Black Friday Deals for Tweens, 2012

Keep your eyes out here for the best Black Friday Deals for Tweens in 2012.

Black Friday Deals for Tweens

Black Friday Deals for Tweens are hot search items, and in your research, it's helpful to have references to previous years' deals.  This will give you an idea of what you can hope to find, though there's never a guarantee.  I like to keep past trends in minds as I think about Black Friday shopping for my tweens and teens.  Following are summaries of a few deals featured in 2011.  If you are looking into Black Friday deals for tweens for 2012, be sure to keep a look out here.



Black Friday, 2011


Thursday-Saturday Only: Dell Streak 7" Tablet, $149.99.
If your tween is wanting a tablet computer, this is one of the more budget friendly models.

Thursday-Saturday Only: Samsung Laptop with Pentium Dual-Core Processor, 320GB Hard Drive, 4GB Memory, $299.99.
If you want an inexpensive tween laptop, this is one of the best Black Friday laptop deals out there.

Thursday-Saturday Only: HP All-in-One Computer has AMD E-Series Processor, 4GB Memory, 1TB Hard Drive, $399.99.
If you need a stationary computer system, safe from tween mishaps that may be more common with portable computers, then you won't want to miss this bundle!

Thursday-Saturday Only: $20 Off Any $100 iTunes Gift Card.
If your tween is all about his or her playlists and tunes, then this is one of the best deals of the season.

Thursday-Saturday Only: Xbox 360 250GB Holiday Bundle with Fable III and Halo: Reach, Only $199.99.
If you are looking for a great deal on Xbox, this is it.

Thursday-Saturday Only: $60 Off LP Aspire Cajon.
Do you have a musical tween, who always moves to his own beat?  A Cajon is an outstanding musical instrument, a sit-on drum in the form of a box, which the player beats with the palm of his hand while seated.  Very cool, and very unique!

Thursday-Saturday Only: Great Digital Camera and Camcorder Deals.
If you have a tween who loves to borrow your camera, or camcorder, then it may be high time to find an entry level model as a holiday gift.

Thursday-Saturday Only: Free $50 Gift Card with Apple iPod touch 8GB MP3 Player.
This is potentially the best deal you'll find on an iPod Touch, with the $50 gift card making the net value of the iTouch package $150.  This is a great tablet alternative for a tween, and will provide a multitude of uses!

Thursday-Saturday Only: 60% Off Skullcandy Ink'd Stereo Ear Bud Headphones.
If you are picking up earbuds, this is a great deal, and much better than everyday cheap earphones.

Kindle Fire vs Nook Tablet for Tweens

If you are considering Kindle Fire or Nook Tablet for tweens on your gift lists, then it may seem confusing as to which is the better choice. In fact, your priorities for the gift recipient will highly influence your decision, as both offer some obviously similar functions: Web browsing, app stores, email, video and digital music interfaces, as well as ereading. An additional Ereading Tablet is the Nook Color. Nook Color and Kindle Fire both retail at $199, while the Nook Tablet is $249. Price, of course, may affect your decision, but the options don't end there.






With your tween in mind, Kindle Fire vs. Nook Tablet may boil down to how you expect your tween to use the tablet. Digital content will be the major interest here, whether your tween is interested in playing music, watching videos, playing games and using apps, or reading.
When it comes to video viewing, both the Kindle and Nook tablets include Netflix, while the Nook Color will soon be able to play Netflix video, as well. Both have options for video and digital music to be played. With regard to music, Nook indicates the availability of various digital music services, such as Rhapsody, Grooveshark, and MOD for free trial, with Pandora pre-loaded to the device. Kindle Fire plays digital music through the Amazon Cloud, a storage service that hosts your content. 5 GB storage is available free of charge, with further storage available for purchase.

Kindle Fire is Priced at $199

Most tweens are just beginning to assemble music collections, and 5 GB is probably plenty of storage. However, knowing that tweens need to learn the fine art of management, it's possible that other digital content could take a decent chunk of that storage space. Nevertheless, this is a great means for them to learn management skills. Kindle Fire is particularly compatible with Kindle ebooks, though it also accomodates PDF document reading. Meanwhile, Nook is primarily aimed at Nook books and magazines. Both Nook Tablet and Nook Color include Kids' interactive books for purchase through the Nook store, but the tween is often just a little older than the target age for many picture books that fall into the interactive category. Magazines are available for both devices, but the availability of tween related magazine content is really lacking in both camps. I would love to see an emphasis on children's and tweens magazines from either platform, as the mass of clutter that kids' magazines creates is amazing. My tweens enjoy magazine reading, and an ereader or tablet that caters to this interest would be an outstanding improvement.

