Looking for Prime Day deals? Pro tip: some of the best deals aren't at Amazon

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I've been covering Prime Day for four years now and Amazon's huge mega-sales are typically a bi-annual highlight if you're on the hunt for a bargain. My advice to budding shoppers next week though? Cast your net out further.

While Amazon Prime Day used to be a one-company show, several other retailers have started to offer deals that are just as good in recent years. Best Buy, Walmart, Samsung, Dell, HP, and many others are all likely to hold excellent rival sales. In some cases, I'd even recommend these alternative retailers depending on what you're looking for.

For example, if you're looking for a laptop I generally find that both Dell and Best Buy are the market leaders when it comes to value currently. Specialist retailers like Samsung and Verizon are amazing for phones and tablets as they offer compelling trade-in rebates, freebies, and other kinds of promotions that Amazon simply doesn't even try to match.

I've included 10 excellent early deals from other retailers for you to check out below. Next week's big sales are due to run through Tuesday and Wednesday but I'd argue some of these early deals are exceptional in their own right. In any case, I highly recommend our readers shop around to find the best deals - or, stick with TechRadar throughout the next week as we cover all the best sales in their entirety.

My personal favorite deals this week

Dell G15 gaming laptop: was $1,199 now $899 at Dell
Graphics card: GeForce RTX 4060
Processor: Intel Core i7-13650HX
RAM: 16GB DDR5
Storage: 1TB SSD

<p>A massive $300 discount makes this Dell G15 a superb choice if you're looking for a decent gaming laptop on a budget. Alongside a powerful RTX 4060 graphics card you'll also get a superb 13th-gen i7 chipset, 16GB of DDR5 RAM, and a spacious 1TB SSD. Put together, these are great specs and should provide excellent performance right out of the box if you're looking to run games on this machine's super-speedy 360Hz 1080p display.

Lenovo IdeaPad 1: was $799.99 now $499.99 at Best Buy
Display: 15.6 inches
Processor: Ryzen 7-5700U
RAM: 16GB
Storage: 512GB
OS: Windows 11

<p>Here's an upgraded configuration on the Lenovo IdeaPad 1 that's perfect if you need something with a little bit of power under the hood. With a Ryzen 7 chipset and 16GB of RAM, this one won't have any issues tackling even the most intensive of workloads as long as you're not gaming. While the chipset is a little older in this model, a massive $300 price cut at Best Buy makes this one a lot easier on the pocket this week.

Apple MacBook Air M1 (2020): was $999 now $649 at Walmart
Display: 13 inches
Processor: Apple M1
RAM: 8GB
Storage: 256GB
OS: MacOS

<p>Walmart is offering the MacBook Air M1 for a new record-low price of $649, which is a steal for the device that sat atop our best laptop guide for many months. It may be a little dated now but this is still a powerful Apple device that holds up well in 2024. It can handle most users' computing needs: work, browsing, video calls and even some creative tasks such as video and photo editing. Just be aware that Apple has ceased production on this model, so while it's still being supported, it may be your last chance to snag one of the best laptop deals ever before it disappears from the digital shelves for good.

Alienware Aurora R16 gaming desktop: was $2,099 now $1,499.99 at Dell
Graphics card: GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super
Processor: Intel Core i7-14700F
RAM: 16GB DDR5
Storage: 1TB SSD

<p>This is quite simply an awesome deal on a specced-out Alienware gaming PC; one I spotted when <a href="https://www.pcgamer.com/hardware/gaming-pcs/as-the-cheapest-rtx-4070-ti-super-gaming-pc-this-is-an-excellent-example-of-why-you-should-wait-for-a-discount-before-buying-alienware/">our sister-site PCGamer covered it the other day. This is, so far, the cheapest gaming PC I've ever seen to feature a powerful RTX 4070 Ti Super graphics card - a component you rarely see on machines under $2,000. Not only that, but you get a decent chipset as well as enough RAM and storage to get you gaming out of the box. For outright value, I don't see anything that can challenge this machine at other retailers currently.

Apple iPhone 15 Plus: free with a new line on any unlimited data plan at Verizon
Here it is folks, the best deal right now at Verizon. Available for a limited time only, you can bundle up the excellent iPhone 15 Plus for free alongside a new line on any unlimited data plan. While this particular promotion is for an older device, you usually need one of the higher-tier (and expensive) unlimited plans at Verizon to get a free device. Even better, you don't even need to trade in to be eligible for this deal either.

Samsung Galaxy S24 series: up to $750 off with a trade-in, or $250 off upfront at Samsung
I give props to Samsung for offering a really flexible array of promotions for its latest Galaxy S24 series right now. Not only can you get a really compelling trade-in rebate of up to $750 - which is one of the best on the market for unlocked devices - but it's also offering a great upfront discount. While you can't bundle up both savings here together, regardless of whether you're looking to trade or buy a device outright you'll be walking away with a great discount.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6: up to $1.200 off with a trade-in, or $300 off upfront at Samsung
The biggest savings you'll find on the entire Samsung site right now is on the stunning Galaxy Z Fold 6. This foldable phone carries a high price tag - and quite rightly, but it's possible to cut that right down to side with either a massive trade-in rebate or a simple upfront discount. Again, you can't have both savings together here but you'll get a great discount here regardless of what avenue you choose.

Today's best early Prime Day deals at Amazon

Amazon Devices: up to 50% off Fire TV Stick
Appliances: deals on coffee makers & vacuums
Smart home: Ring and Blink from $17.99
Tablets: Fire Tab from $49.99
TVs: cheap TVs from $73.99

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Alex is TechRadar's retail editor, specializing in deals, buying advice, and general tips on how to save our readers as much cash as possible. He's covered events like Black Friday and Amazon in some capacity for over seven years now; both in editorial and other ecommerce adjacent roles on TechRadar, T3, GamesRadar, and other Future PLC sites. Alex's expertise touches on most areas, but he has a particular love for phones, laptops, and cameras, being an avid photographer.