These days, waiting for a big sale whenever you need to upgrade your smartphone isn’t always the best bet. Sure, you’ll find plenty of sales during Amazon’s biannual Prime Day deals, but you’re just as likely to find those sorts of discounts on random weekends scattered throughout the year. The one exception, of course, is Black Friday. Even if Black Friday deals aren’t what they used to be — get out of here with your pedestrian “up to 30% off” sales — the sheer amount of sales make for a pretty good opportunity to upgrade.
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Combined with year-end discounts on hardware that’s about to be replaced, making November your usual month for new smartphones isn’t such a bad idea. But what sales are actually worth your time and money? As Phones Editor at Android Police, I’ve dug through practicality every smartphone sale you can find this Black Friday, and I’ve found the four categories of deal you simply cannot miss this holiday season. Whether you’re looking for tried-and-true reliability or something that bends and folds, here’s what you should be shopping for right now.
I’m looking for the best all-around Black Friday smartphone deal
And money’s no object
While it’s not my pick for the best phone of the year, in my eyes, you can’t go wrong with the Galaxy S24+. With its Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, this device can handle anything you could possibly throw at it. Lengthy Balatro sessions? A library of downloaded movies on a plane? Dozens of hours of podcasts? The Galaxy S24+ is the perfect mobile companion, with just a couple of small caveats standing in its way.
While Samsung’s middle child doesn’t have a bad camera, it’s not quite up to par with the greatness we’ve seen from Google over the past few years, especially if you’re capturing moving images. It’s a problem we hope to see rectified with the upcoming Galaxy S25+ — and speaking of, that’s the other caveat. While $800 is an excellent price for the Galaxy S24+, its successor is just a couple of months off from its expected announcement. If you’re willing to be patient, we could see even better prices arrive on this phone next spring.
But that’s next year’s problem. If you’re looking for a phone right now, the Galaxy S24+ at $800 is a no-brainer. With seven years of OS and security support, this is a device that is capable of carrying you through the rest of this decade. If you’re tired of smartphone comparisons and the exhaustion that comes with selecting the right Android phone for you, opting for this particular model might be the easiest solution possible. Buy it and celebrate with a secondthird fourth piece of pie.
Samsung Galaxy S24+
With a plethora of AI-powered tools, a brighter screen, and a sleek one-piece design, the Samsung Galaxy S24+ offers the big screen and fuller features of the S24 Ultra without its price tag being nearly as much of a gut punch. Seven years of updates and the continued revisions of One UI 6.1 help the software shine on a phone with largely the same hardware.
I want to save cash on Google’s new Pixel 9 lineup
But I’m not sure which is right for me
Any Pixel fan worth their salt can tell you that Black Friday is the time to buy a new Pixel. In years past, we’d see surprisingly steep discounts on hardware that wasn’t even two months old, which mostly managed to rub salt in the wounds of early adopters everywhere. This year, thanks to an unexpectedly early August launch, seeing the Pixel 9 series discounted across the board doesn’t feel quite as stinging — though I’ll leave it to early adopters to sound off in the comments if they disagree.
Regardless, if you haven’t upgraded to one of Google’s latest smartphones yet, now’s the time to do so. The Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro and Pro XL, and Pixel 9 Pro Fold are, quite frankly, the best pieces of hardware Google has ever launched, and with Android 16 already in developer previews, they’re only going to get better from here. My recommendation for most users would be the regular Pixel 9. At $650, it’s a total bargain, with a great display, the best Tensor chip yet, and a flexible, reliable camera system.
Google Pixel 9
The Pixel 9 is Google’s most affordable 2024 flagship, making a few compromises when compared to the Pixel 9 Pro and Pro XL while retaining the Google smarts the lineup has become known for. An upgraded 48MP ultra-wide camera is paired with a 50MP main shooter, and the selfie cam added autofocus. All of this comes with new Gemini AI features and a 2,700-nit Actua display for exceptional value at its price point.
However, if money’s no object, the other three models are worth considering. The Pixel 9 Pro is like a souped up Pixel 9, with the same dimensions, same processor, but a more flexible camera system and an even better screen. I’ve been using it as my daily driver for most of the last few months, and I absolutely love it. For $800, it gives the Galaxy S24+ a run for its money, and should satisfy anyone looking for a slightly smaller display.
Google Pixel 9 Pro
The Pixel 9 Pro is a new addition to Google’s lineup, slotting in as a smaller premium flagship to pair with the Pixel 9 Pro XL. The latter is the direct successor to 2023’s Pixel 8 Pro despite its new XL moniker, whereas the Pixel 9 Pro brings a new form-factor to Google’s high-end offerings, sporting the same dimensions as the standard Pixel 9 model while packing all the AI and camera prowess we’ve grown accustomed to from Google’s Pro lineup.
