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.
When you market a cell phone to senior citizens by touting a "Live Nurse" option, you'd darn well better make sure that the 911 service works. We've gotten word from The Consumerist that Samsung is recalling a batch of its Jitterbug pay-as-you-go phones because they apparently cannot reach 911 when outside of a service area. 
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
speed5984 said 5:43PM on 5-29-2009
Hey Chad you should learn to spell...
March 2008 and May 2009, get thee in touch with Samsung at... should be
March 2008 and May 2009, then get in touch with Samsung at
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babyRnliz said 9:58AM on 5-31-2009
actually, thee is an old english word meaning you or yourself. The sentence basically says get yourself in touch. It is correct.
verbqueen said 6:30PM on 5-30-2009
Speed, I think YOU need to learn to recognize a Shakespeare allusion, as in "Get thee to a nunnery..."
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Nancy said 10:58AM on 5-31-2009
How would you ever know if your phone had the glitch??
Its not like you call 911 everyday? Are we supposed to call 911 to see if we get connected? Then what do we do if someone answers? Say "Oh sorry I was just testing out my phone?" Jeesh.
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chiefpete said 1:25PM on 5-31-2009
Nancy, read the article again. If you purchased this phone between March 2008 and May 2009 contact Samsung or go back to Best Buy if you purchased it there. And Chad, you're a moron.
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Peter said 1:32PM on 5-31-2009
My apologies to Chad, Speed is the moron.
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Susan said 4:32PM on 5-31-2009
I hope they get it straightened out soon.
http://susan-livinghealthywithchallenges.blogspot.com
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holland said 5:53PM on 5-31-2009
WHATEVER YOU DO, DON'T BUY CRICKET. THEY HAVE THE WORST SERVICE AND THEIR CUSTOMER SERVICE IS AWFUL. THEIR SALES REPS ACT LIKE THEY'RE DOING YOU A FAVOR WHEN YOU ASK FOR THE SERVICE YOU PAY FOR. AND WHEN YOU CALL THE 800 NUMBER THEY REFER YOU TO THE CORP OFFICE WHO REFERS YOU TO TH E 800. AVOID CRICKET AT ALL COST!!!!!
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Anthony Trocchia said 8:02PM on 5-31-2009
I'm getting rid of my Jitterbug service altogether. You get no free nights or weekends. When you retrieve voice messages using your Jitterbug, your minutes are reduced depending on how long you took to hear your messages. Overall, the service isn't good, though I do like the phone's simplicity.
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Bill said 6:34PM on 6-06-2009
Im getting rid of Jitterbug also , appears that I was sold a service where service isnt provided on a regular basis. I called to asked why I wasnt getting service at my home and was told they have two maps that shows the coverage areas which I was not informed of before I purchased the phone and the plan.
Seems as if you cant find a honest company anywhere in the USA anymore !!!!!
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oh229 said 2:30PM on 8-14-2009
I love the simplicity of the Jitterbug but have had some problems that cannot be solved by your service evidently. Many times when I try to make a call I get a message that I do not have an account with Verizon (and/or Crickett) and the call cannot go through. When I called about this, your service representative offered no answers. Also, most annoying, the phone rings three times and if I cannot get to it in time I am left with a message, "missed call." There are no free minutes for weekends that other phone services offer. The person calling me is charged for minutes and I am charged for minutes. This makes the minutes add up fast for the profit of Jitterbug and maybe some other cell phone service. In other words, Jitterbug is no bargain to say the least. When I had to send it in recently because of 911 service problems, I was flaberghasted. How would I know if there is no 911 service??? Makes me wonder what else is wrong with this simplicity technology the Jitterbug advertises. Sorry, but I cannot in good conscience recommend this product to consumers. I plan to get rid of the service asap.
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