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Here’s why you shouldn’t leave your holiday shopping until Black Friday

This year has been completely out of the ordinary for online shoppers. Usually, we online shoppers look forward to Prime Day in July and then wait till November to commence our Christmas shopping. But, the pandemic threw a giant wrench in our plans. Prime Day was initially canceled in July and up until recently, it was hard to find any sale items worthy of buying available and in stock at the online retail giant.

Amazon is holding its  Prime Day 2020 right now, just shy of Black Friday season. Placing these two events so close together might seem like a dream come true for most holiday shoppers as the sale season never ends. But, we’re here to tell you that you need to plan in advance to get your wishlist at the best possible price available. Here’s why.

Popular items like the Nintendo Switch will run out of stock quicker

With the boom in video gaming during the pandemic, it was hard for any new players to snag a copy of the Nintendo Switch. Even now, very few retailers have this gadget in stock and at the original price of $300. If you want to get a hold of an item like the Switch or a Chromebook, you need to shop during Prime Day instead of waiting for Black Friday to roll around. Why? With the demand for such products running so high it’s going to be difficult for big retailers like Amazon and Target to restock these items before Black Friday 2020 arrives.

There’s a chance your items won’t arrive in time

With stock shortages and extra precautions being taken during these trying times, most shipping time estimates have gone up. What would normally take 48 hours to ship is now being held back for an additional week or two. You definitely don’t want to wait till the end of November to start purchasing gifts for your loved ones as there’s a good chance these items won’t arrive at your doorstep till well after Christmas. The key is to get your orders in early and Prime Day is the ideal time for that.

It’s still going to be hard to shop in person

If you are one of those people who like to shop in-store and touch and feel the products they purchase, we have bad news for you. It’s well known that store traffic runs rampant during Black Friday as everyone scurries to the nearest Apple store, or other retail outlets, with a list of gadgets they want to buy. But with social distancing measures still prevalent, there’s a good chance you’ll be stuck in hour-long lines just to set foot in the store. If you do want an in-person shopping experience, it’s better to head to stores now and feel out the products you want and then wait till Prime Day to buy them at their discounted price. This way you’ll get the gadget you want, at the price you want, and without suffering large shipping delays.

Prime Day 2020 is overflowing with Amazon Echo deals, Instant Pot deals, home security camera deals, and robot vacuum deals. Smart thermostat sales,  smart home deals are going on right now in addition to discounts on everything and anything kitchen-related.

For tech gifts check out all the Prime Day Laptops deals, Prime Day iPad deals, best Prime Day Smartphone deals and Prime Day Smartwatch deals available right now.

Today’s Best Deals

Editors' Recommendations

Which security camera should you buy on Black Friday 2021?
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Now is a great time to start looking at the best Black Friday deals for a security camera for your home. A home security camera is your first and best line of defense when it comes to keeping your home safe, both against intruders and unexpected events. Did you know that some security cameras can detect a fire in the home and others can pick up on when someone falls? There are a lot of Black Friday security camera deals to consider, including great Blink camera deals. Our top pick by far is the Arlo Pro 4.

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How to know if that Black Friday deal is actually a good one
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Everyone wants to save money, and with Black Friday deals popping up all over the web right now, it's the perfect time to do just that. But how do you know if a deal is actually a good one? Just because a retailer says it's on sale doesn't mean it's really on sale, so you have to be careful about your purchases -- especially online. Whatever you're trying to buy this Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2021, there are a few things you can do to avoid getting duped by a bad deal.
Find your deals through a trusted source
It may be tempting to just go to Amazon to look for savings, but we highly suggest not doing that. Online storefronts were built to sell you things, and once they have you on their site, they can control everything you see. Prices, discounts, and suggested products can all be populated by these retailers in an attempt to get you to buy from them. This sort of targeting isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it can result in making purchases you wouldn't normally make at prices you would normally avoid.

That's why finding a trustworthy third-party deals source can be so beneficial. For example, our Black Friday deals coverage is filled with the best discounts our experts could find. Our dedicated team spends hours cross-checking various retailers and price histories to ensure the deals we recommend are worthy of being displayed.
Do a quick Google search
This may sound super obvious, but it's one of the easiest ways to see if you're getting a good deal. If you find yourself looking at a discounted product, fingers itching to make a purchase, make sure you take a moment to do a quick price check. When it comes to buying holidays like Black Friday and Cyber Monday, retailers are in constant competition to have the lowest prices around. You can use this to your advantage, but only if you do a little bit of research first.

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Should you buy an Apple Pencil on Black Friday 2021?
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Is Black Friday a good time to buy an Apple Pencil? Only in specific circumstances -- and those circumstances are, "Do you want to spend less money?" Of course you do. Black Friday deals are a great opportunity to buy yourself a new Apple Pencil, as discounts are available across a large range of Apple products. While discounts on Apple's gear are rarely deep, it's still worth keeping an eye out for the best Black Friday Apple deals during any sales period, and doubly so where Black Friday is concerned.

<span data-contrast="auto">View Apple Pencil Black Friday Deals at Amazon</span>
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