Traditionalists might balk, but the holiday shopping season is already underway. Skeptical? Head to your local department store and you'll be inundated by Christmas trees and ornaments. Bargain hunters, though, know that the real deals are more than a month away.
Black Friday, traditionally, is when retailers truly slash prices. Early birds can save hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars off of their holiday bills. Switched.com checked with a few elves, who gave a sneak peek at what you can expect deal-wise this year.
Blu-ray Players and Movies: Blu-ray is shaping up to be the biggest door buster of this year's Black Friday. de Grandpre expects at least one retailer will offer a Blu-ray player for just $49. Look for bargains on Blu-ray films as well, with last year's hit titles (such as "Iron Man") to fall as low as $5.
Laptops: With the proliferation of Netbooks this year, it's never been easier to find affordable portable computing, but Dan de Grandpre, CEO of DealNews.com says it will get even cheaper on Black Friday. Look for well-equipped Netbooks to sell for $199 – and basic 15" laptops to go for as little as $249.
HDTVs (Pretty big): The holidays are typically the best time to buy a new TV – and Black Friday is the time to do it. If you're looking for a normal sized set, you're in luck. Piper Jaffrey analyst Mitch Kaiser says he expects to see 32-inch LCD sets for as low as $299. GottaDeal.com is estimating 37-inch plasma and LCD sets will fall to $399 or less.
HDTVs (Really big): Need something bigger? How about a 46-47 inch LCD set for $599 – a 25 percent savings? Or a 52-inch LCD for $999? Dealnews says you can expect both. Plasma deals will be a little harder to come by, but a 50-inch set should run roughly $899.
HD Camcorders: You've wanted to shoot your child's school play in HD for a while, but haven't been able to spring for the pricey camcorder. This might be the year. Low-end, flash-based 720p models could drop as low as $60 (though you won't be able to zoom with those). Expect a high quality 1080p HD camcorder for $349.
GPS: While navigation systems have dramatically expanded their reach this year – even making it onto the iPhone – there's still a market for car-based systems. Dealnews predicts you'll be able to find a no-name entry-level system for $49, while a Garmin or Tom-Tom brand will be as low as $69.
Digital Picture Frames: Showcasing your digital pictures consistently gets cheaper. This year, skip the 7-inch screens and focus on the 8- or 9-inch ones, which should be available on Black Friday for as little as $30.
Monitors: Computer monitors might not be the sexiest of gifts, but they're usually welcomed with open arms – and they'll be cheap this year. Name brand 22-inch LCD models may go for as low as $99, while 24-inch models will drop below $150.
Memory: Don't know anyone who needs a monitor? External hard drives are always popular, since they're an easy way to back-up data. Dealnews expects a 1TB drive to fall as low as $49 this year. Gottadeal is looking for 8GB flash drives to hit $15.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
m wieb said 11:12PM on 3-18-2008
You know, I'm tired of everyone saying, "you signed a contract, so you're stuck for the bill." When I signed the contract for a cell phone, NO ONE told me I was living in a dead zone and that there would be terrible service, if any service at all. Of course they did tell me that after I wanted to cancel the contract. I had to pay the $150.00 to get out of the contract. Funny, I understood the contract was for me to send in my money, (every month on time) and they were to supply me with phone service. It is a one sided contract, make no mistake. They are not bound by any part of it, only you, and you can do nothing about it.
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Who cares said 4:13PM on 3-20-2008
This might be defeating the purpose...but when I switched from one service to another, I got away with not having to pay the cancellation fee by going through a cell phone store/dealer. I had them call and set up my plan with the new company, and call my old provider and have the fees waived. It saved me $800...I had 4 phones on my contract. Granted, I was still signing up for another contract, but it was for 1 yr instead of 2...and I didnt have any cancellation fees to pay. The dealers and the phone companies work together allowing the dealers to talk your way out of unnecessary fees.
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Stefan said 11:59AM on 10-11-2008
my friend is in the us, and i live in serbia... he wants to buy me an iPhone 3g... can he buy it with a contract and bring it here, with no problems getting back to the us on his own (without that iPhone :P ) is that a way to break a contract?
thanks in advance
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Christina said 8:11PM on 11-25-2008
i have a cellphone, and my contract isnt up for another 2 years..
and yet, i want to buy the iphone...
my friend asks if she can buy my phone off me, .. so .. what happens to the contract ?
can i give her the phone, and the contract somehow, ? or what ?
please help . (:
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Jonathan said 2:27PM on 5-13-2009
I'm free! I got completely out of my cell phone contract--early. I paid no termination fees, and this is exactly how I did it. I discovered http://www.cellbreaker.com/
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Sharon said 11:15PM on 9-08-2009
I've been very happy with sprint, until my daughter couldn't use her phone in college. She has to stand outside to use her phone. Its ok now but, not when it starts getting cold in Maine. Her roomates have verizon and american cellular and can use their phones in the dorm. wish we could get the whole family out of it so we could talk to her easier.
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Drew said 1:09PM on 6-27-2007
Great ideas!
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Marc Cohen said 12:32PM on 12-13-2007
I already used celltradeusa.com several months back with success. I plan on using celltrade again now so I can get into a cingular i-phone.
Im a celltradeusa.com fan for life :-)
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Paul said 3:22PM on 6-30-2007
The only problem with the Iphone is its affiliation to AT&T. Too bad Verizon does not have it. Hey what is this world coming to? The author suggests complaining to the Better Business Bureau and complain about bad service. Is't that teaching people to defraud a legitimate company? Lets teach our kids better!
