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.
_thumbnail.jpg "Vintage Keyboards")
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Doctor Bob said 7:22PM on 7-16-2007
Oh, gee.... I almost went a whole week there without any news about Paris Hilton. Thanks for ruining it for me with this nonsense. Who gives a rat's posterior about Paris Hilton? She's a nobody! Stop covering her and watch how fast she straightens out.
Reply
GGF said 11:30PM on 7-16-2007
Maybe she took it with her?
http://www.cbsnews.com/images/2006/09/07/imagec70aca39-39b2-4d35-963e-3b22daf91eec.jpg
Reply
Comet said 7:52PM on 7-16-2007
Gee, Dr. Bob. I'm sorry the Paris Hilton article ruined your week. It seems that if Paris Hilton news was in fact so repugnant to you, you wouldn't even have opened and read the article, much less taken the time out of your obviously busy and important schedule to post a comment about it.
Reply
Jack said 8:12PM on 7-16-2007
What a world or rather country. You have a president that dumps a prison sentence for a man that harmed national security. Did anybody blog about that? NO..but a 23 day stay by Ms. Hilton still gets headlines. And you wonder why the rest of the world thinks the USA is a joke..
Reply
Connie said 12:09AM on 7-17-2007
I think you missed the point of the article. It is not about Paris Hilton, it is about how unfair our justice system can be. Though I am not surprised that a celebrity received preferential treatment, I think it is up to the citizens of this country to show our displeasure to our elected officials. Articles like this put them in the hot seat.
Reply
bucksilver said 5:33AM on 7-17-2007
i hope it was a camera phone i enjoyed her last video and would not mind a sequel
Reply
verne said 7:46AM on 7-17-2007
I had thought in jail or prison that all calls were monitored for security. Was Ms. Hilton's calls recorded or monitored or is there a record at least of who she called. I hope she had it on vibrate for incoming as not to disturb the other "guests". If any record was kept (which I doubt) or list of calls can be discovered, they should be published; public right to know. This simply gives jail and prison, and Ms. Hilton a bad name. My only hope is she wasn't ordering out for pizza, but them maybe she doesn't eat pizza. Simply shame on everyone.
Reply
Jodi said 7:49AM on 7-17-2007
Perhaps the question should be why can't the prisoners have cell phones? The cell phone would have a clear record if they were harrassing anyone and otherwise would be less stress for guards and likely leave prisoners in a better mood causing less problems for the guards. So Why Not let them have cell phones? If they harrass someone then they loose their cell phone? Might keep them behaving.
Reply
Ramona said 9:02AM on 7-17-2007
The reason for the payhones is that all of the calls are being recorded. It is a message that will come up when the collect call is placed. The telephone company makes big bucks from the calls because you can only make collect calls from there. The calls usually last only 15 minutes if you are lucky so then they have to call you back. Again it is just a case of another celebrity getting better treatment than the rest of the other criminals that are in jail.
Reply
nina said 9:13AM on 7-17-2007
Guess who "greased" who's palm??? Shame on the staff at the jail !!!
Reply
Kim said 10:12AM on 7-17-2007
Such a shame to see that money can affect even the justice system. I thought it was just the lawyers so corrupted but the whole system there is corrupted by money.
Reply
Cell Phone said 10:09PM on 7-21-2007
So I guess she got more than one phone call?
Reply
Roy said 3:06AM on 7-23-2007
Who really cares? She drank on probation... should she be in jail in the first place? It's like J walking. Who hasn't broken a law at one time or another. Too much hype over a simple thing. People seem more angry about this or at least just as angry at the O.J. verdict.
Reply
Eliza said 3:01AM on 9-05-2007
Having a cell phone in jail is a serious thing! If you are in a prison you will lose good time, recieve a "shot", and be transfered to a higher security facility. If Paris had a cell phone she should've had to serve the 40-something day sentence the judge gave her instead of 23 days. If she really did get a cell phone I'll be ticked!!!
Reply