Black Friday tablet deals 2023: recap

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Black Friday tablet deals 2023: up to $149 off Apple iPad and Galaxy Tabs
Although Black Friday is now over, to return next year. The deals we saw on tablets were very exciting, and hopefully a lot of you managed to snatch a nice discount on your wishlisted device. Here, we'll do a recap of what happened during the sale event.

Also, be sure to check out Amazon Spring Sale 2024 expectations, as Amazon may launch a Spring Sale event in 2024 as well.

This year, Amazon (and other retailers) started the event earlier, and Black Friday began at Amazon on November 17 and continued on until the end of the month. You had some three weeks of epic deals to feast your eyes on and find your next device at a bargain.

Amazon had great discounts on Galaxy Tabs and some Lenovo models. In the Galaxy Tab world, budget devices were partying with discounts between 35% and 40%, and the premium crew was enjoying a 10-13% cut, including a sweet $129 off on the Tab S9.


iPad Pro Black Friday discounts: recap

Amazon was the 2021-released iPad Pro with a $250 discount for the 512GB version. However, stocks on the more mainstream storage options were quick to run out, and you could benefit from a discount on 1TB and 2TB options.

Apple iPad Pro 11-inch (2021)
9.0

Apple iPad Pro 11-inch (2021)


The Good

  • Smooth 120Hz display
  • Snappy, unrivaled performance thanks to the Apple M1 processor
  • Loud and punchy quad speakers
  • Familiar premium design

The Bad

  • iPadOS 14 doesn't take advantage of all this power
  • Expensive accessories

Apple iPad Pro 11-inch (2022)
9.0

Apple iPad Pro 11-inch (2022)


The Good

  • Thin, light, easy to handle
  • 120 Hz screen is still a fantastic way to experience iPadOS
  • Tons of power on tap
  • USB Type-C Thunderbolt port is super-fast and useful
  • The quad speakers sound great
  • Dependable battery endurance

The Bad

  • Accessories for the full experience are expensive
  • 3rd party mice will be a bit awkward
  • iPadOS has made strides in multi-tasking, but UI feel is still sticky and confined

If you wanted the 6th Gen iPad Pro (2022), another Amazon deal allowed you to save $90 on the 12.9-inch slate with 128GB of storage.


Black Friday offers on iPad Air and iPad mini: recap

The iPad Air from 2022 and the iPad mini 6 were also discounted online. The iPad mini 6 was experiencing great discounts (depending on color and storage) ranging from $100-$170 off!

Apple iPad mini 6
9.0

Apple iPad mini 6


The Good

  • Perfect size and weight for reading and jotting down notes
  • Unrivaled performance on a small tablet
  • Punchy stereo speakers
  • USB Type-C
  • 2nd-gen Apple Pencil support

The Bad

  • Unimpressive display, wavy scrolling in portrait mode

The iPad Air from 2022 was also available with a generous $100 discount. The best deals in this category were from Amazon and Best Buy.

Apple iPad Air (2022)
9.0

Apple iPad Air (2022)


The Good

  • Unrivaled performance at this price
  • Premium build quality
  • Solid speakers
  • Supports iPad Pro (11-inch) accessories

The Bad

  • 64 GB of base storage is a bit stingy, the only other option is a costly jump to 256 GB
  • Expensive accessories

Best Buy's deals presented epic Black Friday phone deals as well, by the way.

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Black Friday discounts on iPads: recap

During the event, you could save on both the 2021 and the 2022-launched iPads. The 9th Gen iPad was amazingly 24% cheaper at Walmart. Amazon had an awesome discount on the 10th gen iPad.

Apple iPad 10.2-inch (2021)
9.0

Apple iPad 10.2-inch (2021)


The Good

  • The full iPadOS experience at a low cost
  • TrueTone display
  • 64 GB base storage
  • Has a headphone jack
  • Dependable battery life

The Bad

  • Dated design
  • One-sided speakers
  • Lightning port
  • Non-laminated screen
  • Camera is not great

Apple iPad (2022)
8.0

Apple iPad (2022)


The Good

  • Refreshed design
  • Fast and reliable Touch ID
  • Super performance thanks to A14 Bionic
  • Dual-stereo speakers
  • Reliable battery life
  • USB-C port, goodbye Lightning
  • 5G and Wi-Fi 6 support

The Bad

  • Non-laminated screen that's just okay
  • No more 3.5mm audio jack
  • A serious price hike

Apple Pencil deals for Black Friday: recap

While Apple's tablets don't come with the celebrated Apple Pencil in the box, the good news is that you can get those at heavily discounted prices during shopping events like Black Friday. Both generations of the Apple Pencil were discounted during the sales. 