The Pixel 9 Pro XL takes everything great about its smaller sibling and simply makes it larger. At $950, you’re still looking at a pretty steep price, even on sale. But if you’re into that phablet lifestyle, Google’s extra large smartphone is a great choice. And I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the Pixel 9 Pro Fold, a shoe-in for AP’s foldable of the year. While it’s far from perfect, this second-gen folding phone is a huge leap over its 2023 predecessor, and is back down to its all-time low at $1,500.
Google Pixel 9 Pro XL
The Pixel 9 Pro XL has a new name, but it fills the same slot as 2023’s Pixel 8 Pro, having similar specs with roughly the same footprint. The non-XL Pixel 9 Pro is new to the lineup as a smaller premium flagship offering. With the 9 Pro XL, however, you get Google’s fastest charging, a bigger screen and battery, and all of the camera and Gemini AI smarts you’d get in the smaller 9 Pro.
Long story short, it’s been a great year for Google’s smartphones. No matter which Pixel 9 you end up buying, you’re getting a great experience.
Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold
Google’s foldable series now has a new name! The successor to the 2023-released Pixel Fold is the Pixel 9 Pro Fold, starting at $1,800.
The Pixel 9 Pro Fold boasts a bigger eight-inch Super Actua inner display, paired with a 6.3-inch outer display. It is powered by Google’s new Tensor G4 chipset, paired with 16GB of RAM and a Titan M2 security coprocessor, making it faster than its predecessor, at least on paper.
Apart from the US, UK, Germany, and Japan, Google’s flagship foldable is now also available in Canada, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, Sweden, Australia, India, Singapore, and Taiwan.
I want to upgrade to a foldable, but I don’t want to go bankrupt
Don’t worry, we have the perfect solution
The Pixel 9 Pro Fold might’ve left me impressed, but at $1,500, it still costs a pretty penny. Looking for a device that offers a similar form factor without quite the impact on your wallet is difficult, but if you’re ready to make the jump into the world of foldables, I’d heavily consider the OnePlus Open. Sure, it’s a little over a year-old now, and the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 powering it might sound ancient compared to Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 8 Elite. But it’s still a killer SoC paired with an excellent form factor — one so good, in fact, Google basically used it as inspiration for its second-gen foldable.
There’s a lot to like about the Open. Its inner display uses a matte finish that helps to boost visibility outside. OxygenOS is as heavy a skin as you’ll find today, but Open Canvas is one of my favorite software-based features in years. And frankly, it’s still my favorite camera on a foldable. It’s imperfect, but loaded with so much character and personality, something you won’t always see in today’s HDR-heavy world.
At $1,200, it’s tough to call the OnePlus Open “cheap.” But considering that foldables usually run for nearly $2,000 at launch, this is a great entry point for those looking to finally dive into the world of folding phones.
OnePlus Open
OnePlus’ first foldable packs an impressive specs sheet and boasts some equally remarkable features. The lightweight design, the super-bright cover and folding screens, the high-end internals, and the triple-camera setup make the OnePlus Open a great alternative to Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold lineup.
I want the cheapest phone worth buying
No duds allowed
As with any big sale event, you’re bound to see plenty of smartphones sold for pennies in comparison to their flagship counterparts. Frankly, I wouldn’t recommend most of these devices. The sub-$300 space hasn’t seen a particularly impressive device in quite some time, as poor performance and bloatware have made for a surprising comeback. Rather than settle for a poor experience, I’d suggest paying a little more for something that, at the very least, offers some serious bang for your buck. In this case, I’m going with the Pixel 8a.
I love the Pixel 9 series, but there’s something a little more charming about the Pixel 8a. Its larger bezels make the phone feel comfortable without a case, while the matte plastic back feels just premium enough. It’s almost toy-like, but in the best way possible. It’s also the whole package, with solid battery life, a great camera system, and seven years of OS upgrades ahead of it. While there are plenty of options around this price point, the Pixel 8a is a jack-of-all-trades bargain this year — don’t sleep on it.
Google Pixel 8a
The Pixel 8a wants you to forget the Pixel 8 ever existed. With some crucial upgrades over its predecessor, including a brighter display, faster processor, and larger battery, Google’s latest mid-range smartphone is the perfect combo of speed and AI smarts. And with seven years of OS upgrades, it’s the longest lasting $500 smartphone you can find today.
If you’re after a new phone this Black Friday, these are your best bets
But don’t forget about 2025
This year’s deals aren’t quite up to the madness we used to see around this time of year, but on the flip side, the smaller discounts are a whole lot easier to score without waking up at 2:45 in the morning. I can personally vouch for every device on this list, but if you’re willing to be a little patient, don’t forget that all sorts of new flagships are on their way in 2025. No matter what decision you make, you’re bound to come out on top.
