Top 10 Best Black Friday Websites

Black Friday is only days away, and while early sales have been heating up this year, the day after Thanksgiving will still be a day for big bargains. If you haven't already, you should get warmed up for the big shopping day by checking out PC World's 10 Fascinating Facts (they're really tips) for Black Friday 2009, eight tech tools to keep you on top of this year's deals, and some online shopping pointers from Black Friday pros.

The only thing left to do is keep an eye on the hottest destinations on the Web touting Black Friday deals. Here's a list of Web sites you'll want to keep an eye on, so sync them across your computers with Chrome bookmarks, save them to delicious or just store them in your favorite browser. Whatever you do, don't miss out on these sites to help you find great bargains.

Amazon
The online retailer's Black Friday deals page is up and running. Not only can you get some great bargains on electronics, video games and DVDs, but every day Amazon is also offering some great limited time sales. Lightning deals that you've already missed include 101 Dalmatians (Two-Disc Platinum Edition) for $9.99 (67 percent off) and an eight-function bicycle computer for $24.99 (29 percent off), and a Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1 12.1MP Digital Camera for $621.99 (21 percent off).

Best Buy
You may waste hours lined up at the Geek Squad counter, but I can guarantee you these deals from Best Buy won't last. If Best Buy is on your hit list for Friday then check out Best Buy's Doorbusters. The in-store deals start at 5 a.m. local time, but the retailer is also handing out tickets for select items as early as 3 a.m. Best Buy will also be offering some, but not all, of its Black Friday deals through its Web site starting on Thanksgiving Day, while supplies last of course.

Hot deals include a Palm Pre for $79.99 plus a two-year contract, Samsung 46-inch LCE HDTV for $999.99 and a Hewlett-Packard 15.6-inch laptop with an Intel Celeron processor for $197 (in store only).

Apple
No one has any idea what Apple has planned for Black Friday 2009, and historically the company has never had much in the way of super deals. But just in case this is the year for low prices, you'll want to keep Apple's Black Friday page bookmarked.

Two rumors have already surfaced about Apple's Black Friday plans, and both rumors came with supposed Apple advertisements boasting of the deals. One rumor says prices for Mac computers will be cut up to 25 percent, while a later one said the discount would only be 8 percent. Only a few days until we know for sure.

Dell
Dude, are you getting a Dell this year? You might, if you like what you see from Dell's Black Friday deals. You can get a Linux-based Dell Vostro 8.9-inch netbook with an 8GB solid-state drive for $184 or a Dell Vostro desktop with Windows 7 (32-bit), an 18.5-inch screen, 4GB of RAM, 250GB hard drive, and a 15-month subscription to Norton Internet Security 2009 for $429.

Twitter
There are tons of Twitter accounts sending out Black Friday deals in real time, but the easiest one to find and follow is @BlackFriday. Even if you don't use Twitter, you can still take advantage of this microblogger by bookmarking the account page. You won't get the real-time functionality without a Twitter account, so you'll have to refresh your browser every few minutes to see what's new.

BlackFriday.FM
This is an easy-to-use site that has great Black Friday information. Here you can sign up for e-mail updates, check out the sales for your favorite stores and keep up on the latest Black Friday news. The site even features two links at the top right to Black Friday favorites Wal-Mart and Best Buy.

Follow this site on Twitter and Facebook.

tgiBlackFriday.com
The makers of the 2009 Black Friday iPhone App also have a companion Web site. The column on the right of the site offers one-click filters to see what popular deals are available online, downloadable PDF scans of Black Friday ads and a list of popular shopping categories like Computers and Office, Electronics and Toys and Games.

Follow tgibf on Twitter and Facebook.

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BlackFriday2009
Unlike many of its competitors, this site is easy to view and navigate. Black Friday 2009 has the latest news about Black Friday right up front, as well as links to popular stores and a rotating selection of some of the site's favorite deals.

They've also got a Facebook page and a Twitter feed.

Black Friday@GottaDeal
It's not the prettiest site to look at, but you'll definitely find some deals. The best part about this site is its two online trackers: one shows you the items you can order online right now, and the other shows dates, times and discounts for the online sales from major retailers. No Twitter or Facebook here, but you can sign up for the site's email alerts.