Angry Birds Free Apps are available for Kindle Fire,
While both Nook and Kindle have paid Angry Birds Apps.

In exploring the app stores for both platforms, I find that there are far more free apps in the Amazon app store, and when it comes to popular games like Angry Birds, the Amazon price is .99, while the Nook price is 2.99. This generally holds true for most of the apps I searched or browsed, and this makes Kindle Fire content for tweens a little more budget friendly. Further, Amazon includes several perks for an account that has a paid Prime shipping membership: instant video on demand (many free titles for members), and monthly book borrowing, specifically. These are outstanding selections for tweens, finding a good middle ground between the expensive iPad, and inexpensive, low quality tablets that will frustrate. However, a couple of more considerations are worthwhile for the parent of a tween.

If you want to emphasize the ereading experience, but limit web browsing and game play, the more basic Kindle ereaders for tweens provide web browsing and email, along with games developed for the Kindle platform(some free), without the distraction of video viewing. Digital music can be loaded to all but the most basic Kindle, and text to speech is available on all but the basic version. Meanwhile, the Nook Touch is strictly an ereader, and provides a basic touchscreen option for reading digital content.


On the more expensive end of the tablet spectrum, the iPad 2 for a tween is a powerful tool. Being used in classroom instruction, and with a huge selection of apps, this is more than a glorified video game console. It also functions as a communication device, in conjunction with compatible Apple products. iTunes is hugely popular among young people, and likewise, a new cloud storage option makes it possible to move digital content to other devices easily. If the price of iPads for tweens is a little steep, the iPod Touch is comparable to the Kindle Fire, and Nook Color, in cost, at just under $200. Like the iPad, the iTouch for a tween functions as a communication tool, music player, web browser, and camera, a feature lacking in any of the ereader tablets. Apple's app store includes ereading apps for both Kindle and Nook, which means that if you start with one of these platforms, and later move your tween into an iPad or iPod, the ereading content will still be useful.

iPod Touch for Tweens

In all cases, it's my strong recommendation that a parent of a tween explore the costs of accident protection plans, due to the changing physical and emotional traits over the tween years. Having replaced two broken cell phones for a tween son, and having seen the great service provided for a malfunctioning video console for that same son, I firmly believe that an ounce of prevention is worth it. Tweens can be forgetful, clumsy, or reactionary, and an expensive device can suffer the consequences of careless actions, intended or not.

Sylvania Wireless Smartbook--Affordable Mobile Computing Device for Tweens

Inexpensive Computer for Tweens

An alternative to a laptop or netbook for a tween, this is a basic mobile smartbook, perfect for web browsing, email, and accessing pictures and music. Memory and hard drive space are significantyly less Perfect for browsing, sharing, organizing and working Available in 7 different colors Processor: Arm 11, (1GHz) LCD display: 7 in. TFT (800 X 480 pixels) Internal memory: 512 MB RAM Internal storage: 2GB flash External memory: MicroSD card slot (up to 32GB) Wireless connectivity: Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n Connections: RJ-45 Ethernet jack, 3 USB 2.0 ports, microphone, earphone, and DC jacks Battery: mAh built-in lithium battery Mouse pad: 2.2 in. mouse pad Operating system: Windows Embedded Compact 7 ***Image links to product details, at Sears.

Black Friday Value Without the Wait: Tween Laptop Deals

If you follow the Black Friday build up, you may realize that laptop computers are often anticipated, and provided, with pricing being a good impetus to wait for the post-Thanksgiving rush...for a tween laptop, these deals seem stellar.  However, as those rumored deals are leaked, confirmed, and studied in preparation, it's always good to do a little bit of comparison, especially if you have enough advance notice.

At this writing, for example, WalMart has released its preview of the BF goodies, and there are a couple of very cheap laptops featured, a Compaq and an HP.  However, as I peruse Best Buy, I find that there is currently available a Toshiba laptop, with equivalent hard drive, and 1 GB more memory than the expected $248 WalMart offering, at only a slightly greater cost ($269). 

If you are examining tween laptop deals, be sure to consider accident protection plans, especially if you expect the laptop to serve your tween's needs for a few years.  Whereas accident protection isn't offered at W/M (only an extended warranty is available), Best Buy is one of the companies that does provide the option to purchase a protection plan for most of it's electronics.  While this may seem to eliminate the savings you attain with a great laptop deal for your tween, the expense of replacing a damaged piece of equipment can lead to 20/20 hindsight, and many tweens have a tendency toward awkward moments with tech gifts and tools.

