Here’s the big Black Friday news today: Walmart just revealed its Black Friday ad, and color me impressed. Among the highlights: a 40-inch Roku TV for $98, an Apple Watch Series 3 for $129 and the baseline Apple AirPods for $129. Don’t want to wait? You don’t have to: There are plenty of other deals you can get right now, courtesy of Amazon, Best Buy, Target and other stores:
We’ve pored over all the Black Friday ads to find the best stuff that’s available immediately. Before you dive in, note that many of the early deals have expired — but we expect most of them to return, so we’ve kept them corralled at the bottom. This is a great post to bookmark, as we’re updating it pretty much daily.
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This is a killer deal on an older version of Apple’s iPad Pro. Yes, this 10.5-inch iPad was released in 2017 — but Walmart’s loaded configuration (512GB of storage, Apple’s A10X processor) is a bargain at $599, even in 2019. Snap this up.
Read our 10.5-inch iPad Pro review.
Microsoft
Here’s your chance to score significant savings on the premium Xbox console and the hot new game of 2019. Everywhere else right now, it’s selling for the full $499 retail price. Use promo code NOVSAVE19 at checkout to bag that extra discount.
Sceptre
That’s just a bananas price on a big ol’ desktop display. Yes, the 1920 x 1080 resolution is actually a bit on the low side given the size, but you can tweak your PC’s settings to help compensate. Meanwhile, the Sceptre includes VGA, DVI and HDMI inputs and built-in speakers, so you could use it with your game console as well. Heck, plug in a streaming stick and make a TV out of it.
Sarah Tew/CNET
The hot-ticket item of 2019 is back in stock at Amazon (though currently showing 1-2 days before it’ll actually ship). The discount isn’t much, but it’s something. Of course, if you’re hoping for an AirPods Pro-like experience at a lower price, check out these five affordable alternatives.
Update: Amazon is now showing “Usually ships in 1 to 3 months,” which means an out-of-stock message may be soon to follow. It also means you’re not likely to get them in time for Christmas. However, they’re currently available at Sam’s Club for the same price — at least for the moment.
Read the AirPods Pro review.
Amazon
If you’re a newcomer to Amazon’s music-streaming service, it’s hard to beat a buck for four full months of service. After that, you’ll pay the regular rate of $9.99 per month, though you can cancel if you like, without penalty.
Amazon
It’s not even released yet, but Amazon just trotted out its first-ever discount on the Echo Show 8. It’s basically a larger version of the super-popular Echo Show 5 (which is currently on sale for $80, FYI), and therefore better suited to places like the kitchen, where the 8-inch screen makes it easier to view cooking videos and the like.
Read our Echo Show 8 preview.
RemoBell
Already a pretty amazing deal at $99, the RemoBell S is an attractive, hardwired doorbell designed to take the place of your existing bell. I’ve been using one for about six months, and while I still don’t love the forced fisheye view of recorded videos, overall the doorbell has worked really well. And I absolutely do love the free cloud storage.
Rich Brown
Need new specs? Between now and Cyber Monday, promo code Black65 will net you a hefty 65% off any frames at GlassesUSA.
Lori Grunin/CNET
We’ve long been fans of Lenovo’s flagship Yoga laptops — and the C940, which debuted in January, is one of a handful of Intel’s Project Athena devices designed to make it perform more like a phone. The C940 wakes instantly from sleep and has a fingerprint reader that works in a second and Wi-Fi that connects just as fast. This model features a 400-nit FHD-resolution and up to 17.5 hours of battery life.
Read our Lenovo Yoga C940 preview.
Mint Mobile
Borrowing a page from McDonald’s, which now charges the same price for any size drink, Mint Mobile will sell you any of its 3-month plans for $15 per month. Why? Tough to say, but the obvious winner here is the 12GB option, which normally runs $25 per month (already an excellent deal).
