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)
linda said 2:32PM on 1-06-2009
My son was horrified and said" Facebook is only for College students!:" and his brothers and I said- Nope=not anymore! You've been out too long now! You aren't aware that people my age are using it. lol
Actually its great way to reconnect with friends and those paying sites are just too much trouble-and get expensive after you join certain amount of them!
For now, Facebook is great-and if you are grandmother, you really arent into reading teens postings. And smart kids won't put stuff online that they don't want their family or others(grands,parents,sibs,teachers etc, bosses) to know. Still in this day and age, some things shouldn't be posted for all the world to know. Just my "old age" thought! lol- boomer of class of 65
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itsstrueee9412 said 5:36PM on 1-06-2009
its just like an invasion of privacy... and its really wierd because if you have a fight or a horrible day and you want to let ppl know then your mom is gonna be interrogating you about it and if you dont want to talk then its just a hassle. :\
EFG said 3:28PM on 1-06-2009
You go, girl!
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taylor said 6:49PM on 1-06-2009
well if the parent was a good one then the kid would not need a "haven" online. they could be themselves anywhere. including around parents. if the parent has raised the kid wrong the kid will want to find somewhere to hide. the same situation in any kind of sexual situation. if the kid has been raised badly it should be an awkward moment for both, kids should be able to be open to there parents with everything, otherwise your a bad parent and dont you dare try to blame the kids
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Facebook User said 5:49PM on 1-06-2009
It's not an invasion of privacy. If you stopped complaining long enough to learn how to use the features that Facebook already has, you could easily figure out how to solve this problem.
If you don't want your parents to see Photos that you are tagged in, or your status updates, or even who your friends are -- all you need to do is set up a Friend Group and stick your parents in it. Then you go to your privacy permissions and don't allow your parents to see those things in your profile.
It's very simple, just learn how to use Facebook and you'll be fine.
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juls8@mac.com said 6:21PM on 1-06-2009
I had a run in with FACEBOOK re: my children last year.
"My children" who were bullied on FACEBOOK. Thanks
for the excellent advice to continue the bullshit, name calling
trailer trash of FACEBOOK. Shows your intelligence. I am sure
anyone who is UPSET by this does not kids who have been threatened or bullied. FACEBOOK does not have ethics
john said 9:23AM on 1-26-2009
My 17y.o. daughter told me that if I do sign up for a facebook page, not to bother sending her a friend request as she would not accept it.
She has other adult relatives as friends, but will not accept either of her parents as friends ('too creepy' ?). Her choice, I suppose.
I'm not the type of parent to be overly restrictive and say, "Then you can't have one." That is more problematic than a teen wanting to have something that is 'theirs', and excluding her (or his) parents.
She is a fairly responsible kid, and I trust her.
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Head Alienst said 1:16PM on 2-24-2009
This is a serious problem with America's youth. In the developmental years parents are supposed to see everything you do. How does a child know when they are in the wrong, educate and discipline our children. Having said that, Facebook should be adult oriented, it is basic in design and leaves little for the excitement that does Myspace. You can see in the layout and no frills transitions that it is not geared towards the youth under 18 even though they would appear to be marketing to this demographic.
Either way, its social networking for a reason. Perhaps parents are trying to communicate better with their children by joining. The children with nothing to hide are surely not the ones talking.
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Katie said 4:40PM on 3-04-2009
I am on facebook but I am not friends with my son nor do I want him to friend me. I am in my early 50's and to all of those teens out there -- parents have a life also. I parent at home and don't need facebook to gossip like some of the high schoolers do.
Grow up!
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Teen Speaker said 4:27AM on 3-08-2009
A neutral boundary between the lives of both parents and children is a very important thing. To take away a teens privacy can lead to horrible ends. Even if you really believe that you need to control every aspect of your kid's life you should relax and remember that your parents went through maybe not the same ordeal, but something in the same general area with you and now your kids are experiencing it. Im not saying to completely drop responsibility of your child. Just know that a stable boundary of privacy between you and your children can raise their respect for you. "Give respect to get respect", and in this case, privacy. Facebook should not be used as another chance to control your teen's life. Even if they will not add you as a "friend" you can at least stop complaining to them and just write them a letter, send them a text, or send them an e-mail. Facebook is not the last form of communication on the planet. Besides, if its a matter of speaking to your child, face to face confrontation AT HOME often produces better results than writing on their profile wall. I dont see how teens can be so freaked about parents with Facebook accounts. Just dont add them as a "friend". Im not a perfect son but I know my parents will not even attempt to invade my privacy through means of a computer. For that I respect them. And no, it doesnt mean that i use that to my advantage. Besides, im sure not all of you are perfect either and your children still learn from you. Just so you know, they can see your wall just as well as you can see theirs...
debarbie said 9:47AM on 3-12-2009
I disagree with the person who thinks only bad parents have kids that find Facebook a haven. I have facebook, so do my kids. I am their parent not their friend, so I did not ask to be their friend. I am no more going to go into their correspondence on facebook than I would listen to their private conversations, read their mail or otherwise but my nose where it doesn't belong. They are college aged.
That being said, several years ago one of my kids was expelled from an elite private school because of a fictitious character created on another social network who blogged ignorant remarks about other classmates. A bunch of kids were in on it, he was the only honest one about it and got the boot.
Be careful what you put out there....everyone!
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