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Amazon Prime Day is one of the most confusing shopping holidays in existence: It’s rarely even a “day,” since in the past it has run from two to four days long. We closely track the best Prime Day deals. Amazon promises “millions of deals”—but the displayed discounts are often misleading, and while it’s advertised as a members-only event, some deals are available to people who don’t subscribe to Prime. Add in the frenzy of limited-time Lightning Deals and you’ve got a recipe perfect for spending too much money.
Fear not! We’re here to help. WIRED’s Reviews team is familiar with common shopping pitfalls, and I’ve been a deals writer for over a decade. What time do sales start and end? How do you tell whether a deal is actually a deal? We pooled our collective expertise to get you prepared for the latest Amazon Prime Day, Amazon Prime Big Deal Days, October 8 and 9.
When Is Amazon Prime Day?
Amazon Prime Day has a main sale in July and a secondary sale—previously called “Prime Big Deal Days”—that tends to fall in October. This year it will be on October 8 and 9.
When Do Prime Day Deals Start?
The event always kicks off at 3 am Eastern time (midnight Pacific). WIRED will cover the best Prime Day deals from both Amazon and retailers that have competing sales.
Are Prime Day Deals Only for Prime Members?
Officially, yes. You need to be an Amazon Prime member to shop the Amazon Big Deal Days event. There is a free 30-day trial available for new accounts. (Prime membership comes with a lot of perks, and we’ve rounded up all of them here.) The trial will let you get in on the sale—just remember to cancel your membership to avoid any subsequent $14 monthly renewal charges.
There are usually some discounts available if you’re not a subscriber (although those deals might not be that great). Other major retailers like Best Buy and Walmart usually hold concurrent sales during Prime-exclusive sales events. The prices are often close to what Amazon is offering on the same products, and sometimes the competing sales match the Prime Day price. This is a good way to take part in the sale if you object to shopping on Amazon.
Is Prime Day Worth It?
It depends. For some items, Prime-exclusive event prices tend to be among the lowest we see all year. That’s especially true for Amazon hardware, like Kindles, Fire Tablets, Fire TV Sticks, and Echo devices. The kicker is that prices on nearly everything fluctuate throughout the year, and some products are discounted on a frequent basis. Even if the price is good, a deal on a product that goes on sale all the time diminishes the overall quality of that offer.
The sheer volume of deals promoted by Amazon during sales like Prime Day and Prime Big Deal Days is a blessing and a curse. The truly standout discounts can be difficult to pinpoint—there’s so much stuff on sale that the big picture can feel overwhelming. But if you’re in the market for something specific, there’s a good chance the item you want will be discounted. We’ve seen some fantastic Prime-exclusive discounts in the past, ranging from dirt-cheap Kindles and video doorbells to elusive price drops on gaming consoles or office furniture. The tricky part is to find the diamonds in the rough.
WIRED covers legitimately good deals all year long, including during Prime Day. Our policy is to only cover deals on products someone from our team has personally used, to avoid promoting cheap junk. Maybe it’ll be a product we’ve reviewed, or maybe it’ll be a product we use in our day-to-day lives. We also only cover actual deals—if the price isn’t lower than it normally is, we don’t include it. We aim to provide pricing context as well. Our tips below will help you find those great discounts on your own—in the same ways that we would. No gatekeeping here.
Ask Alexa’s Echo Dot for the time and weather, and to play music. Also, a pro tip: You can use it in the kitchen as a timer while cooking.
How Do I Know Whether a Deal Is Good?
ABC: Always be checking (prices, that is). Researching an item’s price is the most important aspect of determining the quality of a discount. Don’t fall prey to deceptive marketing language and inflated MSRP prices—our tips only take a few moments. The easiest step is to take a second to Google the items you’re considering so you can see the price across multiple stores.