Best Tween Tablet Choice in 2011?

There are many possible tween tablet choices for the 2011 Christmas season, and if a tablet computer is on your tween's wishlist, your priorities will be important in the decision process.  The iPad 2 is an outstanding choice, due to its compatibility with many tween activities, especially the managing of their music via iPod.  If an iPad is in your grasp, from a budget perspective, it's worth it. 

If your budget doesn't quite manage the $499 price tag of the most basic iPad 2 model, however, the Kindle Fire is appearing to be a promising tween tablet, based on function and price.  Promoted as a multimedia device which will include streaming of on demand video from Amazon's instant video, digital music playing, ebook reading of Kindle materials, web browsing, and popular apps through Amazon's android store, the $199 color tablet is outstanding in it's range of uses, contrasted with its cost, which is 60% less than that of an iPad. 

Kindle Fire will be available beginning November 15, and is already making an appearance in many leaked Black Friday ads, at that same $199 price.  Amazon's free shipping makes it a great deal through the popular retailer.

Edutainment for Tweens: Touchscreen Toys? Or Tools?

Tablets for tween, iPod Touch, netbooks...with all of the tech advances, it seems like we should be sold on the educational value, but how often do we find our tweens navigating their ways to games?  Too often!  Maybe.

Especially in the touchscreen environment, there seem to be a lot of mindless arcade games, but growing up as a teen in the age of Atari, I find myself just as drawn to silly games, at times.  Playing an occasional game actually provides me with some insight into educational value of these apps and programs, though, and I actually find a lot of value in these arcade games.  Not every game, mind you, but in many cases, yes!  There is value.

For example, Tic Tac Toe is a popular game for the ages.  Variations can be constructed by increasing grid size, increasing the number of players, or by changing a single rule or objective.  If three in a row leads to a loss, for example, the player alters his strategy.  Kids games like Connect Four are examples of variations on that theme.

Take this into the app world, and one of my favorite iPhone apps is Fuzzle, which is a variation on lining up game pieces.  Played as a solitaire game, achieving a row, column, or diagonal of 5 like colors scores points.  Additional wild pieces help when a given color isn't available, and another type erradicates all of the given color from the playing field.  There is much of the same strategy involved, problem solving, and thought.  You don't see formal math concepts built, necessarily, but rather strategy and problem solving skills, along with spatial relationships.  Meanwhile, for the tactile student, the touch screen activity is a means of augmenting learning.  Mathematical relationships are in the background, but working their way in, nonetheless. 

Another popular game of late is the famous Angry Birds.  Playing a few times, I've found that it's a great model for parabolas, and while it isn't teaching quadratic equations, it's giving a fantastic picture of different parabolas.  Enough experience with Angry Birds, and your tween will find the Algebra 2 units on parabolas amazingly familiar.  Is Angry Birds a gaurantee of success in math, or in Algebra 2?  No, but perhaps the connection will be enough to hold a student's attention, and perhaps the concepts won't be as disconcerting to the reluctant math student who has played the Angry Parabolas...I mean, birds!

Tweens go through some extreme swings in attitude, and many apathetic moments are to be encountered.  I definitely don't object to touchscreen apps that are simple, fun, and great for building strategy and thinking skills.  Check out Angry Birds in the iTunes app store, or for Android, and keep in mind many of the touchscreen devices that make these simple strategy games easily accessible:  iPod Touch, ereaders (tablet versions), and tablet computers for tweens are some of the best devices for app activity.

Which Ereaders for Tweens, Under $100? Budget Friendly Tween Ereaders

Tween Ereaders

Barnes and Noble has the Nook, while Amazon has the Kindle.  However, recent rollouts of new products, and related price adjustments in previous products, has left so many options that a parent can wonder greatly about the best choices. 

Keep in mind, as a parent, your tween's interests, your priorities, and budget.  Do you want your tween to use the ereader strictly for reading, or are you interested in the option of web browsing and applications?  Do you mind sponsored ads, in order to save?  While the under $100 price tag is attractive, you will want to examine what that price entails.

The Nook Simple Touch is $99, and involves no advertising.  The Kindle Touch is $99 with special offers and sponsored screensavers, which means advertising on the device.  Without the advertising, the cost is $139. 

Nook Touch is strictly and ereading device, no apps, no web browsing.  On the other hand, Kindle Touch includes an experimental browser, making it useful for a tween who might also use the device for research.  There are games available through the Kindle store, some of them free, which can be played on the device. 

