Our favorite product releases this week: Lululemon, Pokémon, Miele and more

CNN

14 hours ago

It's Friday, and that means that we get to end the week by looking back at our editors' favorite product launches from the last seven days. Whether you're just hoping to keep up to date with the latest and greatest releases or are looking to shop them, we've highlighted nine of the most notable drops from around the web.
To close out the week, our deals team scoured the web (and beyond) to find the best product news. Our own Rikka Altland journeys to California to check out the newest Pokémon game for the Nintendo Switch 2, Jacqueline Saquin explores a fresh Lululemon athleisure collection and Elena Matarazzo dives into a seasonal Olive & June nail color launch. All that and more below.
We tried the Nintendo Switch 2's first Pokémon game
The newest installment in the Pokémon franchise releases this October. Pokémon Legends: Z-A is one of the upcoming titles that is already pushing gamers to purchase the Nintendo Switch 2, and it is a main reason why our senior deals editor, Rikka Altland, bought the console. After all, the previous installment in the Legends series, Arceus, is one of her favorite games ever. So, to say there's a lot of hype amongst gamers and CNN Underscored editors alike is a bit of an understatement.
Earlier in the week, Altland had a chance to play the game for herself at the Pokémon World Championships. Whether you've been loosely following along with the series yourself or through a relative who will undoubtedly end up asking for it come the holidays, Pokémon Legends: Z-A is a worthwhile new title in the franchise.
The mission to catch them all is mostly the same, but there are some unique elements that Altland got to see firsthand. The game takes place in the densely populated Lumiose City, themed around Paris. It pairs that ornate, metropolitan influence with a new battle system that delivers on the kind of liveliness you'd expect from such a bustling locale. Turn-based combat is a thing of the past in Z-A, because you'll be freely taking advantage of the different Pokémon in your party to take down foes as quickly as possible. It's fast-paced, fluid and, most importantly, fun.
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Altland was most impressed by how smooth those new gameplay mechanics transitioned over to the framerate of the game itself. As fun as the last Pokémon games were, Scarlet and Violet had 'some glaring setbacks' compared to what trainers were used to. The biggest one that one of our editors experienced in their review was that it loaded very slowly and had constant framerate stutters. Those frustrations have largely been worked out through the Nintendo Switch 2's improved hardware.
After 20 minutes of taking down trainers and their opposing Pokémon, Altland walked away impressed with her early time in the game. It may be a tad too early to consider this a must-play, but that solid first impression means she's excited to pick it back up when Pokémon Legends: Z-A officially launches on Oct. 16. The previous installment in the Legends series was one of her favorite games on the original Switch, and so far, it's looking like the follow-up is going to keep that momentum going.
If there's a Pokémon fan in your life, odds are they'll also be aiming to explore what's new in Lumiose City later this year. You can preorder the game now, starting at $60 for either of Nintendo's hybrid gaming consoles. That means that existing Nintendo Switch owners will be able to enjoy the newest title alongside those who have upgraded to the Switch 2. Or, if you're looking for a reason to buy Nintendo's newest console, game bundles also just went up for preorder.
Even cozier leisure sets
Lululemon has quietly elevated its iconic Scuba fleece with the introduction of the new Scuba Waffle Collection — a nuanced rework that combines tactile warmth with subtle texture. The classic plush fabric is reimagined through a waffle-knit weave, introducing an unexpected depth and softness that makes these pieces feel both luxurious and effortlessly lived-in.
The waffle texture elevates the familiar cozy fleece into something that's equally suited for remote work days or casual outings. The collection strikes a balance between elevated comfort and functional design, featuring key pieces like the Oversized Full-Zip Hoodie, the High-Rise Shorts and the Mid-Rise Wide-Leg Pants, with thoughtful details abound like kangaroo pockets, hidden phone sleeves and signature elastic zipper pulls, which double as convenient hair ties.
For longtime Scuba enthusiasts and newcomers alike, the waffle-knit iteration offers a fresh perspective on a modern classic. Priced between $84 for shorts and $148 for outerwear, the Scuba Waffle Collection fits squarely in Lululemon's mid-to-premium range. It's a higher markup for year-round versatility.
Lululemon Scuba Waffle Oversized Full-Zip Hoodie
The lightweight silhouette offers full-zip versatility, warm hood and cozy waffle fleece — ideal for chilly commutes or weekend downtime.
