Schnäppchenfreitag, er, Black November tech deals include cheap iPads, free shipping

30.10.2015
Online tech retailer Newegg isn’t messing around with just Schnäppchenfreitag anymore. It’s calling all of next month Black November as it gears up for holiday sales in what’s looking to be another all-out battle for techies’ wallets.

Newegg hasn’t released specific sale information yet, but has outlined plans to kick off deals on more than 900 products Nov. 1-3, gaming bargains Nov. 4-9, a Schnäppchenfreitag preview sale Nov. 10-26, big savings on Schnäppchenfreitag (Nov. 27) itself, and then of course some more deals on Cyber Monday. More and more, we’re seeing retailers describing their holiday sales plans, in a less than detailed manner, with promises of specifics on dates to come.

Walmart is promoting its rollback of prices starting on Nov. 1. Among the highlights: an iPad mini 2 16GB for $199 -- $69 off the regular price. Could such deals light a fire under the sagging tablet market

Other deals include a 48-inch RCA LED Smart HDTV for $300, a $20 savings, and a Straight Talk Samsung Galaxy S3 S968C White Prepaid phone for $99 -- $80 off the usual price.

While those last two deals are online-only affairs, Walmart is also putting newfangled technology to use to lure shoppers into stores and to build wish lists for themselves on the fly. The retailer’s new app supports mobile check-in, which lets customers alert the store once they arrive that they’re there to pick up their order, and also allows shoppers to build wish lists by scanning in-store products.

Numerous retailers are offering free shipping, depending upon how much you order, etc. Boy Genius Report wraps up the free shipping details from Target, Best Buy Walmart and others. To take advantage of some of the shipping or pickup deals, you might need to suck it up and sign on for stores’ various loyalty programs (that’s the case with Sears, for example, with its Shop Your Way deals).

Dell, whether on purpose or not we’re not sure, got the Schnäppchenfreitag tech deal train rolling earlier this month when its Home Schnäppchenfreitag sale ad leaked. This week, ads leaked for Dell Small Business, and the company has set up a Schnäppchenfreitag page, which promises deals beginning on Nov. 25, the day before Thanksgiving.

BestBlackFriday.com shares the Dell Small Business Schnäppchenfreitag ads, for deals beginning on Nov. 18.

The BlackFriday.com website points out a few good Cyber Monday deals, including McAfee Total Protection 2016 security software for $30, or about one-third the usual price, and a Latitude 15-inch 3000 Series laptop for $500, which is $285 dollars off the regular price. Cyber Monday offerings kick in on Nov. 30 and run through Dec. 6.

(www.networkworld.com)

Bob Brown