Black Friday Sales

Deep discounts on 4K TVs, special bundles on gaming consoles, and heavy promotions for new virtual reality headsets helped all three tech categories perform well over the Black Friday shopping weekend, according to multiple industry sources.

The Consumer Technology Association (CTA) late Nov. 27 reported that TVs ran away with the No. 1 slot for tech purchases for the four-day weekend, followed by tablets, smartphones and gaming consoles. While specific numbers have yet to be released, retailer Target alone reported more than 3,200 TVs were sold each minute during its first hour of Black Friday sales. The CTA had previously predicted that as many as 4.5 million 4K Ultra High-Def (UHD) TVs would ship this holiday season.

Walmart—the nation’s No. 1 retailer—listed TVs as its No. 1 selling product in the electronics category as well.

“While perennial Black Friday tech strongholds such as televisions, videogame consoles and laptops dominated shoppers’ baskets, it was also a breakout year for emerging tech,” said Shawn DuBravac, chief economist for CTA, in a statement. “These nascent devices, including digital assistant devices, virtual reality and drones, landed on the front page of retailer’s Black Friday ads… for the first time this year.”