Black Friday Deals Time

If you’ve been with GeekMom through the years, you know that I round up the best Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals for you each year. This year I have to admit–it’s not the most amazing Black Friday of deals I’ve ever seen. Of course, if you’re looking for just the right thing, you’ll find some sales. But there aren’t many that you can’t find an equivalent for other times of the year. That said, here are a few I can point you towards.

TVs

If you’re looking for a TV, you may have been hanging on for Black Friday. In fact, that’s what I was looking for this year. You do have to make some choices, though. I love BF shopping, but I’m not willing to elbow three grandmas and a toddler out of the way for the last $199 90″ no-name TV at Wal-Mart at 4 a.m. If you want those rock-bottom prices, you’re going to have to be the dedicated kind of shopper, and there are those deals out there.

If you’re of a saner shopping mind and willing to spend a little more, the deals this year are in 4K. It hasn’t been long since these sets cost well into four digits, but you can easily get a 50″+ Samsung or LG for less than $600 this Black Friday. A few choices:

• 60 LG 4K Ultra HD TV for $599.99 (Best Buy)
• Samsung 55″ 4K Ultra HD TV for $479.99 (Best Buy)
• Samsung 60″ 4K Ultra HD TV $648 (Wal-Mart)

All that said, if you’re a member of a warehouse club like Costco, you might find an equally great deal in a week with a shorter line.

Crafters and Makers

The big box craft stores–AC Moore, Michaels, and JoAnn–are always great for in-person Black Friday shopping. They run massive sales, and in my experience, the lines usually move pretty quickly. You’ll want to grab the coupons from the newspaper or their websites. But unlike a few years ago, you can also shop Michaels and JoAnn online now with generally low shipping prices.

If you’ve been waiting for a Silhouette Cameo 3 (and if you don’t have this cutting machine, I highly recommend owning one–I just bought my second), there are a few options available:

• The Silhouette America store is offering bundles and 40% off accessories with free shipping over $100. Use the code JINGLE.
  If you’d rather get it with some accessories in a bundle ready for projects, Amazon has multiple bundles with assorted uses in mind. For example, this bundle throws in 24 sheets of Oracal 651 (permanent vinyl), sketch pens, and some bonus tools, as well as designs and $25 in the Silhouette store.

For the makers in your life:

• Dremel 3-Tool Craft & Hobby Maker Kit with 200-Series Rotary Tool, Engraver & Butane Soldering Torch.
• Adafruit has 15% off everything with code ADATHANKS. On Friday, it will also get you 20% off Feather items, and on Monday, it will get you 25% off Metro items.
• Sparkfun‘s sale will run all weekend, and they say to expect 20% off most of their items.
• The Maker Shed will have things on sale, too, but they’re not letting us know in advance what they are!

Video Games

This is one of those categories where it’s not the best year. If you’re interested in an XBox, that’s where the biggest savings are, and every store has a different bundle. In other sales:

• Skylanders Imaginators starter pack is $37.49 (50% off) on Amazon–I’ve been playing it for a few weeks with my kids and highly recommend it. The same sale is running a few places in-store, but you might as well save yourself the torture!
• Alienware Steam machines are 50% off at GameStop.
• Toys R Us is running $10-25 off quite a few video games.
  • Disney Infinity figures are buy 1, get 3 free at Toys R Us. (Yes, you read that right–that’s what happens when a game is discontinued.) Play sets and starter packs are $9.99.
  • Lego Dimensions starter packs are $50 off at Toys R Us, and Fun Packs are 3 for $20.

General Sale-Hunting

If you aren’t already, you might as well keep watching the Amazon Black Friday deals page. If you’re hunting for something specific, I suggest starting at SlickDeals for a little help. I’ll be back Monday with Cyber Monday deals!