Gear Haul: 9 Best New EDC Essentials (2026 Guide)

If you’ve followed us for any stretch, you know our office runs on a steady stream of new gear. Boxes pile up, things get tested, and the best of the bunch eventually find their way into our regular coverage. But the truth is, there’s more good EDC dropping every month than we could ever give a full deep dive to.

That’s where our Gear Haul series comes in. Every few months we round up some of our favorite newer gear releases, and stuff that should at the very least, be on your radar.

So with that, let’s get into some of the best new EDC gear that’s landed at HQ.

Soundcore Liberty 5 Pro / Pro Max

Wireless earbuds have basically turned into tiny computers, and this week’s sponsor, Soundcore, Anker’s audio sub-brand, is leaning all the way into that idea with their new Liberty 5 Pro and Pro Max earbuds.

Alright, so before you decide which model is right for you, it’s worth noting: the buds themselves are identical across both models. Same 9.2mm wool-paper drivers, same new Thus AI chip handling the noise cancellation, same IP55 rating, same 6.5 hours of playback with another 28 in the case. 

You could physically swap the earbuds between the two cases and never know. What the extra $60 buys you on the Pro Max is the case, and specifically what that case can do.

But the real reason the Liberty 5 Pros exists is calls. They hold an actual Guinness World Record for speech clarity (specifically the “World’s Clearest Earbuds for Calls”) that was certified in April, and in practice it absolutely delivers. 

We took work calls in some of the loudest cafes in LA, including Bike Shed, the motorcycle cafe right around the corner from our office, and not one person on the other end could hear a thing behind us.

Eight mics, two dedicated voice-pickup units, and that Thus chip isolate your voice and gut the background noise almost entirely – even in chaotic environments like bustling cafes and car meets.

The listening-side noise cancellation is also pretty impressive, and Soundcore claims double the ANC depth of the old Liberty 4 Pro.

The buds are also equipped with triple-device multipoint, meaning you can hold three sources at once and bounce between laptop, phone, and tablet without re-pairing.

Now for the Pro Max extras. That AMOLED screen lets you easily swipe through ANC modes, EQ, and playback without ever touching your phone. 

The real selling feature for the Pro Max though is the AI Note-Taker: double-tap the case and it records, transcribes, and summarizes meetings or lectures with action items, plus there’s two-way live translation using the case as a mic. 

The honest soft spot is pure music. The sound is good, punchy and clear with a bass-forward tilt, but the soundstage doesn’t quite reach a Sony or Samsung flagship.

Bottom line: the $169 Pro drops the big screen and the note-taking for a slim status strip, and it’s probably the smarter buy for most. But if you live in meetings or want the most capable case on the market, the Pro Max definitely earns the upcharge.

CRKT Provoke X Morphing Axe

Every so often a product comes that we just have to get hands-on with, and CRKT’s Provoke X is one of those. It’s a folding axe. A pocket axe, actually. And, one that deploys with just the flick of the wrist.

Alright, we know how that sounds – and it’s exactly why we wanted to get our hands on it. Designer Joe Caswell reportedly went through 94 prototype iterations getting it right, and the production version is really rad in person. And while it does take some practice to get the flick just right, it’s a lot of fun to use once you get going.

The backstory ties into a knife most of you probably know. Caswell originally designed the Provoke karambit for first responders back in 2019, and that knife’s Kinematic deployment, the one that lets you flick the blade open and have it lock solid, became the foundation for an entire Provoke family.

The Provoke X is the natural progression of that family. Same morphing skeleton, same Deadbolt lock that’s been proven on the karambits for years, only now wrapped around an actual axe head with a spike on the back for prying or piercing. Release the Deadbolt, snap your wrist, and the axe goes from a flat 8.69-inch slab to fully deployed and locked. To fold it back down, simply press the top and the safety resets itself.

The blade is titanium-nitride-coated SUJ2, a Japanese bearing steel built for impact resistance rather than edge retention, which feels like a good choice for something taking shock loads. On the spec sheet, it runs 1.84 inches with stainless handles wrapped in glass-reinforced overlays, and the whole thing weighs 13.2 ounces. 

At $350 this isn’t a value pick by any means. It’s also not meant to replace your wood-chopping axe. But if you camp, throw axes, or just love over engineered gear and gadgets like us, the Provoke X is in a category all by itself.

G-SHOCK DW-5600MNC-1 (FIDLOCK clasp)

We’re huge fans of the G-SHOCK square. A direct descendent of the OG version, the DW-5600 has been around since 1987. And in those nearly four decades on wrists it’s become arguably the most modded watch on the planet. Enthusiasts have been swapping the stock resin strap for years. And after seeing those mods everywhere online, G-SHOCK decided to make it official with the new DW-5600MNC series.

The collaboration is with FIDLOCK, a German hardware brand we’ve covered regularly over the years, and most known for making the best magnetic-meets-mechanical buckles for all of our favorite gear. Marrying a FIDLOCK buckle to the 5600 always felt like a match-made heaven, so we’re stoked to see G-SHOCK finally give it a shot.

