To get the most out of Black Friday discounts, you’ll need to be a savvy shopper – that means knowing what you want to buy and understanding whether a deal is really as good as the retailer claims. It also means staying aware of things like delivery charges, shipping times, additional hidden discounts and other strategies to get the best price. Fortunately, we’re here to help you out. In this article, we’re taking a deep dive into everything you can expect this Black Friday. We’ll look at which devices to keep an eye on for major discounts, which retailers should have sales, ongoing early Black Friday deals and most importantly, top tips and predictions so you’re wholly prepared to maximize your Black Friday savings.
Best Black Friday deals
Here are our top highlights for the best Black Friday offers we saw for 2022, for both the US and UK:
Best US Black Friday deals
Best UK Black Friday deals
Tech brands to watch for Black Friday 2023
You don’t have to be a fortune teller to predict which devices are likely to see Black Friday discounts – all you really need is a strong aware of release cycles, price histories and past trends. Thankfully, that’s our job here at Tech Advisor, so we can save you the trouble. Was: $249 Now: $159 ($90 off) Walmart has the lowest price on the AirPods Pro with MagSafe charging case at the moment. Was: $229.95 Now: $149.95 ($80 off) Was: $1,349.99 Now: $899.99 ($450 off) Was: $1,599.99 Now: $1,099.99 ($400 off) Was: $999.99 Now: $499.99 ($500 off) Was: $749.99 Now: $649.99 ($100 off) Was: $199.99 Now: $99.99 ($100 off) Was: £54.99 Now: £26.99 (51% off) Was: £549 Now: £327.99 (£221.01 off) Was: £999 Now: £599 (£400 off) Was: £1,499 Now: £939 (£560 off) Was: £149.99 Now: £63.99 (£86 off) Was: £999.99 Now: £549.99 (£450 off + free smart scales) Was: £329 Now: £179 (£150 off) Pump up your home Wi-Fi with a massive £150 off this quality 3-pack Mesh WiFi system Was: £159.99 Now: £124.99 (£35 off and 3 months of Kindle Unlimited) Was: £249 Now: £149 (£100 off) An excellent deal on a great air fryer from a popular brand. The capable Tefal ActiFry Genius XL is usually on the pricey side, but this hefty discount makes it much more affordable. Was: £529.99 Now: £429.99 (£100 off) Was: £549 Now: £489.99 (£59 off) Was: £499 Now: £349 (£150 off) These are the devices we expect to see on sale within the next couple of weeks if not sooner:
2021 Apple devices (or older)
2022 was a busy year for Apple as the company managed to effectively refresh its entire product line. This means 2021’s devices are all fair game for major discounts:
iPhone 13 range MacBook Pro MacBook Air with M1 Apple Watch Series 7 iPad 10.2in 9th generation iPad Pro with M1 Apple AirPods Apple AirPods Max
Don’t forget that Apple also holds a 4-day Black Friday event every year. While it doesn’t slash prices on its products, it does bundle a gift card with select devices. Last year it bundled gift cards worth up to $200/£160. With Apple’s push towards the AirPods line, you’re also likely to see big discounts on Beats headphones.
Microsoft Surface devices
Microsoft recently launched updates to a whole bunch of its Surface devices as well, so Black Friday season will be a great time to pick up discounts on the previous generation devices. We’re tracking all the best Surface deals of the month right here but these are the products to watch:
Surface Pro 8 Surface Duo 2 Surface Laptop 4
Samsung Black Friday deals: Galaxy S23 range
Black Friday deals on Samsung’s Galaxy S23 range are likely given that by then the phones will be nearly a year old. And if Samsung stays true to the predicted release cycle, the Galaxy S24 range should release at a similar time in 2024. That means Samsung will want to get rid of old stock. Also see the best deals on the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 and Z Fold 4 – which by Black Friday will have been replaced by later models, so are almost certain to see heavy discounts.
Black Friday Xiaomi deals
Xiaomi is no stranger to deals and often has sales running through the year in the UK – though sadly its phones still aren’t sold in the US. We’re almost certain to see discounts on the Xiaomi 13 flagships, but your best bet is to head directly to the Mi Store, because the best savings are usually found across its expansive range of more affordable phones, especially those in the Poco and Redmi lines.
Other tech deals to look for
Black Friday VPN deals Black Friday Fitbit deals Black Friday Echo deals
Predictions for Black Friday this year
1. More shopping in-stores
It’s the moment retailers have been anticipating for nearly two years: in-store shopping. Now that more people are vaccinated, and shops are widely open again, you can be sure retailers will welcome shoppers back with song and dance (read: very competitive discounts). While shopping online has ballooned since the pandemic, we’re certain that retailers will want to make the most of their customers’ in-store presence with exclusive discounts, live products demonstrations, and buying advice.
