That Black Friday ‘deal’ might cost the same as it did in August. Let AI check for you.
Amazon’s free shopping AI shows a full year of price history, and Google’s new Universal Cart watches prices at Target, Walmart and more. Here’s how to spot a fake markdown before you buy, plus the Auto Buy catch nobody mentions.
ChatGPT/Kim Komando
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You know the move. A big red “40% off” sticker on an air fryer. You grab it. Then you find out it cost the same in August.
Stores call that a deal. I call it a costume.
This year, the AI sitting in your shopping apps can catch such pricing pitfalls, and it’s free.
📉 Check a year of prices
Amazon’s AI assistant got a new name in May: Alexa for Shopping. Most of it works without Prime or an Echo. In the Amazon app or on the website, open any product page, tap the Alexa icon (the little cursive a) and ask:
Show me this item’s price history for the past year. What was the lowest price, and is today’s price actually a deal?
It shows up to 365 days of prices, up from 90. Not a deal yet? Tell it your target price, and it’ll ping you when the item gets there. Prime members can turn on Auto Buy, which buys it the moment it hits your number. More on that later.
Shopping beyond Amazon? Google’s Universal Cart rolled out Oct. 15 in Search and the Gemini app. Save items from Target, Walmart, Wayfair and other stores in one cart, and Google alerts you when a price drops or a sold-out item comes back.
⚠️ Read this before you click buy
Auto Buy spends your money the second the preferred price hits, even if you’ve changed your mind. Requests stay live for six months, so the air fryer you wanted in November can show up in May. Auto Buy skips coupons, so you could pay more than someone who clipped one. Amazon says you can cancel within 24 hours in Your Orders.
Amazon isn’t in Google’s cart. Google won’t say where the promo codes in your cart come from, so test one before you trust it. The cart also reads your Google Wallet card perks to suggest which card to use. Check the rewards terms yourself.
My rule: If the lowest price of the year was in August, it’s not a Black Friday deal. Set your target, walk away and let the AI do the waiting. AI is a research assistant, not a financial adviser.
I saved an absolute fortune last Black Friday. I stayed in.
📩 Send this to someone who buys anything with a red sticker on it.
