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)
Allie said 6:39AM on 11-21-2008
and this is news because??... Steve Doocy is an author, father, news anchor? Or just because you're trying to make someone on FOX news look stupid? Maybe you should spend more time trying to report REAL news, like where Obama's campaign money came from, or ACORN fraud, or congress is going to get the money for all these bail outs? What Mr. Doocy does on his facebook is NOT news, it's gossip, idol chatter.
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Mospeed said 12:12PM on 11-21-2008
Dude, get a life. Who cares?
RW said 7:44PM on 1-16-2009
Hey maybe it's his business UNTIL he makes it public on Fox Network. That is worth commenting on just like any idiot . why a guy like Doocy thinks his Face book is relevant is like you making it sound as though reporting this iis not relevant. Doocy is on a Network that does claim to be "NEWS". Man right wingers sure never get it.Doocy needed no help looking stupid. He did as reported. It is not a common thing to do in that position. He is wiwerd , simple as that!
Oh by the way, people on here look for thses stories since this is not a news network like your firends on Fox like to think they are all about. Man get over all your crying about your lessons from talk radio which are nothing more then rants and complaints non stop about our government and decent people who simply happen to think opposite to them. Like your comments. Just because a person prefers to lean left that does not make the person bad. Grow up right wingers.
The Aggie CEO said 8:57AM on 11-21-2008
wow......who would think Fox News would ALLOW their employees to be on a Non-Company site.......
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steve said 10:14AM on 11-21-2008
Once again it is time to bring AOL into the rubber room and scream at them repeatedly until they get it: NO ONE CARES!
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gbayoo said 6:39PM on 1-27-2009
who cares? thousands of people care. That show is mundane if any is. He brags about his Facebooking and other personal garbage, wierd.
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xbplaya1122 said 6:28PM on 1-22-2009
gbayoo.... its quite simple, if you dont like the show then dont watch it.... same goes to all the other idiots out there that have nothing better to do than to complain about insignificant crap
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gbayoo said 7:20PM on 1-27-2009
xbplaya1122)"gbayoo.... its quite simple, if you dont like the show then dont watch it.... same goes to all the other idiots out there that have nothing better to do than to complain about insignificant crap"
Reply: Thats always a good cop out response when nothing worth while to say. Look, there would be some truly boring TV, radio periodicals and other types of activity. If no one ever wrote about odd things, interesting wierdo stuff and such. we would probably all be short in the humor dept like most conservatives. As for disliking a show, where did I say I watched it? Lest ye forget, this is a response tag for written commentary on just about anything. I was responding, (not complaining) and most here were not either. Try to get a grasp for what this particular site is, does and all about. For example, you responded to my comments even though completely wrong about your comments regarding what I did, said and why I said it! As I always do of course was research prior to responding. I never comment without being certain that what was stated was accurate. This was accurate and funny. Why always name calling? If people have a problem actually making a fair and intelligent comment without having to blast and insult the person their addressing, either learn to simply comment or move on to something easier to respond to. I do, by the way, have free time on occassion for allowing myself some enjoyment and pleasureable activity. U see, a fairly common train of thought can prevail in insignificant utterances, it goes like this: "If you and I were speaking,say in a group, you would not be able to comprehend the signifance of most utterance, because most words would be to copius for your limited dimension of comprehension. You see, Maybe I like "insignificant crap!" Maybe it helps me get thru inane comments made to me via this kind of site.