Cyber Monday 2013: Where to Look for the Best Tech Cyber Monday Deals

Cyber Monday deals will soon be here to replace the Black Friday sales that ran out of stock, and while there is not as much build up for Cyber Monday, there are many deals shaping up for Monday, and we are seeing some Cyber Monday 2013 deals start even earlier than normal.

If you are looking for the best Cyber Monday 2013 deals you will need to wait for Sunday and Monday, but you can at lease start planning which stores you will be checking and take stock of what you didn’t get at Black Friday sales to plan out your purchases for Cyber Monday.

If you want to go big on Cyber Monday 2013 you will need to be ready to buy when the deals go live if you want in on biggest savings because these deals will go very fast. If possible add an item to your cart and then do your research to compare prices and read reviews, but keep in mind you will need to check out within about 15 minutes.

Here’s a look at the Cyber Monday 2013 deals we know about and the stores you need to keep an eye on to find the best deals. Most of the Cyber Monday 2013 deals start around midnight on Sunday night, while some will start earlier in the day.

The Walmart Cyber Monday 2013 deals are mostly under wraps until after Black Friday ends, but we do know about two Walmart Cyber Monday tech deals worth looking at.

First off is a 46-inch Samsung LED HDTV for $478. There are no specifics on this HDTV yet, but at this price expect 180P, 120Hz and possibly some Smart TV features.

Next up is an iPod touch for $199. This may be a 16GB model that normally retails for $229, which means $30 in savings. The Apple Store offers a Black Friday deal of a $50 gift card which is a better deal.

It's not advertised, but there will be Walmart Cyber Monday Xbox One and PS4 deals, with consoles in stock for online sales on Monday December 2nd.

There is a 7-inch Double Power Android tablet that falls under our warning of avoiding cheap Android tablets. These are only a small number of the deals we will see. The Walmart Cyber Monday 2013 deals will run all week, starting Monday December 2nd.

Amazon Black Friday 2013 Deals to Watch

The Amazon Black Friday deals ramp up today as Thanksgiving signals the official start of Black Friday sales, and while there is not a complete schedule of Black Friday deals on Amazon, we do know what to look for from the online superstore and where you should be watching to find the best deals.

While the Amazon Black Friday 2013 deals did start earlier this week, Thanksgiving and Black Friday are when the deals really heat up. Even if you plan to do most of your shopping at a Walmart Black Friday event or at Best Buy you should keep a close eye on Amazon as you might find the same deal or a better deal and be able to buy it and walk out of line.

Many of the Gotta Be Mobile staff members who like to shop on Black Friday skip out on the lines of Walmart, even with the temptation of a 70-inch HDTV, and opt for buying our deals on Amazon. This lets us spend time with our friends and family during Thanksgiving without waiting in line. As long as you have a smartphone and an internet connection you can snag these deals wherever you are.

Read: Amazon Black Friday Tips

As we shared earlier this week, the best Amazon Black Friday 2013 deals are Lightning deals that come and go very fast. You can get a look at what is coming up and plan ahead, but be ready to add that item to your cart and then figure out if it is exactly what you want. These deals go faster than stuffing at the Thanksgiving dinner you skipped to stand in line at Walmart.

You can sign up for email alerts, follow Amazon deals on Twitter and on Facebook to get alerts, and you can install the Amazon app for faster shopping on the go.

Here are five categories that you should pay attention to when you are doing your Black Friday shopping on Amazon this year.

There are a lot of Kindle Fire Black Friday 2013 deals at brick and mortar stores where you will need to line up for a few hours, but we could see Amazon offer $30 or so off of the Kindle Fire HD.

If users are lucky Amazon will offer a very limited deal on the Kindle Fire HDX, which is the latest version with MayDay live tech support built-in.

The Kindle Fire HD Black Friday 2013 deals are most plentiful, but there are options for the new Kindle Fire HDX, and one old Kindle Fire deal.

There are several in store deals for the Kindle Fire HDX, but they use gift cards. With more retailers turning to gift cards, Amazon might include an Amazon gift card instead of an up front discount.

Watch the Kindle Fire page, homepage and the deal alerts for any Kindle Fire deals as this is one that Amazon will surely promote front and center.

Amazon is well-known for offering great HDTV deals throughout the year and Black Friday is no different. Amazon already offers a listing of HDTV Black Friday deals with discounts up to 50%, but the savings may go bigger on Thanksgiving and Black Friday.

Amazon is already cutting 50% off Samsung HDTVs for Black Friday.

The Amazon Black Friday HDTV deals might even include one that matches the Walmart 70-inch Vizio HDTV for $998. We already know that Amazon is planning these Black Friday HDTV deals, but there will likely be more in the form of Lightning deals.

