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 1)
m said 11:32AM on 7-11-2007
They might be out selling PS3 2-1 but how many of the 360 units actually work. I have PS3 and 360. PS3 is great never had any issues. My 360 man I might as well say I dont have one i got it in DEC worked for 2 weekswent through the whole process of waiting for the box and sending back it is now july 11 and after receiving 3 units that still didnt work and supposably a new unit the last one. It didnt even boot up. sofor 7 months I have not been able to play it cause there return bullshit. and i paid 6 months for xbox live it has ran out and they have sent me a bill saying i own them money. I am contacting an attorney if anyone is having issues like these feel free to contact me I am thinking class action atozmoving1@aol.com
Mike
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m said 11:43AM on 7-11-2007
Oh before everyone jumps down my throat saying oh he is just here to bash 360 well you are wrong. I actually love the 360 while i got to play it. I am not a little kid on here trying to promote my favorite brand. I actually baught the hd player with the 360 and about 6 movies and have more games for the 360 even though it hasnt worked in 7 months then my PS3. I am just pissed off how they treat their consumers. the hours spent on the phone the bullshit dot heads you cant understand. the endless transfers and the chad prick that is handing my case # who in 3 weeks now hasnt returned my call which because i have a case # noone else will speak to me now If you got a good system and never had any problems well great for you ,BUT XBOX KNOWINGLY SHIPPED OUT DEFECT SYSTEMS TO TRY TO BEAT PS3. nOT MY WORDS THAT WAS RELEASED IN THE NEWS
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Truth said 1:50PM on 7-11-2007
yeop man I hear you, I actually gave up, sold my working (refurbished) dirty xbox 360 that they sent me back for my broken one, with all it's games, just because I'd rather not go through the process of being without games for months on end again, my ps3 runs flawlessly without a hitch and is on 24/7 like recommended in the manual, however poor the selection of next gen games are, nothing beats the fact that it upscales ps2 games, and compatibility issues are being surpassed every day... all of my 210+ ps2 games work fine, and there is a ton of ps2 games on the horizon that i'm looking forward to, alongside about oh say 70% of the entire console gaming market who now own ps2's ensuring any third party developer at least 1million copies sold... microsoft can't beat that, they failed miserably with their xbox, and their xbox 360 just isn't good enough to beat out ps2's popularity... ps2 has some stellar games, including all the original series starters for some of microsoft's acquired exclusives, Microsoft is fed ex'ing the industry to hell in a handbag, with their moneybags... and poor consumer relations.
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UnrivaledSHOGUN said 12:02PM on 7-12-2007
lol. SOny fanboys. WHo do they expect to believe they ever had a 360? Especially that "m" guy. He never had a single xbox 360. SOny fanboys mad because 360 outselling ps3.
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UnrivaledSHOGUN said 12:03PM on 7-12-2007
By next year ps3 and it's slow sales will be dead.
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jaime said 11:54PM on 7-17-2007
UnrivaledSHOGUN... maybe you are rigth... but thousands of xbox 360 dye every die, and that is not prediction is a FACT
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Neonie said 8:39AM on 7-20-2007
Lol M, I've had my XB 360 around the same time as you and it's worked wonderfully for me. Never had a problem with it.
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