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Judith said 3:40PM on 6-30-2007
A contract is a contract. You signed it and, presumably, you read it. So honor it. Are ethics out of date? Not if your heart works.
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Jerome Thomas said 3:38PM on 6-30-2007
You bastards are shameless. You promote "Ten Ways..." then say "only the first suggestion is genuinely useful." My ass. All but newbie morons know that. The fact that your great article has only attracted 4 comments from the whol;e damned Internet says something about your publishing and marketing competence. Losers.
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amsnggrace said 3:59PM on 6-30-2007
For the one that didn't know how to click on the link to read the list of six ways, here it is:
1. Sell your cellphone contract.
2. Complain that service isn't up to par, file complaints with PUC, FTC, BBB, AG and cc them to the company.
3. Wait for the company to change its rates (like text-messaging), then call to cancel based on the material change of contract. These are usually for the default rates and you won't be able to cancel if you have a package that takes care of it... hint: so get rid of the package and call back.... Here's some recent rate changes and cancellation success stories:
Sprint
AT&T/Cingular
Verizon
T-Mobile
US Cellular
4. Move to an area outside the plan's coverage area.
5. Join the armed forces - you'll need to fax in a copy of your orders.
6. Die - someone will need to fax in your death certificate on your behalf. You'll be dead, but at least you're in heaven. iPhone heaven.
For more tips and war stories, check out our cellphones/cancellations tag.
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Leilani said 4:14PM on 6-30-2007
Joining the armed forces won't get you out of the contract. If you are witht he armed forces and have orders to an area out of area (Germany, Korea, Iraq) then the contract is void because ehe company can't hold up their end of the contract and provide cell phone service. Just joining doesn't actually do you any good because most bases and posts get decent cell phone reception even though driving on post while on the cell phone will get you pulled over by the MP's.
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kate said 4:28PM on 6-30-2007
i used to work for the phone company and got a great discount, so i got a cell phone thru work...but, with the guarentee that it would have service where i live (about 7 miles from work). not only did i not have service, but i was parked outside work one afternoon and i was 'out of area'!!! it took 90 days to get a refund on the phone and contract cancellation straightened out, so be carefull. your time and nerves are worth far more!!
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russ said 4:33PM on 6-30-2007
cell phones shouldn't be allowed to hold people to contracts in the first place, do you need a contract for a land line phone card, no, you don't, do you?, and you can't get extentions on a cell phone, can you?, nope, you have to get additional privite lines, each one complete with its own personal number and individual bill, and unlimeted calling, no way, phone cards, a lot more pricer than phone cards for landline phones,and if you're not dumb enough to put up with this, they'll punish you with an early termination fee of 175.oo$, i can't understand why the government allows cell phone providers to stick consumers with a contract like this to begin with, must be government and big business in bed together, i say, if you can find a way to break the contract, by all means, contracts and rules are merely the tools the haves use to control and minipulate the have nots, did you know, if walmart wants your property, you can't stop them or hold out for your price, walmart will have the government take your land (eminet domain)and the government will kick you off your land so walmart can have it, and you will have to settle for what walmart gives you, so you lose, but to have a phone company lose out on thier ridiculous contracts, unthinkable
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james wright said 4:35PM on 6-30-2007
HEY ..... i was with cingular..on a contract And i moved 10 miles closer to 2 different towers and my reception got really lousy.. so i called and asked about it... they said nothing could be done so inevetibly i cancelled and bit the 175.00 bullet.. i still think that they owe me money. espically after i ordered one phone and they sent me a different one and i agreed to keep it ( it is a better phone) But the reception sucks !!!!
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just dan said 4:40PM on 6-30-2007
Sorry, I'm with the ethics people. You got that shiny new $199 phone for only $29.95 by signing up and sgreeing to keep your service with your provider for a specified time. As annoying as these providers can be, I don't think that justifies a bogus complaint to the FCC. If you don't want to get locked into a long contract, buy the phone outright -- or settle for something less fancy that won't do your laundry for you and pay month-to-month.
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Renee said 5:44PM on 6-30-2007
My cell phone carrier harrassed me for six weeks for an amount they continued to refer to as a returned check, plus a $25 fee. After 2 or 3 calls per week during this period they finally figured out their records were actually wrong. I had pointed out to them several times that the amount they kept referring to never added up to any combination of bills which were supposedly unpaid, and the two months in question were paid using two different checking accounts, both at different banks. There was absolutely no way their info was correct. When they finally figured out that I, the consumer, was correct, they posted the corrrection as a "payment in full, thank you" and backed off the $25 late payment fee but never gave me an apology. I am counting down the days till I'm rid of them.
Think this is grounds for terminating a contract?
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Jake Halltown said 12:41AM on 7-01-2007
If the contract benefited both consumer and business then I would say it's un-ethical to break the contract. Cell phone contracts, however, only benefit the company to ensure a binding that they will recieve an income for that time.
The cell phone contract does not benefit the consumer especially when there is a one to two year minimum. Having an outrageous minimum time table is poor business for the consumer, therefore, he/she would not be lying if they complained of poor business to end their contract.
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mike said 6:17PM on 6-30-2007
I tried to get out of my contract with Cingular because of lack of service around my home. They wanted me to pay 75 per phone per person, in my case 4. I complained and complained with no avail. I even went up to the Secratary of the President to complain. One day my 13 year old Daughter came home from school and was locked out and my wife and I were at work and she couldnt get in touch with us because there wasnt any service. I call Cingular the next day and added that complaint to my list. I was called back that afternoon to state that because of Safety of the situation they will honer my wishes to cancel. So, Safety is a big factor in a customers complaint with a Big Cell phone company
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