10 Cool Amazon Gadgets Under $25 That Are Actually Worth Buying – BGR

While discussing bleeding-edge tech is always interesting, a lot of the stuff tech enthusiasts love tends to be too expensive for the average consumer. Don’t get us wrong, it’s always fascinating to gawk at all the best gadgets from CES, but do you really need that $3,500 Lenovo laptop with a rollable display? For most consumers, the answer is no, and the truth is you don’t have to spend a fortune to get your hands on some cool gadgets.

With that said, Amazon can often be a bottomless pit of cheap, plastic, and viral products that don’t work all that well. But there’s also a lot of gold out there. You just have to be willing to dig through the sponsored listings and products with fake reviews to get to the good stuff. Or, you could just rely on us to find affordable gear that genuinely makes your life easier.

In this roundup, we’ll be looking at a lot of products that prove price isn’t always a reflection of quality. For under $25, we found plenty of gadgets that are more than just impulse buys. All the products we’ll discuss here are reliable tools and handy tech accessories that are incredibly affordable. It’s also worth noting that each product maintains a 4.1-star rating on Amazon across hundreds, if not thousands, of reviews. 

The Wuben G5 is by far one of the most versatile everyday flashlights out there. Its full retail price is actually around $27, but it’s often on sale for under $20. This flashlight has a rotating head, an adjustable clip, and a satisfying tactile knob for adjusting brightness.

The G5 features an all-metal design and a magnetic tail that allows you to stick it onto any metal surface. This is great for working hands-free, and the small form factor means you can carry it with you every day. It maxes out at 400 lumens of brightness and has an RGB signaling mode that can cycle through different colors. This mode is useful for backpackers or cyclists, so that other people can be aware of you in the dark.

There’s also a Beacon Mode that triggers bright flashes to serve as a call for help. You also get IP68 waterproofing, which makes it dust-tight and water-resistant. Finally, the G5 supports fast charging via USB-C (100% in 90 minutes) and offers up to 65 hours of battery life at the lowest brightness setting. It has a 4.5-star average rating on Amazon, with many reviewers surprised by how capable this tiny flashlight is. 

The 8Bitdo Micro Gamepad is easily one of the cutest gadgets you can buy on Amazon, and it’s surprising that they were able to make a controller this tiny that actually works. It weighs just under 25 grams and is around the same size as a car key fob. You can easily slip this one into the coin pocket of your jeans or throw it in a tech pouch while traveling.

Despite its size, this tiny gamepad has 16 buttons, complete with a dedicated D-pad. Pocketlint’s review praised the Micro for having great buttons, which certainly isn’t something you’d expect given its size. These days, emulation is very easy on both iPhone and Android, and a tiny dedicated controller like this is certainly better than touchscreen controls for most games. Out of the box, it’s compatible with Android, iOS, Nintendo Switch, macOS, and Windows.

Apart from gaming, the 8Bitdo Micro also features a dedicated keyboard mode that turns it into a macro pad. With the 8Bitdo Ultimate software, you can remap every single button to perform specific shortcuts. For example, digital artists who draw on tablets can use this to quickly swap between brushes, undo strokes, or zoom in and out. Despite being niche, buyers seem to love this tiny gamepad; it has over 2,000 reviews on Amazon and an average rating of 4.5 stars. 

If you don’t want to mount your iPhone without cluttering your car’s dashboard, the UGreen MagSafe Car Mount is a great accessory. It features a hook-shaped clip that attaches firmly to your AC vents, but the hook is small enough that it’s fairly unobtrusive. The actual stand also protrudes a fair bit outwards, so that airflow will be barely affected.

For such a simple gadget, it offers a lot of adjustability and control over the viewing angle. You can quickly switch between landscape and portrait mode by just rotating your phone, and the magnetic head can slide up and down for height adjustment. There’s also a physical knob that you can rotate to loosen or tighten the tension, allowing for even more angle adjustments. It’s compatible with any iPhone that features MagSafe, but you can make it work with any phone if you have a MagSafe case. The 4.5-star rating is well earned across 2,700 Amazon reviews, with most of them praising its sturdiness and adjustability.