50-Inch Toshiba HDTV for $499, a savings of $400Haier 46-Inch HDTV for $349, a savings of $200

Check this page, and keep checking it, to see the latest Amazon Black Friday HDTV deals as they come and go during Thanksgiving and Black Friday.

This is also a good time to look or iPhone cases, iPhone accessories and Android accessories and cases on Amazon. We could also see Amazon discount some Android smartphones for Black Friday, but it’s not promised. Check this page for the latest deals.

Save on iPhone and Android accessories at Amazon Black Friday sales.

Look for deals on Lifeproof, OtterBox, Speck, Spigen  and other big name cases on Amazon during this sales event. We are already seeing 25% off OtterBox cases and 50% off Bluetooth headsets.

The Amazon Black Friday 2013 sales already include many video game items for the Xbox 360 and PS3, and we will see even more discounts on games and consoles. Look for a focus on console bundles, games and accessories like 5.1 and 7.1 surround sound headsets.  Here’s a few of the deals Amazon promises,

Halo 4 Game of the Year Edition for $19.99, a savings of $20Batman Arkham Origins for $39.99, a savings of $20Buy an OUYA Game Console and get an OUYA Wireless Controller for free

And here’s a bigger list of Amazon Black Friday video game deals. If you are open to shopping in store, check out our overall Black Friday video game deal roundup.

Odds are Amazon won’t have any big discounts on the Xbox One and PS4, but we could see some game deals and even a limited stock of each console would be considered a deal right now.

Third party retailers like Amazon offer better Black Friday deals on the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro than Apple typically does on Black Friday.

Read: Best Apple Black Friday 2013 Deals

Expect some MacBook Air and MacBook Pro Black Friday deals at Amazon.

We don’t know what Amazon has in store yet, but it is possible they will meet or beat the Best Buy MacBook Air and MacBook Pro deals, delivering $150 to $200 off select models – without paying any sales tax up front, which can be a significant savings.

Apple Black Friday 2013 Deals Revealed: No Discounts, Free Gift Cards w/ Purchase

Apple’s in the midst of launching its Black Friday 2013 promotions around the globe. Unfortunately, Apple is not offering Black Friday discounts and is instead offering gift cards with select purchases. The gift cards can be redeemed at the Apple Store only and cannot be used for iTunes or App Store purchases.

Apple rarely discounts its iPhones, iPads, iPods and Macs to the general public, though it does regularly offer college students and businesses discounts. Last year Apple offered $101 off Macs on Black Friday and many were expecting Apple to repeat the offer this year.

Read: Best Apple Black Friday 2013 Deals

Apple isn’t officially calling its gift card promotion a Black Friday event since it is offering the deals around the world. Though Black Friday is an American phenomenon, Australians are the first to benefit from the promotion.While the gift card amounts and linked items in the Apple store are advertised in Australian dollars, we expect them to translate over to U.S. dollars. We’ll know with certainty once Apple officially launches its Black Friday deals on its U.S. online store in the wee hours of Black Friday.

Apple typically launches products, early ordering and promos based on PST since the company is headquartered there. That means those on the east coast will have to wait up until about 3am EST if they want to be amongst the first to take advantage of the deals. Unlike iPhone, iPad and Mac resellers, Apple is not likely to run out of any of its own items which means there’s no need to rush.

Apple’s Black Friday iPad deals aren’t as attractive as Walmart’s and Target’s. Those retailers are offering up to $100 in gift cards with iPad purchases on Black Friday, but quantities are limited and they are not available online. Apple is offering an $$75 gift card with the iPad and an $50 gift card with the iPad mini and iPad 2.

Apple is offering an $150 gift card with the purchase of any iMac or MacBook. That’s a superb deal on the cheapest Macs, such as the $999 11? MacBook Air since it amounts to a 15% discount. However, it isn’t much to brag about on the high-end 15? MacBook Pro, which costs up to $3,199 at retail depending on configuration.

Perhaps the best deal at Apple stores and Apple.com is the $50 gift card that can be had by purchasing the $249 iPod touch, effectively dropping the price to $199. The iPod touch is a superb Christmas gift since it offers many of the benefits of the iPhone without the messiness of gifting a device that requires a long-term wireless contract.

Read: iPod touch Review

The iPhone 5c and iPhone 5s are notably absent from Apple’s Black Friday Australian landing page. Apple is however offering gift cards with its own accessories and third-party accessories.

Best Apple Black Friday 2013 Deals

The iPhone Black Friday deals cut the price of the iPhone 5s and the iPhone 5c dramatically and gift card bonuses make things even better. Walmart offers the best iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c prices for shoppers who want a contract with AT&T, Verizon or Sprint.

The deal includes a $45 iPhone 5c and a $189 iPhone 5s and a $75 gift card. T-Mobile is offering an iPhone 5s for $0 down and $20 a month for 24 months and Sprint is offering $100 off for switchers.

