With Halloween 2014 soon to be history, technology consumers are gearing up for the next big holiday just around the corner. No, its not Thanksgiving, it's the day after that -- Black Friday, of course.
Black Friday, which takes place this year on Nov. 28, is the unofficial start of the holiday shopping crunch and the day when retailers typically give deep discounts on popular technology and other items as shoppers flock to the stores and malls in search for holiday bargains. Cyber-Monday is the recently coined term for the subsequent online sales offered by retailers after the long Thanksgiving weekend, and falls on Dec.1 this year.
Wal-Mart has decided to start Black Friday on a Monday, in what it considers a 24-hour "cyber-savings event," promising that "deals typically reserved for Black Friday and Cyber Monday start on Walmart.com shortly after midnight Pacific Time on Monday, Nov. 3."
Duncan Mac Naughton, a spokesman for the company, says "Helping families deliver an amazing Christmas doesn't start on Black Friday, it starts now. As soon as they put away their Halloween costumes, our customers start prepping for Thanksgiving, buying Christmas trees and shopping for gifts. They want the best deals now and we're here for them today, next week and throughout the season."
So what kind of tech gear can you snag at Wal-Mart's Monday sale? Many of the items won't be revealed until the sale goes live, but the retailer has confirmed several of the deeply discounted technology items, which will definitely be available on Monday. They include a Sony 48-inch LED HDTV for $348, the Nintendo 2DS Handheld Video Game System for $79, a Nextbook 7.85-inch tablet with 8 GB memory for $49, and an Element 40-inch LED HDTV for $199.
Other retailers are getting in on the early Black Friday action as well. Starting Nov. 1, Amazon is offering its deeply discounted "deal-of-the-day," which often features technology items, on two items per day instead of one, through Dec. 22. The company is also promising to increase the frequency of "lightning deals," which give consumers a limited time to buy a product at a sharply reduced price.
Target has gotten the ball rolling as well by announcing free shipping on all products from its website through Dec. 22, including many heavy technology items, though specific holiday deals and sale prices at the store have yet to be disclosed. Office Depot and its sister company OfficeMax are also starting their deals early on Nov. 2 and have announced an "Every Monday is Cyber Monday" promotion with online deals every Monday in November through Nov. 24, a few days before Thanksgiving.
Though no specific items or prices have been announced yet, Sears is also teasing early Black Friday deals in conjunction with its "friends and family sale" scheduled for Nov. 9 in-store, and online on Nov.8 and Nov. 11.
Be sure to check back frequently as we'll be bringing you all the latest tech deals and discounts for Black Friday and more as the holiday shopping season kicks into full gear.
