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.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
steve said 5:15PM on 9-28-2009
I gave up on jewish holidays 20 years ago.sorry. Oh and I hope the new twitter is working for ya :) @fabric2000
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eimat said 11:23PM on 9-28-2009
What if the alternative is not apologizing at all? If you don't have the guts to face the person - maybe they're way bigger than you, or maybe they're so mad at you they're no longer talking to you - certainly this is better than nothing, and might open the door to a more meaningful, face-to-face apology once everyone has cooled off.
(A written apology might be more personable... Does Hallmark make Yom Kippur cards?)
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shanedieselblack said 8:01PM on 9-28-2009
Who did BERNIE MADOFF apologize to, do you wonder? What about the LEHMAN BROTHERS? Who did they apologize to?
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againsowhat said 8:25PM on 9-28-2009
Madhoff is not religious and shows what happens when people reject G-d.
The Lehman brothers is the name of a large company and the origional brothers who must have started it may not have been involved with the company for many eyars before it's collapse.
Also all those Wall street problems were not solved by fgovernment interference anyway.
In fact it was government excessive regulation that CAUSED the problems, not "the Jews" as you are obviously implying.
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Plees Eetmee said 11:13PM on 9-28-2009
I think Jerry Seinfeld should apologize to us for that terrible sketch he did with Oprah Winfrey on Jay Leno's new show.
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Rabbi Jason Miller said 2:46PM on 9-30-2009
As the rabbi who delivered the sermon about asking forgiveness via social media sites like Twitter and Facebook allow me to further explain my point and respond to a couple of the comments above.
First, I have no issue with individuals reaching out to those they have offended or hurt during the past year using forms of non-face-to-face communication (telephone, snail mail, FAX, email, text messaging, Facebook, Twitter, Pony Express, etc. What I take exception with is using these social media sites to send out a mass message to everyone you're connected to asking for their forgiveness.
That strikes me as missing the point of the Jewish "High Holy Days" (a.k.a., "The Days of Awe"). One should communicate directly with the other individual. Performing repentance (the Hebrew: "teshuvah") by updating your Facebook status update or tweeting on Twitter to everyone you know is akin to asking forgiveness on a highway billboard. As the Jewish teaching goes "tafasta meruba lo tafasta" - When you try to grab too much, you grab nothing at all. That is, when you try to ask forgiveness from everyone at once, you actually don't perform repentance at all. Repentance should be a challenge and a highly personal endeavor.
Eimat: If you're afraid of the individual from whom you seek forgiveness, try calling them on the phone or sending them a carefully written email message.
Shanedieselblack: Madoff is an interesting case. According to Maimonides, one has to be in the position to commit the same sin already committed and consciously choose not to err again. Madoff will likely be behind bars for the remainder of his life so he will not be able to perform Maimonides' idea of repentance. He could (and should) be allowed to meet face-to-face with each of the individuals whose financial lives he ruined and ask for their forgiveness. If you mention Madoff and "the Lehmann Brothers" because of their Jewish roots, I think you are stereotyping and acting bigoted. Many people of Jewish heritage were very negatively effected by the Madoff scandal including the Holocaust survivor and humanitarian Elie Wiesel.
Regarding comment #5, I would strongly advise against watching Jay Leno. He's not funny. Try Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert, or Conan for laughs instead.
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