Black Friday is a great time to shop for phones, but unless you’re buying an unlocked device, you have to keep one thing in mind: there are almost always strings attached. You have to activate a new line, or be slowly reimbursed the money, or trade something in to get nearly every one of these deals.
That’s frustrating, but it isn’t always as bad
as it sounds. If you’re happy with your carrier, or if you planned to
open a new line anyway, these confusing terms could very well work out.
And it’s a good time to be shopping, too. Basically all
of the year’s flagship phones came out in the last few months, so you
can get deals on some of the best devices out there before they’re at
all out of date.
Here’s what you can find at the big stores (and what to watch out for):
Google Store
So long as you only want a Pixel, Google has some of the best deals around — it’s one of the few stores with no strings attached. The price is the price.
- Buy a Pixel 3 or 3 XL, get another for 50 percent off (ends after November 21st, US only)
- Pixel 3 for $649 (regularly $799), runs November 22nd through 25th
- Pixel 3 XL for $699 (regularly $899), runs November 22nd through 25th
- Pixel 3 or 3XL comes with free Home Hub and $50 Google Store credit, November 26th only
Walmart
Walmart has a bunch of a deals on iPhones and some recent
Samsung phones, but they all require carrier activation — and the deal
usually comes in the form of a gift card. So these are best for regular
Walmart shoppers.
In store only, from 6PM local time Thursday to close on Sunday:
- iPhone XS, XS Max, and iPhone XR come with $300 Walmart gift card when activated on AT&T, Verizon, or Sprint payment plan
- iPhone X, 8, and 8 Plus come with $400 Walmart gift card when activated on AT&T, Verizon, or Sprint payment plan
- Samsung Galaxy Note 9, S9, S9 Plus, S8, and S8 Plus come with $300 Walmart gift card when activated on AT&T, Verizon, or Sprint payment plan
Pre-Black Friday deals, ending Wednesday:
- iPhone 6 on Straight Talk for $99, regularly $149
- iPhone 6S Plus on Straight Talk for $299, regularly $399
- iPhone SE on Walmart Family Mobile for $79, regularly $139
Target
Target offers similar deals to Walmart, but its gift card
bonuses are smaller in most cases and offered on fewer phones. The
deals are all in store only, from Friday through Sunday, November 25th.
- Samsung Galaxy Note 9 comes with $300 Target gift card when activated on AT&T or Verizon payment plan
- iPhone XS and XS Max come with $250 Target gift card when activated on AT&T, Verizon, or Sprint payment plan
- Google Pixel 3 and 3 XL come with $200 Target gift card when activated on a Verizon payment plan
- iPhone X, 8, and 8 Plus come with $150 Target gift card when activated on AT&T, Verizon, or Sprint payment plan
Best Buy
A lot of Best Buy’s phone deals are tied to carrier
activation (frequently Sprint), but it’s also unique for offering one of
the only discounts on unlocked phones, too. These are all running from Thursday through Saturday.
- Galaxy Note 9, S9, and S9 Plus are $300 off on AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint payment plans
- Galaxy Note 9, S9, and S9 Plus are $200 off when bought unlocked
- iPhone X is $200 off on Sprint payment plan
- iPhone XR, XS, and XS Max are $150 off on Sprint payment plan
- iPhone 7 for $300 on AT&T payment plan, regularly $450
- Google Pixel 3 and 3 XL are $400 off on Verizon payment plan
Samsung
Samsung has different deals for every single carrier, as
well as deals of its own. In many cases, you’re going to be best off
buying the phone unlocked — you’ll skip your carrier’s activation fee
and get the same or better discount. But Sprint and T-Mobile do have
some appealing offers of their own, and some don’t even require a
payment plan.
- Unlocked: $200 off Note 9, Note 8, S9, and S9 Plus; $150 off S8 and S8 Plus
- AT&T: $200 off Note 9, S9, and S9 Plus on payment plan
- Verizon: $100 off Note 9, Note 8, S9, S9 Plus, S8, and S8 Plus on payment plan
- T-Mobile: $200 off Note 9, S9, and S9 Plus; $350 off Note 8 in gray (payment plan not required)
- Sprint: $300 off Note 9, S9, and S9 Plus on payment plan; $250 off Note 8 in black, and $200 off S8 Plus (payment plan requirement)
Apple
Apple isn’t the biggest fan of discounts in general, let
alone Black Friday. So until the day of, we don’t know what, if
anything, the company has in store. And in recent years, the company has
been less and less generous with Black Friday shoppers, only offering
small gift cards alongside select purchases.
Last
year, Apple offered a $50 gift card with the purchase of older iPhones —
the brand-new models had no extra perk. So if you’re looking for a deal
on an iPhone XS or XR, you’re almost definitely going to be better off
looking elsewhere.
Verizon
The downside to Verizon’s deals is that they all
essentially lock you in to a two-year contract, since your discount
comes in the form of reduced monthly payments. But if you’re happy to
stick with Verizon for the next two years, then there’s little reason to
fear the hidden terms here — there are actually some solid discounts to
be had. With one exception, the deals will only be available for two
days, online Thursday and both online and in stores on Friday.
- $400 off iPhone X, Pixel 3, Pixel 3 XL, Galaxy S9, Galaxy S9 Plus, Note 9, and LG V40 on payment plan
- $300 off iPhone XS or XS Max with new line on payment plan
- $150 off Palm phone with purchase of another phone, on two-year contract or payment plan
- $100 off iPhone XS or XS Max with payment plan and eligible trade-in (available through the weekend)
AT&T
AT&T hasn’t announced its Black Friday deals yet, but it has published a page where any new offers will appear.
Sprint
To be totally frank, Sprint’s deals seem like they’re
designed to confuse you, and you can end up paying way more than
expected if you don’t pay attention. There are deals to be had,
but some serious reading of the fine print is required. The deals are
available from November 21st through December 2nd.
Note that while Sprint’s marketing suggests this is akin
to a buy-one-get-one deal, you’re not actually buying either phone.
After 18 months, you either have to hand each one back, or pay the
remaining balance on them — about a quarter of each phone’s total cost;
ultimately, this is around a $550 discount off the price of the iPhone
XR.
The deals below include similar terms when it comes to how the lease functions:
- Lease one iPhone 8 or 8 Plus, get a second iPhone 8 (but not 8 Plus) lease free when adding a new line
- Lease a Galaxy Note 9 for $390 off, new line required
- Lease a Galaxy S9 or S9 Plus for $504 off, new line required
T-Mobile
T-Mobile’s deals all require some pretty specific
circumstances. But they could still be appealing if you happen to meet
all the right requirements.
Both of these deals require a new line and for you to
trade in an eligible device — for the most part, a flagship from the
last two years. You also have to buy the device on a monthly payment
plan, so that you’re effectively locked into a two-year contract.
The deals are live now; T-Mobile didn’t say when they run through.
Get $750 off a Galaxy S9 Plus, Note 9, S8 Active, or LG V40 ThinQ with new line, payment plan, and trade-in