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Apple's Black Friday Event Begins in U.S. With Free Gift Card on Select Purchases

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Apple's annual four-day Black Friday through Cyber Monday shopping event has started in the United States and Canada, with customers able to receive a free Apple gift card with the purchase of select products through November 28.

Apple-Black-Friday-Event-2022.jpg

The offer is available for select iPhones, iPads, Macs, Apple Watches, AirPods, Beats, and accessories. As usual, many of Apple's latest products are excluded, such as the iPhone 14 series, Apple Watch Series 8, Apple Watch Ultra, and Mac Studio.

In the U.S., gift card values are as follows:
  • $50 for the iPhone 13, iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 12, and iPhone SE
  • $50 for the iPad mini and iPad Air
  • $30 for the ninth-generation iPad
  • $250 for the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro with M1 chip
  • $200 for the 13-inch MacBook Pro with M2 chip
  • $150 for the MacBook Air with M1 or M2 chip and the 24-inch iMac
  • $100 for the Mac mini
  • $50 for the second-generation Apple Watch SE
  • $25 for the second-generation AirPods and third-generation AirPods with Lightning case
  • $50 for the second-generation AirPods Pro
  • $75 for the AirPods Max
  • $50 for the Beats Studio3 Wireless, Solo3 Wireless, Powerbeats Pro, Beats Fit Pro, and Beats Studio Buds
  • $25 for the Beats Flex
  • $25 for the MagSafe Duo Charger, second-generation Apple Pencil, and Smart Keyboard Folio
  • $25 for the Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro
The promotion is available on Apple's online store, in the Apple Store app, and at Apple's retail store locations. As usual, refurbished products are not eligible for a gift card, and the offer cannot be combined with educational pricing.

Black Friday is one of the few occasions per year that Apple offers deals on its products, but better deals are often available through resellers like Amazon, so make sure to check out our Black Friday roundup for the latest discounts on the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, AirPods, Apple TV, accessories, and more.

Apple gift cards are now all-in-one and can be used towards the purchase of products, subscription-based services like Apple Music and Apple TV+, App Store apps, iTunes Store content like TV shows and movies, iCloud+ storage, and more.

Article Link: Apple's Black Friday Event Begins in U.S. With Free Gift Card on Select Purchases
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2022/11/25/apple-black-friday-event-begins-in-us/
How much of a hassle would it be to return my 2nd Gen SE Apple Watch that I purchased at the Apple Store just last week…

So I can get the $50 Apple Gift Card and use it to immediately purchase a second Apple Watch Band… or maybe even use the $50 gift card towards Fitness Plus?
 
Anyone know how you have to wait for the gift card? I placed an order an hour ago, nothing so far…

Edit: Just read through the fine print and found only 3rd gen AirPods with the lightning case are eligible, not those with the MagSafe case (which I bought). GDI Apple…
 
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Sea Bass said:
Anyone know how you have to wait for the gift card? I placed an order an hour ago, nothing so far…

Edit: Just read through the fine print and found only 3rd gen AirPods with the lightning case are eligible, not those with the MagSafe case (which I bought). GDI Apple…
Click to expand...
The gift card will be sent within 24 hours of the product shipping or being confirmed for pickup
 
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Trying to buy an iPhone 13 mini. If you go through the carrier for $599 instead of "any carrier" $629 the gift card does not apply. So I'm really only getting $20. Then when I go to use my apple credit that I already have on my account (not apple credit card) but from gift cards it won't process the transaction. "Items in your order are not eligible for this payment method. Please select another form of payment." Anyone know if I can do better in a physical store?
 
Sea Bass said:
Anyone know how you have to wait for the gift card? I placed an order an hour ago, nothing so far…

Edit: Just read through the fine print and found only 3rd gen AirPods with the lightning case are eligible, not those with the MagSafe case (which I bought). GDI Apple…
Click to expand...

swissmann said:
Trying to buy an iPhone 13 mini. If you go through the carrier for $599 instead of "any carrier" $629 the gift card does not apply. So I'm really only getting $20. Then when I go to use my apple credit that I already have on my account (not apple credit card) but from gift cards it won't process the transaction. "Items in your order are not eligible for this payment method. Please select another form of payment." Anyone know if I can do better in a physical store?
Click to expand...
I think Apple's trying to tell you two that they don't want/need your business, and that you should go shop elsewhere. 🤣
 
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swissmann said:
Trying to buy an iPhone 13 mini. If you go through the carrier for $599 instead of "any carrier" $629 the gift card does not apply. So I'm really only getting $20. Then when I go to use my apple credit that I already have on my account (not apple credit card) but from gift cards it won't process the transaction. "Items in your order are not eligible for this payment method. Please select another form of payment." Anyone know if I can do better in a physical store?
Click to expand...
You probably can do this in the store.
 
