Black Friday: 11 Things Not to Buy
— -- The frenzy of Black Friday shopping is often about excitement and tradition, but don't buy into all the hype. There are some things that may seem like a great deal, but aren't.
Deals site DealNews.com recommends that you wait on buying eleven products until after Black Friday. Like always, take any advice with a grain of salt, as these recommendations are based on DealNews' historical data and anecdotal experience. And if you are in need of something immediately, sometimes it might be worth paying a little more to check it off your list.
1. Winter gear
These items, including coats and boots, often have deeper discounts during winter clearance sales in January and March.
2. Designer clothing
People who love designer clothing labels should stick to outlet shopping on Black Friday, according to DealNews, because high-end clothiers don't really offer great "sales."
Otherwise, shoppers could get not-so-great discounts of 20 to 30 percent off on designer clothing, which DealNews calls "yawn-worthy."
3. Latest Amazon Fire tablets
While you can likely find deals on Amazon's older Fire tablets, you likely won't find many great discounts on the newest Fire lineup, according to DealNews. Last year, during Cyber Week, DealNews saw only two discounts on the then-new Kindle Fire HDX.
4. High-end laptops
While November may be a great month to buy laptops, shoppers should hold off on "powerhouse" computing machines.
"High-performance machines that boast a powerful CPU like Intel's Core i7 models actually see better prices during the summer back-to-school sales," DealNews' features writer Marcy Bonebright states.
July and September can offer deals that are 9 percent cheaper (about $50 on average) than even November's best deals, DealNews states.
5. Tools
While there may be great Black Friday deals on cheap household hand tools, last year, there were 16 percent more tool offers in December than those of November, according to DealNews.
6. Gift cards
"Discounted gift cards practically rain from the sky in December, especially those from iTunes," according to Bonebright. "Last year, we saw so many gift card deals in December, we had to publish a weekly feature just to keep track of them all."
7. Brand-name smart TVs
While Black Friday's door-buster (read: very early) deals often feature deep discounts on flat-screen televisions, brand-name TVs tend to have better prices after the Consumer Electronics Show. During that January event, manufacturers reveal their new product lineups in Las Vegas. But, DealNews points out, last year the best 55" name-brand TV deal came in September, which was 10 percent cheaper than November's best deal.
8. Airline and vacation packages
While there are some "superior" hotel discounts on Black Friday, you might want to refrain from booking a flight or planning a vacation. DealNews recommends planning travel for January, which offers a higher number of deals.
9. Exercise equipment
"December consistently sees an uptick in both the quantity of exercise equipment offers and the quality," writes Bonebright. Last year, DealNews marked almost 30 percent of December sports deals as Editors' Choice, compared to just 15 percent in November.
10. Chocolates and flowers
November 2013 had the fewest offers in this category all year, according to DealNews. Better stick to the bigger gift-giving holidays of Christmas and Valentine's Day, DealNews says.
11. Home and patio furniture
Most retailers discount these items heavily in the warmer months. The number of home furniture deals increase in July and August with patio furniture clearance sales "dominating" in August and September, Bonebright writes.
