Surviving Black Friday: Part 1

I suppose step one is check your "budget."

Photo by 愚木混株 cdd20 on Unsplash

Black Friday sales take flight earlier and earlier every year, but that means there’s plenty of time to agonize, debate, and get a second opinion! Review quality can vary significantly across platforms (uh, hello, Steam AND Amazon “reviews”?) - so I wanted to jot down some sales and deals worth checking out.

Let’s dive in!

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Gaming

• Steam always has games on sale, but you’ll want to hold onto the cash earmarked for video games until the Autumn sale, which starts Tuesday the 21st. If you’re absolutely dying to buy shit today, you can check our Curator page for reviews.

• If you’re super bougie - or if you feel weird dropping 4-600 on a gaming device and then tossing it into a $15 Amazon bargain case- I recommend checking out Waterfield and their array of gaming cases. They craft cases for Nintendo Switch OLED, Switch, Switch Lite, Analogue Pocket, Steam Deck, ROG Ally, and Play Date. All cases are made in the USA. My experience with the brand is through their Airpod Max case and some hands-on time with other bags via friends.

• There are a bunch of handheld gaming rigs out there these days, and while I don’t have a Steam Deck- I have plenty of trusted friends who can vouch for it. So, if that’s your jam, snag one! They have the new OLED version - and the old LCD version is on sale until supplies run out.

• Elgato makes amazing gaming accessories and runs its Black Friday early sale until the 23rd. I tend to cycle between Elgato (direct), Amazon, and Best Buy to pick up their gear, though lately, I’ve been concentrating on doing less with Amazon. My hands-on experience with Elgato: Stream Deck, Facecam, Key Light Airs, Green Screen, Wave 3, and both high & low profile mic arms. Becca has a Stream Deck and Key Light Airs. I’ve always found the gear to be quality- I’ve never had any issues with performance, and they’ve always excelled at doing precisely what I need it to do. However, one can also view their gear as a “throwing money at the problem” solution- obviously, you can find things like mic arms, green screens, microphones, and more without (depending on quality) the Elgato price tag. What you get alongside the device/gear is the same thing you get with Apple products- entrance into this ecosystem of gear and accessories that play well with each other and make things flow easily.

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EDC

Everyday carry or every-day carry is a collection of useful items that are consistently carried on person every day. The main reasons for having EDC are utility, self-sufficiency, and preparedness: to help individuals improve simple everyday problem solving, from the mundane to possible emergency situations such as first aid or self-defense.  - Wikipedia

To me, survival games are excellent tutors on learning to be self-sufficient and prepared- especially when mindfully choosing what you carry/own.

• Leaf has a Black Friday sale using code UNLOCKVIP for 20% until the end of Sunday. Becca and I love our Leaf razors: we ditched more plastic, and we don’t have to spend oodles on razor head replacement blades - we get safety razor blades in bulk on Amazon, where they are cheap AF. Leaf Razors travel well and are super easy to break down for storage or cleaning.

• LOCHBY has excellent waxed canvas carry gear- they’re running a sale until Cyber Monday. Becca and I love their products- we mentioned them in this article! (Plus pictures of our gear!)

• I can SOAPBOX FOR DAYS about backpacks/bags and drill down into your UNICORN BAG. However, I also acknowledge that some folks aren’t at the stage where they’d want to spend $250+ on a bag, no matter how fancy. If that’s the case, I urge you to check out Timbuk2- they’re basically my “gateway drug to fancy bag carry,” and you can qualify for early bird BF sales by signing up for their newsletter.

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MISC

• If you want air purification above Amazon and Walmart but below thousands of dollars - check out Blue Air. I can personally vouch for the quality: I use these units at home (8 cats and a wife with asthma/allergies) and at work (40-45 dogs in daycare) - and they’re fantastic. Black Friday is a great time to snag a deal. You can also put the filter renewal in as a recurring subscription.

• I love Displates. I love the artwork, and the sizes offered are perfect. Even better- the mounting system is simple and makes it easy to swap things out when changing a room or space. It’s handy for apartment living since I don’t have to punch holes into shit. Don’t ever buy a Displate at retail prices- they run sales pretty much all the time. However, their Black Friday sales typically offer the deepest discount. Becca has 4 Displates, and I have 5.

• If you partake in the Devil’s Lettuce, have you checked out Vessel? Becca and I have gear from their Expedition, Core, and Compass lines. Sales end November 30th.