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 1)
Blue said 1:29PM on 4-07-2008
I'm with the professor on this one. Our society seems to be teetering out of control and disrespect is disrespect. Nothing else seems to work but actions like his that provoke conversations. I wonder if the "peeved" parents who are shelling out 30K are peeved at their kids for not taking the education they're getting seriously.
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Diane said 11:42PM on 4-07-2008
Ok, HELLLOOOO.... Professor is in the right here.... key words "paying upwards of 30,000 to go to the school." And if my kid were texting during class, I would be all over HER about that for wasting my money...not the professor. I teach high school...texting is BAD. And grades are slipping because of it... Go you, professor.... I'm with you in spirit (if not in practice...I have supervisory duties that prevent me from being able to walk out).
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Megan said 1:52PM on 4-07-2008
I'm a college student, and i'm not going to waste my time texting someone. You must get your money's worth from school. I believe the professor did the right thing! Because the kid wasn't respecting the professor or his/her classmates.
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littlewing1217 said 1:52PM on 4-07-2008
I also have to agree with the prof on this one. Texting in class is a sign of disrespect and disregard for the money that students and their parents shell out for an education. However, I think he should eject the offenders, not the folks who are paying attention. If they get ejected enough times and start falling behind in their course work, maybe it'll start to sink in.
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john motto said 4:35PM on 4-07-2008
I'm 100% behind the professor. All it will take is some peer pressure from those who are not texting but getting "punished" just the same, and no one will text in that class again.
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astone1055 said 2:12PM on 4-07-2008
I think the professor should eject kids from the class who cannot follow the rules. There is no reason to punish the rest of the class for other classmates' mistakes. Once the student is ejected enough times then he/she may learn how disrespectful texting is while in class or any other place. I find it especially irritating when you are talking to someone and they are texting someone else. I don't know about you but I find it hard to concentrate while reading and talking to someone at the same time. I tend to pay more attention to my reading and not the person I having the conversation. It is all a matter of respect.
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Beth said 2:23PM on 4-07-2008
I'd have that coming if I were texting instead of paying attention.
I'd be incredibly angry if I was paying attention to the lecture.
The professor should ask the students who aren't paying attention to leave, not punish the entire class.
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tracyknox@aol.com said 2:36PM on 4-07-2008
I have a feeling that the professor has tried removing the offender in the past--but with today's society I suspect that was not too successful. Now the peers need to step up and take action against their texting peers. believe me I had a teacher who used to walk out when a class refused to pay attention and it sent a stronger message than any yelling ever did!
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Peter Gail said 2:54PM on 4-07-2008
The logic behind this is that peer pressure from those not texting who are losing out on the education will force those who are being disrespectful to stop texting. Same thing happens on tour buses. You get 50 people together on a bus, and two or three insist on talking, keeping the rest of the people from hearing what the narrator is saying. I am one of those narrators who just stops talking until the disrespectful ones quiet down. Usually it is the folks around them who show their displeasure at not being able to learn what they have paid good money to get out of tour experience. I am totally on the professor's side here. It is a community problem and the community has to take the initiative to impose order on those who are disrespectful.
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Valerie P. said 4:10PM on 4-07-2008
As a fairly recent college grad, I completely agree with this tactic. Dismissing one student will not solve the problem by any means - it never did. But when a professor walks out on the entire class, and turns them on their classmates - now that always worked! Esp. when youre paying so much! Good for the prof-wish more conducted their classes in such a way and demanded the same respect that he did.
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kgsurfs said 4:45PM on 4-07-2008
The writer is off-base and the Professor is correct to walk out on the students if even one is found texting during class. If one student wants to text during class s/he will be showing their disrespect of the teacher and their classmates. They will be better off staying home.
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Jennifer Kagan said 7:08PM on 4-07-2008
As a college professor, I see respect and propriety going out the window in a major way these days. It is RIDICULOUS what we now have to put up with in terms of behavior from (mainly) our undergraduate students. Good for Thomas! It's a way of getting attention on the issue that yes, students are paying money for their education (or their parents are) but if they are so rude to text during class, guess who are the sixth graders folks? It's not "customer service" as one student rudely said to me when I wouldn't give her an A because she "tried real hard." Personally, I'd set the ground rules of absolutely no cell phones, texting during class etc. that would be MY way, but I understand WHY Thomas would resort to such measures folks. FIGURE IT OUT.
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bingo said 5:27PM on 4-08-2008
http://guanabee.com/2008/04/syracuse-professor-has-us-all.php
You ignored the biggest problem this story presents - Thomas made disparaging remarks about students based on their ethnicity. That was the issue being addressed, not the cell phones. I went to Syracuse and had to deal with his crap before. He's a total jackass.
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judygee said 11:11AM on 6-23-2008
Disparaging remarks? Oh. Gee I hope he mentioned that students who won't learn will remain dullards, and that their future will consist of asking customers about the size of the fries they want. It is disgusting that those who were texting thought they would just ignore the teacher and the lesson. You have to earn the right to be called student, by studying and reading and listening and participating. Those who are obsessed with their ethnicity should stay home.
Danyell said 2:24PM on 4-12-2008
I agree with the professor that something needs to be done about the rudeness of these students. He is there to teach and these kids are there to learn. I would have halted the class and brought attention to the distraction right then and there. Ask the student to leave and not punish the entire class for one careless and rude child. I would also implement a system that would deduct points whenever the phone was brought out and the texting would begin. I wonder how the parents would act if the teacher took out their phone and did the same thing? I would be furious and would expect some action to be taken.
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Zman said 10:53PM on 4-13-2008
Bravo to the prof on all counts.
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Alex said 9:49PM on 4-17-2008
I think the professor is right to walk out. Sometimes, and it's unfortunate, you have to punish the whole group to get the point across to the one. It's not the first time that's had to happen.
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Kshaw said 8:28AM on 5-02-2008
What people don't realize is that if the professor just kicked out only the student texting then there is very high chance that no one will learn the lesson of respect that he is trying to get across. I believe that the professor is trying to also get those who were paying attention to the lecture to get angry too. A student is more likely to not repeat the behavior if the entire group has something to lose as apposed to just the one at fault. The difference is one person getting angry or an entire class angry at one person. HUGE difference.
It is even more baffling to me that the parents take the side of the students. Are the serious? They are the ones spending over $30,000 a year and their child is sitting the classroom wasting every penny of it.
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