Went into the store and got it done. Thanks DigitalAR for the tip. However we had to transfer all of my apple credit back to gift cards and process gift cards one at a time. Seems like their processing system was glitchy as the store called their corporate support and they said they had other issues. Buying 3 phones took 1.5 hours in the store. I've had better experiences from Apple in the past. That's for sure. Buying phones shouldn't be so complicated.
 
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I bought a 13 mini last week and had decided it would be a hassle and would feel wasteful to return/re-purchase for a $50 gift card. However, not benefiting from the gift card also felt wasteful. Yesterday after some brainstorming, I rotated my spare phone back into service for my second line (and hotspot) which frees up my 12 mini to be my main phone again. I returned the 13 mini altogether, the funds are back on my card this morning, and it feels right.

I’m glad the gift card ordeal resulted in my being frugal. Besides, I really like the 12 mini and it has some years left.
 
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storybylindsay said:
I bought the iPhone SE 3 yesterday, but I was also charged for the $50 gift card. Both the phone and the gift card are showing as installment plans on my Apple Card even though it's listed as a "promotion". Anyone else have this happen?
Click to expand...
Yesterday I explored purchasing the MacBookPro 13 inch with M2 chip - a $200 Apple Gift Card was the promo for that item. However, the fine print says - and the purchase process showed - that they took $200 off the base price and then added it back in as a separate installment plan - as you describe happened to you. That makes no sense and I talked with an Apple Card tech who confirmed that is exactly what happens - you are saving nothing when you purchase the item using an Apple Card. Very deceptive promotion by Apple! I'd rather just make the purchase outside of any sketchy promotion.
 
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GiannaColo said:
Yesterday I explored purchasing the MacBookPro 13 inch with M2 chip - a $200 Apple Gift Card was the promo for that item. However, the fine print says - and the purchase process showed - that they took $200 off the base price and then added it back in as a separate installment plan - as you describe happened to you. That makes no sense and I talked with an Apple Card tech who confirmed that is exactly what happens - you are saving nothing when you purchase the item using an Apple Card. Very deceptive promotion by Apple! I'd rather just make the purchase outside of any sketchy promotion.
Click to expand...
I'm on the my second hour of a chat with customer support and they are just talking in circles. This is crazy. I'm returning it as soon as I get it and will just buy it elsewhere as it looks like I'm actually paying an additional $50.
 
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storybylindsay said:
I bought the iPhone SE 3 yesterday, but I was also charged for the $50 gift card. Both the phone and the gift card are showing as installment plans on my Apple Card even though it's listed as a "promotion". Anyone else have this happen?
Click to expand...
They are including the gift card in the full price as a separate line item, not adding it on top. If you later return the purchase, they won’t refund the gift card amount because you keep the gift card.
 
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CharlesShaw said:
They are including the gift card in the full price as a separate line item, not adding it on top. If you later return the purchase, they won’t refund the gift card amount because you keep the gift card.
Click to expand...
That's such a weird way to do it. In that case I would rather just get $50 off the purchase and call it a day. Leave the whole gift card part out of it.
 
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storybylindsay said:
That's such a weird way to do it. In that case I would rather just get $50 off the purchase and call it a day. Leave the whole gift card part out of it.
Click to expand...
Hehe, I’m thinking there have been senior accountants who also believed a simple sale price would be less work, but Apple doesn’t do sales; they leave that to authorized resellers. Apple either permanently lowers prices or raises them.

And from my armchair, I can imagine a few reasons why keeping the gift card promotion as a separate line item helps keep accounting transparency and assists prevents customer service confusion when a customer keeps calling back to get the rest of their refund, forgetting that they’ve already spent or given away the gift card.

When I bought the 13 mini last week, I traded in an older iPhone during the online transaction and that was itemized on the invoice, but I paid full price up front, per the fine print. Once their “trade-in partner” received and tested the device, the value of my old device was refunded to my credit card.

And also in the fine print, when I returned the 13 mini, I received a gift card for the value of my trade in and did not get that part refunded to my credit card. For traded in devices, Apple only issues gift cards or credits toward non-returned purchases, they do not let us trade in devices for money we can spend elsewhere. And I read that and accepted it as the way it is.
 
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