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)
Rocky said 10:20AM on 4-14-2009
Windows mobile is great.... never understood all the bashing it gets. Touch Pro 2 should be out around the same time as all of the phones listed here.
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Guy G said 10:36AM on 4-14-2009
How do you leave out the Nokia N97.
It's the most anticipated phone coming out - next to the Pre
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Eric D. said 10:36AM on 4-14-2009
What's the deal with the WinMo bashing? For business users... there is no comparison. As soon as the Touch Pro2 comes out, I'll be upgrading from my Tilt. My wife, who is not a business user, it strongly leaning towards the Touch Diamond 2 over the iPhone. But we're still waiting till June...
It's your job to report the unbiased facts... so quit hating.
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Samus Aran said 12:00PM on 4-14-2009
Terrence O'Brien does nothing BUT blog his biases. I marvel at the fact that he is still "reporting" for Switched. If it were up to me, I would have fired him a long time ago.
He has bashed everyone/everything that doesn't fall into his own little self-centered, ultra-biased, hyper-liberal, anybody-who-disagrees-with-me-is-an-idiot idiom.
O'Brien is a joke. He certainly isn't a writer.
Samsu Aran said 3:17PM on 4-14-2009
Neo, you're a Nimrod.
I don't care what O'Brien is like in real life. He's probably a decent guy as you say. All I know of him is his extraordinarily biased writing here. Based on that, O'Brien is summed up as an a-hole.
My question is, why does O'Brien feel the need to put such snide, biased remarks in his writing? Simple. To feel important and better than other people (such as WinMo users). I don't know about others, but I don't want to hear his idiotic opinions. Please just report the facts.
Mr. Neo's Soul said 2:11PM on 4-14-2009
Samus Aran. You sir, are a buffoon! That's right, a buffoon! Terrence O'Brien is a damn good friend of mine & he's the exact opposite of everything you have stated. I've had many valid arguments with the man on liberal, conservative & just ordinary human issues & he has not one single time ever acted like his views were the only thing that ever mattered. You just wanted to get on here & talk smack & act like what you gotta say is something important. Your problem is you got too much time on your hands & got nothing better to do. So here is a tip from me to you, get over yourself. Opinions are like ass holes. Everyone's got one, but few know how to use it. I suggest you figure out how to use it before you come on here slamming someone. Maybe it is you who should be fired from your job for being such an arrogant jerk. Of course that's me speaking out in anger & I really don't want you to lose your job. Especially when jobs are scarce to find at the moment. But what gives you the right to state such garbage on here? I think you need to take a chill pill enema before you overheat.
Mr. Neo's Soul - Over & Out
psycros said 1:29PM on 4-14-2009
If the Engadget spin-off sites actually got traffic people might care. Since this is not the case, he can pretty much write whatever junk he wants. Funny thing is, all he'd need to do is replace "we're" with "I'm" and it would be good enough for most people. Incidentally, I agree with him about WinMo.
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