2. Rise of click and collect
We expect click-and-collect to take off – in fact, research from Business Insider shows this form of purchasing more than doubled in 2020 and will only continue to grow until 2024. With the increasing strain on delivery drivers, retailers might incentivize buying or reserving online and collecting in-store. This might include incentives like discounts or bundles. The benefits of C&C is that you can jump the queue, have a look and feel of the item before you pay for it (if you pay on collection), and save on delivery costs.
3. Free next-day delivery
In the same vein, retailers may entice shoppers with free next-day delivery to limit people from crowding stores.
4. Live shopping deals (especially on social media)
Liveshopping e-commerce isn’t new. In fact, it’s a massive multi-billion dollar e-commerce business in Asia, but it’s only just picking up in the US and UK. Last year we saw OnePlus launch exclusive discounts through its its Instagram and social feeds, and it wouldn’t surprise us if the brand did something similar over Black Friday. We’d recommend following all your favourite brands on social media (if only over Black Friday season) so you can pick up any exclusive discounts announced on social.
5. More ways to pay: Buy Now Pay Later
2020 and 2021 also saw the rise of Buy Now Pay Later services such as Klarna, ClearPay, AfterPay and PayPal Credit – even Apple’s gotten in on it now. These services allow you to split payments into 3-4 chunks or delay payments without interest (or late fees in some cases). There are risks associated if you’re unable to pay back, of course, and reports show that it can lead to debt (see our full guide to Klarna), but given the popularity of such services, you’re likely to see more of them at checkout over Black Friday, or retailers offering their own financing options. We’d advise you to use these services only if you’re certain you’ll be able to keep up with the monthly payments.
6. Slower delivery times
While we mentioned that free next day delivery is likely to be on the cards for many retailers wanting to attract customers, it’s also likely that delivery bottlenecks may make this option unviable. The global supply chain crisis that’s leaving warehouses short-staffed and under-resourced means your orders may take longer to arrive. It’s worth thinking about such potential setbacks. Just because you’ve beaten the crowd and bought that last 43in OLED 4K TV, it doesn’t mean you’ll get it in time for Christmas or the holidays (which is another reason to buy early if you see a good deal ahead of Black Friday).
7. Expect more refurbished offers and Black Friday trade-in deals
The refurbished market has skyrocketed since the pandemic, and for good reason. Refurbished devices (if you buy smart – here’s how) are repaired to work just like new, are cheaper, and save the planet from electronic waste. With new phones and laptops releasing every month, you’re almost guaranteed to find refurbished models of the latest devices – but at lower prices. Keep track of the best refurbished phone deals here. In the same vein, we’re starting to see lots more retailers do trade-in offers too – from Currys and John Lewis to KRCS (for Apple products), you can expect additional discounts when submit your old device. MusicMagpie is a refurbished retailer that always has competitive prices on refurbished goods. Keep an eye out for extra savings with trade-in this Black Friday!
8. Lottery deals
This Black Friday, we expect retailers to drum up excitement by giving away discounts by lottery systems, which proved popular last year.
9. More exclusive deals online and better offers
Expect to see more “online exclusive” Black Friday prices, codes, and vouchers. Some of those voucher codes may only be available via newsletters – which is why we’d highly encourage you to sign up to retailer and brand newsletters right now. Not only does it improve your chance of getting exclusive discount codes, you’ll also know about Black Friday deals as soon as they launch. Similarly, many retailers also have Black Friday sign up pages so you can hear about deals before anyone else. You can sign up to a few below:
Argos Black Friday sign up Best Buy Black Friday sign up Currys Black Friday sign up Very Black Friday sign up
10. Slower online experience
With more offers online, you can expect incredibly high volumes of traffic on your favourite retailers’ sites. Brace yourself for being pushed into virtual waiting rooms like Queue-it – especially if you’re after consoles like the PS5 (here’s where to look for stock). This means you will just need to be more targeted with your shopping. Shop by the product instead of the retailer, so you have other options if the site you’re looking at has any difficulties. Better yet, add those items to your cart now so when Black Friday approaches, you simply have to head to checkout when the price goes down. Most retailers offer the same prices across the board once sales go into full swing – and if there is a price difference it probably won’t be more than a few pennies. We’ll be keeping an eye on the best Black Friday tech deals and also offering detailed coverage of the best Black Friday offers. And if you’re an Apple fan, see the best Black Friday Apple deals on our sister site Macworld. Tech Advisor’s Deputy Editor, Dom covers everything that runs on electricity, from phones and laptops to wearables, audio, gaming, smart home, and streaming - plus he’s a regular fixture on the Tech Advisor YouTube channel.
