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)
Cee said 3:55PM on 11-17-2007
Yes, it's true..."we are everywhere" get used to it!
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dottie said 4:14PM on 11-17-2007
However, they WILL allow scenes of mutilation, torture and disembodiement.
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Vivi said 8:35PM on 11-17-2007
I'm definitely not ready for lesbian action. I like men and always will.
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bilo77 said 8:43PM on 11-17-2007
We are used to it, we don't care any more. Get used to that, or try out for Broadway if you need the attention that badly.
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D said 12:18AM on 11-18-2007
thats great for singapore dont get mad at them because they dont want to corrupt their children at an early age
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JAY LEONARD said 9:22PM on 11-17-2007
Captain Kirk would NEVER understand! However, Interplanatery Lesbian Relations "OPENS UP' a whole NEW cycle of life. We should be VERY receptive of our Interplanatery Neighbors, regarless of their SEXUAL Persuassions. Here's "LICKING AT YOU, KID!"
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kitty said 9:23PM on 11-17-2007
bout time someone started stepping up to the plate and setting some rules!
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Gus Bucket said 9:54PM on 11-17-2007
Isn't it ironic that a country with a horrible child prostitution record, a horrible civil rights record, and a horrible problem with corruption, makes a ban on a VIDEO GAME that displays two women kissing...?????!!!!!
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Mr. Wm J Rountry said 9:56PM on 11-17-2007
THIS IS [A] GAME??...RIGHT??.
DO THE ELECTRONS KNOW???
IS THIS THE FIRST TIME THEY {GAY ELECTRONS} COME OUT OF THE """CLOSET""????..
Has this happened before and went unreported???.
Does the world of GAMING" really CARE???...
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itmannkid said 5:04PM on 11-18-2007
united states is getting to be filled with nothing but filth, the worse it gets and the more filthy it gets the more people like it, this country is going to hell in a hand basket .you can,t watch a descent movie on tv anymore , why do stars have to talk with so much profanity to make a movie ,it can be better without it ,more people would watch,sure glad i have a turn off controler, thank god that right hasn,t been taken away
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sktfilm said 10:18PM on 11-17-2007
The article is written in such a way that implies Singapore is not progressive, yet right here in the U.S. the MPAA made a big deal out of the puppet sex scene in "Team America: World Police"
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Ed said 10:27PM on 11-17-2007
Enough is enough. I don't care for China but I am glad to see any country uphold decency. Since the US don't. No video games should depict sex of any kind. There is enough of that on TV and movies. No, we are NOT used to it and one has to get used to it. Why should any moral person be force to accept or get used to this kind of behavior. A lot of what is said here is just what Satan and his little helpers would say, so, no thanks.
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tony said 11:28PM on 11-17-2007
how stupid...gays are everywhere...find something else to complain about. Ask Michael Faye how he feels about it
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kaela said 12:02PM on 11-18-2007
hey, umm. this is pretti sad. first of all, isn't the parents' choice on wether their child should be playing this game? yess, i believe it is. and two, it doesn't matter what age the child is, in this day in age everyone has heard something wrong or disgusting about sex. kids go around calling people "faggots" and "lesbos", so yeah. singapore, i believe you need to stick to reading those ancient asian texts and mind your own damn business.
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Ella said 10:45PM on 11-17-2007
So what? There are books with worse stuff than that! And books are supposed to be good for you!
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Bee said 11:03PM on 11-17-2007
Uhm...it's ok to blow people up and kill them in video games but don't let the lesbians kiss. Heaven forbid. Please, protest or ban something important like child porn or mutilation of women. 2 women kissing vs Vice City...way to pick your battles.
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Givra said 11:14PM on 11-17-2007
To "Ed" and some of my own comments.
1) Ed...Singapore is it's own city-state nation. To call it "China" is like calling let's say Bermuda part of the United States, simply because it's somewhat close to North America. In fact, Singapore is MUCH closer to Malysia then China. Not to flame you, but basic Geography is a good thing.
2) Who are you to define decency. Consider this, agree or not with them, Singapore has defined decency FOR it's people without letting it's people DECIDE for themselves what is decent. I wonder, if they decided that some law or ban was "decent' and you'd disagree, if you'd be on the same bandwagon, or suddenly call them sinners? Interesting that you apparently are willing to throw away freedoms in the name of what you consider decent, without considering that the next thing they ban might be something you DO consider decent and willing to stand for.
Or to put it another way, if they banned Christanity, which based on your mention of Jesus, you apparently follow, would you THEN call them "decent"? Best of my knowledge they haven't, I only use this as a hypothetical example. My point is that IMO it's not worth it to have government decide what is "decent", even if one sometimes agrees with the decision.
Finally...
3) Ed, if you dislike anything in this game, or think you would based on it's description, there's one ultimate protest. Don't purchase it. By having the choice in this nation to decide for OURSELVES what is decent or not, that lets us decide for OURSELVES what we wish to see. As regards to children buying it, it's up to a parent to discipline their children and decide what they wish to let them see, again it's not up to a government.
Oh well. I wonder what "Ed" would say if I told him that I find the very act of a government deciding FOR it's people what is decent or not much more indecient then any thing that I've ever seen in a video game. Forgive me, if I like to think for myself, not let a government tell me how I should think, what my morals should be.
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Alex said 11:22PM on 11-17-2007
So, seeing two people kiss isn't decent because they're both women?
The amount of shallow people in the world amazes me. Violence is alright but heaven forbid if we show two people of the same sex kiss and grope each other.
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Kim K. said 11:37PM on 11-17-2007
Look, it's just a video game And it's not like every kid, teen, or adult acts on what they see in video games. The NEWS MEDIA jumps on acts of violence by teenagers and if it's revealed that the perp was a fan of such-and-such video game, the news media screams, 'look, this videogame MADE the kid do it!' Not always true. 99.9 percent of gamers are law-abiding people.
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Mary Ann said 11:51PM on 11-17-2007
EVER NOTICE HOW ALL THE SEX SCENE KITTENS IN THE VIDEO GAMES, NON HUMAN PICTURES LOOK LIKE ANGOLIE JOLINE - OR WHATEVER HER NAME IS???
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