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)
Angiebaby said 11:12AM on 6-11-2008
$6M? No way. The taser has been used successfully millions of times, but soon it will go bankrupt with payouts like this for the few deaths incurred from its use. This is why it takes sooooo long to get new products, especially medically helpful medications, on the market in the US. If your product has successfully helped 3 million people, and one other isolated case resulted in death, this level of financial retribution will bankrupt the company. The end result? Sorry. We can't afford to help millions anymore.
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chris said 6:25PM on 6-11-2008
Totally un realistic. If the taser was not used the guy would have been shoot with a firearm. The taser is an appropriate tool for attempting to stop violent people who have shown the ability and intention of assaulting someone, including the police. A police officer should not have to risk injury from some crazed individual. This suspects actions resulted in him being tased. If not for his actions he would not have been tased and he might still be alive.
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Peter said 12:18PM on 6-11-2008
Well said Angiebaby!!! Taze 'em!! Keep the rest of us safe!!!
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Chris said 12:29PM on 6-11-2008
Well, for what little it's worth here's MY thought.......
Had the individual in question complied with the requests of the officer and been peaceful and co-operative he probably would NOT have been tazed.
HE is the one who did all the drugs that enlarged his heart. He's the one that didn't comply with the officer's requests. He's the one who basically asked to be tazed, maced, pepper sprayed or even shot. No one else is repsonsible for his action, he brought it on himself.
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Mark said 1:54PM on 6-11-2008
Lets just shoot the tweekers the old fashion way. No need for a kinder more gentle way. I wonder how they parsed the award. Just what is the value of a human train wreck?
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mike said 5:28PM on 6-11-2008
It seems it was truly a jury of his peers. I wonder how long it took to find that many dirt bag meth users willing to fill the jury pool to reach such an outcome. Did his family really deserve such a reward for his actions? Could the man have really earned that much in his life, even if he was their connection or their dealer for their drugs? Defense lawyers, who make it their job to find loopholes that will set free criminals that truly did the crime and not just to protect the innocently accused, should be considered to have committed a crime against our society and be punished! But this will never happen because judges were once lawyers themselves and will protect their own kind before they are willing to protect us ‘’we the people’’. That loud sucking sound seems to be getting even louder! Can you hear me still!
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Jimmy said 2:07PM on 6-20-2008
I can't believe it,six million.He definetly asked for the less lethal force,I work in law enforcement and before we can use a taser we have to be shot with it.After getting hit with 50,000 volts it made me think,I will tase some one but only as a last resort,so my guess is he went far beyond the acceptable,
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PETE said 10:14PM on 6-22-2008
NO DOUBT THIS WAS A LIBERAL JURY. IT'S HARD TO BELEIVE THE STUN GUN MAKERS WERE HELP RESPONSIBLE, JUST UNBELIEVABLE. THEY DIDN'T TASER THE GUY AND THEY SHOULD NOT BE HELD ACCOUNT. THE NEXT THING YOU KNOW CAR MAKES WILL BE GETTING SUED. THIS COUNTRY IS COMPLETELY GOING TO THE TOILET AND FAST!!. WHAT A BUNCH OF MORONS ON THAT JURY.
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buenotc said 12:46AM on 7-19-2008
You guys are a bunch of morons!! This is a dangerous product that can kill you. Even on a healthy heart a 1.5 volt battery can stop someone's heart beat so compare that voltage to that of the taser if you're smart. But if you are educated and studied biology you would know it depends on when you're shocked during the contraction and relaxation of the heart for it to stop which is why some people who get hit by lightning survives and some don't.
Some people will live and some will die,lets flip a coin and see what happens. Some of you people seriously need to go back to school and learn something. Take courses in law,sociology,biology etc to better appreciate your existence.
How the hell could they not know it was a dangerous product?
Even an average 5th grader knows the dangers of electricity.
I hope you morons are not republicans because you're all a big disgrace to this dear country that believes in the ideals of life,liberty,equality and the pursuit of happyness.
http://thenewrepublican.wordpress.com/
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GreggB said 6:17PM on 7-25-2008
Buenotc, looks like you need to poke your head into a 5th-grade classroom sometime, or run back down to the local community college for a few more of those "advanced" lessons you're so fond of...
Voltage is not what kills, it's amperage. If voltage alone could kill, then people would drop like flies on a dry day; remember the last time you were shocked by a static discharge? Static is voltage, and nearly no amperage; the average static discharge from a human body is usually around 5,000-7,000 volts...
Tasers, stun guns, and the like, all operate on a high voltage, for the very fact that the use of pulsed high-voltage disrupts the central nervous systems normal communications, often to the point of incapacitation...and apparently a one-in-a-million or-so chance of death. Personally, I'd rather be hit with a stray taser shot, than a misplaced 9mm hollow-point bullet...my chances of survival are FAR FAR higher.
Back to the tasers though, look at it this way:
Voltage is like PRESSURE
Amperage is like QUANITY
You know how when you pinch off a garden hose with your finger, the water shoots out further because of increased pressure? Thats akin to what voltage does; allowing electricty to arc, or jump farther. Voltage hurts, but WILL NOT kill.
Amps will kill. Take that same garden hose, and pump ten times the volume of water through it...assuming the hose didn't burst, if you pointed the end at someone, it'd blow a hole right through their body...oops...
These tasers operate on micro-amps of power, something that literally millions of uses have proven is non-lethal in nearly all uses-cases. Imagine if those millions of uses were 9mm rounds instead...or maybe just needles, knives, or any other weapon a perp might have been wielding...not as pretty is it?
Tasers are not the final solution to defensive weapons, but they're a heck of a lot better than being shot with a traditional gun.
tom said 12:19AM on 7-24-2008
If I had a choice between using a pistol or a taser....?
Reality said 9:38PM on 7-23-2008
Cops used to be real men NOw there all pussy she man as they have to use tazers when its 5 or 6 cops against 1 what a bunch of pussy cops there are now
No wonder these ticket writers have no respect anymore
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