Feature Articles

7 of the Best Black Friday Deals

By James Lu - 29 Nov 2013

7 of the Best Black Friday Deals

Black Friday sales at US retailer Target.

Sitex is currently underway here in Singapore, but over in the US, Black Friday madness is about to grip the nation. If you're prepared to jump through a few hoops to get the best deals, online shopping on Black Friday (even with the extra shipping costs) can be much cheaper than local prices.

Before we get started, here's everything you need to know about Black Friday shopping:

  • Black Friday officially starts in the US at midnight on 29th November EST/PST depending on the store (that's 1PM or 4PM today), however many retail stores are opening on 28th November at 6PM EST/PST (that's 7AM or 10AM here) and their website equivalents will also update their prices at these times.
     
  • Most sale prices are valid for 24-hours only, or until stocks sell out, however, some are available for the entire weekend (29th - 1st December).
     
  • If you miss out on a deal, you can sometimes get even better deals on Cyber Monday (2nd December), which is a day of sales specifically targeted at online shoppers.
     
  • Many US retailers will only ship to a US address so you'll need a proxy shipping service such as ComGatewayvPost or Borderlinx. These services will provide you with a US address to ship your order to, and they will then ship your item on to Singapore. (Update: Borderlinx is currently offering 5% cashback if you use a Citibank credit card to make your Black Friday purchase, just enter code: CGSBDL20).

  • Items entering Singapore are subject to 7% GST if the item exceeds S$400 in value, so remember to factor in the extra 7% if your item costs more than about US$320. If your purchase consists of several lower priced items, you can consider splitting them up in multiple shipments to avoid incurring GST.
     
  • As with all items bought from overseas, you will generally not get a valid local warranty for your item. 

 

Shure SE215 In-Ear Monitors

Shure's SE215 in-ear monitor headphones feature a dynamic micro-driver that delivers detailed sound with enhanced bass. A detachable cable with formable wire enables easy replacement and a secure, comfortable fit onstage or on-the-go. Sound Isolating sleeves in multiple sizes provide up to 37 dB of isolation and a customized fit. Available in translucent black or clear.

Local Price: S$199

Black Friday Price: US$79.20 (S$99)

Available at: Earphones Solution (Enter code: SHBLACK at checkout)

 

 

Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 (7.0) WiFi 8GB

 

Designed to fit comfortably in one hand, the 7-inch Galaxy Tab 3 (7.0) is armed with a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, and runs on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. The tablet includes dual cameras (3MP / 1.3MP) for video chatting and picture taking and includes a microSD card slot that supports memory cards up to 64GB. 

Local Price: S$298

Black Friday Price: US$159 (S$199)

Available at: Amazon.com

 

 

Microsoft Surface RT 32GB 

Microsoft's Windows RT platform may not have been the success it was hoping for, but don't let that scare you away from a great deal on the Surface RT tablet. The well made 10.1-inch tablet offers great design and handling, decent overall performance and one of the best optional portable keyboard add-on units available.

More info: HWZ Review

Local Price: S$488

Black Friday Price: US$199 (S$249)

Available at: Microsoft.com

 

Google Nexus 7 (2013)

One of the best value tablets released this year, the ASUS-made Google Nexus 7 boasts a fantastic 1920 x 1200 pixel resolution 7-inch display, and a speedy Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro quad-core 1.5GHz processor running on Android 4.3 Jelly Bean. It also sports a 5 Megapixel rear camera and 2GB RAM.

Local Price: 16GB: S$379; 32GB: S$429

Black Friday Price: 16GB: $179 (S$224), 32GB: $219 (S$274)

Available at: Staples.com (Enter code 18702 at checkout) 

N.B. As this deal is only available for US customers, you may need to use a VPN to acquire a US IP address.

 

Gigabyte GA-Z87M-D3H Motherboard

 

Gigabyte's Micro-ATX size GA-Z87M-D3H is a Z87 mobo that supports all 4th generation Intel processors. It has a Socket 1150 processor socket and four DIMM slots, as well as four expansion slots: two PCI-Express x16 and two PCI slots. 

Ports-wise, it boasts VGA, DVI and HDMI ports, two USB 2.0 and four USB 3.0 ports, along with a single Gigabit ethernet and 7.1 audio connectors. Internally, you also get six SATA 6Gbps connectors, three USB 2.0 headers and a USB 3.0 header.

Local Price: S$205

Black Friday Price: US89.90 (S$113)

Available at: Newegg.com

 

 

 

Bioshock Triple Pack (includes Bioshock 1, 2 and Infinite)

If you missed out on any of these games, this is the perfect chance to pick up the complete trilogy of 2K Games' epic Bioshock collection. Often considered one of the best games of all time, Ken Levine's RPG-FPS Bioshock puts you in the shoes of protagonist, Jack, as you uncover the dark and mysterious secrets of the underwater art-deco city of Rapture.

This year's Bioshock Infinite continues the series and is set in the floating city of Columbia in the year 1912.

Local Price: S$99

Black Friday Price: US$14.99 (S$19)

Available at: Amazon.com

 

Nikon D3200 with 18-55mm and 55-200mm kit lenses

 

This 24-megapixel entry-level DSLR offers comfortable handling and good image quality with low noise. Optical Image Stabilization, Face Detection Technology, and a useful guide mode for beginners, helps you take better photos. It is also capable of Full HD recording. Not only is this kit cheaper than local prices, you get two lenses! An everyday 18-55mm and a 55-200mm zoom lens!

More info: HWZ Review

Local Price: S$999 (18-55mm lens only)

Black Friday Price: US$499 (S$625.40)

Available at: Target.com

 

 

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