This specific model is well under $25, but UGreen also makes a few MagFlow versions that support Qi2 wireless charging. Those particular versions usually cost a bit more, but they’re definitely worth the convenience in the long run.

While we found Apple AirTags better than Tile trackers for iPhone users, Tile is a fantastic alternative for Android users. AirTags only come in one circular shape, but Tile offers much more variety in hardware. The Tile Mate is arguably the most versatile, as it comes with a keychain loop that you can use to attach to bottles, backpacks, or your car keys. There’s also the Tile Slim, a credit card-sized Bluetooth tracker you can put in your wallet, carry-on, or even in your passport.

How does it work? A Tile tracker connects to your phone via Bluetooth and pairs with the Life360 app for most of the features. When within range, you can ring the Tile to find it, or ring the Tile to find your phone. The network works by pinging other Tile devices for long-range tracking. It’s similar to Apple’s Find My network, but not as extensive.

Regardless, Tile works well in busy cities, and the Smart Alert feature is a godsend that lets you know if you leave something behind. Newer versions also have an SOS feature that can alert your family and friends if you’re in a dangerous situation. We just wish that features like 30-day location history weren’t locked behind a premium subscription. Despite that, many rely on the Tile Mate every day, as is evidenced by 11,000 reviews and an average 4.5-star rating. 

For under $20, you can grab a two-pack of Kasa Smart Plugs, which is one of the easiest ways to start automating your home without a headache. These smart plugs fit into an existing wall outlet, and are small enough that they won’t block other outlets, either. A smart plug acts as a bridge between devices like lamps or coffee makers and smart home platforms like Google Home and Alexa.

The specific plugs in discussion here support Google Home and Alexa. Kasa also makes versions that support Matter, a smart home standard that improves compatibility between various platforms. These are a bit more expensive, but they have better compatibility with platforms like Apple Home and Samsung SmartThings. With an average 4.5-star rating on Amazon across a whopping 75,000 reviews, people clearly love the Kasa Smart Plugs. 

Beyond using your voice to control devices, these smart plugs also help reduce energy costs. For example, you can set up custom schedules for specific appliances, ensuring that there is no unnecessary use. The Matter version also features energy monitoring, giving you insight into what’s running up your bill.

Phones, earbuds, and laptops can collect dust quickly, and the Walrfid 7-in-1 Cleaner Kit lets you clean all three in a snap. It’s the Swiss Army Knife of cleaning, packing impressive utility into a case smaller than a smartphone. The star of the show is a large retractable brush, which is great for clearing gunk out of mechanical keyboards.

There’s also a double-headed foldable cleaning pen. On one end, there’s a silicone nip that you can use to scrub out stubborn dirt from cracks, and a small brush sits just underneath it for cleaning the mesh of your earbuds. On the other end, there’s a tube-like sponge that can reach into charging holes.

It even comes with a 5 ml cleaning solution, and there’s a fiber cloth surface on the case itself for cleaning screens. Finally, they also throw in a separate soft plush cloth for cleaning glasses and camera lenses. This is one of those viral products you’ll see in Instagram ads, but the 1,800 reviews and 4.5-star average Amazon rating prove that the Walrfid kit is actually useful. 

The Roxon Spark Multitool is an affordable alternative to Victorinox’s iconic Swiss Army Knife, and it is surprisingly functional for the price. It features 14 tools in total and leans heavily toward outdoor and survival utility. In fact, many would agree that the all-black aesthetic, textured grip, and the relatively large knife make it look pretty neat, all without feeling like a cheap toy.

Every single tool has a separate locking mechanism for safety. Tucked into the handle is a removable unit that functions as an emergency whistle at one end and a fire starter at the other. The knife easily opens with one hand, and the pliers include both regular and needle-nose tips, along with wire cutters.

As for the rest, you get a bottle opener, both flat- and Phillips-head screwdrivers, a can opener, a scraper, a saw, and a reamer. At 230 grams, it’s a bit on the heavier side for a pocket knife. However, it does come with a robust pocket clip that makes it easier to carry. It has a 4.5-star rating on Amazon with 3,400 reviews, and people praise it for its ergonomics and quality. 

