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.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
StrangeBum said 4:40PM on 6-16-2008
utorrent and piratebay FTW!!!
/not that I use it to download music illegally
//nope, not at all...complete legal torrents
///like stuff from revision3
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undrgrndgirl said 12:05AM on 6-17-2008
given that it is nearly illegal to loan a cd to someone else to listen to (in fact its getting to be a gray area to even listen to a cd with another person)...it's not surprising that half of all music on ipods is "illegal"...i mean really - have you actually read the most recent fbi warnings??? "unlawful lending...[even] without monetary gain..." what the he!! does that mean??? and these laws do not protect the artist/composer but the recording industry...really its just gotten ridiculous!!
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Wes said 10:14AM on 6-17-2008
um.... yeah.... A 40 gig Ipod would hold about $10,000 worth of songs at iTunes prices.
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andyg8180 said 2:22PM on 6-17-2008
ummmm, what happened to the good old days of just getting your voice out so people can hear you? I will only buy a CD if i really like the music or if the artist is worth supporting... OR EVEN if the CD came with extra stuff like music videos and stuff... if not, screw that... everyone is a one hit wonder now-adays... im not gonna pay you for a song the radio plays every half hour... on the half hour...
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Michael said 5:02AM on 7-26-2008
Only half? Besides, I agree with andyg8180: most artists today are one hit wonders. Even if they aren't, many have the bad habit of putting only one or two good songs on a CD amidst 14 or so crap songs and then they expect you to pay $14+ for it. It's easier and cheaper to download them illegally. The problem with subscription sites is that some months you might only download a few songs but you're paying the price of a full CD to do so. Other months, you could download Led Zeppelin's entire discography for the same price.
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