Prime Day is upon us! In what is quickly becoming known as the “Black Friday of the Summer,” Amazon’s Prime Day is so huge that it causes a ripple effect across the entire retail space. Best Buy, Target, Walmart, eBay — each is going to try to rip your attention away from Amazon. Hey, if it means we get to save some money on expensive electronics and appliances, call us Penelope, Amazon can be Odysseus and the big retailers can get to courting (I’ve waited so long to be able to make this reference).
This year’s Prime Day sales will be the longest they’ve ever been, beginning at Midnight PST on July 15th and running for exactly 48 hours, ending at Midnight PST July 17th. The exclusive sales are only open to Amazon Prime members, so if you aren’t a member you should definitely take advantage of the 30-day free trial. If you’re a student that 30-day trial can be as long as six months! Amazon Prime members enjoy free two-day shipping, as well as access to a whole host of movies, original series, and Kindle benefits.
Because Prime Day relies on what they call Lightning Deals — which are promotions on specific items that last for a brief window of time — gathering together all the best deals is a little challenging. So we’re going to show you the best of Amazon’s current sales, as well as give you some tips and tricks that’ll help you win Prime Day and save money.
PART I — Tips For Prime Day Shopping
Ask Alexa
We kid you not if you want to be clued into the best deals say the following to an Alexa-enabled device: “Alexa, what are my Prime Day deals?” Admittedly, this seems like an annoying way to learn about savings but that doesn’t mean we’re willing to risk not asking Alexa. Amazon is determined to make Alexa a thing, so it’s time you stop fearing the machine and just embrace it.
Early access deals will start popping up for Prime members on July 14th 12 pm PST, so that’s when you’ll want to begin asking Alexa what’s up.
Don’t Forget About Whole Foods Market, Amazon Books and The Treasure Truck.
The Prime Day deals don’t just apply to Amazon’s online marketplace, Whole Foods, Amazon Books, the Amazon’s mobile Treasure Truck will all be hosting their own special sales. Currently, Prime members who spend $10 at a Whole Foods in-store or on Prime Now will receive $10 in Amazon credit to use on Prime Day. That’s free money for grocery shopping, get on that!
Amazon Books shoppers will receive a $10 Amazon gift card when they purchase over $50 in-store. We’re not sure what kind of savings await at the Treasure Truck, but visiting one is an experience in itself. Track the Treasure Truck here to find the one nearest you.
Cross Reference With CamelCamelCamel
CamelCameCamel is a free Amazon price checker which will help you track a product’s retail price history and alert you when prices drop. This is an incredibly useful resource when you’re navigating a sale this large — it’s all too easy to get swept up in the excitement and impulse buy; to avoid that, just cross-reference with the old triple camel and you’ll instantly know if what you’re getting is actually a deal.
Know The Different Deals And Download The Amazon App
Amazon breaks up many of the Prime Day sales into special deal categories. If you want to save the most money, it’s important that you know the specifics of each deal-tier. Which is why you need to download the Amazon App. The Amazon App will give you a sneak peek on the best upcoming Lightning Deals, which as we mentioned before, are the day’s best bargains. It will also give you the option to add a deal to your watch list so that you’re alerted as soon as the sale begins. This is handy if you don’t want to or are unable to spend Prime Day in front of your computer like a sale-crazed lunatic with your trigger-finger hovering over the buy button.
Prime Day’s other deal-tiers include the Spotlight Deals, which boast the biggest inventory and are the least likely to sell out, and the Gold Box Deals which last for 24 hours before being swapped out with a new batch. If you’re eyeing a Gold Box Deal, scoop it up before it’s too late because it won’t be on sale forever (or even for all of the Prime Day sale).
If All Else Fails, Join A Waitlist
If a product you want is sold out, simply join the waitlist and you’ll be added to a virtual queue and be alerted once the product is back in stock. People will constantly be putting items in their cart they have no intention of buying, luckily Amazon will remove items from your cart if you haven’t confirmed the purchase within 15 minutes.
PART II — Prime Day Early Sales
A few select items are already on sale at Amazon and we’ve compiled a list of the cool stuff we think most applies to you. Check out these deals and remember to follow our Prime Day guidelines on the 15th!
Optoma UHL55 True 4K LED Smart Projector $999 (33% off)
Become your very own pop-up movie theater with the Optoma UHL55 Projector. Capable of hitting true 4K picture quality, the Optoma comes complete with Alexa voice compatibility and built-in Bluetooth enabled speakers.
Magazine Subscriptions (80-90% off)
If you still love magazines but only read them when you’re at a dentist’s office — or you ARE a dentist’s office — then Prime Day is the perfect day to scoop up a year’s subscription to some of your favorite magazines for as little as .42 cents an issue!
Echo Dot Smart Speaker $22 (56% off)
Add Alexa to every room in your house with the Echo Dot smart speaker. Think that’s creepy? Well if you DID have Alexa in your room, you would’ve just gotten all the info on Prime Day deals through her (it?) instead of reading this article. On second thought, don’t buy this. Your life is fine without it.
