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)
Master Shake said 10:58AM on 12-03-2008
Here we go again with more fake US / UK news reports about how the AMERICAN economic crisis is really worldwide. PURE B.S. A few very, very rich people have been affected from their investments in the US, but housing prices are holding just fine around the rest of the world, and banks are not collapsing like dominos anywhere but in the US. Don't believe a word of this nonsense. America bears the full brunt of the problem.
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DarkLight said 10:54AM on 12-03-2008
And I'm calling "PURE BS" in your message
I can't speak for Japon, but I can for Mexico, and ever since the crisis started, all the prices (of pretty much everything) have been going up and up, several big old established companies went bankrupt, and there are craploads of people being laid off, wich combined with the high prices of everything, equates to yet more violence, wich only makes matters worse
Granted, it's not as bad as in the U.S.... So yeah, the U.S. might be bearing most of the brunt, but definitelly not all of it as you claim.
Master Shake said 11:02AM on 12-03-2008
I was referring to Asia and Europe, which the US media has been hyping as having been "severely impacted." I don't think I've ever seen any article mentioning the impact on Mexico. I have spent the last two months in Germany, Spain and Russia, and there are no price increases, and no one that I know has lost their job. Property values are unchanged. Yet I read articles in the US/UK press every day about how bad things supposedly are elsewhere. This is PROPAGANDA to make Americans feel less like their government is the problem. Well guess what America... you DO have the problem - about 99% at least. This is the result of 8 years of Bush. Enjoy.
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