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Sometimes it seems like Apple’s products never go on sale. There’s usually a good handful of deals every year around Black Friday, however, especially if you’re shopping for an iPad or Apple Watch.
The best deals this year seem to involve the iPad Mini 2, iPad Air 2, 9.7-inch iPad Pro, Apple Watch Series 1, iPhone 7 and a handful of MacBooks. These are the Black Friday specials that Best Buy, Walmart and Target are advertising so far.
Also, keep in mind that Apple is back for Black Friday this year with free gift cards when spend set amounts.
Gift cards are your holiday iPhone bonus.
Sarah Tew/CNET
iPhone: Get a gift card
Target, Walmart and Best Buy are all offering gift cards with the purchase of an iPhone 7, 7 Plus or even older iPhones on a number of carriers, but the deals vary subtly. CNET’s Lynn La broke down the deals in detail.
Best Buy: iPhone 7 deal. If you buy an iPhone 7 (not a 7 Plus) on an AT&T Next, Verizon Device or Sprint 24-month installment plan, Best Buy will give you a store gift card. The 256GB model comes with a $250 store gift card, but this is an in-store deal only. If you buy a 32GB or 128GB iPhone 7 (online or in-store), you’ll still receive a gift card — just not for $250. For more information, check out Best Buy’s Black Friday ad.
Target: iPhone 7 or 7 Plus deal. If you buy either an iPhone 7 or 7 Plus, you’ll receive a $250 Target gift card. This is an in-store exclusive. iPhones need to be bought on an AT&T Next, Verizon Device or Sprint 24-month installment or lease plan. For more information, check out Target’s Black Friday ad.
Walmart: deal on lots of iPhones. Walmart gives you a $250 store gift card for any iPhone you buy in-store on an AT&T Next or Verizon Device installment plan. This includes the iPhone 6S, 6S Plus, 7, 7 Plus and SE. For more information, check out Walmart’s Black Friday ad.
The Series 1 Apple Watch has a faster processor, but you can’t swim with it.
Sarah Tew/CNET
Apple Watch Series 1 for under $200
Target is selling the Series 1 Apple Watch, which has a faster processor but isn’t fully swimproof and lacks the GPS of Series 2. At $198, it’s $70 less than Apple’s $269 starting price. This is a good Apple Watch model, and the best deal out there we’ve seen.
Pencil not included.
Sarah Tew/CNET
9.7-inch iPad Pro, $150 off
Target is selling the 9.7-inch iPad Pro starting at $449, although it isn’t clear which models will be sold. Still, for the base 32GB model, that would be $150.99 savings. Best Buy is offering a slightly less attractive deal of $125 off all 9.7-inch iPad Pros.
iPad Mini 2 for $200
You can save $70 off the normal $269 price of the 32GB iPad Mini 2. Target and Walmart are both offering the Mini 2 for $200. The Mini 2 is getting long in the tooth with an older processor, but it’s a serviceable mini iPad for kids and travel.
iPad Air 2, save $125
If you’re shopping for a larger-screened more affordable iPad, the iPad Air 2 (which also has a much better A8X processor versus the A7 on the Mini 2) will be on sale at Target starting at $274. For the 32GB base model, that’s a good deal.
Still a solid laptop, and it has normal ports.
Sarah Tew/CNET
MacBook Air for $799
The 13-inch, 128GB model of the MacBook Air is on sale for $799 at Best Buy, the lowest price we’ve seen yet for a MacBook. The 256GB model is $999, also not a bad deal: both save a couple hundred dollars, but remember that the Air doesn’t have a Retina Display. It does, however, has phenomenal battery life (and normal USB ports).
