There are a lot of average Black Friday deals out there for smartwatches and wearables — but if you know where to look, there are top deals to be had.
Black Friday used to be a day of deals on the last Friday of November, and some less appealing ones would carry over the weekend to the complete non-event of Cyber Monday. I liked that—you knew where you stood with it.
Now, Black Friday is a month-long bonanza that doesn’t stop all the way until Christmas. And to be fair, do the deals ever really end?
At this time of year, it’s become customary for websites and deal sites to promote every offer going, often without much thought. Indeed, on Wareable, we’ve been highlighting a fair number of discounts—although I do check on Keepa.com to ensure they at least represent the cheapest prices in recent memory.
But as a wearables expert, I’m watching this segment more closely than most. And there are a few deals out there I’d describe as especially good.
If I were buying a wearable this Black Friday, these are the deals I’d be going after.
Oura Ring Gen 3
$230/£249 – (down from $349/£349) – Get deal
Oura selling off its Gen 3 stock for $249/£249 seemed like the best deal of 2024 — and then I checked in and found Amazon was reducing it further to $230.
As I’ve opined to anyone who will listen this year, the Oura Ring 4 that landed in October is very good — but so is Gen 3. In fact, the best features of Ring 4 rolled back to Gen 3. AND Oura didn’t even make the ring any smaller. The only downside is a slight loss of accuracy, which doesn’t really affect the overall quality of insights.
If you want my tip, get the Gen 3 Horizon model. And read Oura Ring 4 vs Gen 3.
Garmin Epix Pro
I would highly advise anyone looking to spend big money on a Garmin Fenix 8 this Black Friday to seriously consider the Garmin Epix Pro. It has the same HR tech, flashlight, and pretty much all the sports tracking smarts of the Fenix — and there are some great deals going around.
Friends in the UK are absolutely laughing with Garmin Store reducing Epix Pro to £399. Just go and buy that now.
STAR DEAL: Garmin Epix Pro (47mm) £340 off
US readers are less fortunate so far on Epix Pro. I have been looking, but I can’t match that UK deal. The best you can hope for is $649 on the Garmin Store. I’ll keep an eye out, but if you can find anything in the $500s then pull the trigger without thinking.
Garmin Epix
$499 (down from $899) – Get a deal
What you can do is get a standard Garmin Epix (2nd Gen) not an Epix Pro.
Before Black Friday I said that the Garmin Epix was the one to watch. While Fenix 7 retained its MIP display, the Epix brought AMOLED to the range. The Fenix 8 brought AMOLED to the party — but the Epix already existed! And it’s right there for half the money of a Fenix 8.
It doesn’t have the Elevate 5 HR sensor (this packs Elevate 4), and there’s no flashlight or multiband GNSS, so it’s a bit of a step down. But at some of these prices, I personally would pick the Epix over $1,000 on a Fenix 8.
The best deal was actually $429 but that has disappeared for now and it sits at Amazon for $490 at the time of writing.
In the UK there’s an insanely good Epix (Gen 2) deal for £324.99 at H Samuel.
Whoop 4.0
Whoop (US): 12 months for $199 ($40 off 12/24 month memberships) – Get deal
I wear Whoop and love it. Yes, I have my gripes, but it’s a fantastic wearable for active people.
The company isn’t exactly offering Whoop at a bargain price this Black Friday—and why should it? But there are some notable discounts, especially in the US.
It’s offering $40 off the price of a 12-month contract, bringing the cost down to $199 for the tracker and a year of service. That works out to around $16 per month.
There’s also $40 off a two-year plan. You’d think they might offer a little more for committing to the longer plan, but what do we know?
In the UK, there’s a very complicated Black Friday deal that changes throughout the season, with discounts ranging from 13.1% to 7.1%. Honestly, who has the time for that? I can’t even begin to explain when or when not to buy which deal.
Key takeaway for the UK: 12 months of Whoop is £199 from November 28th to December 3rd.
Apple Watch SE 2
My colleague Conor Allison wrote an opinion piece last week about how much he loved going back to Apple Watch SE 2 after spending time reviewing the new Wear OS watches (sick burn). And I think that just underlines that $149 at Amazon for the Watch SE is just a damn good deal, whatever way you slice it.
Fitbit Inspire 3 / Pixel Watch 2
Two for the price of one here. Fitbit has had a pretty banging sale on all week. It’s crazy to say but Fitbit is kind of retro now, so I just recommend these two deals.
The Fitbit Inspire 3 has always been a favorite of mine. It’s sleek, discreet and packs a pretty powerful array of tracking into a little fitness band. For many people, Fitbits are bands, not smartwatches. If that’s you, grab this Inspire 3 deal. $69.95 for a good level of Fitbit tracking is good — and it keeps things simple.
If you want a smartwatch then ignore the Versa 4 deals doing the rounds – that watch is done. The 7 days of battery life is a big draw, I get that. But at $159 the Pixel Watch 2 offers all that Fitbit tracking, with a proper Google Play app store, Garmin Pay – and it looks good too. The single-day battery life is the one thing you have to come to terms with before you spend your money.
Apple Watch Series 9/10
$329 Series 10 (42mm) – Get deal
$279 – Series 9 41mm – Get deal
There are a few Apple Watch deals around, some better than others. In the US, the Series 10 has seen a healthy discount, with the 42mm model down to $329. That’s a solid deal and unlikely to be bested.
If you go for the Series 9, you can get the 41mm model for $279. Yes, it’s now the older shape, but that feels like a good discount and a great price for an Apple Watch that includes nearly every top health feature.
In the UK, there’s really nothing to get excited about yet. Unless…
(UK) Google Pixel Watch 3
£279 – down from £349 – Get deal
The UK hasn’t got the love of a great Pixel Watch 2 deal, so look straight to the Pixel Watch 3 instead.
If you’re in the market for a Pixel Watch 3 then UK shoppers are doing slightly better.
I’m digging up this deal for £279 for the newest model in 41mm. It’s our best Android smartwatch for a reason, and getting a nice £70 off a current-gen smartwatch seems pretty good.
