It is that time of year again–the time when we give thanks to one another, spend time with family and friends and, at the end of the day, sit down to devour a large feast. It is the time most of us call Thanksgiving. But, for others, this time is better known as “Black Friday Eve”. For some, they can just skip the Thanksgiving turkey, fun with friends and family and lasting memories, just to wait out in line to save $500 on a Samsung 65” LED TV or get a LG 55” LED TV for only $499.99. Is it worth it?

This year, Best Buy has decided to open its doors at 6:00pm Thursday afternoon, causing most anticipating customers to line up hours before that. Even if you get in line by 3:00pm Thanksgiving Day, you are certainly not going to be the first. Most people start camping out days in advance. Just to get those hot “Door Buster” deals, you will have to skip out on the turkey.

Best Buy is not alone with their extended hours. Other stores like Walmart, Kmart, and Toys R Us are open early Thanksgiving Day, while many other stores open at 8pm Thanksgiving Day. By Friday morning, all of the deals would have been long sold out.

To even get a chance for these “Door Buster” deals, you would have to camp outside the store days in advance. Not only are you practically living on the street, but you also have to have someone come and bring you food and supplies, just so you don’t lose your spot in line. Because, if you’re not one of the first twenty people in line, chances of  getting the deal you want are slim. By the end of the night you can walk out knowing you saved $500 on a TV set. But what about everything you missed out on? Was that really worth the price of quality time and a nice dinner with your family?

Are any of these deals really worth all that? The front page of Walmart’s Black Friday Ad  advertises a Funai 32” Class LED HDTV for $98. What’s a Funai? Upon review, the TV earned an average rating of one star with comments such as “don’t buy unless you expect it to only last 9-months.”

The best deals are not going to be put on the brand-named items. Some stores are just trying to mark down and sell items that did not sell in the past year. Of course, these items are not going to be of the highest quality.

As mentioned before, a few of Best Buy’s hot items this year are a Samsung 65” LED TV for $999 and an LG 55” LED TV for $499, both a $500 savings. Best Buy’s advertisement also mentions that both of these items are found exclusively at Best Buy. This is because LG and Samsung created these TVs for Best Buy, with the intention of being sold during black Friday at a low price. Neither of these TVs have been seen before so there are no reviews available for them, and after Black Friday they will most likely never be seen again. Both of them are fairly basic TVs compared to what is available in the market today.

Even though the deals may seem like gold, they often are not.  If you wish, you can avoid the Black Friday chaos all together. According to dealnews.com “Black Friday may not always offer the lowest prices of the year, you should probably wait to buy brand-name HDTVs, winter apparels, and toys because most of these items see their deepest discounts in the winter months.” It’s also easier to find quality toys at sites like Mamonlineshop.