop! Collector

You can really get Funko Pop! characters in almost any genre of pop culture now. The Ron Swanson Funko Pop! is no exception. He can stand on your desk at work, staring at you disapprovingly as you work on your TPS reports.

• MSRP: $11  | Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A

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Buy This Gift for the Star Wars Geek

Mimobot USB Flash Drives come in almost any geeky character you can think of. One of my favorites is the Darth Vader Unmasked version because lifting the cap off reveals Vader’s creepy face.

• MSRP: $25  | Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A

 Check Mimoco for Darth Vader USB Drive

Buy This Gift for Someone that Often Works in the Dark

Ideal for situations like changing a tire in the middle of the night, the Stanley Hand Tools Mini Tripod Flashlight is a fantastic tool for anyone that has to hold a flashlight while working. It offers up an extremely bright 5mm white, long-lasting LEDs as well as a shatter-resistant lens and slip-resistant rubber grip / feet.

• MSRP: $17 | Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A

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Buy This Gift for the Special Cat (or Dog) in Your Life

Technically, the Accoutrements Inflatable Wizard hat for Cats is designed for felines, but I can’t see any good reason why a small dog couldn’t rock one as well. According to the box, “cats love it.” (Can’t you tell by the picture?)

• MSRP: $1 1 | Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A

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Buy This Gift for the Chronic Texter

Is there anything worse in life than having to take the time and energy to remove your gloves before responding to that important text message or capturing that once in a lifetime Instagram moment?

Thanks to Columbia’s Omni-Heat Touchscreen Gloves (and many others like them), this simply isn’t a problem anymore. If you don’t care about the brand name, you can find touchscreen gloves for as low as a couple bucks on eBay.

• MSRP: $35  | Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A

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Buy This Gift for Someone Who Loves the Great Outdoors

Nice socks are one of those things that no one really wants to spend their own money on but always appreciate getting as a gift. Once you’ve worn SmartWool socks, you’ll never want to go back to wearing regular old socks, ever again.

I’ve been getting a pair of these in my stocking every year for the past five years or so, and it’s awesome knowing that in just a couple years I’ll have an entire week’s worth of these awesome socks in my possession. Amazon and REI are probably going to have them for the lowest prices.

• MSRP: $12 to $25  | Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A

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Buy This Gift for the Music Lover

Wireless Bluetooth speakers are becoming smaller and smaller (and cheaper and cheaper), making them the perfect stocking stuffer for the music lover in your life. The Ancord Micro Bluetooth Speaker gets solid reviews (Grade B on FakeSpot), especially for the price.

• MSRP: $18  | Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A

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Buy This Gift for the Man More Manly than Ron Swanson

The classic Leatherman Wingman Multitool includes a knife, pliers, wire cutters, scissors, screwdrivers, bottle opener and more — all the basic tools any man should carry in his pocket at all times. If they’ve already got a multitool like this, here’s a list of 10 more ideas from TheArtofManliness.com.

• MSRP: $50  | Lowest Price on Ben’s: $35

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Buy This Gift for Someone With a Sweet Tooth

It just wouldn’t be a stocking without something good to eat inside. This year, skip the candy canes and chocolate orange and try something a little more unique, like the Vosges Chocolate Bacon Bar. If for some weird reason bacon isn’t your thing, Vosges also makes other exotic chocolate bars like the Smoke & Stout Caramel Bar and the Reishi Mushroom and Walnut Dark Chocolate Bar.

• MSRP: $15 | Lowest Price on Ben’s: n/a

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Buy This Gift for the Kid Obsessed with LEGOs

Has there ever been a child a who didn’t like Legos? The LEGO Star Wars Millennium Falcon Microfighter (with tiny Chewie!) contains 92 pieces and is small enough to fit in a stocking. Lego makes many other mini sets, many under $10. Check out Lego Store for special holiday sets and other stocking stuffer ideas.

• MSRP: $10 | Lowest Price on Ben’s: n/a

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Buy This Gift for the Girl Who Deserves Some Pampering

Lush makes some of the best bath products in the world. But they are pretty expensive and I (like most girls I would guess) feel kind of guilty spending $6 on a bath bomb that I ‘m only going to use once, even if that one time will result in the greatest bath of all time. That’s what makes Lush handmade bath bombs and bubble bars the perfect stocking stuffers for the special lady in your life.

• MSRP: $6 to $12  | Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A (though they do run BOGO free promos from time to time)

 Check Lush for Pampering Gifts

Buy This Gift for the Family Man/Woman

A Star Wars family decal set is a great gift for the mom or dad who is super proud of his/her family & loves Star Wars. Every member of the family can pick the character they most identity with (or just think is the coolest). Not a Star Wars fan? You can also find similar sets with Marvel superheroes, zombies and more.

• MSRP: $20  | Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A

 Check Amazon for Star Wars Decals

Stuff Your Holiday Stockings with These Awesome Gifts

Selecting our favorite budget laptops under $500 was a lot like walking a tightrope: on one side was mediocre quality and low prices, and on the other was terrible quality and even lower prices. Fortunately there are a handful of laptops at this price range that are keepers, and we present our picks below.

While the prices on these laptops are already low, expect them to go even lower on or around Black Friday, so keep visiting Ben’s, set up deal alerts and watch for some great deals this holiday season!

Lenovo IdeaPad 330S 15.6-inch Laptop (2018)

Microsoft Surface Go 10-inch Tablet with Type Cover (2018)

Acer Aspire E 15 (E5-576) 15.6-inch Laptop (2018)

ASUS Chromebook Flip C302CA 12.5-inch 2-in-1 Laptop (2017)

Acer Chromebook 11 (CB311-8H) 11.6-inch Laptop (2018)

Check the latest laptop deals on Ben’s

2018 Gift Guide: Our Favorite Laptops Under $500

The TV market is all about 4K now, as 1080p quietly fades into the past. The fast adoption of 4K has been spurred on by how quickly prices have fallen. Expect to see a lot of 55-inch 4K TVs from top brand names in the $400 range this Black Friday and as low as $200 for house / generic brands.

As prices continue to fall, the big brands are battling it out over high end (and higher margin) picture technologies like OLED (the best, championed by LG) and QLED (the silver medalist, championed by Samsung).

OLED still remains in a class of its own, and QLED is more or less a variation of regular LED LCD panels albeit with “quantum dots.” We might see improved variations of QLED in the years to come, but if you still want the very best picture quality on the market with the best black levels, then choose OLED, hands-down. You will still need to pay more for OLED, although sale prices for lower end OLED models are inching closer to the magical $1000 threshold.

Here are this year’s top TVs, once again featuring familiar names like LG, Sony, Samsung, Vizio and TCL, which has seen a surge of popularity in the last couple of years. Keep visiting Ben’s Bargains for the best deals this holiday season (set up deal alerts)!

LG E8 Series 4K HDR Smart OLED TVs (2018)

Samsung Q9FN Series 4K UHD HDR Smart QLED TVs (2018)

TCL 6-Series 4K HDR Roku Smart LED TVs (2018)

Sony X900F Series 4K HDR Android TV Smart LED TVs (2018)

Vizio P-Series 4K HDR Smart LED TVs (2018)

Check Ben’s for the latest 4K HDTV deals

2018 Gift Guide: The 4K TVs You Really Want