Black Friday Warning: 7 Top Products Found Cheaper BEFORE and AFTER the Sale
Consumers are at risk of being "ripped off by shiny numbers" on Black Friday, Tom Church has warned.
A new study reveals many of last year's top products were up to £150 cheaper before or after the event.
Tom Church, co-founder of LatestDeals.co.uk, found must-buy items such as NutriBullets, GoPro action cameras, video games consoles and HD TVs were up to £150 cheaper before and after Black Friday last year, such as in the Boxing Day sales.
“Black Friday is an exciting but dangerous time for the consumer. You’re at risk of being ripped off by shiny numbers. Marketers will do everything in their power to get you to spend. That includes making deals look bigger than they really are.
“Our research shows many of the top products last year were cheaper either before or after Black Friday."
To combat the "giant Black Friday bamboozle", Tom has launched the UK's first deal review Black Friday app. It is already the #1 Black Friday app in both the Apple iOS Store and Google Play Store.
“To help people get good deals and fight this giant Black Friday bamboozle, we’ve created the UK’s first community powered Black Friday deal review app.
"Deals found by real people like you and me, rated and reviewed by other deal hunters. For the first time, you can get a clear indication on whether something really is a good price or not. It's free to use and always will be.”
EXAMPLES OF PRODUCTS CHEAPER BEFORE AND AFTER BLACK FRIDAY LAST YEAR
The study by LatestDeals.co.uk used open price history data from PriceSpy.co.uk. It revealed a popular Samsung fridge freezer was almost £150 cheaper in August bank holiday than Black Friday.
Samsung Fridge, £150 Cheaper in August Bank Holiday
- Black Friday 2016: £2,095
- Cheaper in August 2016: £1,945
- Difference: £150
KitchenAid Mixer, £15 Cheaper Before Black Friday
KitchenAid, which brands itself as an artisan mixer, had a low price of £260 in October, compared to £275 over Black Friday in 2016.
- Black Friday 2016: £275
- Cheaper in October 2016: £260.59
- Difference: £14.41
NutriBullet, £5 Cheaper in Boxing Day Sales After Black Friday
NutriBullet, which is a popular type of blender, was also cheaper in the months after Black Friday. During the Boxing Day sales the blender was reduced a further £5.
- Black Friday 2016: £74.99
- December 2016: £69.99
- Diference: £5
Canon EOS Digital Camera, £100 More Expensive on Black Friday
The Canon EOS was £100 more expensive on Black Friday last year than it was in March of the same year.
Prices also hugely dropped over the following few weeks, £50 less than they were on the supposed money saving event.
- Black Friday 2016: £449.99
- March 2016: £355
- Difference: £94.99
GoPro Hero 5, £20 Cheaper After Black Friday in Boxing Day Sales
The GoPro Hero 5, one of last year’s must-have Christmas presents, was also cheaper after Black Friday during the Boxing Day sales.
Consumers who waited a month to buy the waterproof action camera were £20 better off.
- Black Friday 2016: £320
- December 2016: £299
- Difference: £21
PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, £40 Cheaper Three Weeks After Black Friday
Popular games consoles, such as the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One also experienced a hike in price on Black Friday compared to the previous and following months.
Although savings were less noticeable before the event, the consoles were up to £40 cheaper when bought in the following weeks.
- Black Friday 2016: £197.86
- March 2017: £179.99
- Difference: £17.87
Samsung Curved TV, £100 Cheaper After Black Friday
The research shows it’s best to hold off on buying TVs until December, when prices greatly drop after Black Friday.
With one high end Samsung TV, prices plummeted by over £100 in December, compared to what they were over the Black Friday period.
- Black Friday 2016: £749
- December 2016: £640
- Difference: £109
LG Ultra HD TV, £100 Cheaper in January Sales
Some of LG’s TVs also were vastly cheaper when bought after Black Friday. An Ultra HD TV was almost £100 cheaper in January, rather than on the sales event.
- Black Friday 2016: £1,199
- January 2017: £999.99
- Difference: £199.01