Lululemon Scuba Waffle High-Rise Shorts
For a more match-y, polished look, pair the waffle sweatshirts with these matching high-waisted shorts.
Lululemon Scuba Waffle Cropped Funnel-Neck Half-Zip
A stylish cropped silhouette with a cozy funnel neck, this half-zip is slim enough under jackets but relaxed when worn solo.
Lululemon Scuba Waffle Mid-Rise Wide-Leg Pants
Reach peak coziness with these billowy lounge pants. Throw 'em on following a long beach day and relax in style. Find your favorite with four miniature bottles
Salt & Stone's skin care products, candles and more have become staples in the Matarazzo household. After getting her hands on the Deluxe Body Duo, she quickly fell in love with the lathering wash and hydrating lotion for slathering on post-shower. Her newest favorite, though, has to be its Saffron & Cedar Body Mist that quickly replaced the staple fragrance, Glossier You, on her perfume tray.
To kick off the end of summer travel, the brand dropped its newest set just days ago. It includes four mini versions of its bestselling body washes, so you can quickly get acquainted with your favorite or favorites. For $40, you'll receive 2.54-ounce bottles of Santal & Vetiver, Bergamot & Hinoki, Saffron & Cedar and Black Rose & Oud.
Matarazzo is planning on gifting this to family members come the holiday season, and she is even taking her own mini bottle of Santal & Vetiver on her fall travels since its size is TSA-approved for her carry-on bag.
Move over, Dyson. New premium vacuums are here
Ask CNN Underscored editors for their picks of the best stick vacuums on the market, and they'll tell you brands like Dyson and Shark. But when it comes to canister vacuums, no one does it better than Miele, a brand that holds our accolade for the top model in its class. This week, the company launched a new way to clean up your home with the Miele Guard L1 series.
Spread across four different canister vacuums, each of the new models in the lineup includes a refreshed and even more advanced filtration system that helps improve indoor air quality by capturing allergens and fine dust particles while you vacuum. There's also app connectivity on select models for added alerts on when it's time to replace a dust bag.
Pricing for the new collection starts at $849 for the basic Guard L1 AllFloor and climbs up to $1,499 for the smart features offered by the Guard L1 Electro model — though Amazon has some launch discounts that start at $680. All four come wrapped in Miele's signature blend of quality and style that made the company stand out in our testing.
Helmed by the celebrity makeup artist, Mary Phillips, who popularized 'underpainting'
Mary Phillips, the A-list makeup artist behind the sculpted, luminous looks of stars like Hailey Bieber and Kendall Jenner, is bringing her signature techniques straight to your vanity. Her debut beauty line, m.ph, launches today on mphbeauty.com and exclusively on Sephora, with a broader Sephora in-store rollout starting Aug. 25. Rooted in over 20 years of backstage and red carpet experience, this thoughtfully curated collection translates professional artistry into intuitive, everyday essentials. The launch includes four hero products designed to deliver Phillips's now-famous underpainting method — a viral technique that layers contour and highlight under foundation for a naturally lifted, sculpted finish.
At the center is the Underpainting Palette, a creamy quintet of color corrector, contour and highlight shades. Paired with the Underpainting Dual-Ended Sculpting Brush, the duo makes mastering contour easier than ever. For lips, the Overliner Lip Pencil rounds out the launch, offering a fresh, flattering take on definition and shine. Still to come (but available for waitlist), the Lip Ciggy Hydrating Lipstick ($26) delivers sheer, juicy color in eight wearable shades, packed with squalane and peptides for a plump, cushiony finish.
m.ph Beauty Underpainting Face Palette
The Underpainting Palette debuts in Light, Medium and Deep shades. It's enriched with hyaluronic acid and vitamin E for a smooth, hydrated, second-skin feel.
m.ph Beauty Underpainting Dual-Ended Sculpting Brush
Couple the Underpainting Palette with this sculpting brush, which features precision and blending ends crafted from soft vegan bristles.
m.ph Beauty The Overliner
Available in eight sculpting nude-to-brown tones with a smooth glide, this long-wear formula is formulated to enhance your natural lip shape without feathering. The It-girl body care brand just dropped a new scent
Soft Services initially stepped onto the scene with its iconic Buffing Bar, which helps combat things like strawberry skin and ingrown hairs by exfoliating the skin without causing unnecessary irritation. Today, the brand launched a sensitive skin-friendly option that is mild to moderate versus the original's moderate to intense feel. They achieved this by adding fewer crystals to the bar and focusing on soothing ingredients like shea butter and coffee seed oil. The scent is inspired by a piping cup of espresso and the fresh citrus that you'd see in southern Italy. All of that is enveloped in a sensual vanilla and coconut to make it smell even more decadent.
