For better and worse, people go out less to shop. Regardless, the ritual that is Black Friday continues with retailers stoking buzz. What’s the must-have gadget of 2014? Actually, there is no killer device this year, so Black Friday iPad deals are a big part of retailers planning.
That said, while Apple’s tablet isn’t the buzz factory that it once was, retailers are responding by offering some serious Black Friday iPad discounts. That said, not all of these deals fall on Black Friday and, this is speculative, look for even better deals later on.
“I am betting that Walmart does a $149 or lower [first-generation] Mini and a $279 first-generation Air,” said Stephen Baker, analyst, NPD Group
Here’s a quick look at the Black Friday iPad deals coming from Best Buy, Walmart, Target and, yes, even Apple.
Black Friday iPad Deals
• Best Buy
— iPad Air 2, save $100
— iPad mini 3, save $75
• Target
— 16GB iPad Air, get a $140 Target gift card
— 16GB iPad mini 3, iPad Air, get a $100 Target card
— 16GB iPad mini 2, get an $80 Target card
• Walmart
— 16GB iPad Air (2013) for $397 plus a $100 Walmart gift card
— 16GB iPad Mini (2012) for $199 plus a $30 Walmart card
• Apple
— iPad Air 2, $50 Apple gift card
— iPad mini, $25 Apple gift card
As these things go, straight discounts are the better deal. However, if you were going to be spending for a case, better headphones, etc, the bigger the gift card the better.
“The iPad Mini pricing at $249 will not hold,” Baker said. “Three times this year major US retailers have advertised it at $199. Those three weeks alone accounted for almost 20 percent of all iPad Mini sales in 2014, both regular and Retina displays, and were, by far, the three highest-selling weeks for iPads year-to-date.”
The big takeaway? If you want a cheap iPad mini, especially older models, waiting could be very profitable…
What’s your take?
Source: ZDNet