Black Friday has begun at Amazon

Now that Halloween has come and gone, Amazon is ready for the holiday shopping season to begin.

The online retail giant on Friday kicked things off with the launch of a Black Friday deals store and electronics holiday gift guide. The deals store will offer discounts on thousands of items from the likes of Hasbro, Samsung, Canon, Belkin, and more now through Black Friday weekend.

In addition, for the first time ever, Amazon will offer two "Deals of the Day" every day through Dec. 22. The company said there will also be "hundreds of Lightning Deals" every week.

If you're not sure what to get someone on your list, you might want to check out Amazon's electronics gift guide featuring 350 of the most popular gifts of the season. The guide is organized by category and recipient, offering ideas of what to get for everyone "from the music enthusiast to the gadget guru." The gift guide will also feature "60 gifts in 60 days" with a new deal on an electronics gift every day through Dec. 31.

"We're making it easy for customers to discover and zero in on the hottest gifts and holiday trends — from streaming media players to Bluetooth portable speakers," Ben Hartman, vice president of consumer electronics for Amazon.com, said in a statement.

Amazon is naturally pushing its own Kindle tablets this holiday season, but also predicted that wireless gadgets such as Bluetooth speakers and headphones from Beats, Sonos, and TDK will be popular. Other hot electronics gifts this holiday season include lightweight PCs from companies like HP and Acer, 65-inch or larger TVs, 4K Ultra HD resolution TVs, and streaming media players and TV soundbars from Sony, Samsung, and Roku.

Meanwhile, Amazon customers will now need to spend $35 to qualify for free shipping, up from $25. Amazon raised the free shipping threshold last week for the first time in more than 10 years. Those who sign up for the $79-per year Amazon Prime, however, get free, two-day shipping on all orders.