You will need to sing a new contract for most of these deals and be eligible for an upgrade. Check out the rest of the iPhone Black Friday 2013 deals for other stores near you which may have similar offers. If you want the iPhone 5s without a contract, RadioShack offers an iPhone 5s on Virgin Mobile for $549, a savings of $100.

Early Cyber Monday iPad Deals Match Black Friday Deals

Target is continuing its Black Friday iPad discounts and gift card giveaway scheme through Cyber Monday, offering $75 and $100 cards with the purchase of select iPad Air, iPad mini and iPad 2 models. Those who camped out in line or dealt with the Black Friday mobs to score iPad deals may have wasted their efforts considering that anyone can just waltz into Target and get the same deals today, without the mad rush.

The retailer is offering a $20 discount on the 16GB iPad Air and throwing in a $100 Target gift card that can be used on future purchases. The gift card cannot be used towards the purchase of the iPad Air. Target is also offering a $100 gift card with the purchase of the $399 16GB iPad 2, though we no longer recommend buying the aging device.

UPDATE: Target’s Taken down this offer and readers are reporting the discount cards are no longer being offered in stores. We’ll keep our eyes out for more iPad sales. 

Target is offering $75 gift cards with the purchase of the iPad mini or the new iPad mini with Retina display, neither of which are discounted like the iPad Air. The original 16GB iPad mini carries the standard $299 price tag. The 16GB iPad mini with Retina display sells for $399.99.  This gift card promo brings the effective price of the iPad mini down to just $224, which is $5 cheaper than the Nexus 7.

The gift card offers aren’t just limited to the 16GB iPad models, extending to the higher capacity models. These gift card offers are excellent, so long as you apply it to something you’d normally buy. Of course you won’t save anything at all if you end up spending the gift card on iPad accessories or any other items you don’t really need.

While these pre-Cyber Monday deals are attractive, this isn’t the best iPad mini deal we’ve seen this week. Both Best Buy and Walmart were offering $100 gift cards on the iPad mini through Black Friday. Now that those deals are over, Target seems to have the best widely available offering on both the iPad Air and iPad mini.

Though the original iPad mini is an excellent value, those who can afford the  iPad mini with Retina display should buy the newer model. In our review of the iPad mini with Retina display, our reviewer called it “almost perfect.”

We don’t expect Apple to match this iPad deal on Cyber Monday. Apple held a one-day gift card giveaway event on Black Friday that we don’t expect it to repeat any time soon. That promotion offered gift cards of up to $75 with the purchase of select iPads.

Are Walmart Black Friday Deals Big Enough to Get Haters in the Door?

The Walmart Black Friday 2013 ad is full of deals, and some steals, but is it good enough to get Walmart haters in the door on Thanksgiving day and Black Friday?

We all know a Walmart hater who refuses to shop at Walmart on principle. Sometimes the principle is sound and based Walmart’s treatment of workers or the fact that the retailer often squeezes out small businesses. Others complain about poor customer service, which is quickly becoming the standard outside of Walmart and is hardly a factor to consider on Black Friday — the most DIY and Defend-YourSelf shopping day of the year.

Read: 5 Walmart Black Friday Deals to Avoid

With Black Friday 2013 quickly approaching and Walmart’s deals bordering on Crazy, we reached out to retail and marketing experts to find out if the Walmart Black Friday 2013 ads are good enough to tempt haters in the door on the craziest shopping weekend of the season.

Will Walmart Black Friday deals draw haters in for big savings?

Here’s a fast look at the best Walmart Black Friday deals we’ve found. If anything tempts shoppers into the store we expect it will be a $199 iPad mini (After gift card) or a $75 Gift card with the purchase of an iPhone 5s or iPhone 5c. We may also see some shoppers get in line for the $100 gift card on an Android smartphone. Of course there is also a $288 50-inch HDTV on sale that could tempt some shoppers.

Walmart loves low prices and Black Friday is a day to drive prices even lower. This may work for Walmart’s staple of cost conscious shoppers, but it isn’t enough to bring in the haters on Black Friday says Ben Nettleton, Web Editor of Global Healing Center. In an email Nettleton writes,

“No, it’s not enough. Part of the reason many people hate going to Wal-Mart is dealing with the crowd at Wal-Mart. When Wal-Mart practically gives stuff away, it brings out the enthusiasts in droves and really concentrates the Wal-Mart experience.

Have you seen the videos of storage footage during black Friday? FORGET IT. Nobody who hates Wal-Mart is going to put up with that. Plus, people who hate Wal-Mart are, by definition, not swayed by shit for cheap.”

