On July 15, right after midnight PT, Amazon Prime members can shop thousands of exclusive lightning deals with new deals added as often as every ten minutes throughout the day. Amazon just released a sneak peek of some of its Amazon Prime Day deals, which the company touts will outnumber those it offers on Black Friday.
The one-day shopping event on Wednesday, July 15, is a new promotion for Amazon Prime customers, who pay $99 a year for perks like free two-day shipping and streamed entertainment content. Students pay $49 a year. The company said it will have “thousands of lightning deals,” with new ones as often as every 10 minutes, and seven “deals of the day.”
In its sneak peek today, nearly half of the more than 30 deals are electronics, including half off two Nikon COOLPIX cameras and Amazon mobile products, such as $30 off a Kindle and $60 off a Fire HD 7.
Here are the basics about what you can expect and some cautionary notes:
1. 24 hours starting tonight
Prime Day starts tonight at midnight PT (or 3 a.m. ET) until Wednesday, July 15 at 11:59 p.m. PT.
2. Who has access to the deals?
Anyone can see Prime Day deals on Amazon.com, but to purchase the deals, you need to be an Amazon Prime member.
Non-members can decide to become members anytime on or before July 15, but a spokeswoman tells ABC News she suggests they join before the deals start so that they don’t miss out on something they really want while signing up for a membership. Anyone can sign up for a free Amazon Prime 30-day free trial with a credit card, but beware your credit card will be charged the full fee if you don’t cancel your membership before it ends.
3. Expect seasonal items
Kyle James, founder of Rather-Be-Shopping.com, said you can expect Amazon to have good deals on end-of-summer items and products for students, including dorm room decor and clothing.
“Since this is the inaugural year, I’m expecting them to throw out some great deals on stuff you’d be buying anyways, especially on back-to-school supplies,” James told ABC News.
4. Walmart competition
Yesterday, Walmart announced that it was launching a rival sale on Wednesday including more than 2,000 online exclusive “rollbacks.” The discounted items will last 90 days and will include electronics, home, baby and toys. The company will also decrease its free shipping minimum order to $35 from $50.
Prime Day could serve as a great chance to save some money and is worth checking out, especially now that Walmart has entered the fray, James said.
“But as tempting as it might be, don’t buy something just because it’s on sale,” James said.
When ABC News asked Target whether they planned to join the competition with additional deals tomorrow, a spokeswoman pointed out that its sixth annual “Black Friday in July” sale on Target.com ended yesterday.
5. 31 deals that Amazon just revealed
Of the sneak-peek items, the best six deals according to James are listed below, followed by five “so-so” deals and the rest.
Good deals:
- Fire HD 7, $60 off
- 60 percent off Amazon Elements Baby Wipes with code ELEMENTS60
- Bose headphones “at the lowest price ever on Amazon”
- Chromebook laptop, only $199
- Over 50 percent off two Nikon COOLPIX cameras
- iRobot Roomba Pet Vacuum Cleaning Robot, under $300
So-so deals:
- Brand-name 32-inch Smart HDTV, under $200
- 50-inch 4K TV bundle, under $1,000
- Husqvarna mower, under $300
- Fire TV Stick, (“fastest selling Amazon device of all time”) $15 off
- Up to 50 percent off any of the Harry Potter books
The rest of the sneak-peek deals:
- Fire HD 7 Kids Edition, $60 off
- Kindle, $30 off
- 32-inch LED TV, $75
- 40-inch 1080p LED TV, $115
- “Highly rated binoculars,” under $120
- Two security camera-kits, $279.99
- K’NEX 2-in-1 Ferris Wheel Building Set (Amazon Exclusive), $35.99
- K’NEX Crossfire Chaos Roller Coaster Building Set (Amazon Exclusive), $23.99
- Playskool Heroes Transformers Rescue Bots Optimus Prime Figure (Amazon Exclusive), $9.99
- 40 “lightning deals” on DVDs up to 75 percent off
- Save more than 70 percent on the Divergent Series Complete Box Set of books
- Save up to 70 percent on select kitchen products from top brands like Cuisinart, KitchenAid, Foodsaver and Thermos
- Save up to 50 percent on select tools “for the DIY auto enthusiast”
- Connected Car and Scan Tool products starting at 60 percent off
- “Road-trip-ready” automotive products starting at 50 percent off
- Save more than 50 percent on Drinkwell Platinum Pet Fountain
- 30 percent off select clothing, shoes, jewelry, watches “and more”
- Free luxury beauty sample box with $50 purchase of luxury beauty products, with promo code LUXSAMPLES
- Buy an Amazon.com Gift Card multipack, get $10 in Amazon.com promotional credit
- Get 25 percent bonus Amazon Coins when you buy 5,000 or 10,000 Amazon Coins