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7 Which? Don't Buys to avoid in the Black Friday sales
Don’t be fooled into thinking a deal is a steal just because it’s included in the Black Friday sales.
Through our independent testing we’ve discovered some terrible Don’t Buys disguised as Black Friday bargains, from poor-scoring to unsafe products.
Which? Don’t Buys are products that have fallen so far below our expectations that we wouldn’t recommend them to anybody under any circumstance.
Head straight to our Best Black Friday deals page for the deals we would recommend
Don’t Buy ‘deals’ in the 2025 sales
Our list of dodgy deals this year includes one of the worst TVs we’ve ever reviewed and hair straighteners that are hot for all the wrong reasons.
Here’s what to steer clear of in the sales – and what to buy instead.
Remington Shine Therapy hair straighteners (sale price - £20)
Why avoid: On their highest setting they’re likely to damage your hair.
Our testing revealed that these hair straighteners aren’t particularly good at straightening your hair, plus the outer casing gets hot and they take half an hour to cool down.
On their highest temperature setting our experts found they might damage your hair.
Our experts say: ‘They have few redeeming qualities, hence our Don’t Buy verdict.'
Buy instead: The Beauty Works x Molly-Mae straighteners can be found on Beauty Works Online for £50 (half price). They’re pricier, but they straighten hair well and deliver good shine and frizz control. They’re also lightweight and cause minimal damage to your hair.
See our pick of the Best Black Friday beauty deals
Indesit KINS 1261B4 UK fridge freezer (sale price - £375)
Why avoid: The underpowered fridge and freezer, coupled with inaccurate temperature settings and ease-of-use annoyances, make this model one to miss.
Although it’s got good climate stability, our testing found that the fridge chills too slowly and the freezer is even worse at bringing new additions down to the right temperature. It doesn’t have open-door alarms, either.
Our experts say: ‘This is a terrible model.'
Buy instead: The Fridgemaster MC55251DE is available for £319 from AO.com in the sales, which makes it cheaper. Plus, it’s got powerful fridge and freezer sections and an accurate thermostat.
See our pick of the Best Black Friday fridge freezer deals
Hisense 32A4KTUK TV (sale price - £129)
Why avoid: This is comfortably one of the worst TVs we’ve tested.
This 32-inch HD-ready TV is in clearance sales at more than one retailer over Black Friday, but our testing revealed it's got terrible motion and abysmal sound, not to mention unbalanced colours and contrast.
Our experts found the sound akin to an empty plastic bag floating in the wind, and the picture so bad that they'd rather listen to the radio.
Our experts say: ‘Even by the low standards of 32-inch TVs, this is a shocker. Don’t go near it.'
Buy instead: If you're after a smaller TV, it's worth paying a bit more for LG’s 43-inch 43NAN081A6A, which is £299 at currys.co.uk, and has a good picture and balanced sound.
See our pick of the Best Black Friday TV deals
SoundCore by Anker C40i headphones (sale price - £39)
Why avoid: They sound truly terrible, have weak battery life and the microphone is poor for taking calls.
Our testing experts branded these open-ear headphones from SoundCore 'dismal Don't Buys.' They said that music and podcasts sound thin, hollow and distorted at times, and that vocals and speech in particular sound crackly and unnatural.
Our experts say: ‘Voices sound like they're being heard down an old telephone.'
Buy instead: The JLab AudioJbuds ANC 3 are a sounder choice, and about £5 cheaper at £34.99 (down from £59.99) from Amazon Marketplace.
See our pick of the best headphones we’ve tested
Currys Essentials CFSG60W18 freestanding cooker (sale price - £249)
Why avoid: An inaccurate oven and disastrous grill mean this energy-hungry cooker is no bargain.
Our testing found that this model takes 14 minutes – twice as long as most ovens – to get up to 180ºC (gas mark 4), but then soars way above the temperature set on the dial.
The grill is feeble too, and most of the bread we put under it was hardly touched by the heat.
Our experts say: 'Steer clear – this cooker won't do you many favours in the kitchen.'
Buy instead: The Amica AFC1530WH is available for £279 from AO.com. It's a fantastic oven with a great grill, and a very worthy alternative.
See our pick of the best freestanding cookers for all budgets
Canyon BSP-8 portable speaker (sale price - £27.99)
Why avoid: The sound is dire and the battery life is one of the shortest we've tested.
Our experts found the sound unpleasant: tinny and thin with no bass, and only muffled, harsh mid tones. On top of that, the battery lasts a paltry three hours and 13 minutes – one of the shortest lifespans we've come across (although, with this speaker, that may be a blessing in disguise).
Our experts say: 'We hated our time with it.'
Buy instead: If you just need something light and cheap, the SoundCore by Anker Select 2S costs £25.59 on Amazon, and has a good battery and not-bad sound for a portable speaker.
See our pick of the best portable Bluetooth speakers we've tested
LG SQC1 soundbar (sale price - £115)
Why avoid: The audio is limited and the sounds can be muffled.
There's a reasonable amount of bass, our experts found, but it's not handled very well and can make the sound muddy. Special effects are poorly delivered too, and you can't turn it up very loud before an artificial-sounding distortion kicks in.
Our experts say: 'LG makes some great soundbars, but sadly this isn't one of them.'
Buy instead: The Samsung HW-B650F typically retails for £279, but B&Q is selling it for £165. It's got well-balanced sound, a good base, and is modestly priced compared with most soundbars.
See our pick of the best cheap soundbars under £300
Shop with Which? this Black Friday
We're confident about our Don't Buy warnings because they’re backed by our scientific testing. We test products rigorously, comparably and independently.
The products in this article all scored poorly in our tests. Typically, a product needs to score under 40% or 45% to be a Don't Buy, with different categories having different expectations.
In some cases, we might find issues that can compromise your safety and security. When this happens, not only will we make a product a Don't Buy, but we may also apply an alert banner on the review – a clear warning about what we found and what the risk is for shoppers.
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