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)
Cheese said 8:24PM on 2-26-2009
I mean, when you are the president of the US trying to fix our screwed up country from the bush presidency you might not be able to find so much time for twitter. that may be the reason. . .
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Matt Walton said 9:47PM on 2-26-2009
It seems intersting to me that his twitter was last updated 1 day before the inauguration. In the article there is talk about the Presidential Records Act. I'm not a legal expert, but it seems possible that he was able to update it from nov 4 - untill then becasue there may be different requirements for presidents and president-elects. iono, just a thought, anyway, Obama get back on twitter!
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LiqwidZero said 10:15PM on 2-26-2009
I think the issue is that someone could potentially find out the White House's IP addresses. Hack their computers. And completely screw up their systems.
Where there's a will, there's a way. And the gov't doesn't want there to be a way in.
It's probably actually for his own good.
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elidet said 5:51AM on 2-27-2009
Glad to see that President Obama has solved all the world's problems and now must get back on twitter.
Seriously.
WTF?!?!
No doubt, had his staff been updating on twitter, your article would have been written on how the President is spending too much time on twitter and not enough time running the country.
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hipsterdoofus said 2:27PM on 2-27-2009
He's too busy spending our money on crap
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maxine said 6:43AM on 3-03-2009
Cheeze - you need to get on the INternet.. look up Clinton's FALSE surplus, how a promanent newspaper said over a year ago that this nations Credit Card debt was ruining the economy - billions of dollars people could not repay, then Barney Frank and Co., Clinton started the giving mortgages to people who couldnt afford them, Fannie & Freddy, and lastly and article yesterday that says the Federal Reserve is to blame (I still have that article. So some research before posting nonsense..about how Bill Clinton his spending to produce that so called Suplus that wasn't. His signing the fair Trade act sending our businesses overseas - again, Clinton, not Bush. Now we have Obama adding to the problems..not to mention that he is another of Chicagos political criminals. Either look the stuff on the Internet or learn to and post TRUTH. Bush had little to do with the deficit we're in now. Congress approves everything, remember????
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