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 2)
Jstalilred said 8:12PM on 3-13-2008
VISTA SUCKS!!!!!!!!! i'M GOING BACK TO XP!
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Ricky P said 4:40PM on 3-01-2008
Vistas not worth any price! Dump the Vista, Install XP get the comp you always wanted, extra memory and extra HD Space, Memory is Everything!The Comps Fly!
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Guy Fischer said 4:52PM on 3-01-2008
Based on what I've read about Vista. I do not think, that this will help sales much.
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Rich McFadden said 6:24PM on 3-01-2008
I have Vista and regret it. It sucks. An evil plot to sell more software by making obselete everything that we allready have, because it will not work on Vista. They should give us a refund and horeswhip the SOB who invented it.
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OMadsen said 6:44PM on 3-01-2008
This is why I wait AT LEAST a year or two before considering an investment in a newer Windows product. I have heard nothing but bad news about Vista since its arrival. My BF was forced to have it on his laptop when he bought it. He hates Vista and rants about it all the time. This price reduction may draw a few people, but I don't know that it will be enough
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Kenneth Hartman said 7:46PM on 3-01-2008
It is a piece of junk. I only had it a week before it crashed. I was away from home and it took Dell people over an hour and half to help to restore it. What can I do to get a good computer from Dell. I still owe over $900.00.
Once again a piece of junk.
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Mike Sanders said 9:23PM on 3-01-2008
I spent over $3500, just to buy a "workstation," from HP Small and Medium Business, principly because it was the only way for me to find a good laptop, pre-loaded with Windows XP Pro. I didn't like having to spent over $1500 extra, but it was the only way to get the machine that ran the software, which I have chosen to run. I'd like to see HP Home and other hardware vendors, to start offering XP preloaded. Let the consumer choose, it's really that simple.
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Mike Sanders said 9:39PM on 3-01-2008
Oh yeah, if there's any young business person wanting to find a niche in the computer service market, here it is... Offer a "downgrade" service, which can take a new PC and wipe Vista off, then install XP. I was going to buy an HP widescreen laptop for about $2000 and I could have paid $500 for this service and still saved over $1000. Be careful though, if Microsoft sees it taking off, they will counter your initiative... They don't like other people shaping the destiny of computing, ever though, that's exactly what's happening, as network-based OS's eliminate the need for a fully-featured "client." Microsoft should have left the GUI and the OS as seperate entities. Now, MS will give the OS over to the network and I guess, write Windows GUI for thin clients. What else can they possibly do?
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mike said 11:52PM on 3-01-2008
i would gladly take a free downgrade to windows xp. my other machine is half this machine and runs better on xp than this dual core does and all my software / hardware would work properly without patches
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g.snuggs said 7:44AM on 3-02-2008
Vista is for suckas! There is absolutely NOTHING you can get from Vista that you can't get from XP. I have a custom comp that's more than fast 'n strong enough for Vista, but STILL will not buy it. The so-called 'security' features are just too burdensome - for the user.
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adamscars2478 said 8:07AM on 3-02-2008
I wanted to buy a new computer, but with all of them having Vista, I will not spend the money. All I have heard was negative about the program.
So, I wish Microsoft would come out with a program upgrade that works! I agree that people should be given an option if they want XP or Vista.
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Ed said 1:17PM on 3-02-2008
Vista and the security problems with XP are the reasons why I went out and bought a Mac. If I had was going to have to start over I was going to use a real computer that doesn't crash! Mac's Rule Pc's drule!
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Linda Heath said 6:01PM on 3-02-2008
Vista is the reason we have not purchased a new computer. We want NO part of that and love our XP enough to stay with this old computer.
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jerry said 12:22AM on 3-03-2008
I purchased a Sony Vaio at the end of 2006 and Vista was coming out in March of '07 and was supposed to receive an upgrade for my laptop; went through the whole procedure to apply for the program and of course never received diddly squat from Sony nor Microsoft. Well, I guess I should count my blessings from what I've read and hear...YEAH!!!!
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Kingofi88 said 12:58AM on 3-03-2008
Hmm now people can actually get their hands on a great OS. I love Vista, all the new features are great and is very familiar to my old XP machine. (Which is now on a shelf) Built in DVD burning, Built in photo management, etc the list goes on and on.
The complainers aren't really complaining about Vista but more the bloatware added by the PC manufacturers which has nothing to do with Vista.
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Jim Paglione said 5:54AM on 3-03-2008
Janurary 2007 i bought a new HP Pavillion 9005us laptop. It had Windows XP preloaded. It is VISTA CAPABLE. I bought from OFFICE THE VISTA PIECE OF CRAP. Installed it and awaited for the magic to appear. Well guess what fortunately I had made discs for recovery even though my HP has recovery built in. I go to my E-Bay site am bidding on a $40,000.00 boat and you got it the vista crashed and screwed up the purchase . I was mad enough to trash the computer.I patiently did the full recovery back to Windows XP. To date and a 1/2 Million purchases later xp is still working perfectly. Office Depot refunded the vista purchase price willingly. Looks like almost everyone has had a bad experience with VISTA. THE PRICE CITS WILL NOT SAVE VISTA............. BIGJIMPAG IN DENVER
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bigolaro said 11:15PM on 3-06-2008
People are becoming hip to Microsoft's inferior product and switching to the Mac OS platform. I switched a year ago and have not looked back. My iMac is truly amazing and I look forward to using it and not dreading it like I did my "PC's". No spyware, adware, viruses, slowdowns due to running spyware, adware and virus blockers. No constant updating of said blockers. No restarting every couple of days( I have restarted 6 times in a year, for software downloads or updates, never for slowdowns). I really can't say enough. Go to an Apple store and see for yourself. You may have a wait, as so many people are making the switch, but it is well worth it.
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teresa said 5:42PM on 3-03-2008
we have xp. it rocks. pcclub.com still offers some computers with xp home. heard too many bad things about vista to want to change over
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Rick said 12:24PM on 3-06-2008
Typical MSBullcrap. Lowering the price from "completely outrageous" to merely "outrageous." I don't have a Mac but I have one and I want another as soon as I can afford it. Easy to use, doesn't crash - REPAIRABLE OS - MS makes lousy, buggy, dirty software. If Apple would ever figure out "open distribution,' licensing and marketing, they could put Bill Gates out of business. Today would not be soon enough!
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Rick said 12:26PM on 3-06-2008
"Typical MSBullcrap. Lowering the price from "completely outrageous" to merely "outrageous." I don't have a Mac but I have had one and I want another as soon as I can afford it. Easy to use, doesn't crash - REPAIRABLE OS - MS makes lousy, buggy, dirty software. If Apple would ever figure out "open distribution,' licensing and marketing, they could put Bill Gates out of business. Today would not be soon enough!"
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