One tool we like to use is Camelcamelcamel, which tracks Amazon’s prices over time. Paste the Amazon link or ASIN (found in the Product Information section on the Amazon product page) into Camelcamelcamel’s search bar and you’ll be able to see an item’s lowest recorded price, its average price, and how frequently the price fluctuates. Some deals, such as Lightning Deals, are excluded from the pricing history, but it works for most items. It’s useful to see what an item has sold for in the past. And while Amazon’s Rufus chatbot has price history information, it isn’t always reliable and often misses context (as evinced by our personal testing). We also like Keepa, which has an extension (available for multiple browsers) that shows the recent price history for products directly on the Amazon page so you don’t have to open a new tab.
Keep in mind that these services may not work all the time. But being able to see how much a product costs right before the sale starts (and whether the MSRP happened to increase) can be helpful. Putting these tools together can help you deduce whether a deal is worth your money.
WIRED always fact-checks deals to determine their quality. Of course, I’m biased, but you can check out our ongoing deals coverage to find roundups of the best discounts available—during Prime Day and year-round.
Amazon’s Kindles are the best e-readers around. Also, waterproof!
What’s a Lightning Deal?
Lightning Deals are limited-time deals that Amazon runs for only a few hours. They’re not restricted to Prime Big Deal Days, but they’re especially prevalent during major sales events. Once an item sells out, you may be able to join a waiting list, but not always.
Put bluntly, the Lightning Deals selection is often full of impulse buys, like makeup and skin-care products or toys. Prime members can browse upcoming deals on Amazon’s website and in the mobile app. The app can also alert you before a Lightning Deal begins. We’ll share some of our favorite Lightning Deals in a live blog during the event this year.
How Does the Invite-Only Deals System Work?
The best deals sometimes sell out quickly. To get around this, Amazon launched an invite-only deals program during Prime Day. Prime members can request an invitation to purchase items that are expected to go out of stock. This feature is only available on select products, but it’s spread across a wide range of price points and categories—including kitchen, electronics, fashion, and beauty.
On the deal page, you’ll see a Request Invite button on the right-hand side. Click it to get a chance to buy it at the sale price, but just keep in mind that there’s no guarantee you’ll be invited. According to an Amazon spokesperson, the company removes “botlike submissions” from the list of requests and selects from the remaining customers. However, it’s not clear how Amazon chooses from the remaining list of interested buyers.
If you’re selected, you’ll receive both an email and a notification via the Amazon app once Prime Day begins. The offer is usually valid until Prime Day ends, so you’ll have a limited window of time to make your purchase.
The biggest appeals of the Echo Pop are easily the fun colors and interesting form factor. Also, it’s a great little speaker that is usually $40.
Are There Other Ways to Make Sure a Deal Won’t Sell Out?
If you know what time a deal begins, make sure to pay attention to the product page around the starting time. You may also be able to add an item to your cart before the sale begins, so you can refresh the page to snag it right away. With the Amazon Shopping app (Android, iOS), you can set up personalized deal alerts to get notified when items you have searched for recently are on sale, but only if you’re a Prime member.
It’s smart to create an account at trusted retailers so you can save your credit card information and shipping details ahead of time. This will make the checkout process as fast as possible. It’s also a good idea to clear your web browser cache before you start shopping during sales events like Prime Big Deal Days. Just be sure to log back in to those retailers afterward.
If a deal does sell out, there’s a high chance another store will be offering a similar or matching discount. Check other stores, especially big-box merchants like Walmart, Target, and Best Buy. Sometimes expired deals can come back in stock too.
The third-generation Echo Show 8 is the best choice for most people, our WIRED reviewers say. From weather to recipes, this will be an APD deal.
Should I Buy It?
It’s easy to fall into a trap during events like Prime Big Deal Days or other shopping holidays. You might see a great deal on a product you don’t really need. Don’t do it. Make a list of items you’ve actually been wanting to buy ahead of the event and save those links. When Prime Day begins, take a look around to see whether they’re on sale, and use the aforementioned practices to make sure it truly is a good deal. Then buy it! Don’t buy a product just because it has a nice price.
This isn’t your only chance to score a great deal this year. The last big sale events of the year are just around the corner: Black Friday and Cyber Monday, which take place on Thanksgiving weekend. You might see even better price drops then.
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