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 2)
Chad said 2:54PM on 8-26-2009
I'm still laughing from the original post. I wonder how much saving a few $$$ is ultimately going to cost Microsoft?
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sepirioth said 3:21PM on 8-26-2009
i doubt itll cost them anything but yeah 2 days later its still hilarious
Barbara said 8:29PM on 8-26-2009
Come on now, how stupid do you think we are? They did this for the Poland audience? Yeh, right!! Polish people are not in the last century and don't know what mixed cultures are like; they have many immigrants and others in their country. This was a racist act,and no one wants to own it. Please don't treat Europe as if they are so far behind us...they are, in reality, in front of us in most areas. I lived there for ten years, and am offended that this side of the ocean thinks that side needs to have faces changed around.
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richard.walkus said 9:51PM on 8-26-2009
Yeh ... they did it for a Polish audience ... read the caption if you can. It's not very likely to see a black person working at the office in Poland. Not a racism ... just a reality. Microsoft should have used entirely different image fitting the market (the ad was prepared for) and there would be no controversy.
Robert said 9:58PM on 8-26-2009
Why do you say it's racist, whilst it's clearly discriminating older people as an older man was swapped for a younger man? What does skin colour even have to do with it? Who's the racist here?
Quasimodem.ca said 9:51PM on 8-26-2009
It looks as though Ray Milland finally got rid of Rosie Grier's head, and no longer known as "The Head With Two Things," or should that be the other way 'round.
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Robert said 9:59PM on 8-26-2009
I see they swapped an older man for a younger man...
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rob said 10:43PM on 8-26-2009
As funny (and botched) as it is, I don't see anything wrong with it.
We don't have black people in Poland.
Do you think they have white people on ads in let's say India?
This is demographics, not racism.
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fjfielder said 11:08PM on 8-26-2009
Who in the world goes around looking for stuff like this? Who cares about some stupid ad anyway.
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Arthur said 11:40PM on 8-26-2009
@ richard.walkus:
Being Polish, I take issue with the characterization of Poland as "racially homogeneous". To this day, there are Jews and Gypsies as well as Africans and Asians living and intermarrying in Poland.
I agree with Barbara above about Europeans being much more racially tolerant. I can recall attending a medical conference in Erlangen (outside of Nuremberg) in 1998 and seeing more interracial couples than I have ever seen in large U.S. cities.
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richard.walkus said 10:47AM on 8-27-2009
Well ... it's not about race ... it's about marketing and targeting the audience. Again, it's not likely to see a black person, an Asian person, and a white person around the office table as the representatives of Polish national cross section. The last time I read the statistics, ethnicity in Poland is Polish 96.7%, what a surprise, and religion is Roman Catholic 89.8% (about 75% practicing). Yes, as you skillfully pointed out, there are other mini minorities, but that just clouds the true aspect of the issue. As somebody else here pointed out it's about localization of your marketing effort/dollar.
Do you really think Microsoft did a racially motivated decision to "punish" a black person, and get this type PR on the blogs? Do you ...
Jas said 12:53PM on 9-03-2009
Please! Your comment is so full of nonsense and you know it. For those of us who know Poland and the US, it sounds like you are on crack.
maishomo said 12:04AM on 8-27-2009
Interesting to note that the Asian Model in the advert was not swapped and yet, the Asian population is similar to black population, abeit growing faster... and although the argument of a more racially homogenious market may be a suitable explaination, this goes to show how far poland is to racial recognition and respect, even on corporate levels.
This, maybe should be a good opportunity foreign companies with operations in Poland to bring in more racially diverse senior management, at least we will start seeing real changes on the ground as regarding perception
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john Doe said 1:15AM on 8-27-2009
Who the F*ck cares? Aren't there starving people in the world?
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Sean Chong said 1:52AM on 8-27-2009
Anyone realizes that the Asian becomes lighter in color on the Polish ad?
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Pokie said 2:00AM on 8-27-2009
Imagine a world where there is no concept of money. We still grow food, have industries, schools, hospitals, sports, jobs, every facet of modern life and lifestyle but everything is free. Govt would be there to ration food to people. Govt would build beautiful housing for all people of the country free. I think all humans should be born qith equal rights in this world and not inherently born rich or poor. It is money which creates the discrimination and all subsequent evils and problems. Basic need is food - if that is met, what is the need for fighting to earn a living. It is strange even being supposedly the most intelligent species, we produce enuf food to feed our world population but the have created a legacy of rights and entitlement to property of mother earth which is casuing majority of us suffering and living inferior lives than others. Its not right and its high time we demand our rights of equality. Except snakes, I think humans are the only species that are so hapless as to kill one of their own. In an equal world, such scenarios would be rare. Social benefits are innumerable. If we abolish concept of money, then only will we be able to live truly free lives, and not chained at birth by the evil design of predecessors.
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tenjewberrymuds said 8:38AM on 8-27-2009
Didn't Stalin try that?
Just go back to watching Star Trek and let us in the real world pay your way through life...
jshaun29 said 11:10AM on 8-27-2009
Whoever thinks this is a racist act needs to seriously get a life or go off yourself.....
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pepemarino said 3:26AM on 8-27-2009
I think that racism is kept alive when we are paying attention to this or that race. I never noticed the color of the skin of Collin Powell, or that Condoleezza Rice was a woman who happens to be black. I only noticed that they are distinguished and accomplished citizens of the United States. My take on this race controversy is: nothing; judge people by their personal values.
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David said 4:16AM on 8-27-2009
I must disagree with Barbara and Arthur. I am an American living in Hungary. Every time I see an advertisement with non-Caucasians, my first thought is that it was not an advertisement made for this market, but for the international market. In a small country like Hungary, it seems as though an advertisement made for the local market resonates differently than one made for the international market and then "localized". Without making a judgment about which is better (I am not a marketing person), it is different, and it is not simply a racial question.
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