Black Friday Tech Toy Deal Predictions: What's the Hype for 2018?

Black Friday is one of the biggest shopping days of the year and, given it falls just one month before Christmas, toys are one of the most popular categories. On top of this, when the Black Friday frenzy combines with a craze toy, like hoverboards, Fingerlings or fidget spinners, things can really get out of hand. 

In the past we've seen parents frantically trying to purchase sell-out hype toys for many times the RRP post-Black Friday! If you want to avoid the madness this year, stay informed with this list of the most hyped toys for Black Friday 2018.

Sphero Bolt

The Bolt is a new robot from Sphero designed to teach kids about coding, robotics and computer science. There are a number of different ways to program your Bolt robot, including basic drawing, drag-and-drop graphical code blocks and text-based with Java. 

We are anticipating hot demand for this new release from Sphero this Christmas, but are unsure of whether there will be discounts available during the deals weekend. As this is a new release, Sphero may not want to offer discounts on it just yet due to the investment it would have taken to develop the Bolt. However, as you will see below, competition is rife so there is still a chance. Due to past sales on other Sphero robots, Sphero Bolt Black Friday deals are still predicted. 

Fingerlings

Despite the hype dying down since the peak last year, where they were listed on eBay for as much as 40 times the RRP, Fingerlings are still on the 'must-have' toy list for kids in 2018. For those parents living under a rock the past 2 years, Fingerlings are cute little robotic animals that grip onto your finger. Kids can also interact with them in a bunch of ways. Yep, really not that special, but a craze is a craze. 

We are still expecting Fingerlings to be popular this Christmas, despite the hype dying down a bit since last year. This could actually end up being a good thing though, as there could be excess stock to shift and better deals on offer. 25-50% Black Friday discounts on Fingerlings are predicted depending on which little animal you are in the market for. 

Boxer Robot

The Boxer Robot is one of the more advanced robotic toy offerings from Spin Master. The company are well known for producing industry-leading, hype toys, bagging over 90 Toy of the Year nominations. This 'AI' robot is no exception to that, featuring some great functionality, tons of games and interactive sensors given the price bracket. The only downside with this guy is no options for learning some basic programming, which have become pretty standard with toys of this nature.

Regardless, the Boxer Robot is growing in popularity fast and is set to become a highly demanded RC robotics toy for 2018 - especially for boys. Given it was only released in 2018 and was likely a big investment in R & D to develop, discounts are not expected to be massive. However, given there has been up to 15% off in the past similar Black Friday Boxer Robot sales are expected. 

Hatchibabies

Similar to Fingerlings, Hatchimals were another toy craze last year of equal proportions. They are also produced by Spin Master and they have a new offering for 2018 called Hatchibabies that they are hoping will generate as much demand. It is essentially an interactive plush toy in an egg that kids have to nurture to hatch, then they can play/care for it in many different ways. There have been early Hatchibabies Black Friday offers with around 20% off, so this is a good point to aim for this year. Though the deals are likely to be better on the day. 

Barbie Dreamhouse

This 4ft by 3ft smart dolls house is the Barbie lovers dream. After receiving a revamp this year, the Barbie Dreamhouse is back with an all new design and exciting new features for 2018. These include a slide, working elevator, secret rooms and a pool. The Dreamhouse was a hot product last Black Friday and Christmas and, given the re-design, we think it is likely to be in hot demand again this year.

The discounts are likely to depend on whether you are looking at the old or new model. Last year, there were Barbie Dreamhouse Black Friday sales of 35% on the old model, but we think there are likely to be better on offer this year as Barbie are probably going to phase out this model. As for the new model, 10-20% discounts are anticipated. 

Sphero R2-D2 Droid

Since Disney bought the rights to Star Wars a few years ago and have been relentlessly pumping out new films, Star Wars merchandise is more popular than ever. For this toy, Disney teamed up with robotics manufacturer Sphero to produce a real walking-talking R2-D2 droid. The little robot can be controlled remotely and has tons of features to make the experience as movie like as possible, including waddling and a retractable third foot! It's a crowd pleaser for old and new fans alike.

The droid has been out just over a year now and given a Star Wars film with R2 in it hasn't been out for a while, the hype has died down a bit. We think there is a good chance of better deals on R2 this year. Early Sphero R2-D2 Black Friday deals of 45% have already been released, so even better are expected on the biggest sales day of the year. 

Summary

These are sure to be some of the most hyped toys this fall and beyond. Don't get caught out 5 days before Christmas with a kid in need of one of these 'must-haves', be prepared and pick one up for a discount this year! Oh, and check out our guide on how not to get scammed this Black Friday.

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