Amazon's Prime Early Access Sale is here, but it's not what we expected - at all. Sure, at first glance it's no different from any of the mega-retailer's big sales events, serving up a bunch of savings on a bunch of different products across a bunch of categories. But (and trust us, we're surprised by this too) it's far better than we ever imagined it would be.
As with Prime Day proper, this new Amazon sale is a two-day global shopping event that offers discounts to Prime members. But while the summer event has plenty of good deals, they're hidden among countless listings for 5% off no-name headphones. And don't get me started on Black Friday deals, where there are simply so many options that you could spend all week scrolling through them and never reach the end.
Prime Early Access, in contrast, appears to be hitting the sweet spot between big savings and easy browsing, with plenty of great deals but less of the dross. And some of the deals really are pretty special.
Want proof? Well, air fryers are in the news at the moment, no doubt due to the fact that they can save you money on your energy bills. In the US, you can currently pick up an Instant Vortex 5.7QT Air Fryer Oven Combo for just $69.99, down from $139.99 and in line with its lowest ever price. And in the UK, the InstantPot Duo Crisp + Air Fry is at £128.99, £61 off its usual price. These are both good deals, although the latter has been cut to £99 before.
Or take TVs, which are always popular. With the Qatar World Cup on the horizon, plenty of people will have their eye on an OLED set on the cheap - in which case, check out the 48-inch LG A1 - just $646 in the Prime Early Access sale. Yes, that really is an OLED TV for less than $650, making it the cheapest ever OLED TV we've seen, outside of models we wouldn't really recommend.
Or, if you have a little more money to spend, the Sony 77-inch A80J BRAVIA OLED 4K Ultra HD Smart TV is $1,999 right now, saving you a massive $1,500. Again, that's the lowest price we've ever seen for this model. To find a 77-inch OLED TV for less than $2,000 is always rare, but to find the excellent A80J at this price is just ridiculous.
And of course, Amazon has slashed the prices of its own devices, as it always does, bringing down the Amazon Echo Dot (4th gen) to $24.99 and the Fire TV Stick 4K also to £24.99. These prices are unlikely to go any lower on Black Friday.
Good timing
While the Prime Early Access Sale is definitely smaller than Prime Day (and a LOT more manageable than Black Friday), Amazon has been down this route before. Anyone remember Amazon Epic Daily Deals last October? No? Well that's hardly surprising, because that event was flatter than a pancake in a trouser press. The deals were less than epic and for most consumers it barely stood out among Amazon's usual daily deals.
But Amazon seems to have made more of an effort this time round, and that could be because it understands that people have less money in their pockets right now.
Make no mistake, this new sales event comes at a welcome time. A combination of rising inflation, high energy prices and stagnant wages have left many people with less money to spend than in previous years, in both the UK and US. Any sales event that offers people the chance to buy something they actually need, but for less than usual, is to be applauded.
Shop wisely
Of course you could say that Amazon is merely creating its own demand, in order to boost its own profits - and obviously that's true. But don't dismiss it based on that alone. So long as you only spend what you can afford, and you limit yourself to things that were already on your shopping list, the Prime Early Access Sale could well help you save money in the long term.
The other thing you definitely need to do is to approach each deal with caution. Just because the price is reduced, it doesn't mean it's the lowest it's ever been. CamelCamelCamel is your friend here, because this brilliant website will give you a complete Amazon price history for a given product, so you can see at a glance how the current price compares to past sales. If it's not at or near its lowest value, and you don't need it right now, it's probably best to wait.
It's also worth shopping around, even if the Amazon deal is a good one. The likes of Walmart and Best Buy in the US and Curry's and John Lewis in the UK offer deals year round too, and they may have even bigger savings.
And of course you need to bear in mind that Black Friday is just around the corner. Amazon will undoubtedly cut some prices even further during that event, although some may not change by much.
If you do decide to shop over these next two days, remember that you'll need to be a Prime member to take advantage - but you can get around that by signing up for a 30-day free Prime trial. Just make sure you cancel the trial before it ends, if you don't want to subscribe for the whole year.
Our advice: have a browse through the deals below and if you like what you see, head over to our Prime Day hub for many more.
Prime Early Access Sale - best US deals right now
Prime Early Access Sale - best UK deals right now