Just how bad can Walmart be on Black Friday? Here’s a video of Walmart’s Black Friday sales that started on Thanksgiving Day.

Walmart haters weigh in telling Gotta Be Mobile that these deals are tempting, but ultimately not enough to get them in the door on Black Friday 2013.

Tai Brown, a self professed long-term Walmart hater writes,

“I haven’t stepped foot into a Walmart in over 14 years, and even drop my mother at the door and refuse to accompany her when she needs a ride to the store. I am also in the market for a new iPad and considering an iPhone. Even being in the market for these items, and given the discounts, though I considered it, I will still not be going to Walmart on Black Friday. It’s not significant enough of an discount to entice me to go into Walmart and give them my money, or my time.”

Janice Sellers of Oakland California agrees, writing,

“I’m one of those typical Walmart haters. And no, those discounts are not enough to get me in the door. I wouldn’t go if they were giving them away.”

The Walmart iPhone 5s Black Friday deal may lure in some shoppers.

Kyle James of Rather-Be-Shopping is a personal finance expert who covers Black Friday, shopping tips and more with over a decade of experience. When asked if Walmart’s deals were good enough, James replied,

 “Heck no! Walmart haters are a pretty finicky group who’ll typically spend more elsewhere then walk through the doors. But the main reason they won’t walk in on Black Friday is because they can stay at home and shop online and find most of the same deals on Walmart.com and other discount websites. I honestly think the days of BIG Black Friday hype are over as retailers open earlier and offer many of the same bargains online.”

Based on comments from experts and consumers, there may be one deal that is good enough to get some haters in the door for a Walmart Black Friday Experience.

When it comes to Walmart’s Black Friday 2013 HDTV deals, there is one word to sum up the deals, “Crazy.” Dealnews tracks Black Friday prices closely and writers Lindsay Sakraida and Marcy Bonebright call the Walmart Black Friday deals, “The Crazy TV Prices We’ve Been Waiting For.” Here’s what the duo has to say about the 50-inch Black Friday HDTV for $288,

“It wouldn’t be Black Friday without a doorbusting TV deal, and this is certainly an enticing big screen offer. Up until now, the lowest price we’d ever seen for a 50? 1080p LCD TV was $348. Walmart’s deal on a third-tier manufacturer set drops the floor by an additional $60. While this set will likely be barebones without fancy “smart” features, this is about as good as it gets for big screen TVs.”

A $300 50-inch HDTV and the lure of a PS4 may draw in shoppers on Black Friday 2013.

Robert Kissell Jr. an Internet Marketing Specialist at  Southern Shores Realty weighs in telling Gotta Be Mobile,

“The TV sale MAY draw a couple of haters with the 50” that broke the $300 price floor.”

Ultimately, if you hate Walmart there are deals out there for you on Black Friday 2013.

Ultimately, Black Friday 2013 is full of deals at many stores which should offer enough of a discount to satisfy the budget craving needs of Walmart haters.

Brent Shelton of Fatwallet and eBates tells Gotta Be Mobile that while the Walmart Black Friday 2013 ad is aggressive, there will be other deals available that offer similar savings on hot products.

“For those that try not to shop at Walmart, there should be enough competitive/similar deals to help them avoid shopping through them, but mobile shoppers may be more apt to just go for the deal. For example, in our Black Friday app ( iOS or Android ), we’re offering the new Fatwallet Checkout which lets users purchase items in 2-clicks within the app, so they can avoid retail shopping carts, and essentially avoid Walmart, but still get the deal. ”

Shelton shares similar Black Friday Deals for Walmart haters, though one will bring shoppers pretty close to Walmart.

Meijer: Apple iPad Air 16GB WiFi w/ $100 off next Meijer’s Shopping Trip – starting at $379+ (was $479+)Sam’s Club is offering both iPhone 5c and Galaxy S4 for $.97 w/2 yr contract where Walmart, you have to pay $45 to get the $75 gift card. There are other options for Walmart haters who still love Black Friday.

At the end of the day, on Thanksgiving when these deals start, Walmart haters are not the shoppers that Walmart wants to pull in the door with these deals. Brian Waldo of Find.com shares his thoughts on who Walmart wants to bring in the doors on Black Friday,

“These deals will definitely bring customers through Walmart’s doors, but shoppers who dislike the company aren’t likely to change their views that easily.

I’d assume that’s not necessarily who Walmart’s trying to win over with deals like these. Instead, they’re looking to draw shoppers who may have planned to spend their Black Friday at Target or Best Buy but don’t necessarily oppose the Walmart itself.

Despite these and other serious sales, with the growing popularity of Cyber Monday, it’ll be interesting to see how many people ‘attend’ Black Friday this year at all.”

The Walmart Black Friday sales start at 6 PM on Thanksgiving day and continue through the weekend with special events on each day.

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