Fire TV Recast $129.99 (42% off)
The Recast as an over-the-air DVR with 500 GB onboard memory capable of recording up to 75 hours of live tv. Whatever you see on your tv, record it! Or take advantage of the 2-way tuner which allows you to record up to two shows at once.
Amazon Music Unlimited $0.99 (37 % off)
Get three months of Amazon Music Unlimited — normally $7.99 per month — and enjoy unlimited access, on demand, ad-free access to Amazon’s music library. If you hate Spotify AND Apple Music, Amazon might be the streamer for you. Otherwise… there’s always Tidal.
Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch (Latest Model) $2,558.92 (9% off)
We need to stress this again, if you’ve been waiting for the RIGHT time to buy a MacBook or any major Apple purchase, that time is NOW. Not only can you save 17% off the list price of Apple’s top-of-the-line 9th core processor, but you also won’t be paying tax. Which means you can score the newest, fastest MacBook Pro AND purchase Apple’s ludicrously priced but essential insurance Apple Care + for under $3,000. Which just isn’t possible by buying via Apple. Check the other MacBook Pro lines, like the not as fast 6-core iteration, or the 13-inch line!
Check out the 13-inch for $1,695
SanDisk 256 GB Ultra microSD $29.99 (30% off)
Does anyone buy memory on a day other than Black Friday or Prime Day? Buying memory cards for your various devices isn’t ever the most exciting thing to do, but when sales are this big we can’t help but smile for something so unexciting!
Buy the 400 GB version for $44.99
Bose SoundLink Wireless Headphones $159 (31% off)
Enjoy all the freedom and convenience of wireless headphones without compromising the sound quality and bass presence. The Bose SoundLink around-ear headphones are superior at delivering high-quality audio compared to ear-bud style headphones like Air-Pods.
$50 Value App Store & iTunes Gift Card $40 (20% off)
Don’t buy an Apple App Store gift card for FULL price like some kind of dork. Instead, pick it up for 20% off on Prime Day.
Toshiba 32-inch HD Smart LED TV – Fire TV Edition $99.99 (44% off!)
A 32-inch 720p smart TV for just under $100?! What a world we live in. This smart TV from Toshiba comes equipped with the Fire TV experience built-in and features voice-powered channel surfing via Alexa.
Fire TV Stick With Alexa Voice Remote and Sling TV Credit $14.99 (63% off)
If you’ve been holding out on jumping on the Fire TV bandwagon, now is the time to cut the cord and go for it. Grab this Fire TV stick bundle to receive a Fire stick, Alexa Voice Remote, and a $45 Sling TV Credit, all for under $20!
Samsung Galaxy S9+ 64GB $449.99 (36% off)
Pick up the Samsung Galaxy S9+ and enjoy an edge-to-edge bezel-less screen that’ll make other phones feel outdated. This model is the baseline 64GB but has expandable storage up to 400GB, which let’s be honest, is more than you’ll ever need on a phone.
ASUS Chromebook 14” $179.99 (33% off)
If you need a cheap laptop that is capable of doing everything — so long as it isn’t processor-heavy creative work — then pick up an ASUS Chromebook. With 4GB of RAM, a 14-inch near-bezel-less screen, and a durable 180-degree hinge, the ASUS Chromebook is outfitted with modern features and just enough internal power to handle casual use.
Instant Ace Cooking and Beverage Blender $89.99 (40% off)
This blender cooks! Seriously, you could put all the ingredients for a nice chunky soup into this and cook the whole thing in the blender itself. If that isn’t some future tech in the kitchen space we don’t know what is. Make orange juice, milkshakes, nut butter, soup, and warm-up fresh soy milk for up to two hours in your new Instance Ace blender.
Instant Pot Smart Slow Cooker $89 (41% off)
You HAVE to get a slow cooker, seriously it’ll change your life. The Instant Pot combines 8 kitchen appliances into one small pot, including a pressure cooker, slow cooker, rice cooker, yogurt maker, cake maker, saute/searing, steamer and more into one tiny little pot. You’re like a witch, and the Instant Pot is your cauldron. The Instant Pot is also Alexa and Wifi-enabled because of course it is.
K1 Inflatable Kayak $41.99 (34% off)
If you really love kayaking but don’t know anyone who wants to kayak as much as you do, consider picking up the K1 Inflatable Kayak for one! It ships with an 84-inch aluminum oar, repair patch, and a manual hand pump and is composed of rugged vinyl, capable of holding up to 220 pounds. Go kayak your little heart out!
iRobot Roomba 690 $229.99 (39% off)
The new smartphone-enabled Roombas are all the rage right now. And by that I mean everyone I know who owns a Roomba, loves the thing. To the point that they name it and show affection towards it like a household pet. Weird, but hey at least it cleans up after itself, not like your dirty pets.
Elgato Cam Link 4K $99.99 (23% off)
If you want to get into the world of video game streaming, you can’t without the Elgato. Right now you could pick up an Elgato Cam Link for just under $100, which is still a bit pricier than we’d hoped, but considering all the other gear you’ll have to buy to get into the world of streaming, we’ll take whatever we can get!
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