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)
gjandy said 2:30PM on 7-13-2009
Say what you may, but shooting someone with a non-lethal is a much better alternative than using real live bullets!! I applaud Taser for at least developing something that may in the end save a life!!
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Gipionocheiyort said 2:55PM on 7-13-2009
That oughta teach those lousy students to keep quiet.
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Jonathan said 4:53PM on 7-13-2009
I'm so annoyed the Taser shells can't just be fired out of a normal 12-gauge shotgun. You have to buy their expensive, yellow shotgun that is unable to fire standard shells.
Don't expect this concept to take off until you come out with shells that work in the millions of already-deployed shotguns, Taser. There are much cheaper less-lethal options already available for those and plenty of them work just fine. No one is likely to have a heart attack, with accompanying multimillion-dollar lawsuit from the family, if you shoot them with beanbags.
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wisewisewon1 said 7:39PM on 7-15-2009
Hey Jonathan, they do work in a regular shotgun.
These are pretty smart people that care about being safe AND smart.
The Mossberg shotgun sold for the XREP will ONLY fire the XREP shells; can't F'up and shoot someone with a real shotgun shell when you only meant to stun them...Smart, huh. The X-12 is BRIGHT YELLOW so everyone knows the intent is to STUN, not KILL.....Smart, huh.
The round smacks them, but not as hard as a bean bag shot; not as likely to cause serious damage (people die from being shot with bean bag rounds). The round stuns them for 20 seconds, time to get to someone 70 - 100 ft away.
It is a bad idea to shoot someone closer than 20’ with any round out of a shotgun, that is X-26 Taser territory.
Taser Saves Lives Every day they say; I agree
J said 8:00PM on 8-25-2009
I was misinformed. Thanks for the info.
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