The DW-5600MNC-1 seen here is the stealthiest of the three colorways, an all-black case with an inverted display and a black and gray cloth strap. The polyester strap was much more stretchy than we anticipated, and is definitely one of the most comfortable G-SHOCKs we’ve ever worn. 

The FIDLOCK buckle snaps shut and opens one-handed, and overall, is just a really comfortable and convenient straps, and it expands and contracts with your wrist throughout the day. At 53 grams with the 48.9mm lug-to-lug, 42.8mm case, and 13.4mm thickness, it also wears pretty well on most wrists.

Community reaction to that clasp has been split. Some owners love it, others have reported it decoupling when they catch it on a jacket sleeve or table edge. The clasp also sticks out further than the strap, which puts it directly in the line of fire for snags. We tend to agree that it’s probably not the most practical Square you can buy, but it does look really good and again, it’s very comfortable on the wrist. We think if you’re adding to your collection, it’s still a cool watch to own and wear on occasion.

It’s also running the basic 3525, the same non-solar caliber found in $80 squares. No Tough Solar, no Multi-Band 6, no Bluetooth. You’re paying that $165 premium entirely for the strap.

If you already own a few squares and want the most interesting strap G-Shock has ever shipped from the factory, the MNC-1 earns the look. For everyone else, a base DW-5600 with an aftermarket FIDLOCK kit might be the smarter play.

Wuben X5

Wuben has spent the last decade really earning their stripes in the space, and the X5 might be their most ambitious EDC flashlight  release yet. Billed as the brand’s first flat-body flashlight, it packs three light sources into one slim aluminum frame.

The form factor is the first thing you notice here. The X5 is a flat slab of CNC-machined 6061 aluminum with a Type-III anodized finish, designed to lay flat in a pocket, clip to a strap, or sit on a desk without rolling.

The 3-in-1 setup is the selling feature for Wuben. You get a 1300-lumen white light with 200 meters of throw on the high end, a 1-lumen moonlight mode on the low end, a 2W 365nm UV emitter for stain detection or counterfeit checks, and a green laser in the 508-525nm range for pointing or signaling.

Wuben did a great job with the control layout, which we’ve found to be one of the more annoying features of many multi-function lights. White light and UV run through a rotary dial up top, while the laser gets its own dedicated tail switch. There’s no clicking through menus to find the right mode, which we certainly appreciated.

The dual-power support is another clever touch. The X5 runs on a 1200mAh Li-ion with USB-C charging, but it also accepts AAA backup.It’s also IP65 rated with 1m drop protection, so it should be fine handling some daily abuse over time. 

Tactile Turn Clip Action Pen

We’ve long admired what Will Hodges and his team at Tactile Turn have accomplished. They’ve spent years building a reputation as one of the best USA-made EDC pen brands, machining every piece by hand out of their Texas shop. 

Of course, their Bolt Action pen is the one that put them on the map, but if there’s ever been a sore spot in the catalog, it was the clip.

The Clip Action is their answer, and the mechanism is pretty clever. Instead of a separate bolt and clip like the original Bolt Action, this one combines them into a single piece. You push the clip itself down into a J-shaped channel to deploy the tip, then back up to retract.

To make this happen, Tactile Turn milled and bent the clip from titanium so it hovers just barely off the body, giving it enough flex to easily slip over a dress shirt or a pair of jeans, and titanium’s natural springiness handles the rest.

It’s locked into a two-piece dovetail-slotted carrier that maintains tension while still letting the clip actuate as the deployment mechanism. It’s basically the same satisfying click as the bolt, just integrated into the part of the pen you were already touching.

Dimensionally it sits right next to the Bolt Action at 5.6 inches long, 0.43 inches in diameter, and 1.24 ounces in the standard size. There’s also a 5.1-inch short version for those who want something more pocketable. 

At $119 to start, up to $199 for the DLC, Tactical Turn pens are certainly not entry-level. But for the fidget-friendly mechanism, build quality, and lifetime warranty to back it all up, we still think the juice is worth the squeeze.

MKC The Montana Folding Knife 

Quite possibly the biggest EDC release of the year so far, Montana Knife Company rolled out their first ever folding knife – the Montana. After spending the better part of six years building one of the most loyal followings in the knife world, entirely on the backs of fixed-blade hunting knives, MKC decided to switch things up.

Founder and Master Bladesmith Josh Smith has been hand-making custom liner locks for over thirty years, with his customs selling for $10K-$30K apiece, and this is the first time he’s brought that experience to scale.

Diving into the details, this blade is full flat ground MagnaCut, the do-everything stainless that’s become the gold standard in modern EDC. The blade is taken to a 0.010-inch edge that MKC calls the thinnest they’ve ever ground.

At 7.625 inches open with a 3.25-inch upswept blade and a closed length of 4.31 inches, it sits in classic EDC territory, and was really designed with daily carry in mind. It weighs just. 2.84 ounces total weight, and G10 scales 3D-milled with micro-texture are super comfortable. It also features titanium hardware throughout, and a custom deep-carry clip with countersunk flat-head screws that sit flush.