BFads
This popular Black Friday site not only features deals listings, but you can also join the BFads community to swap tips with other savvy shoppers. If you want it, there is yet another Twitter stream for this site, as well as a Facebook page to keep you informed about Black Friday.

So there you have it. Ten sites you'll want to keep your eye on as we approach Friday, Nov. 27.

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Wal-Mart Black Friday sales for 2009

Shoppers swamped Wal-Mart in Sacramento, Calif. to take advantage of Black Friday specials in 2008. This year, the release of Wal-Mart's Black Friday sales for 2009 was an attempt by the retail giant to walk a fine line between harnessing the power of the Internet and being stung by it. (Newscom)

Wal-Mart’s Black Friday sales for 2009 are now alive in full color on the Internet. From door-buster TVs to a $198 laptop to a $59 GPS system, the retail titan’s Black Friday plans have been laid bare at last.

Where just this past weekend Wal-Mart was brandishing its brace of lawyers at the leak of several movie and videogame prices, Wednesday it OK’d the release of its entire clutch of Black Friday secrets ahead of its own Nov. 23 release date.

Why the change of heart? The move speaks volumes about a company trying to harness the Internet’s viral power while not tipping its hand too soon.

Over the weekend of Nov. 15, a user on a forum hosted by the website DVDTalk.com posted Black Friday prices for several DVDs, Blu-Rays, and videogames.

Since Wal-Mart had already sent letters this summer warning websites like DVDTalk and others not to publish its Black Friday deals early, what happened next came as no surprise. The company’s lawyers quickly contacted the site’s owners, Internet Brands Inc., and demanded that the post be removed. DVDTalk took the item down.

“We try to be good corporate citizens. While we didn’t editorially post it, we respect everyone in the retail space,” says DVDTalk director Brent Conver.

Then on Tuesday, Wal-Mart confirmed the price of six Black Friday items to CNN. After a user e-mailed him a high-quality copy of Wal-Mart’s Black Friday circular, BlackFriday.info founder Jon Vincent called the company to negotiate its wider release and was allowed to publish the entire flyer Wednesday.

“I was saying, listen, this thing is all over the place, it’s kind of stupid to not let us post it. They gave us permission,” Mr. Vincent says. “They realized they can’t stop the Internet.”

In an e-mail message, Wal-Mart spokeswoman Tara Raddohl wrote that Wal-Mart has “not confirmed the accuracy of any leaks or circulars currently posted, nor have we given the day after Thanksgiving circular to any site or media outlet.”

But why admonish DVDTalk and then give BlackFriday the juice? Several reasons, Black Friday analysts say. First, because many Black Friday sites are tiny operations with a small crew or single proprietor, a Wal-Mart lawsuit threat carries a lot of weight. When CNN came calling, the threat of litigation was diminished.

“The difference is Wal-Mart knows they can’t litigate CNN out of existence,” says Michael Brim, founder of BFAds.net.

Further, the many sites pursuing and posting the latest Black Friday deals don’t want to spoil relations with their golden goose, an issue not faced by CNN. BFAds makes a small commission from Wal-Mart for each shopper that passes through its portal en route to a purchase on Wal-Mart’s website.

What could be seen as a corporate giant bowing to the pressure of the savvy Web sleuths might, in fact, be an integral part of Wal-Mart’s marketing strategy. In terms of timing, Vincent says it may have been almost perfectly placed.

“We’re only about a week away from Black Friday so it’s not too far away. People are going to be taking the next week off probably so now is kind of a good time to reach them before they check out,” Vincent says.

Noting that his site’s Black Friday post was Alexa.com’s 7th most popular on the Internet Wednesday afternoon, Wal-Mart’s release certainly generated interest.

“Tons of people are visiting our site and they’re getting tons of exposure,” he says.

By working diligently to keep their ad off the Internet before the right moment, Wal-Mart may have safeguarded its best Black Friday secret: Its deals really might be the best.

“Their ad this year is great. I think it beats all the other Black Friday ads,” Vincent says. “They want all the other ads to leak out and then their ad goes out and they one-up everybody.”

By battling when they need to and then carefully allowing their promotions to slip, Wal-Mart walks a fine line in the holiday market: whetting consumers appetites without sacrificing too much commercial edge.

“They basically want the best of both worlds,” Brim says.

And for now, they’re getting it.

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