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)
Tigre said 12:58AM on 8-22-2008
This is a pretty good idea. I think the government should us a system like this with our military so that when they're kidnapped we can easily track them and hopefully bring them back alive.
Although now that news of this microchip is now public you know the kidnappers are going to search the body for it or get some sort of device that can tell where it's located in the body. If this happens then they're back to square one.
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DarkLight said 1:53AM on 8-22-2008
No need to do such a thing - just build a faraday room and everything's gone (phone, GPS, implants, you name it)....
Problem is, Mexican kidnappers (or most Mexican people for that matter - they only care about cellphones and "iPods"... I'm one of the few Mexicans who actually know/care about how the "life" works) are too ignorant to know what a faraday cage is...
Matt said 2:06AM on 8-22-2008
It's only a matter of time before the slave drivers find a way to utilize this technology to track their human merchandise.
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Unknown said 5:45PM on 8-28-2009
That'll be the NWO's excuse to use it on the rest of us. The MO is create or foment the danger then offer the "solution."
iansilv said 4:35AM on 8-22-2008
I want to know when the US military is going to use satellite technology to map the route that US troops are going to use to just go down and kill the known drug and crime lords. It's Mexico- it's right next to us, and I am sick of hearing about the drug and kidnapping violence. Sorry if it sounds racist / nationalist / or whatever "ist" you want to label my attitude as. But if the Mexican "government" can't get it together, then we need to help them along.
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greenhalge said 7:54PM on 8-24-2008
Old news. I was exporting automotive products into Mexico City through-out the 90's and my importer and his whole family were chipped back in 1995.
The kidnappings were happening then to many of the wealthiest families in different manufacturing arenas. On top of that they had bodyguards for their children that acted as doormen in their homes.
But I do agree the chip industry has been doing all it can to force their products on us for this type of use. They also push it heavily for Alzheimer's patients in Europe.
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JagerRev said 2:08AM on 8-24-2008
EVIL!!! Bad bad bad bad bad.....
This is EXACTLY the mass hysteria causing news that is going to usher forth Orwell's "1984"......
Kidnappings are tragic sad sad horrible events.....but implanting EVERYONE with GPS chips opens doors for SOOOOOOOOOO many other problems.......
Even with the use of statistics like "jumped 40%", it's an attempt to scare everyone into getting these chips so that one day all governments everywhere will be able to tell where EVERYONE is at all times...
"Those who sacrifice liberty for security have neither." - Ben Franklin
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wake me up said 5:21PM on 8-24-2008
People You better start taking this implant thing seriously . Next thing you know we wil be made to have them just to buy and sell. oh i wonder where i heard that from before it happened.
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Diane said 9:45PM on 8-24-2008
Chipping is a wonderful idea. Think if someone took your child, wouldn't you want to have an advantage in finding them? Think of all the senseless murders by men who killed their ex's. If the men could be chipped and the women wear a receiver to tell her the man is getting within a 1/2 mile away, she would have an advantage. If they can chip animals now, humans should be chipped too.
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Jay said 4:45PM on 8-25-2008
wow
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Fred Schamberger said 3:42PM on 8-26-2008
This is only for sale in Mexico because people down there are stupid enough to think that a RFID tag can transmit signals tens of thousands of feet to a sattelite. This is the same that you use for identifying a pet when lost. IT IS NOT GPS. IT IS NOT A TRANSMITTER. Those devices use far more power than can be provided in a total package less than 1 gram in mass. If they made these claims for their product in the US, the FTC would have their asses sliced thinly on a tarnished silver plate.
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