TV writer Jake Hackney has found the best deals on games consoles including the PS5, Xbox Series S and Meta Quest 3 in the Black Friday 2024 sales
We’ve officially entered Black Friday week, and the sales are really ramping up. While it may seem like the Black Friday fun has already been around for weeks, the annual event falls on Friday, November 29, with many retailers slashing their prices through to Cyber Monday on December 2.
We’ve already highlighted some of our favourite deals from Sky, Virgin Media and O2, but as more and more shoppers bag themselves a Black Friday bargain, we’ve noticed a range of games consoles among the most sought-after products. With this in mind, we’ve scoured the web to find the best deals on games consoles from PlayStation, Xbox and Meta.
Whether you’re in the market for the all-new PS5 Pro, Meta’s latest virtual reality headset or an affordable Xbox upgrade, we’ve found some big savings from the likes of Amazon, Currys and Argos – several of which are the cheapest they’ve ever been. So if you’re looking for the best place to buy a new games console, read on for the biggest and best gaming deals this Black Friday.
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PlayStation
November saw the launch of Sony’s latest console, the PS5 Pro, and it’s currently reduced for Black Friday. The console is priced at £699.99 from PlayStation Direct, but gamers can get it for £659 from EE or £689 from Amazon and Currys.
Sony says the PS5 Pro features the ‘most impressive visuals’ ever possible on a PlayStation, with advanced ray tracing, super sharp image clarity for a 4K TV and support for 8K gaming, as well as frame rate gameplay up to 120Hz and a whopping 2TB of storage. Tech writer Chris Harper at the Daily Express said the Pro ‘completely changed’ how his games look, but with its high price point, it’s worth considering if it’s the best buy for you.
He said: “Do you really value the best possible looking games and framerates when you play your PS5? And do you play on it enough to make the investment worth it? If the answer is yes to both of these, I would consider buying the PS5 Pro. If you’re a pretty casual gamer who plays a few hours a week or month, leave it until some good deals come around.”
For gamers looking for a more affordable upgrade, the PS5 Slim Disc edition is currently at its lowest-ever price at Amazon and Very for £399.99 – down from £479.99 – while Argos and Currys offer it for £399.99 and £400 respectively. Amazon has also reduced the PS5 Slim Digital edition to £309, down from £389.99.
There are more savings to snap up on a raft of controllers and games, including the DualSense Wireless Controller for £39.99, EA Sports FC 25 for £41.99 and The Last Of Us Part II for £29.99.
Meta Quest
Meta’s ‘most powerful’ mixed reality headset has been flying off the shelves in the Black Friday sale thanks to its huge price drop. Amazon has reduced the Meta Quest 3 512GB to £468.48, a discount of £151.51 from the usual £619.99.
This is the cheapest it’s ever been, according to price tracker camelcamelcamel, but stock is running low at time of writing. Luckily, several other retailers have also cut their prices, including Very, Currys and Meta direct, which are offering it from £468.89 – less than £1 more than Amazon’s asking price.
Regardless of where you buy from, you will receive a free copy of the new Batman: Arkham Shadow game and a three-month trial of Meta Quest+ – which includes two free games each month – at no extra cost. The Meta Quest 3 is touted as delivering ‘next-level’ performance with more than double the graphic processing power of the Quest 2, as well as more immersive gameplay and visuals with a wider field of vision and 4K+ Infinite Display, plus rich 3D audio with enhanced sound clarity.
In October, Meta released a more budget-friendly version of the headset, the Meta Quest 3S, which offers gameplay in high-definition resolution of 1832×1920 pixels per eye and 128GB of storage compared to the 3’s 4K resolution and 512GB. However, the 3S features the same processor and the same white shell as the 3, so it’s worth considering if you’re put off by the price of the more expensive model.
The 3S is currently sold out at Amazon but is available from retailers including Very, Currys and Meta from £275.
Xbox
Gamers sitting in the Xbox camp can expect to pay less than their PlayStation counterparts when upgrading to a new console. That’s because the Xbox Series S is the most affordable device in our round-up, with the console now £50 off in Amazon and Argos’ Black Friday sale.
The Xbox Series S 512GB is discounted to £199.99 – down from £249.99 – while EE stocks it for £199 with free delivery. Xbox says the Series S offers the ‘best value in gaming’, with ‘lightning-fast’ load times and gameplay up to 120 FPS, as well as the ‘Quick Resume’ feature, which lets you switch seamlessly between different titles and instantly pick up from where you left off.
It also offers 4K streaming on apps, including Netflix, Disney+ and Prime Video. However, it’s worth noting the Series S is a disc-free console and is not compatible with an external disc drive, so you won’t be able to play your old Xbox games with this model.
For those that prefer physical games, the Xbox Series X does have a disc drive, but it comes at a price. This model will set you back £459 at Amazon – where it’s reduced from £479.99 – or £459.99 at Argos.
While this isn’t an amazing deal, the Series X is said to be the ‘fastest [and] most powerful Xbox ever’ and has 1TB storage, so you certainly get a lot more for your money. For more Black Friday deals, we previously pulled together our favourite deals from Amazon, Sky, Ninja and Dyson here.
