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 4)
Tim said 2:10PM on 4-03-2008
I got a far better, much more effective way to avoid speeding tickets ...
it is simple, anyone can do it and it costs nothing ...
... Don't speed.
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aerospacemajor said 2:15PM on 4-03-2008
Instead of trying to BREAK the law, why not just OBEY it? If the sign says "55 mph," don't go 56 or higher. What's so hard about that? People who intentionally break laws for their own selfish reasons are reprehensible to me. Whatever happened to respect for the laws of the land?
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srn said 8:24PM on 4-04-2008
Seems pretty complicated and expensive. How about just driving at something like the speed limit. You'll live longer and so might those around you.
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buzz lightyear said 3:28PM on 4-03-2008
Speed limits are for white knuckle drivers, and sheep like you. Just move to the right, and try not to go too slow, its dangerous out there.
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uralllying said 2:32PM on 4-03-2008
Look, it's the only 3 people in America who don't drive faster than the posted limit....
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flooby said 7:53AM on 4-08-2008
when police offices drive at the posted speed them self and not run people off the road going at 80 or ninety miles per hour so the can hide in the ditch 5 miles down the road i will be glad to go at the posted speed
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Lon Horiuchi V said 2:42PM on 4-03-2008
Traffic cops are ARMED TAX COLLECTORS. They are tow-truck dispatchers with pistols. They don't issue their corporate invoices (tickets) to "their own" but to everyone else. They call it "professional courtesy" but it's "corrupt hypocrisy".
Traffic is the most low-brow effort of the various badged RICO. No intellect involved in speed, drunk, or stolen car work.
You're driving faster than 55 these days thanks to the Okie City bomb. That's when BigBroFedGov decided it'd better back off, and FEDERAL speed limits were high profile means to do so. Remember, there was no discussion of rescinding the FEDERAL 55. It just happened quietly.
REAL STORIES OF THE HIGHWAY PATROL flopped because it was boring tv and revealed the mundane efforts of the grossly overpaid traffic cop RICO industry. CHiPs was successful because it was pure bs.
Shut down CHP and others, and give the funds to Sheriff offices, because deputies actually do real police work. Patrol, investigate, court, jail, coroner - all in one. Traffic parasites only do traffic for the most part, and what else they do can be done by deputies. Eliminate these burdensome, revenue focused traffic bureaucracies.
$100,000 per year for a CHP traffic highwayman is ridiculous. FU 3A!
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bawno23 said 2:50PM on 4-03-2008
uralllying says:
Look, it's the only 3 people in America who don't drive faster than the posted limit....
04/03/08 2:32 PM
flooby says:
when police offices drive at the posted speed them self and not run people off the road going at 80 or ninety miles per hour so the can hide in the ditch 5 miles down the road i will be glad to go at the posted speed
04/03/08 2:39 PM
You guys took the words out of my mouth. I'd say an average of 1 outta 10 people go the speed limit. Also, notice that most accidents caused by speeding is due to the slow person getting in the left lane or not moving over and forcing someone to pass on the right which is far more dangerous.
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otrpu said 3:03PM on 4-03-2008
The speed fines need to be changed. 1st offence. . .$1,000 fine; 2nd offence. . .$5,000 fine; 3rd offence. . .you loose the license. You've proven that you don't intend to follow the laws. Period.
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Craig said 3:06PM on 4-03-2008
I HAVE S SUREFIRE WAY TO AVOID TICKETS....DRIVE WITHIN 5 MPH OF THE SPEED LIMIT, PEOPLE!!!!!!!!!!! GOOD GOD, TRYING TO FIND WAYS TO BREAK THE LAW AND SPEED WITHOUT GETTING CAUGHT ENDANGERS ALL OF US.......WHY NOT JUST DRIVE LIKE YOU HAVE A LITTLE COMMON SENSE????
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mike n said 3:14PM on 4-03-2008
Who has time to look at their cell phone speeding down the road at 80MPH. One look at the phone and you will have traveled how many feet. They can only spell drive off the road and into a ditch. Stay focused if you are going to speed.
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Luvprincess said 3:28PM on 4-03-2008
My husband has a spray that you spray on your license plates. So when the camera takes your photo it blurs out your plate in the same fashion that breasts are blurred out on TV. It's $125 a bottle. Washing your car (or soap and water on your plates) will remove it and you'll have to spray them again. Currently, it is completely legal.