The Rocketbook Mini is the perfect middle ground for those who love the feel of pen and paper but hate the clutter of half-finished notebooks. It looks like a standard spiral notebook at first glance, but the pages are made from synthetic, reusable paper. It comes with a Pilot Frixion pen, which features erasable ink. Anything you write on this notepad can be wiped with a damp cloth.

The “smart” part about this one comes into play with the Rocketbook app. You use this app to scan all your pages, and the handwriting recognition helps automatically transcribe whatever you’ve written down. On top of that, all your notes can be uploaded to platforms like Google Drive, Slack, iCloud, Trello, OneNote, and more. With over 11,000 reviews and an average rating of 4.4 stars, the Rocketbook clearly does its job well.

The Rocketbook Mini usually sits around the $20 mark, while the larger Rocketbook Core is often under $30 during sales. It’s a one-time purchase that essentially gives you an infinite supply of paper, making it eco-friendly and convenient at the same time.

If you’ve ever tried to open a gadget only to realize you don’t have that one specific bit needed to get inside, grab an iFixit kit to rid yourself of this frustration. Specifically, we recommend taking a look at the Minnow Driver Kit for its compact size. The case is about the size of a smartphone, and features a 4 mm precision bit driver handle and 16 separate bits.

These bits are made of high-quality S2 alloy, and thanks to the bit driver’s magnetic socket, they slide into the driver easily. The driver itself also includes a SIM ejection tool under the blue cap, which is a clever addition. It has a textured grip for better control, and the included bits cover everything from standard Phillips and Flatheads to Pentalobe, Torx, and Tri-point bits used in laptops and phones. This one is a favorite for on-the-go fixes, with an average rating of 4.8 stars on Amazon across 1,800 reviews.

The case features a magnetized lid that can double as a tray to keep your tiny screws from rolling off the table. If you feel like 16 bits won’t quite cut it for your needs, you can step up to the iFixit Moray. It’s slightly larger but still under $25, and it doubles the bit count to 32. It adds bits like a Gamebit head for vintage consoles and a wider variety of Torx security bits.

In a world full of wireless audio, wired headphones are cool again. However, I’m not recommending these just to be a contrarian; I actually use them myself for gaming, work, and general listening. In case you’re unfamiliar, IEMs (in-ear monitors) are technically just like earphones, but both product categories differ in focus. With IEMs like the KZ Castor Pro, fidelity and precision take priority over pure convenience.

From personal experience, I can tell you that the 10 mm driver setup already sounds great out of the box. But on either side of the IEMs, you’ll find four switches you can flip up or down to customize the sound profile. You can adjust for different genres, fine-tune the response for gaming, or just leave it as is for the default experience. The included cable is removable, making it easy to replace if it ever gets damaged. 

They are comfortable for long sessions, even if the over-ear cable loop takes a bit to get used to. If you play competitive games, these have an accurate stereo response, which makes footsteps easy to hear. The inline microphone isn’t as good as a dedicated mic in a gaming headset, but it is decent for Discord and work calls. These IEMs have a 4.4-star rating on Amazon across nearly 300 reviews, and the original Castor was even more popular with nearly 2,000 reviews. As someone who has tried both models, the Pro sounds significantly cleaner and richer than the original.

To make sure every item on this list is a good purchase, I followed a few simple guidelines during the selection process. First, I focused on real-world utility. Every gadget here has to serve a clear purpose, whether it’s solving a specific problem or making a daily task a little bit easier. If a product relies solely on cool looks without offering a functional benefit, it didn’t make the cut.

I also prioritized build quality and long-term value. Even at under $25, I looked for items that feel durable and reliable, like the 8Bitdo controller or the Roxon multitool, which hold their own against much more expensive alternatives. Finally, I kept an eye out for unique features that you won’t find in generic versions of these products. This ensures that every recommendation is not just a budget choice, but a genuinely interesting piece of tech that stands out from the crowd. 

To back up these personal picks with data, each recommendation has a rating of at least 4.1 and at least 300 reviews. For most products, you’ll see that they actually have user reviews that are in the thousands. This eliminates the sketchy, unreliable products, as the reviews confirm these are good gadgets that people are actually using.