As Black Friday approaches, schools face the same wave of technology offers as everyone else. Emails promise discounted laptops and tablets, often with a deadline that leaves little time to consider the detail. For school business managers weighing up budgets and upcoming device replacements, those offers can be tempting. But are they worth pursuing?
It is a fair question. Buying in a sale can make sense, but the savings need to stand up once procurement rules, total cost and specification are taken into account. Looking beyond the advertised price helps you see whether the deal will still offer value over the years the devices are in use.
A bargain still has to be bought properly
Even when a purchase falls below the public procurement threshold, your school or trust’s own purchasing rules still apply. Depending on the value, those may require several quotes, approval from the right budget holder or a more formal buying process. A Black Friday deadline does not remove those steps.
Before placing an order, check the relevant spending limits, who needs to approve the purchase and what evidence you need to keep. You should be able to show why the chosen device meets your needs and offers value for money, taking account of quality, warranty and ongoing costs as well as the advertised price.
For larger purchases that reach the relevant public procurement threshold, the Procurement Act 2023 requirements also apply. Our Procurement Act essentials guide explains the key requirements and what they mean for schools and trusts.
Splitting a purchase into several smaller orders to stay under a threshold is specifically prohibited, and a purchase made outside a compliant process is not rescued by a good price.
The headline price is one line in the sum
The advertised price is a starting point. The overall cost depends on what each quote includes and what your school will need to pay for separately over the devices’ expected life. A discounted device may still be the better buy, but that will depend on its specification, support and fit with your existing systems.
- Management licences. Licensing costs depend on the devices and the school’s existing management arrangements. A quote may include the licences needed, or they may be a separate expense.
- Warranty. The length of cover, repair arrangements and turnaround times can differ between offers. Extended or on-site support may be included or cost extra, affecting both the overall price and how long devices could be out of use.
- Accessories. Cases, additional chargers, adapters and peripherals can add to the purchase cost. Whether these are included can make a difference when comparing prices for a full class set.
- Deployment. Imaging, enrolling and setting up devices takes IT time. Supplier deployment services may reduce that workload, although some setup may still fall to the school’s own team.
- Disposal. Secure data wiping and appropriate recycling can carry an end-of-life cost. Supplier take-back services vary in what they cover and whether they are included in the original price.
Here is an example for 30 laptops over four years. The figures are illustrative and show how additional costs can affect the overall comparison.
| Cost over four years | Black Friday consumer device | Planned education device |
| Devices | £9,900 (£330 each) | £12,150 (£405 each) |
| MDM licences | £720 | Included |
| Extended on-site warranty | £1,800 | Included |
| Cases and chargers | £750 | £540 (volume pricing) |
| Extra setup time (15 hours) | £300 | None |
| Total | £13,470 | £12,690 |
The sale laptops cost £2,250 less upfront for the devices alone, but the Black Friday option costs £780 more over four years in this example. Different quotes will give different results, but we often see initial savings reduced or outweighed once the additional costs are included.
Keep the specification in view
A discount can change how a device looks on paper without changing how well it meets the school’s needs. Models sold under the same product name can have different processors, memory, storage and operating systems, so an attractive price may relate to a configuration that does not meet your specification.
The fit with the existing estate matters too. Introducing another model may be straightforward, or it may bring differences in enrolment, software deployment, chargers and spare parts. For a small batch joining an otherwise standardised fleet, those differences can add support work that is easy to overlook in the purchase price.
For a class set or wider refresh, availability becomes part of the decision. A headline offer is less useful if only some of the devices are available at that price, or if fulfilling the order means accepting a mix of configurations.
None of this rules out a sale purchase. It means that any compromise on specification needs to be understood alongside the saving, including any effect on teaching and support over the devices’ expected life.
Give yourself time to compare
A clear specification gives you a basis for judging an offer. Planning the purchase gives you time to find out whether there is a better one.
Approaching suppliers with the same requirements and quantities makes their quotes easier to compare. It also creates room to discuss the parts of an offer that might otherwise be fixed at checkout, such as warranty cover, deployment support and delivery arrangements.
That does not guarantee a lower device price, but it gives you a fuller view of what your budget can buy. It also leaves time to resolve differences between quotes and complete the school or trust’s purchasing process before committing.
With that groundwork done, a seasonal discount becomes one option to consider alongside the quotes you already have. You can judge whether it improves the overall offer, with time to work through any differences before placing an order.
A short checklist before any deal
If a tempting offer does land in your inbox, five questions will tell you most of what you need to know:
- Does the purchase fit within your procurement thresholds and process?
- Is the warranty on site, and how long does it last?
- Is a management licence included, and does it match what you already use?
- What will accessories, setup and disposal add?
- Will the specification still be comfortable in four years?
If the answer to any of them is “we would have to check”, the deal probably needs more time than the countdown timer allows.
Buying smarter
Buying well means having time to compare options, a clear specification and confidence in the purchasing process. A Black Friday offer can fit into that, as long as it meets the same requirements as any other quote.
Planning a technology purchase for your school or trust? Talk to Everything ICT about your requirements and the options available.