While the knife is pretty impressive across the board, the liner lock is where MKC’s engineering really shows. The liners run 2-4 points harder than industry standard, extend the full handle length, and feed blade load into compression rather than bending. All of that engineering leads to a knife that just feels and functions really well in hand.

For the pivot action, MKC went with Bronze-cage silicon nitride bearings, which feel really smooth and satisfying every time you deploy the knife. It’s also super sharp right out of the box.

At nearly $400, it’s certainly not cheap, but that’s not really MKC’s MO. You’re paying for USA manufacturing, the MKC Generations program (free lifetime sharpening, repairs, and reshaping), and while you’ll probably just use it to open Amazon packages, it’s built to take a beating for decades to come.

OhSnap MCON Magnetic Controller

Mobile gaming has been stuck in this awkward middle ground for years. You either accept thumb cramps from on-screen touch controls or commit to lugging around something the size of a Switch. The OhSnap MCON is hoping to finally kill that compromise.

The origin story here is a good one – and definitely a bit inspiring as well. A college kid named Josh King 3D-printed a prototype because nothing like this existed, blew up on YouTube, dropped out, and eventually partnered with OhSnap to engineer it for production. The Kickstarter funded wildly, and the retail version is just starting to get delivered to customers.

The whole thing snaps directly to your phone via MagSafe (even through most cases), with an included adapter for Android. The adjustable puck handles phones of any size including foldables, and Bluetooth multipoint connects up to three devices so you can bounce between phone, Switch, and PC without re-pairing.

The hardware is where it earns that premium asking price. GameSir Mag-Res joysticks immune to stick drift, Hall-effect analog triggers for racing games, silent tactile buttons, and a built-in gyroscope. And everything just feels incredibly good in hand. 

There’s also a clever feature called Kickback Mode. Simply eject the control cover, prop your phone on the integrated kickstand, and you’ve got a wireless controller and a screen.

Now for some honest gripes from the community that are worth flagging. The joysticks sit recessed below the play surface, so thumbs occasionally slide off the sidewalls. The narrow triggers can also feel a bit slippery. And while we didn’t experience it, some users report the controller can’t get nose-heavy when paired with a phone in a thicker case.

While this might be our favorite smartphone controller setup for gaming, it is a tough ask at the original $149 retail. We have noticed OhSnap adjusting the price a bit since releasing, and it’s been available for 99 at retailers like Best Buy lately, which makes it a much easier yes. 

Otterbox Sole Pack Paracord iPhone 17 Pro Case

The name “OtterBox” has basically become shorthand for phone protection. And the new Sole Series Pack takes that same DNA and adds something that certainly caught our attention: a built-in everyday carry system.

The story here is, of course, that bungee. Stretched across the back of the case is an integrated cord system that cinches down to hold small essentials, lip balm, keys, a hotel room card, sunscreen, really any small item – against the phone itself. Loosen it to grab what you need, pull it tight to lock things in.

The case itself is classic OtterBox underneath. Tested to 5X military drop standard (MIL-STD-810G 516.6), with high-ridge tread around the edges for grip, raised lips protecting the screen and camera, and a hardwearing nylon fabric back that gives it some texture. 

It’s also built around the iPhone 17 lineup specifically with a dedicated Camera Control button cutout and built-in MagSafe magnets for charging and accessories.

Last Manner x Tokyo Pipe Co. Douglass Field S+ Lighter

We’ve long been fans of the iconic Douglass Field Lighter, both vintage and reissue versions alike. So when Last Manner partnered with Tokyo Pipe Co. for the first official collaboration in the lighter’s history, we knew we had to get our hands on one.

The backstory is worth the price of admission alone. The original Douglass lighter debuted in the US in 1926 as a premium $5 oil lighter at a time when most lighters cost 69 cents. It was machined metal, refillable, and built to last decades. American production eventually faded as cheap mass-produced lighters took over, and the design went extinct.

In 1993, Tokyo Pipe Co. resurrected it. The Japanese craftsmen rebuilt the design from the ground up, machining every component from solid duralumin and brass stock and assembling 45 individual parts to a tolerance of 1/100 of a millimeter. It’s the exact sort of dedication and commitment to craft we’ve come to know and love from Japanese artisans. 

The Last Manner edition takes that same DNA and adds a distinctive diamond-cut waffle texture across the brass sections, hand-finished by Tokyo Pipe Co.’s craftsmen. Each of the 100 pieces is also individually numbered.

While this lighter is certainly gorgeous, it’s built for actual field use. Airtight construction makes it waterproof when sealed, an integrated wind guard keeps the flame steady outdoors, and the base unscrews to reveal hidden storage for a spare flint and extra fuel.

It might be the most expensive lighter you ever purchase, but you’re buying into a lineage that goes back a century and an exclusive run of just 100 units that will ever be made.

Gear Haul: The Best New EDC Essentials (April 2026 Guide)

If you love these quick-hitting gear hauls, be sure to check out our previous guide to the best new gear we received.