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Black Friday tech tips for shopping for video games, headphones, TVs, and more

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It’s the day after Thanksgiving, which means you’re either assessing how well you managed to avoid awkward conversations yesterday or prepping your Black Friday shopping list. Or both.

My advice for blocking out the memory of those cringeworthy chats is to focus on your strategy for shopping for gadgets on Black Friday.

Here are my tips for how to shop for tech products this year, whether you’re prowling the aisles of your favorite store or perusing an app from your couch.

Video games

Video games, game consoles, and game accessories are an easy score on any Black Friday. You’ll find deals on consoles including Sony’s (SONY) PlayStation 5, Microsoft’s (MSFT) X Box Series X, and Nintendo’s (NTDOY) Switch, not to mention a solid amount off on controllers, which are mighty pricey when not on sale. I’m hoping my wife opts for a new PlayStation 5 controller at $20 off, since ours are always dying.

A worker holds a Playstation 5 at a Best Buy store during Black Friday sales in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., November 25, 2022. REUTERS/Jim Vondruska
A worker holds a Playstation 5 at a Best Buy store during Black Friday sales in Chicago, Nov. 25, 2022. (REUTERS/Jim Vondruska) · REUTERS / Reuters

Discounted gaming gift cards are also a great option for Black Friday shopping. Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo, Valve’s Steam, Roblox, and others offer gift cards for in-game purchases or to pay for a few months of access to their respective online services.

Headphones

Whether you’re looking for over-the-ear headphones or in-ear earbuds, you can score some exceptional deals during Black Friday. Be on the lookout for Apple’s (AAPL) AirPods and AirPods Pro if you’re an Apple fan, or check out the various offerings from Beats, JBL, Bose, and Sony that will be on sale at different retailers.

The fourth generation of AirPods is showcased as Apple holds an event at the Steve Jobs Theater on its campus in Cupertino, California, U.S. September 9, 2024. REUTERS/Manuel Orbegozo/File Photo
The fourth generation of AirPods is showcased as Apple holds an event at the Steve Jobs Theater on its campus in Cupertino, Calif., Sept. 9, 2024. (REUTERS/Manuel Orbegozo/File Photo) · Reuters / Reuters

It’s important to remember that some people are exceedingly particular when it comes to their earbuds. Some prefer those with silicon tips and others can’t stand them. You should also take into account whether you want active noise cancellation (ANC) or not. ANC, as its name implies, actively cancels out background noise while you're listening to music, podcasts, shows, or whatever you’re into.

You’ll usually only find ANC on more expensive headphones and earbuds. So, if you can find a pair with the technology at a good price, like the Bose QuietComfort for $199 at Amazon, go for it.

Laptops

In the market for a laptop this Black Friday? You’re in luck. Amazon, Walmart, Best Buy, and others are offering up sales on everything from Apple’s MacBooks to ASUS gaming rigs and Microsoft’s Surface laptop. Not every laptop you see on sale is worth buying, though. My advice is to look for a laptop with at least 16GB of RAM. That’s more or less the norm for modern laptops, but lower-cost models often only provide 8GB, which can translate to slower overall performance.