If the mere thought of Black Friday gives you a serious case of sweaty palms, then Amazon is here to make the routinely anxiety-inducing shopping day a little easier. Starting today (November 1), the online retailer has debuted its Black Friday store front with deals set to last from now until December 22. That’s right — 52 days of savings, lasting until just before Christmas.
Amazon is kicking things off early this year with deals of the day from now until mid-December, offering price cuts across a whole range of items. While the biggest deals will be reserved for both Black Friday week (starting November 21) and Cyber Monday week (starting November 28), there’s still plenty of discounts for Amazon users to enjoy including 36% off selected Kindles, 33% off a 55-inch LG TV and more.
On top of this extended sales period, Amazon is also employing a new tactic in order to dissuade people from buying items in brick-and-mortar stores. In a new update to the company’s app, users can now take a photo of an item in a physical store and then have the Amazon app conduct a visual search in order to find it in the online store. Though this feature has been utilized by Amazon for a while now, it has now expanded it to work with more products.
Amazon is also introducing a new Package X-Ray feature, which will allow users to scan a barcode on a package in order to reveal what is inside of it. This feature will be available to iPhone users, allowing them to use their device’s camera in order to take a peek inside the package — we’re not sure how helpful this feature is outside of ruining Christmas surprises, though.
Amazon Prime members will also be treated to some exclusive discounts, including a 20% discount on video game pre-orders and new releases, along with two-day shipping on over 30 million items. Amazon is also offering a watch-a-deal feature for those who are looking to keep tabs on the retailer’s best deals.