Presently, the 2nd Gen accessory was selling for 31% less on Amazon, while the 1st Gen was available with a markdown of 20%.

Galaxy Tab Black Friday discounts: recap


We've got some great news to share with Galaxy Tab fans - Apple tablets weren't the only ones that were discounted during the holiday shopping spree. At Amazon, an epic Black Friday deal was available, helping you get the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite (2022) for $131 less than usual in select colors. Another epic deal at Best Buy shaved $150 off the Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra price tag.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite
8.0

Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite


The Good

  • Affordable tablet with excellent stylus experience
  • Light, comfy design for on-the-go work
  • Great speakers

The Bad

  • Performance is choppy
  • No DeX, no Themes, no Game Launcher
  • Don't expect a Keyboard Book Cover for this one
  • No secure biometric lock

Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra
9.0

Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra


The Good

  • Premium, sturdy build
  • Great front cameras and mic
  • Huge, beautiful AMOLED display
  • S Pen stylus included
  • Samsung DeX
  • Has a vibration motor
  • MicroSD card slot for expandable storage, up to 1 TB

The Bad

  • With bezels that slim accidental touches are a problem
  • Disappointing rear cameras
  • Expensive accessories
  • No charger in the box

The vanilla Tab S8 was on sale at Amazon as well, where you could save 24% on the 128GB model. The budget-friendly Galaxy Tab A8 (2022) was some 27% cheaper for the Black Friday shopping spree.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S8

Samsung Galaxy Tab S8


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Samsung Galaxy Tab S9
8.6

Samsung Galaxy Tab S9


The Good

  • Bright and vivid AMOLED display
  • Excellent performance
  • Very decent battery life
  • Functional interface, S Pen stylus
  • Compact size makes it super-manageable

The Bad

  • Absolutely terrible haptic feedback
  • Not enough bass
  • Camera is so-so
  • No version with cellular connectivity

On top of that, you got some sweet offers and trade-in possibilities from Samsung.com for the latest tablets by  the company. If you were all about the Android experience, you might have also liked one of the many Galaxy Tab Black Friday deals that were also very generous.

Samsung Galaxy Tab A8

Samsung Galaxy Tab A8


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Lenovo tablet offers this Black Friday: recap

Lenovo tablets are already on the cheap side but even they were enjoying discounts ranging from 26-30%.

For example, the Lenovo Tab M10 Plus (3rd Gen) with 128GB of storage was 30% off on Best Buy, and the Lenovo Tab M8 (4th Gen) was 27% cheaper.

Top Microsoft Surface offers for Black Friday: recap

Microsoft makes interesting laptop-to-tablet devices, such as the Surface Pro 9. This slate was discounted by $100 on Black Friday 2023 on Best Buy. Meanwhile, Amazon had the Surface Pro 9 with 256GB of storage discounted by a huge $500 off!

Microsoft Surface Pro 7

Microsoft Surface Pro 7


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Another Microsoft Surface deal on Best Buy allowed you to save $253 on a new Surface Pro 7+.

Amazon Fire tablet deals for Black Friday

Amazon Fire models were, as usual, generously discounted on Amazon for Black Friday. The discounts here ranged from 30% off to a whopping 46% off on some of the models. Even the new Amazon Fire 11 Max was discounted.

Should I wait until Black Friday to buy a tablet?

Yes, you should, as Black Friday is the best time for you to be getting your tablet. The discounts are generous across many retailers, so the likelihood of you finding an epic offer and saving quite a few bucks is high.

While you may be thinking these markdowns aren't as appealing, we've seen many products at incredible prices before Black Friday itself. So, if you think something is irresistibly cheap before the actual event, we suggest you jump ahead and get it while you can. 

Where to find the best Black Friday tablet deals?

Usually, the best tablet deals on Black Friday pop up at retailers like Best Buy and Amazon, but manufacturers such as Samsung and Lenovo are also really good when it comes to holiday season discounts. It is also a good idea to look at some other retailers like Walmart and Target, just so you don't miss a good offer (on tablets, these two retailers don't have epic discounts too often, but sometimes they do, so keep an open mind!).


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