For those unfamiliar with the carrier, Mint offers service for GSM-compatible phones (otherwise known as those compatible with AT&T and T-Mobile). You pay in either 3-, 6- or 12-month blocks.
Pro tip: There’s currently a $20 cash-back option available from both Rakuten and TopCashback, but the terms are confusing. (Anyone who’s able to figure them, leave a comment.)
César Salza/CNET
The Fossil Sport hit the scene just about a year ago, bringing oodles of features to the Wear OS watch-scape for a reasonable $275. The specs include NFC for Google Pay, GPS, 5 ATM water resistance, a heart-rate monitor and an altimeter. This pre-Black Friday sale drops the Sport (light blue only) to just $149, the best price we’ve seen yet.
Arcade1Up
Most of Arcade1Up’s machines cost around $300. This one — which is a three-quarter-size version of the original — costs $170 once it’s in your shopping cart. And it looks, sounds and plays exactly like the old arcade machines. Walmart is also offering the Centipede edition for $180.
Sarah Tew/CNET
When Lenovo introduced the IdeaPad 330s last year, it started at $500. Now, you can get a nice midrange configuration — with a quad-core AMD processor, a 256GB SSD and 8GB of RAM — for under $350. Equipped with a nice 15.6-inch display, the 330s has thinner-than-usual bezels and an aluminum lid. This is a good deal on a solid entry-level laptop. (Note, however, that it was previously $329, so watch for another sale if you’re not in a hurry.)
Read our Lenovo IdeaPad 330s preview.
Walmart
A 65-inch TV for $380? Seems like only yesterday that would have been considered a steal on a 55-inch model. It’s an entry-level model, to be sure, with no smarts built in; you’ll have to BYO Fire TV or Roku streamer. Thankfully, it has four HDMI inputs, so there’s plenty of room for all the gear you might want to plug in.
Living DNA
Curious about your origin story? Living DNA’s test is quite comprehensive; it covers your overall ancestry, motherline and fatherline. Plus, family DNA-matching is now included as well. (Take note, however, that this same kit will be $10 less from Nov. 18 to Dec. 3.)
Roborock
While we’re still in control of our robots, we might as well have them do our bidding. The Roborock S5 can not only vacuum your floors, it can mop them as well. It originally sold for $500, but you can use promo code ROBOROCKBF to knock the price down to an all-time low.
Sarah Tew/CNET
An oldie but goodie, the SoundTouch 10 dates back to 2016 (gasp!). But that doesn’t change the fact that this compact Bluetooth-and-Wi-Fi speaker produces surprisingly big, punchy sound and supports multiroom setups. It’s on par with the likes of Sonos speakers, but now without the hefty price tag.
Read the Bose SoundTouch 10 review.
Amazon
Between Bose, Sony and now Apple AirPods Pro, active noise-canceling headphones are all the rage. And now, we’re seeing an old favorite from Sennheiser that’s currently just $80 at Amazon — down from $200. We reviewed the nearly identical Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC two years ago, and found it to be a formidable Bose competitor at that $200 price. That model is down to $108 on Amazon, but this model — the HD 4.50 SE — has literally the exact same specs, aside from some cosmetic color differences.
Andrew Hoyle/CNET
The Apple HomePod faces increasingly stiff competition in the smart-speaker market, starting with Amazon’s new, similar Echo Studio. But remember, too, that the HomePod started out at $349; this is your chance to get it for considerably less. If you want wonderful sound and already live in Apple’s ecosystem, look no further.
Read our Apple HomePod review.
Best Buy
Instant Pot, instant schmot. This 6-quart model from Best Buy’s house brand does all the same things, and you just can’t get cheaper than $30. The user reviews tell the important story: The cooker received a 4.7-star average rating from over 1,900 buyers.
If you’re not convinced this is a must-have kitchen appliance (trust me, it is), here are five reasons you need an Instant Pot — and some great recipes to get you started.
