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The 13 Best Amazon Black Friday Deals Of 2014

Amazon's deals will be released as often as every 10 minutes for eight days. Amazon will announce additional deals on Thanksgiving.
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This article was reported by DealNews, a site that scours the web for the best retail deals.

Amazon has been teasing its customers with Black Friday-like deals for over a week now, but today its official Black Friday ad has been confirmed. So what do Bezos and company have in store for us?

For starters, deals will start this Friday, November 21, a full week before Black Friday. Deals will be released as often as every 10 minutes for eight consecutive days. Amazon will also announce additional deals on Thanksgiving day and Black Friday. Amazon Prime subscribers will have early access to select deals, however, the retailer doesn't give specifics on any of its deals beyond what it has already announced. Nevertheless, shoppers can prepare for any given day's deals by viewing the "Upcoming" tab on Amazon's deal page.

As for the deals themselves, the Seattle e-tailer is taking major jabs at holiday veterans like Walmart and Target, which we expected after Walmart threw the first punch. What else is worth noting? Read on to find out.

Amazon Black Friday Ad Analysis

The Good Deals

Toshiba 50" LED LCD HDTV for $199
Best Buy isn't the only retailer in town with a name-brand 50" HDTV for $200. Amazon plans on offering a 50" Toshiba for a buck less, which makes it $100 under our prediction and tied as the best price we've seen for any 50" HDTV. It is truly the doorbuster price of the season, and Amazon is bringing it online.

32" LED LCD HDTV for $79
With this one deal, Amazon is undercutting Target, Kohl's, and our own Black Friday prediction for 32" TVs, proving to us all why its fans consider it the king of online shopping.

40" 1080p LED LCD HDTV for $119
This deal is a direct response to Target's Element 40" HDTV, which is also priced at $119. Without knowing the brand name or details of Amazon's deal, it's hard to recommend one over the other, so shoppers will have to check back when Amazon releases further information on its deal. Regardless, at this price it's better than anything we could have predicted.

LG G3 Android Smartphone for 1 cent with 2-year contract
We've only seen this phone at this price once before (via Amazon, no less), so this is a standout deal for anyone in need of a new Android smartphone. Of note, a 2-year contract or contract renewal is required.

HTC One M8 Windows Smartphone for 1 cent with 2-year contract
Like the aforementioned smartphone, this is a very rare discount for the HTC One M8. Nevertheless, it falls in line with our smartphone predictions and gets our nod of approval.

Roku LT HD Wireless Media Player for $28
Outside of refurbs (which have only once hit this price), we've never seen the Roku LT streamer at this price point. This deal also beats Walmart's 2013 Black Friday price for the Roku LT by $11.

Panasonic 3D Blu-ray Player for $35
If you're in the market for a new Blu-ray player, this is the cheapest 3D player we've seen to date. In fact, prices for 3D Blu-ray players haven't been this low since last December, when they bottomed out at $49.

Beats by Dr. Dre Studio 2.0 Over-the-Ear Headphones for $199.99
While the original Beats Studio Over-the-Ear headphones have dropped as low as $130 this year, the newer 2.0 model has only hit $210 once, making this the best deal of the year for these headphones.

Vizio 55" 1080p LED LCD HDTV for $478
This 55" Vizio easily beats our Black Friday prediction for name-brand 55" TVs. It's also the cheapest name-brand 55" TV we've seen in 2014. However, this deal falls short of being the cheapest of all time. That distinction belongs to the LG 55LS4500, which we saw for $448 in September of 2013. Still, this Amazon deal comes in at a close 2nd.

Need your 55" TV sooner rather than later? Walmart currently offers this Sceptre 55" 1080p LCD HDTV for $449 with free shipping. While the Vizio model has built-in WiFi and app support, this Sceptre costs $29 less and features an MHL port, which means it's compatible with the Roku Streaming Stick as well as other MHL-compliant tablets and devices.

LG 65" 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV for $648
This is an outstanding deal for any 65" HDTV. (The cheapest TV we've seen in this size cost $799). However, keep in mind that Walmart will offer a Vizio 65" 1080p LCD HDTV for the same price. Furthermore, Walmart's Vizio will feature built-in WiFi and Smart TV capabilities. We still don't know the full details of this LG TV.

Samsung 55" 4K Ultra HDTV for $899
Name-brand 4K HDTVs are the stars of this Black Friday, and this deal manages to undercut Best Buy's Samsung 55" 4K HD TV by a buck. If you're a fan of curved TVs, for a few hundred dollars more you can opt for curved 4K sets at Sam's Club and hhgregg.

Xbox One Console with $150 in Digital Content
We're not recommending this deal just yet since we don't know the price, but considering how Amazon is undercutting most of its competitors, we wouldn't be surprised if it undercuts Target's $330 Xbox One deal or matches Walmart's $329 Xbox One bundle, the latter of which is our favorite Xbox One Black Friday deal to date.

As far as electronics are concerned, Amazon's Black Friday ad won't disappoint. Sure, there are many missing details that could make or break certain deals, but for the most part Amazon's deal team wasn't joking around when it released its official ad.

Unfortunately, we didn't spot a single Apple deal in Amazon's first wave of Black Friday deals. Laptops, fitness trackers, and tablets were also notably missing. While this may change in the coming days, it leaves Target and Best Buy the undisputed champs of Apple deals and gives other retailers a head start in those departments. At least for now.

Excited for Black Friday deals? Consider subscribing to the DealNews Select Newsletter to get a daily recap of all our deals; you never know when a Black Friday price will be released! You can also download the DealNews app, check out the latest Black Friday ads, or read more buying advice.