In addition, Kindle Touch has a text to speech feature, which can be useful for an auditory learner.  As well, mp3 music files can be transferred to Kindle Touch from a computer, and played in the background while your tween reads.  This is an effective help for learners who read better with background noise.  As well, audiobooks can be played on the Kindle Touch.

Both companies have lower prices on non-touchscreen ereaders, with the original Nook costing $89, and with the simple Kindle model costing $79. 

The basic Kindle lacks audio, and is not as good of a choice for your auditory learner.  There are games, and web browsing available, but the music and text to speech features are not incorporated. 

Nook Original does include a couple of games, and has a touch navigation bar at the bottom.

Both companies have incorporated lending features with their platforms, and Amazon has library lending available, as well as book borrowing, with a paid Prime Shipping subscription. 

Examine  Kindle ereaders for tweens further in the Kindle Store, and Nook ereaders for tweens in the Nook Store.

Nook Tablet for Tweens

Nook Tablet
Available for Pre-order,
Slated for a November 18 release.

With competitive pricing on it's other Nook ereaders, Barnes and Noble has rolled out the Nook Tablet, a 16 GB tablet that includes digital media and ereading, web browsing, and popular apps, another cost concious tablet for tweens, as parents consider the possibilities.

Pricing on Nook Color is now $199, and the tablet like ereader is an outstanding tween ereader choice due to the availability of interactive Nook books.  The Nook Touch is now $99, which makes it a competitive ereader, when compared with Kindle Touch.  The original Nook is $89.  If you are looking for tablet alternatives for your tweens, the Nook tablet is an outstanding choice, as is the Nook Color.  The costs are much less expensive than those of the iPad, while the multiple uses are great for keeping your tweens busy.

Tween Tech Ideas: Projector for Video Gaming Systems

For your tween video game fans, there are video projectors which will integrate with gaming consoles to provide a projection onto a wall, bypassing the need for a television. There have become better quality, lower cost options, sufficient for the interests and needs of tweens, and inexpensive enough to provide an alternative to a huge television. My own tween son has a Jakks Pacific Eyeclops Projector, which has served for a couple of years as a means of playing video games without hogging the family television. The video quality is not pristine, of course, but the cost was low, and the result, perfect for the need.

You should be aware that picture quality will be affected by how dark the operating environment is, along with the surface onto which the picture is projected.  It's not going to be at all equivalent to the quality of a television.  My tween son loves to create a tented environment for daytime use, and finds it integrates well with plug and play video games, along with older gaming systems like game cube.  This will also work well with a portable dvd player, as long as it's used in a darkened room.

Vivitar Digital Camera for a Tween





If you have a tween with a creative eye or artistic interest, then a digital camera is an outstanding tech gift idea, and there are many models of Vivitar Digital Camera for a tween which provide an entry level apparatus, without a huge expenditure of money. The 8.1 megapixel model pictured above retails at approximately $50 (details linked through image), and is a great way to put a quality camera in the hands of your tween.

Several years ago, I invested in Black Friday deals on such digital cameras for my then tweens, and it provided a quality gift that permitted them to manage their own digital images, and to experiment with photography. While one of the two didn't do a lot with her camera, the other has gone on to work artistically, and has since upgraded to a more advanced digital camera. I'm a firm believer in providing a tween with opportunity to explore an interest. When the child finds that the interest is worthy of lots of their time, then we examine more advanced tools. In the beginning, though, budget friendly tech tools are a great springboard.

7.1 Megapixel Vivitar Digital Camera
Priced in the under $30 range...
A great way to provide an introduction
to photography for your tween.

Inexpensive DVR's/Digital Video Cameras for Tweens

Vivitar Digital Video Cameras for Tweens
Creative Tween Tech Gifts

 When you are looking for tech gifts for tweens, the costs can seem excessive, given the flighty nature of tweens...their changing interests mean that your gift may not hold their interest for long, in spite of their supposed wanting of said gift. Thankfully, some of the popular tech gift options have come down in price significantly enough, that you needn't be overly stressed over costs. For example, the DVR/Digital Video Camera, for tweens, displayed above, is priced in the $40 range (image links to details), making it an economical choice in tech gifts for tweens.

These kinds of costs were unheard of just a few short years ago, when I spent twice as much for the year's Black Friday digital camera deals for my then tweens. If you have youngsters who love iCarly, and the concept of creating their own variety shows, this is a great way to accomodate that interest. If you have a tween who loves drama, this can provide the impetus to explore further the performing arts. You will find plenty of great models, and reasonable pricing, especially during the coming holiday season.



Colorful Vivitar Underwater Camcorder