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dj said 3:29PM on 4-03-2008
Speeding fines, especially "work zones" are a fat cash cow for revenue. You are the cow being milked. I don't remember ever being asked what I thought a reasonable speed limit was. Have you? Ever voted on that or been given a chance to speak your opinion? Some people call for respect of the "law of the land." News flash for those folks, the law of the land is voted and agreed by the people of the land. I also have another animal name for those who blindly obey. It's called sheep. I'm all for increasing fines and jail for drunk or reckless driving. But speeding by itself and in the usual 10-15 over? No, my opinion is the officer better have something other than that to work with or it's just revenue, and could I suggest it was intended that way to get into your pocket? That speed limits were intentionally designed to congest traffic 10 mph from reasonable speeds? It's all about money, folks. It has NOTHING to do with respect for the law. THIS law was designed to be an addional tax revenue from you, the motorist. It's a TAX.
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Wendy said 3:56PM on 4-03-2008
CHiPs was successful because it was pure bs.
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Not true. Many of the scenarios (The spilled glue-transport in particular) were taken out of actual case files.
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Becky said 3:59PM on 4-03-2008
I think everyone should drive at a normal posted speed. I was an emt for 10 years and i have seen my share of "fast driving accidents" and they are not pretty and the outcome is not nice either. If you don't want your loved ones to identify you by body parts or in a morgue. Please use common sence.
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Wendy said 4:08PM on 4-03-2008
THIS law was designed to be an addional tax revenue from you, the motorist.
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Actually, it was designed to conserve fuel during the oil embargo of the 70's. Most cars are most fuel efficient at 55 MPH. They just kept it because they saw the accident rates/fatalities went down.
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ErinRx said 4:05PM on 4-03-2008
Going the speed limit? I don't even go just the speed limit when there is a cop riding my bumper, as they almost ALWAYS do... But going the speed limit is not the solution to avoiding a ticket in a "speed trap". They are called speed traps not because there is a cop hiding behind a bush waiting to catch intentional speeders. Generally if you are driving in a 55 and a half mile or so down the road the speed redudces, there is usually a warning sign posted that says "reduced speed ahead". You then know to start reducing your speed. Speed traps do not have these reduced speed warnings, and cops hide out directly by the lowered speed limit sign and stop you before you have the opportunity to completely reduce your speed. We have SEVERAL speed traps around my area. In fact, I saw on the local news this morning that they are trying to pass a law to make speed traps illegal in one city because 80% of the town's revenue came from speeding tickets...80%!!!
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FSR2003 said 4:11PM on 4-03-2008
If we have police officers sitting around hidding in a corner waiting for someone to drive 5mph over the speed limit then we have too many police officers. Our police force is supposed to be out there preventing theft, murder, drug trafficking, cathing someone who has commited real crimes. Driving too fast is stupid, but being stupid should not be a crime. Punishing the stupid and creating an alternate tax revenue source should not be the role of our police force. Catching criminals should be. Ever tried calling for an officer when your car or home got broken into? It takes them forever to get there, if they don't just take your report over the phone and send you a form. Why? Because they are 20 miles away eating a donut and waiting for someone to ticket for driving too fast. I'd rather have them investigating the crime, taking finger prints and catching the person who broke into a car or home. They rarely even take finger prints when they investigate a break-in unless someone has been shot or killed. They sure do take down a lot of information for a speeding violation though.... And they will seriously speed to catch you and ticket you. Your going 60mph, no harm to anyone on a practically empty highway in the middle of nowhere but they will endanger public safety at 80 or 90+ mph to catch up to you and issue you a citation. That is nothing short of insane and that is far more dangerous than the few mph someone might be exceeding the speed limit by.
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con said 4:10PM on 4-03-2008
I have been told by several law enforcment officers that they will never stop a person going 5 miles over the speed limit. The radar they use has a margin of error of 5 miles.
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Jon Guckenberg said 4:16PM on 4-03-2008
Violation of speed laws that result in a fine are NOT a TAX. Taxes are COMPULSORY for all. If you obey the speed law, it will not cost you a DIME!
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