Prime Big Deal Days 2024: What to buy, and what to avoid buying

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Prime Day can be overwhelming. No, scratch that, it is overwhelming. Amazon’s big discount holiday features so many products and categories, that it can be tough to track down exactly what you need. And with the next Prime Day event coming in hot this October (officially happening on Oct. 8 through Oct. 9), it’s prime time for us to bestow a little advice on how to shop it successfully.

We don’t recommend buying everything you’ve ever wanted and throwing caution (and your wallet) to the wind, but if there’s a good deal on something you need, you don’t want to miss that, either. That’s why it helps to know what to buy and what to avoid ahead of time. Mashable already has a hub for Prime Day coverage that can give you in-depth analysis of every shopping category you can imagine, but here are a few quick tips on things to buy and things to not buy as you parse through Prime Big Deal Days next month.

Deals we’ve already seen ahead of Prime Big Deal Days

The best things to buy on Prime Day

While the Mashable Shopping team’s bread and butter is recommending to you all the latest and greatest products on the market, sometimes you already know exactly what you want, and just need to know where it find it on sale. We can help you with that, too. Here’s a breakdown of all our top categories that you should shop during October’s Prime Day event if you want to score the biggest deals.

1. Apple products

Buying the fruit company’s flagship tech during Prime Day is a major hack. If you’re already planning on buying some of the most notoriously expensive tech on the market, why not buy it at a discount? In light of Apple’s latest drops and announcements, we expect to see markdowns on older model Apple Watches, AirPods, iPhones, and more.

2. Amazon devices

It’s no secret that the biggest discounts of Prime Day are usually on Amazon’s own devices. Whether you’re working on building out your smart home or you’re finally ready to pull the trigger on a new e-reader, you can expect record-low pricing on Amazon Echo speakers, Echo Show devices, Kindles, and more. Just stay away from Ring cameras (more on that below).

3. Robot vacuums

There are good robot vacuum deals out in the wild all the time, but Prime Day almost always brings some of the biggest discounts on iRobot Roomba models, Shark vacs, and more big-ticket brands. We expect that iRobot will have the best deals, since the brand is now owned by Amazon.

4. Everyday essentials

Even if you’re not planning on making a big tech purchase on Prime Day, it’s an ideal time to score the household items you would buy even if they weren’t on sale. From laundry detergent, to paper towels and diapers, there are almost always deals on home products you might toss in your cart on a Target or Walmart run. And with Prime shipping, your must-haves will be at your door ASAP so you can spend more time taking care of the house and less time shopping.

5. Pet supplies

If you’re a pet owner, you know the struggle of having to buy pet supplies like food, toys, grooming products, and more on a consistent basis. Luckily, Prime Day is the best time to stock up on pet stuff, especially from the Amazon Basics brand.

6. Drones and cameras

DJI drone bundles, Holy Stone drones, and GoPro cameras are almost a given for deals we expect to see on Prime Day. We’ve also spotted solid deals on cameras from Panasonic, Canon, Sony, and Nikon in the past — just in case you’re finally ready to get serious about filming for your YouTube channel.

7. Smartwatches

In addition to sweet Apple Watch deals, you can bet that Prime Day will bring steep discounts on Fitbits, Garmin smartwatches, and Samsung smartwatches. For reference, we saw the lowest price ever for multiple Fitbit models during last year’s Prime Day.

8. TVs

You might not find the best deals on premium TVs during Prime Day, but it’s a good time to get a deal on mid-budget Fire TVs. These won’t be your showstopper living room TVs, but are great for your guest bedroom or kids’ rooms. During last year’s event, we saw an invite-only deal for the 43-inch version of a 4K Omni Series TV for just $99.99, and we expect to see even more cheap Fire TVs to come this year.

9. Headphones

After covering basically every Prime Day that’s ever happened, we know with certainty which headphone brands will be on sale during the big event. Bose, Sony, Beats, AirPods, and JBL models will definitely see some solid discounts. During last year’s Prime Day, we saw steep price drops on the QuietComfort line of Bose headphones, so we’ll be looking out for sales on the latest QuietComfort Ultra headphones and earbuds.

10. Invite-only deals

Amazon has brought back its invite-only deals program for Prime Day 2024, and we expect to see something similar this October. In the past, we’ve seen invite-only deals on headphones, SodaStreams, and more popular items, so be sure to keep an eye out for when those go live (of course, we’ll also remind you). You’ll need to request access to these doorbusters ahead of time, and if you’re one of the chosen ones, you’ll be able to score those products at their sale prices.

11. Nintendo Switch and gaming deals

Upgrading your gaming console and even buying new games feels like a drag — when you’re doing it at full price, that is. Luckily, during Prime Day, you can catch markdowns on both. During last year’s Prime Day, Nintendo’s holiday bundle arrived earlier than expected, so we can’t wait to see what this year’s has in store.

Things to avoid on Prime Day

While Prime Day is chock full of good deals, there are some things you’ll want to be wary of while you shop. Mashable covered all the things we recommend avoiding in detail, but here are a few quick tips.

1. Third-party sellers

In general, you can trust things sold and shipped by Amazon. Third-party sellers tend to be less reliable, and you run the risk of buying counterfeit products. If a deal from a third-party seller seems too good to be true, it probably is.

2. Ring doorbells and cameras

The steep discounts on Ring cameras and bundles might be tempting around Prime Day, but we don’t recommend anything from Ring due to privacy concerns. Not only are they easily hackable, but Ring is also notorious for giving people’s info away without their consent. There are normally plenty of home security deals from other brands on Prime Day, and if you need a little guidance on the good ones, check out our guide to the best home security systems.

3. Anything you don’t need

Like we mentioned before, it’s best to use Prime Day as a way to get something you need at a good discount. What’s not as advisable is buying things just because. Something you don’t need or won’t use is still something you don’t need or won’t use, no matter how good the deal is.