Although Black Friday 2020 doesn’t officially arrive until Nov. 27, plenty of stores have kicked off early sales. But many of them are happening sporadically: Amazon just paused the deep discounts it was offering on Echo devices, and we’re currently in between Walmart’s scheduled early Black Friday sales. (The next one starts Wednesday, Nov. 11.)
Meanwhile, Best Buy has “select” Black Friday deals available now, though some of these prices were lower before, and may well be again before the end of the month.
The list below includes some of our favorite early deals, but many of them have expired — for now. We’re keeping them here because we expect the discounts to return, and so you can plan ahead for the weeks to come. We’ve also cued up a couple of the best items from Walmart’s next event.
As always, keep this post bookmarked and check it often for updates!
Best early Black Friday deals available now
TCL
This 55-inch TCL has a 4K UHD display with HDR. It’s equipped with our favorite smart TV interface, Roku, which you can control with the included voice remote. There are four HDMI inputs (including ARC) and dual-band Wi-Fi for smooth streaming.
The TCL 55-inch 4K UHD HDR Roku Smart TV will be on sale for $148 starting Nov. 11.
HP
This midrange Pavilion is equipped with an AMD Ryzen 5 4500U CPU, a 512GB SSD and has a 1,920×1,080-pixel display. It also features upgraded B&O speakers and weighs 3.9 pounds.
The HP Pavilion 15.6-inch Horizon Blue Laptop will be on sale for $379 starting Nov. 11.
Keurig
Tying the lowest price on record, the K-Mini is about as compact as coffee makers come. Pop in a pod, pour in some water, push a button — it’s also about as easy as coffee makers come. This one can brew cups ranging from 6-12 ounces.
Angela Lang/CNET
With standard AirPods on sale for an all-time-low $99 (see below), why spend almost double to get AirPods Pro? I’ll make the arguments for better fit and much better sound, but, really, it’s all about the noise canceling: These in-ear ‘buds block outside noise better than just about any other product on the market.
They’re also great for calls and offer an excellent transparency mode. Like to work out? The AirPods Pro are sweat-resistant; standard AirPods are not.
Pro tip: Use your Amazon Prime Rewards Visa card to get 5% back on this purchase, effectively bringing your price down to $184.30. Don’t have that card? If you’re a Prime subscriber, grab it and score a $100 Amazon gift card. That would shave the initial price down to just $94, then $89.30 after the 5% cash back.
Best Buy
TCL is best known for its Roku TVs, and we like the Roku smart TV system better than the Android TV version in this television, but for this price you can just buy a Roku Streaming Stick Plus, attach it to this TV and still come out ahead. Aside from its smarts we expect this 4-Series TV to perform “good enough,” just like the Roku equivalent.
Note that this was $50 cheaper last week, and therefore may be again — but for now it’s still a really solid deal on a 55-inch smart TV.
Lenovo’s premium two-in-one, the Yoga C940, boasts a sturdy and sleek all-metal design and a touch display that can rotate 360 degrees into tablet mode. It includes an active pen and can also instantly wake from sleep, one of the phone-like features it received courtesy of Intel’s Project Athena.
This configuration features a 14-inch display with a 4K resolution powered by a 10th-gen Core i7 CPU, 16GB of RAM and 512GB SSD with 32GB of superfast Optane memory. A similarly configured Yoga C40 on Lenovo’s site works out to $1,650, so this deal is even better than it looks. And it already looked good.
Early Black Friday deals: Sold out or expired (for now)
Óscar Gutiérrez/CNET
Amazon, Walmart, Costco and other stores were offering $99 AirPods, the lowest price on record, but for the moment that deal is gone. In its place: $194 AirPods Pro at Amazon (see above), also the lowest price on record.
Will $99 AirPods be back? [Shakes Magic 8-Ball.] All signs point to yes.
Bose
If ever there was a time to tune out the world, it’s now. (Because, you know, election, pandemic, murder hornets…) Sure, there are newer over-the-ear noise-canceling cans from Sony and even Bose, but this perennial favorite was great when it came out and it’s still great now — especially at this price, which rivals the lowest we’ve seen. Original list price: $350.
Instant Pot
These days, a multicooker is an essential kitchen tool, like a toaster oven or microwave. This Instant Pot Viva can get you in the multicooker business for half price: $49 buys you a nine-in-one gadget that works as a pressure cooker, slow cooker, rice cooker, yogurt maker, sous vide, cake maker and more. It has a 6-quart capacity and comes with 15 preset programs for recipes that include soups, beans, rice, ribs and eggs.
Sarah Tew/CNET
Normally $30, the new-for-2020 Fire Stick Lite continues to see a solid discount ahead of Black Friday. This entry-level streamer delivers 1080p video with HDR support (but not 4K). The big missing apps are HBO Max and Peacock (for now), but the Alexa-powered voice remote is top-notch.
Chris Monroe/CNET
The Echo Show 8 is simply a larger version of the Echo Show 5, but that makes it a better candidate for the kitchen and other places you might prefer a bigger display. (It’s definitely preferable for video calls.) This matches the lowest price on record for this model.
Note that Amazon shows an in-stock date of Nov. 24, so head to Best Buy if you’d rather get this immediately.
Vanessa Hand Orellana/CNET
New for 2020, the Apple Watch SE is the middle child of the Apple Watch lineup. It’s got the same basic design as the Series 6, but lacks that model’s always-on display, ECG functionality and oxygen saturation measurements. The 40mm and 44mm models run $279 and $309 at the Apple Store, but this weekend’s $50 price cut is the first big holiday sale we’ve seen on this model.
Eufy
You don’t have to spend hundreds to add some automation to your house cleaning. The Eufy RoboVac 25C can be controlled via a mobile app or by voice with Alexa and Google Home. It’s smart enough to differentiate between floors and carpet and can avoid stairs automatically.
What you need to know about Black Friday 2020
Black Friday 2020 is shaping up to be a very different kind of shopping experience than any holiday shopping weekend in recent memory. With ongoing inventory issues due to the extended global pandemic — not to mention the need for retailers to maintain a safe environment for customers and employees — it’s likely that there will be no throngs of expectant customers lining up for hours ahead of massive doorbuster sales.
In fact, a number of stores will be closed on Thanksgiving this year, ending a long-standing tradition of kicking off Black Friday sales before the turkey has had a chance to cool. These retailers have not yet announced plans for Friday, Nov. 27, but we’ll update this article as we learn more about their holiday hours.
In addition, all of the retailers listed below require customers to wear face coverings. Unless their policies change between now and Thankskgiving, it’s reasonable to assume that face coverings will be required for Black Friday sales as well.
Bookmark this post and check back often for more early and upcoming Black Friday deals!
Read more: 4 things you need to know about Black Friday 2020
Watch this:
Tricks to score extra savings on Black Friday and Cyber…
2:06
CNET’s Cheapskate scours the web for great deals on tech products and much more. For the latest deals and updates, follow the Cheapskate on Facebook and Twitter. Find more great buys on the CNET Deals page and check out our CNET Coupons page for the latest promo codes from Best Buy, Walmart, Amazon and more. Questions about the Cheapskate blog? Find the answers on our FAQ page.
