Apple’s Black Friday, blacker than first thought?
I got this email from Apple enticing me to pay a visit to the online store. “Lots of gifts. 1 day not to miss. Get the season’s best prices on Mac, iPod, and iPhone gifts.”
I headed over to the online store this morning to see what all the hype was about. Nothing. $10 here. $50 there. No big deal. Especially for someone already accustomed to getting his U.S. Government discount. That’s when it hit me – these prices are similar to what I would normally get with my discount. Maybe a couple dollars more or less. I recently bought an iPod touch via the U.S. Government store for $215, and here it was for $208. $6 difference.
So I proceeded to check out my government online store. Ahhh… there it is. I can get the iPod touch for $194 right now on Black Friday. That is a really good deal. I then began to wonder how much of a difference other items might be.
The high end MacBook: normally $1599, today only $1498. However, in my online U.S. Government store: normally $1503 ($5 more than today’s Black Friday price), now $1402 – a whopping $197 off original pricing. Not too shabby Apple. Not too shabby.
Next item on the block: tricked out iMac. Normally $2199, today’s price $2098. $101 savings. Now let’s take a look at my discount. With my every day U.S. Government discount it can be had for $2067 (still cheaper than the regular Black Friday’s customer), but today it can be mine for the low price of $1966. That’s 233 bones in my pocket. Well done Apple.
Finally, my favorite hobby hardware, the Apple TV. This is where savings are minimal. Normal pricing for the low end model is $229. Today’s shoppers can snag it for $208, which is what happens to be my Black Friday price. Regular price with my discount is $215.
My advice? Don’t go straight for the Black Friday prices. Check any of the discount stores you might be entitled to shop in and see if you get an even deeper cut.