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.
_thumbnail.jpg "Vintage Keyboards")
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Matt said 2:53PM on 5-15-2009
I say good. Whatever excuse we can use to keep idiots off the streets is AOK by me. If he was in there for murder or something of a similar nature they should probably just shoot him and save tax payer dollars...after all it is Texas.
Reply
Betty said 3:07PM on 5-15-2009
Let's see an inmate, HABITUAL OFFENDER, STOLEN CELLPHONE. I want this kind of guy back out. DO you think the seriousness of the situation just hasn't hit him? I guess he just wasn't punished before so this was a big surprise. We would have a proportionate drop in crime if people started to hold people accountable for their action ...like we used to years ago. Sure there was crime, but not like today and those people were shunned. Now they are glorified--nuts. I don't want this idiot walking among us.
Reply
Matt said 3:38PM on 5-15-2009
x2
lbown4848 said 4:21PM on 5-20-2009
hey betty they did not say the phone was stolen.
and in alot of the history i have read from pirates to mobsters. or old billy the kid
they used to glorify them.
although i do belive criminal need to do their time.
a 60 year sentence for a cell is horrid and the judge should be investigated.
as to why the hell a triple life sentence was given for a cell phone.
i dont know what this guy has done but reading the story at face value.
it seems like an abuse of power. triple life for trying to call home. this is not gitmo.
Austin said 3:30PM on 5-15-2009
Betty,
I doubt it was a stolen phone ,See imates will pay any cost to get stuff from the outside so I'm going to guess he paid a guard to sneak it in to him.
This kind of stuff happens all the time.
Those $10 prepaid phones you can get at walmart can for upwards of $100 in prision.
And in my personal opinion sixty more years for something like this is completly asinine!
Reply
Matt said 3:38PM on 5-15-2009
Why would you want this POS back on the streets? Obviously if he gets out he won't be "reformed" based on his track record and habitual rule breaking. Lock him up or shoot him.
olpa1216 said 4:22PM on 5-15-2009
They should bring back hard labour and work details so the inmates don't have so much idle time to lie around and think up all this trouble.
Reply
TERRI said 4:57PM on 5-15-2009
60 YEARS FOR A CELL PHONE? AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO THINKS THIS IS A LITTLE INSANE? A LOT INSANE? CHILD MOLESTERS GET 5 YEARS. RAPISTS GET 8. THIS GUY (A THRID TIME FELON, IT'S TRUE) SMUGGLES A CELL PHONE AND GETS 60 YEARS? AND THIS IS AMERICA? LISTEN, BEFORE PEOPLE YELL AT ME, I AM A STAUCH CONSERVATIVE, AND A CHAMPION OF TOUGH SENTENECES, IF THE PUNISHMENT FITS THE CRIME! THIS SENTENCE SCARES ME. BECAUSE IT IS SOOO LOPSIDED AND NUTS. THIS IS JUSTICE? ? IS IT NOW OUR JOB TO JUST DESTROY PEOPLE? TWENTY FIVE FOR GRAND THEFT...60 FOR A CELL PHONE.
REMEMBER PEOPLE, YOU HAVE TO ANSWER TO GOD AND WHEN HE ASKS IF YOU WERE FAIR WITH OTHERS,> WELL, I WOULDN'T WANT TO BE IN THE JUROR'S SHOES.
Reply
Rollins said 6:55PM on 5-15-2009
LOL CAPS MAKE MY POINT MORE VALID!!!11
Sergeant said 5:26PM on 5-15-2009
The government has no business telling an inmate that he's not allowed to talk on a cell phone. Come on! Most inmates are imprisoned on trumped-up charges anyway. Even if they're in jail for a legitimate reason, don't they have a right to TALK to their friends and family? Prisoners have rights! Join us in taking back America and standing up for the oppressed!
www.thirdpositionjustice.net
Reply
Terance said 10:04AM on 5-18-2009
You lose most of your rights as a criminal. Thus, be placed in cells and monitored. Any criminal that ends up behind bars and is still willing to ignore the laws within prison won't be expected to abide by the laws outside.
Although, I do believe 60 years is a little absurd. But at the same time, we don't have all the facts. We don't know what the inmate is in prison for nor what the uses of the phone were, but I'm assuming it was to continue with controlling illegal activity.
But back to my point, once you become a criminal you lose a lot of those rights. One of those being the use of a cell phone behind bars.
Also, to someone else, he had the charger and the phone in a sock. So, surely he had access to an outlet somewhere along the lines.
