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.
While we were never big fans of Verizon Wireless's "Can you hear me now?" commercials, we found that the TV spots did sum up many of the frustrations many cell phone users at the time were having with their carriers: Poor signals and even poorer call quality. 
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Shelley Allen said 8:26PM on 2-13-2008
I have the iphone and don't know whats worse the phone or the sucky AT&T service. I would like to sue AT&T for false advertising about "fewest dropped call". Thats all I get are dropped calls.
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Darin said 8:30PM on 2-13-2008
Cell phones are the worst and companies charging to recieve an incoming call is illegal,, Double taxation without represation and it doesn't cost a thing extra to call around the globe or your home phone. Why the charges because they can. The FCC needs to see that they are breaking simple rules about usage and intrappment of accepting incoming calls.. In Special Forces we used Sattalite phones all over without the troubles we find on cell phones.. Why charge for shitty service? Because they can.. We I retired we got to keep the phones for 3 years at no cost and even had hard lines numbers for free long distance.. Why? Because charging is a ripp out,, they want money..
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Casandra said 8:46PM on 2-13-2008
My brother and I had an ongoing joke when those ads first starting ... the reason they have the fewest dropped calls is because you can't make the connection in the first place therefore the "call" cannot be dropped.
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Cam said 8:46PM on 2-13-2008
Shelley Anne,
don't worry...I work for a big cell phone company and put your mind at ease knowing that we won a HUGE lawsuit against AT&T for using that quote. After legit research, we found out that our company beats them out in "dropped calls" so as of last fall AT&T are ABSOLUTLEY NOT ALLOWED to use that phrase in their commercials anymore. Really listen to the commercials now, you won't ever hear them say that again!
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Keith said 9:09PM on 2-13-2008
When AT&T and Cingular merged they must have scrapped Cingular's network and used the crappy AT&T network....raising the bar, more bars in more places, yeah right. Their service makes you want to go to the bar and get good n drunk because you got their service in the first place.
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cathy said 9:06PM on 2-13-2008
omg dont let me get started.....I have so many complaints about at&t,,,they are always saying we have the least dropped calls????well as we all know they are wrong you cant talk to anyone anywhere without the phone cutting out or "dropping phone calls" can you hear me know????no didnt think so...lol
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Rick M. said 11:33PM on 2-21-2008
Call clarity and network reliability were both FAR superior in the early 1990's when analog cellular handsets were the norm. How have advances in technology resulted in increasingly fragile networks and hard-to-hear telephones?
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doc said 9:12PM on 2-13-2008
Shelley Anne,
don't worry...I work for a big cell phone company and put your mind at ease knowing that we won a HUGE lawsuit against AT&T for using that quote. After legit research, we found out that our company beats them out in "dropped calls" so as of last fall AT&T are ABSOLUTLEY NOT ALLOWED to use that phrase in their commercials anymore. Really listen to the commercials now, you won't ever hear them say that again!
02/13/08 8:46 PM
yeah, i'll sleep better at night now... idiot.
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ralph said 9:16PM on 2-13-2008
at&t just merged with my old carrier cellular one just to get their network in upstate ny. but now i'm getting "all ckts are busy" when i call another at&t phone. does anyone else experience this?
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Rick said 7:54PM on 2-15-2008
Cam,
What cell phone company do you work for? My parents are switching networks in the next few months because they don't like the company we have right now.
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Steve said 9:25PM on 2-13-2008
My wife and I travel a lot and she has AT&T and I have Verizon, we have found that the AT&T works 9 out of ten times, and the Verizon works 8 out of ten times. The quality of the Calls is better with AT&T we have found.
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William said 9:37PM on 2-13-2008
I believe it's not the service which is dropping the calls, it's the crappy phones themselves. I still use the Nokia phone. Everyone around me says, "Now that's Antique", but let me tell you, I have never lost one call ever. With all the touch screens and what not, I just felt more comfortable with the older phone that I knew how to use. So what if I only have certain ring phones, I hear it ring. It's all the new high priced cheap phones that get the crappy service.
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Christy said 9:42PM on 2-13-2008
I have great service with AT&T. It's the Verizon users that keep losing their calls to us. I had trouble with AT&T when it first switched over from Cingular though.
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liz said 9:43PM on 2-13-2008
i don't understand why people say that they are that different let me tell you they are all about the same. it depends on the area you happen to be making the call from. some areas att is better, and in some verizon is better, and in some tmobile is better i've had all 3 and its about the same. the only difference is price everything else is just about the same.
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Gayle Davis said 9:48PM on 2-13-2008
My wife and I have been using "mobile Phones" since the late 1970's, For what that is worth. We have been with verizon now for quite a few years without any problems at all. Never a dropped call and never have lost acall while traveling. PERFECT 4 US.
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Dale said 9:54PM on 2-13-2008
Alltel sucks too. They show the entire state of Florida dark blue, meaning their phones work all over the state - NO THEY DON'T. There's a huge chunk of central FL that you have to "double dial" (this is a secret they don't tell you about until you've bought the phone and find it doesn't work). Furthermore, once you find out how bad it is, they won't refund your money.
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CJ said 9:59PM on 2-13-2008
I have to agree with William that it's the phones. I've had service with SunCom, bought out by Cingular, bought out by AT&T and have always had Nokia phones. I have NEVER had a dropped call, whether local, state-to-state, or even out of the country. I just wish I'd kept my "antique" like he did. My phone (bought about 2 years ago) is nice and has all the bells and whistles, but I often wish I'd just kept the old one. It did the job - and much more easily!
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Momma Mel said 9:59PM on 2-13-2008
I agree about AT&T. Of everyone in our family, my sister-in-law has the best overall service with T-mobile. she is the only one that gets a signal at the family lake house. My husband uses Nextel due to work, and out-of-town it stinks, BUT he is the only one that can use his phone inside our house. (We are semi-rural)
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kris said 10:00PM on 2-13-2008
you know, i might catch alot of slack for this, but my husband and I only have the Nokia tracfones and we absolutely love them, no monthly bills, we use then when we want to, and we never drop a call, and i dont have to worry about him when he is out on his 4-wheeler because they all have GPS! we have carried the tracfone since they first came out
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Joy said 10:00PM on 2-13-2008
I've used Nextel/Sprint for around 9 years. Never once have I had a "dropped call". Used several different brand phones over the years, too, so I know it's the service. I'll never change!
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