Lenovo
This feels like the kind of deal that would normally be a doorbuster, requiring you to stand in line outside the store for a couple hours. This Chromebook features 4GB of RAM, 32GB of expandable storage and a touchscreen on a 360-degree hinge — meaning it’s suitable for tablet duty as well. The screen may be on the smaller side, but that didn’t stop this from scoring a 4.7-star average rating from over 1,800 buyers.
Amazon
This is the lowest price to date on Amazon’s kid-friendly tablet, which includes a heavy-duty case (with stand) and two-year worry-free warranty. You also get a year of Amazon FreeTime Unlimited, a $36 value. The tablet is available with your choice of three case colors: blue, pink and purple.
You can also get the Fire HD 8 Kids Edition Tablet for $90, which is $40 off the regular price. It’s slightly faster and slightly larger, but otherwise pretty much the same experience for your kids.
Yes! The previous-generation iPad 9.7 hung around at this price for a good chunk of 2019 — until the newer 10.2 model came along at $329. Although the 128GB model has routinely been on sale for $299, this is the first dip we’ve seen yet for the 32GB version. That’s not a ton of storage, but for many users it’s enough.
This one-day-only price expired yesterday, Nov. 7, but I guarantee we’ll see similar deals in the weeks to come. We already know that it’s definitely coming to Target for Black Friday.
Read our iPad 10.2 review.
Arcade1Up
This head-to-head machine brings 12 classic arcade games to your den, including half a dozen Street Fighter titles, Final Fight and Commando. And for a limited time you’ll also score $70 in Kohl’s Cash, which is basically free money to use on additional store purchases. (Note that it must be used by Nov. 14.)
Although the product description seems to refer to the upright version of this unit, the model number is definitely for the cocktail table.
That’s it for now, but check back often as we update this post based on new deals and availability. In the meantime, here’s everything else you need to know about this major shopping event.
What date is Black Friday 2019?
Black Friday always falls on the day after Thanksgiving. This year, it takes place on Friday, Nov. 29.
When is Cyber Monday 2019?
It falls the Monday after Black Friday — in this case, Monday, Dec. 2.
When will Black Friday sales actually start?
It varies from store to store, but expect to see plenty of sales that kick off well before Thanksgiving. Indeed, some stores unveil “Black November” sales that span the entire month, while others will kick-start their Black Friday events early. We’ll post all the details as we get them.
Why is it called ‘Black Friday’?
This is borderline urban-legend stuff. Some say Black Friday dates back to the early 1950s, when stores would kick off the Christmas shopping season with big sales. So big, in fact, that annual store profits would often tip into “the black” (meaning no longer “in the red,” which is accounting parlance for losing money) once all the receipts were tallied. Or: So big that traffic would get so snarled, policemen dubbed the day “Black Friday.”
Find out more, and get the scoop on Cyber Monday as well, in Black Friday vs. Cyber Monday: What’s the difference?
How to find ‘leaked’ Black Friday ads
In years past, a variety of Black Friday sites have dedicated themselves to revealing leaked newspaper circulars in the days and weeks ahead of the big Thanksgiving sales. Those are all still around, but many of the big stores have chosen to “leak” the ads on their own sites, revealing the contents of what will be on sale for bargain hunters who like to plan ahead.
Last year, some stores shared these ads as early as late October, and there’s no reason to think this year will be any different. As always, we’ll be keeping a close eye on Black Friday ads, sharing them as we find them, so bookmark this post and check CNET proper for all the relevant ad info.
Where can I find great deals in the meantime?
So glad you asked! Here are some CNET deal resources you should bookmark:
- The Cheapskate, a daily, curated, sometimes exclusive collection of the web’s best deals from Rick “The Cheapskate” Broida (that’s me) and CNET’s growing team of bargain-hunters.
- CNET Deals, a categorical listing of every single deal we can lay our hands on.
Watch this:
How to win Black Friday and Cyber Monday in 2019
2:25
Tamara Palmer, Justin Jaffe and Matt Elliott contributed to this story.
Originally published last year. Regularly updated with new information.