TAYLOR said 6:44PM on 5-15-2009
California does the same thing; three strikes and you're behind bars for life; even for minor stuff. Texas is no worse then anyother place. The entire USA is adopting policies that basically will incarcerate most of the population within the next 50 years. The majority of free people will be people with type A personalities and foreign born legal immigrants with lots of money. Eventually - the death penalty will be implemented as it is in Texas simply to reduce the numbers of prisoners. Just wait.
Reply
Sprite said 10:00PM on 5-15-2009
You all are so naive: inmates with cell phones can continue to run their drug dealing operations, move contraband, intimidate or arrange assaults on others, or organize gang activities from inside the prison or jail. Renting the cell phones out to others is a way to make money, and gives all of them the chance to continue criminal behavior from behind bars. The presence of cell phones in prisons and jails is a management issue. Would you feel the same way if Mr. Ross was a terrorist, arranging murderous activities from inside? The telephone industry is trying to stop cell phone jamming from inside correctional facilities, which is a danger to the community.
Reply
rhiebie said 11:26PM on 5-15-2009
I'm with all those that agree on the penalty! This new sentence doesn't seem to be overly harsh or lopsided at all... He's a habitual offender... I guess he wasn't punished hard enough to learn his lesson the other times; clearly he doesn't have any regard for rules and laws. I only hope they keep him a MINIMUM of 30 years!
Reply
Heather said 1:00PM on 5-17-2009
So he is a repeated offender, but of what? I'm pretty sure that no one who has posted a comment really knows this man, so how can you say he got what he deserved or call him a POS? This article said nothing about him being a drug dealer, or committing murder, so I don't see what gives anyone here the right to call him a POS... I completely agree with Terri. This sentence is a little wack for my tastes. Who knows if the man was selling drugs or talking to a daughter or mother that he no longer gets to see. I think 60 years was way too long for a cell phone. Even if he was a drug dealer, you would think the justice system would be more interested in getting other dealers and not charging 60 more years on a guy who's already in there.
Reply
clearsky18 said 1:36PM on 5-17-2009
How does he charge the phone? There are no outlets anywhere. I know, because I've been to jail myself. That's what I wanna know, is how he charged it. AND it would be pretty difficult to get signal.
Reply
nyboy010101 said 4:42PM on 5-17-2009
IMHO, your an idiot if you think one man carrying a cellphone in prison (we don't know the reason, probably family, maybe drugs; who cares.) The point is we live in a modern time where cellphones dictate most everything both on and off the streets. Don't try to condemn one man who probably is your average rapist, shoplifter, or kid that sold one too many E pills. 60 years is a disgusting price to pay for using something as common as a quarter these days, no matter what the crime was. Stop living in denial. Wake The F--- Up.
On an additional note, none of what I said is relevant if this crime was indeed a rape crime.
Peace fuxors.
Reply
Brandi said 6:10PM on 5-17-2009
The guy deserved to be punished for having the phone. 60 years may be a bit much, but I definitely agree he should have gotten time added to his sentence. Since we don't know what this guy was in for, the phone could have been being used for any number of illicit activities. I mean, if he was just wanting to talk with family about normal stuff, he wouldn't try to hide that.
And for the person who said that "The government has no business telling an inmate that he's not allowed to talk on a cell phone. Come on! Most inmates are imprisoned on trumped-up charges anyway. Even if they're in jail for a legitimate reason, don't they have a right to TALK to their friends and family? Prisoners have rights! Join us in taking back America and standing up for the oppressed!" you really need to join the real world. Most inmates are not there on trumped up charges. In fact, most inmates, especially repeat offenders, have also committed crimes that they haven't be busted on, along with the crimes for which they were convicted. If they are in jail, some of their rights are taken away. Why? because it's PUNISHMENT. They are not oppressed, they are being punished. And in all actuality, they have it better than a portion of hard working, law abiding Americans. The prisoners have a place to sleep, get 3 square meals, and have access to learning materials, computers in most cases, and exercise equipment. If they don't like their arrangments, don't repeat criminal activities.
Reply
ash said 6:24PM on 5-17-2009
60 years for a phone, fine by me. This guy really thought he wouldn't get caught.
But, looking from a technical perspective, let's do some math.
I would up the #'s much, much higher, but let's keep it simple.
Say rape is 1000x worse than bringing a phone to jail.
That means rapists can get 60,000 years.
What do they get? Ah, a few years, no big deal, right?
I think that should be put into effect to make our streets safer, don't you think?
I'm supportive of a strict system, but where punishment is handed in one area, the punishment for another crime should be determined in rational comparison, if that makes sense.
Reply
Douglas Neal said 11:33PM on 5-17-2009
The individual is in prison for not following the rules, Duhhh He couldn't follow them in society now he can't follow them in prison. A little harsh maybe, but, if they are that stupid, maybe they are where they belong!!!
Reply