Share your Black Friday&Cyber Monday Tips

[89ycha]

Hi everyone,
I started building my own system this year. Fairly new to this industry, I have never bought pc components on BF or CM. I have been saving some money expecting to find good deals for this coming November. I think it will be great for everyone if you can share your past experience in this forum, so everyone knows where to look for and price to expect.

It would be nice if replies are formatted, I believe.
Here is my suggestion for the format : BF/CM-Category-Place-details

EX)CM-CPU-Newegg-purchased 2500k with 70% discount.

Thank you,

 

[89ycha]

BTW, I'm planning to get a new GPU, Monitor. Any good places I should look forward to?

 

[ultimatebob]

My advice? Avoid Best Buy like a plague on Black Friday. Seriously, no discount is worth the hell that place will put you though.

Staples isn't half bad, depending on the location.

 

[Kougar]

Tips? Network with friends, if they're going to some store have them snag something extra for you and reimburse them for it, and either give them a little extra or offer to do the same for someplace you're going during BF.

Not all promos are excellent deals, and PC hardware components tend to be more uncommon these days. You'll have better luck finding PC hardware via Amazon, Newegg, and NCIX, although Newegg tends to be lukewarm and Amazon does their staggered promo that goes on around the clock. No local Frys or Microcenter around here so I dunno how good they usually are for Black Friday.

If you or someone you know visits AAFES then they usually have a good monitor deal.

 

[karbyn]

good tips

 

[CrackRabbit]

Tips? Network with friends, if they're going to some store have them snag something extra for you and reimburse them for it, and either give them a little extra or offer to do the same for someplace you're going during BF.

Not all promos are excellent deals, and PC hardware components tend to be more uncommon these days. You'll have better luck finding PC hardware via Amazon, Newegg, and NCIX, although Newegg tends to be lukewarm and Amazon does their staggered promo that goes on around the clock. No local Frys or Microcenter around here so I dunno how good they usually are for Black Friday.

If you or someone you know visits AAFES then they usually have a good monitor deal.

Fry's is usually nuts, worse than Best Buy. Microcenter isn't bad but because their store sizes are usually small they let a limited number of people in at a time.

 

[makken]

For PC components, You're mostly limited to Fry's and micro center for physical stores. Personally, unless there's an amazing deal, I would skip BF all together--or use it to shop for other items--and stick to the online retailers (e.g., newegg, amazon) for PC components.

You're also probably not going to find all the specific equipment you want on sale, so while building your PC, consider alternatives for the components you're selecting: for example, maybe the specific motherboard you want isn't on sale, but if you have a list of acceptable alternatives, you're much likely to find a deal. I would make a list of alternatives and a list of components to avoid for every part if possible.

 

[89ycha]

thx for the tips!!!

 

[Buckeye269]

I was in your shoes a couple years ago. I just watched the deals and knew what I wanted and their normal price. All I snagged was Windows and a case. Just don't fall for "deals" early as there are usually better sales after.

 

[techtechie]

watch techbargains.com on black friday and cyber monday.

 

[RossMAN]

A) Wait in line for 12+ hours with 300 other people to save $80 on a low end POS laptop.
B) Shop online.

Hmmn.

 

[Phantom9309]

I just built a new i7 haswell rig about a month and a half ago, but I did it slowly over 2 months. I doubt I would have saved that much more if I had waited for BF or CM. I did hold off on a GPU for BF/CM, so I'm hoping to find something in a great price point.

The short story is to be realistic with your expectations. If you want to be cutting edge, I doubt you'd save more than 10% if you wait for BF deals. On the other hand, if you're looking for something that's in a lull of tech boosts then there's a good chance you'll save some cash on last year's model.

 

[sofo]

Thank you

 

[eng2d2]

thank you

 

[Soundmanred]

thank you

 

[Arkuatika]

Not much you can expect from micro centers except for $30~ off a probable i5 this year for most builders. I would personally avoid best buy as most of the stuff you can find later online for cheaper. I learned my lesson my first BF.

 

[DrPizza]

Tip: write down clearly what you want, give list to wife. Spend the day outside getting fresh air, hunting deer, instead of in the stores with all the animals.

 

[ghost recon88]

Tip: write down clearly what you want, give list to wife. Spend the day outside getting fresh air, hunting deer, instead of in the stores with all the animals.

:thumbsup:

 

[NickelPlate]

Sleep in. Get up and treat yourself to a nice breakfast somewhere. Spend time with family.

 

[raasco]

Use the camelizer to compare previous low prices for items.

http://camelegg.com/camelizer

Bummer that it's currently not working for newegg.

 

[TopCat502]

A) Wait in line for 12+ hours with 300 other people to save $80 on a low end POS laptop.
B) Shop online.

Hmmn.

couldn't agree more

 

[HeXen]

I don't think BF deals are are all that spectacular, the best looking deals tend to be low end products which makes sense being that they are usually for gifts so the buyer doesn't care but I hate receiving such crap, I'd rather have a nice shirt than some of those crap electronics.

No retailer thinks about thanksgiving anymore, it's now a push to rush halloween out of the way so they can shove Xmas in your face.

 

[stinger608]

No retailer thinks about thanksgiving anymore, it's now a push to rush halloween out of the way so they can shove Xmas in your face.

That is soooooooooo true! Its all about the all mighty buck!

Hell, I seen Xmas commercials before halloween.

 

[RossMAN]

Use the camelizer to compare previous low prices for items.

http://camelegg.com/camelizer

Bummer that it's currently not working for newegg.

I use that and love it especially for Amazon.com

http://www.camelcamelcamel.com/camelizer

 

[HeXen]

That is soooooooooo true! Its all about the all mighty buck!

Hell, I seen Xmas commercials before halloween.

I remember as a kid, I used to see a lot of thanksgiving decorations, lots of pioneer and indian related stories and imagery and shows on tv relating to the holiday, butchers advertising fresh turkey. Now I'm lucky if I can find a sale on frozen turkeys
The whole holiday feels mostly empty but then again it's not really something companies can milk the cash cow outside of specific food companies and groceries so it seems corporate america dictates what a holiday is.