The set of two bars is $30 and comes highly anticipated since the brand has a cult-like following amongst influencers, beauty experts and the like. After using it, you'll wonder why you haven't been using it longer, since it helps with a myriad of skin issues. Matarazzo, who suffers from ingrown hairs and general skin irritation from shaving her legs, is excited to get her hands on this new launch, especially since it's gentler on the skin compared to the brand's hero product.
E-paper smartwatches are so back
Back in the era before Apple Watches were donned on the wrists of tech aficionados and fitness fanatics alike, Pebble was releasing some of the very first smartwatches you could buy. The company's founders have finally returned after a long hiatus in the wearable health monitor scene, launching a pair of fitness trackers that aim to revive the same old-school charm and e-paper displays from over a decade ago.
The new Pebble Time 2 leads the duo with a minimalist design that's made from stainless steel. It rocks a 1.5-inch 64-color e-paper touchscreen, upwards of 30 days of battery life and heart rate monitoring — all in a waterproof build. It's now available for pre-order before shipping later this fall and retails for $225.
A stylish sneaker spawned from two fashion icons
On's latest capsule collection, 'Be Every You,' marks a bold step into fashion-forward performance wear — co-created with none other than multi-hyphenate celebrity Zendaya. Fronting the campaign and the design process, Zendaya helps blur the lines between athletic tech and style. The collection's centerpiece? Priced at $180, the Cloudzone Moon sneaker — her first official co-design — pairs On's signature CloudTec cushioning with sleek, sculptural lines.
Collaborating with Zendaya's longtime collaborator and famous stylist Law Roach, the collection feels more like a mood board come to life — equal parts practical and poetic. Beyond the statement sneaker, the collection delivers a full head-to-toe edit designed for movement with style. The apparel lineup reflects Zendaya's off-duty aesthetic — minimal and functional yet elevated, including a structured Bomber Jacket that riffs on classic athleisure with a sculptural edge and a Studio Bodysuit built for both workouts and layering.
Ranging from $24 to $270, every piece is crafted from technical, breathable fabrics that hold up against a light workout but transition seamlessly to streetwear — think quick errands, travel days or casual hangs.
For promotion-ready nails
In the early days of lockdown, Matarazzo was gifted an Olive & June set from a co-worker for her birthday. After not having her nails done in months and admittedly being a bit of an amateur when it comes to painting her own, she decided to give the kit a try. Almost immediately, she was surprised at how effortless an at-home diy manicure could be.
The Poppy was a total game-changer for her since it lets you achieve more controlled, clean strokes even with a shaky hand. It also came with everything you'd find at a salon, like a nail file and a pot of nail polish remover. Matarazzo started telling her friends and family about the vegan nail polish, and soon they started buying it too. In the later years, the brand came out with press-ons that were suitable for smaller nail beds, and most recently, this Nails That Work line.
The fall collection comes with seven office-ready colors, ranging from a limited-edition nude to a deep navy blue. It retails for $85 and is valued at $111, since you're receiving tools like a cuticle serum, the Poppy, a file, a pair of clippers and more that can be used for regular and gel manis alike.
This week also saw the launch of other products our editors deemed worthy of standalone coverage. Shop all these additional launches below, including a new Baggu handbag and an addition to Samsung's lineup of gaming monitors.
Baggu Hello Kitty And Friends Embroidered Crescent Bag
Baggu just partnered with Urban Outfitters to launch a whole collection of Hello Kitty and Friends bags. That includes the company's signature crescent bags, with various Sanrio characters emblazoned on your everyday carry.
Samsung 27-Inch Odyssey OLED G6 G60SF 500Hz Gaming Monitor
Samsung's first 5000Hz gaming monitor is finally here after being teased earlier this year. It sports a 27-inch QHD panel with a steep price tag in tow to back up its status as one of the highest refresh rate monitors on the market. As deals editors at CNN Underscored, we are some of the first people to hear about the latest product news from reader-favorite brands. Our deals team — comprised of senior editor Rikka Altland, editor Jacqueline Saguin and associate editor Elena Matarazzo — is passionate about product launches that we would be tempted to shop, and we enjoy finding a coveted new item (especially one from a brand with top marks from our experts) because it means we're helping our readers make savvy buying decisions.