Before You Go

15 Stores Open On Thanksgiving
Walmart(01 of14)
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Opens at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving. During a Tuesday call with reporters to unveil Walmart's Black Friday sales plan, Duncan MacNaughton, chief merchandising officer at Walmart U.S., said:
“Black Friday is no longer an event for customers who wake up at the crack of dawn to get good deals.”
 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Kmart(02 of14)
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Opens at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving. Leena Munjal, senior vice president at parent company Sears Holding Corp., said in a statement:
“This holiday season is all about giving more to our members and because many like to start shopping well before Black Friday, we’re excited to open our doors early on Thanksgiving and offer other early access opportunities for them to shop and save.”
 (credit:SAUL LOEB via Getty Images)
Sears(03 of14)
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Opens at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving, along with its sister-store Kmart. Adding to her statement, Munjal said:
"I'd also like to especially thank our seasonal associates and those who have volunteered to share part of the day serving our members on Thanksgiving."
 (credit:Paul Thompson via Getty Images)
Macy's(04 of14)
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Opens at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving, earlier than ever. Holly Thomas, a spokeswoman, told HuffPost:
"We work diligently to staff Thanksgiving with associates who volunteer to work and doing so means that our people are able to make their own decisions about how they contribute to our most important and busiest weekend of the year. We also heard last year from many associates who appreciated the opportunity to work on Thanksgiving so they could have time off on Black Friday. Additionally, associates who work an opening shift on Thanksgiving will be compensated with incentive pay."
 (credit:Rudi Von Briel via Getty Images)
J.C. Penney(05 of14)
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Opens at 5 p.m. on Thanksgiving. The struggling department store will open three years earlier than last year. Spokesman Joey Thomas told HuffPost:
In keeping with the spirit of the holiday, we have many exciting activities and giveaways planned to show just how much we appreciate the hard work and dedication of our associates. Activities and giveaways include swag bags full of goodies, round-the-clock food to keep associates fueled for delivering excellent customer service, pep rallies to drive excitement and energy through the early morning hours of Black Friday, and drawings for fun prizes.
 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Target(06 of14)
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Opens at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving, but Black Friday deals started on Nov. 10. In a statement, Kathee Tesija, chief merchandising and supply chain officer, said:
“We know our guests are pulled in a million different directions as the holidays get underway, so we’re helping them save time and money by offering more access to Black Friday deals.”
 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Kohl's(07 of14)
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Opens at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving. Kevin Mansell, the big-box store’s chairman, chief executive and president, said in a statement:
“Kohl’s will be the most compelling shopping destination for the entire family this holiday season with our strong portfolio of sought-after national and private brands, our extensive online assortment and a deep list of exciting products that are new to Kohl’s this year.”
 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Best Buy(08 of14)
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Opens at 5 p.m. on Thanksgiving. In a lengthy statement announcing the hours, the company wrote:
“While we recognize the decision to open on Thanksgiving affects Best Buy employees, customers have made it clear that many of them want to begin shopping on Thanksgiving evening. In recent years, millions of Americans have shopped on Thanksgiving, and our store associates are excited and prepared to fulfill their holiday wish lists. Most thanksgiving evening shifts are filled by employees who volunteer to work. All hourly store employees who work on Thanksgiving will, of course, receive holiday pay.”
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Staples(09 of14)
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Opens at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving as part of a week of Black Friday deals. Alison Corcoran, senior vice president of North American stores and online marketing, said in a statement:
“At Staples, we’re offering more savings throughout November with our first-ever Week of Black Friday for Business plus amazing deals the week of Black Friday through Cyber Monday. We also make less stress happen this holiday season with easy ways to shop in store, online and via mobile.”
 (credit:Scott Olson via Getty Images)
Sports Authority(10 of14)
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Opens 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving, with coupons and hours already circulating in local catalogs. CEO Michael E. Foss said in a statement:
“Every Black Friday, we kick off the holiday season by offering our customers the best deals of the year. For the second year in a row, our customers can conveniently shop more than a hundred Black Friday Doorbusters on footwear, apparel, team sports, fitness equipment, golf gear and more starting at 6pm on Thanksgiving Day.”
 (credit:John Greim via Getty Images)
Toys R Us(11 of14)
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Opens at 5 p.m. on Thanksgiving. Adrienne O’Hara, a spokesperson for Toys R Us, told HuffPost:
“We have so much excitement leading up to Thanksgiving and Black Friday. Employees are really excited, it’s an event.”
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Big Lots Store(12 of14)
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Opens at 7 a.m. on Thanksgiving. In a statement, the home goods giant said:
“Big Lots listens to its customers, and based on their feedback, Big Lots stores have been open on Thanksgiving for over 20 years. This year is no different.”
 (credit:JeepersMedia/Flickr)
RadioShack(13 of14)
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Open from 8 a.m. to noon on Thanksgiving, and reopens at 5 p.m. The midday break came after the employees complained about having to fill shifts from 8 a.m. to midnight.Last Monday, RadioShack spokeswoman Andrea McCauley told CNBC:
“Given the customer demand for store hours on Thanksgiving last year, we made the decision to open on Thanksgiving. It gives us the opportunity to stay competitive.”
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Office Depot & Office Max(14 of14)
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Open from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Thanksgiving. Troy Rice, executive vice president of retail for Office Depot, said in a statement:
“We know our customers want to make the most of their Thanksgiving holiday while also getting a head start on their shopping lists. That’s why we are so dedicated to providing customers with the extended store hours they want, along with great deals on some of the most highly sought-after gifts they need, both in stores and online.”
 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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