If there’s anything worth picking up in the Black Friday sales, it’s tech from Apple. The biggest sale of the season is finally within reach, and some retailers have already started rolling out their discounts
Top of many shoppers’ wish lists? One of Apple’s iPads. Whether it’s the 10th-generation iPad, iPad air or iPad pro, the tech giant’s iPads account for more than half of the tablets sold globally, but they don’t come cheap and are rarely on sale.
Read more: Black Friday 2024 shopping guide
Thankfully, Black Friday offers the best opportunity to save some cash on a new iPad, as retailers such as Amazon and Very have already slashed some of Apple’s range of tablets to the lowest prices of the year. While Apple itself doesn’t take part in Black Friday, the company will be offering gift cards in exchange for a purchase.
Below, I’m rounding up the best early iPad Black Friday deals that you can shop now, plus my predictions for Apple’s Black Friday gift card rewards.
When will the iPad Black Friday deals start in 2024?
Black Friday always falls on the Friday after Thanksgiving in the US, meaning we don’t have to guess or feel around in the dark like we do for things such as the release date of a new iPhone. This year, the Black Friday sale will kick off on Friday 29 November and end on Cyber Monday (2 December).
That’s not the full story, though, as the Black Friday discounts start earlier and earlier each year. In 2023, electronics retailers such as AO, Very and Currys began discounting Apple products from the very beginning of November. In fact, Argos, Currys, AO, Very, John Lewis and many more have already kicked off their Black Friday sales.
What to expect from iPad deals this Black Friday 2024
The best iPad deals can always be found on entry-level tablets – that’s the 10th-generation model and 9th-generation models, which launched in 2022 and 2021 respectively. Those tablets always see the heaviest discounts (and offer the best value). I’m expecting to see discounts on the 10th and 9th-generation tablets, though a new iPad 11th-gen isn’t expected to launch until 2025.
As for the iPad air and iPad pro, while they do see some discounts, the price tag is generally still pretty high. Apple launched a new iPad air and iPad pro earlier this year, so if you have been eyeing up either tablet, I do expect retailers to slash the price of both in November. They should fall to some of their lowest prices, so Black Friday will be an ideal time to chuck one into your basket.
Then we have the iPad Mini – Apple just launched a new iPad Mini earlier this month, so the (now very) old one could also see a discount this Black Friday.
Read more: Black Friday 2024 live updates
Will Apple have a Black Friday sale on iPads in 2024?
Not in the traditional sense. Instead of discounting the price of its tech, Apple offers gift cards in exchange for a purchase during the four-day Black Friday sale, so, if you don’t mind receiving a gift card instead of a discount on your iPad, Apple still has you covered. Apple announced its Black Friday gift card perks on 17 November last year, and I’m expecting them to be announced around the same time this year.
Last year, if you bought an iPad pro, iPad air, a 10th-generation iPad or an iPad mini, Apple gave you a gift card worth up to £80. The more expensive the iPad configuration, the bigger the gift card amount.
Best early iPad deals to shop now
Apple iPad, 9th generation, 2021: Was £369, now £279, Very.co.uk
The 10.2in 9th-generation iPad is the cheapest one still being sold by Apple. Launched in 2021, it’s a fast and powerful tablet with a great screen and full-sounding stereo speakers. It works with the Apple pencil and the smart keyboard, too, unlocking extra functionality for anyone who wants to stay productive while on the move. With a £90 discount, this is a pretty good saving on the entry-level iPad.
Apple iPad, 10th generation, 2022: Was £349, now £309.97, Amazon.co.uk
With a discount of £40, the 2022 iPad has fallen to one of its lowest prices. “The new design, faster processor, better and bigger display are easily worth the price, and the new iPad is a real rival to the iPad air, which usually costs £170 more,” our writer said in their review. “This is the best tablet under £500 from any manufacturer, in my opinion,” they added.
Apple iPad Air M2, 2024, 11in, 128GB: Was £599, now £559.97, Amazon.co.uk
Released in May this year, the 11in iPad Air has just received a tasty £40 price cut at Amazon. A potential laptop replacement, our tech critic gave it five stars in his review. “Put the iPad Air in the magic keyboard case, and you have something approaching a laptop, but thinner and lighter,” he said. “The software is now so advanced it works tremendously as an alternative laptop – Apple’s stage manager setup, which enables you to see separate windows more easily, comes pretty close to beating macOS.”
Apple iPad Air M2, 2024, 13in, 128GB: Was £799, now £749.97, Amazon.co.uk
If you like the idea of the iPad Air, but want something a little bigger, then the 13in version of the M2 iPad Air is also on sale, with a £50 saving at Amazon. “The iPad Air is the Goldilocks iPad: it offers almost as much as the Pro but for a price point that is, frankly, a bargain,” our tech critic said in his review.
Apple iPad Pro M2, 2022, 11in, 512GB: Was £1,199, now £899.99, Box.co.uk
The fourth-generation iPad Pro launched in 2022. It comes in two sizes but it’s the 11in model that currently has the steepest discount with a huge £300 off at independent tech retailer Box. “The large iPad Pro is especially brilliant (literally, thanks to the mini LED backlighting that brightens everything) and has a super-fast processor that handles everything you throw at it with ease,” our writer said in his review. “Not everybody needs all this power, though the speedy performance benefits everything the tablet does. If you really want the best tablet around, it’s the iPad Pro.”
Apple iPad Pro M2, 12.9in, 256GB: Was £1,299, now £1,019, Johnlewis.com
If you like the look of the iPad Pro but want a bigger display, then John Lewis is currently selling the larger 12.9in tablet with almost £300 off. It’s reduced to clear so the deal is unlikely to stay around for too long before the tablet sells out.
Apple iPad Mini, 6th generation, 2021: Was £469.97, now £449, Amazon.co.uk
With the launch of the new 7th-generation iPad Mini, Amazon has just discounted the older model from 2021 by a smidge over £20. “The mini looks like a shrunken version of the iPad Pro or iPad Air from 2020 and includes features common to those bigger tablets, such as a flat-edge design, compatibility with the second-generation Apple pencil (which snaps on to that convenient flat edge magnetically to charge) and an all-screen front,” our writer said in his review. “It has a super-fast processor, and it’s amazingly convenient and pocketable.”
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