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 1:09PM on 9-29-2009
What the f*ck are they talking about?
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Platinum_Skeet said 3:24PM on 9-29-2009
They're are gonna have to change it again. I can easily see TFW being misinterpreted later.
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Ethan said 7:29PM on 9-29-2009
Why the face?
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WTF's Wrong With You? said 3:08AM on 10-01-2009
How the F old are you? WTF has meant the same thing long before 1979!
You and those idiots in Wisconsin should start a clueless moron's club.
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Bill said 9:32AM on 10-03-2009
This must be a Wisconsin trait. Green Bay-based health insurer Humana has a
medical provider network called the Point-Of-Service plan.
They can't seem to grasp that calling their own product a POS isn't helpful!!
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Bob said 10:00AM on 10-03-2009
THESE GUYS ARE IN BIG TROUBLE. I THINK THEY SHOULD GO BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD. EVEN IF THEY THINK TFW IT LOOKS FUNNY AND I AM SURE SOMEONE WILL COME UP WITH SOME ASSININE SIMILIAR INTERPRETATION. I MEAN WTF IS TAKEN AND FTW IS TAKEN. IT IS JUST A SHORT LEAP FROM THE BIKER SLANG FTW TO TFW. SCRATCH IT ALL AND GO BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD. IF NOTHING ELSE ITS A TYPO WAITING TO HAPPEN.
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Crystal Brass said 9:57AM on 10-03-2009
Perhaps the United Dairy Farmers should change their initials........UDF.
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C M Nelson said 10:35AM on 10-03-2009
ONLY PEOPLE WITH DIRTY MOUTH AND MIND WOULD HAVE THOUGHT OF THAT AND I AM SICK OF THE PEOPLE THAT USE THAT WORD. TIME TO GROW UP AND LEARN TO USE THE CORRECT WORDS, IF THAT IS WHAT THEY WANT TO SAY.
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Woody said 1:29PM on 10-03-2009
I'm inclined to agree with you. It isn't dirty to me.
J. Cog Flywheel said 10:37AM on 10-03-2009
Here's one to ponder and has been around for years, Parent Teacher Association......PTA. One can imagine a text message to a guy from a gal....R U UP FR PTA? We might want to change that to The Association of Student Affairs. You think?
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bcody1944 said 10:48AM on 10-03-2009
Dang! I liked the original logo. Obviously, WTF has something to do with cheese, and even if one cuts the cheese repeatedly in public, I wouldn't call it vulgar. I think originally WTF meant "whip til foamy." I'm not a big fan of foamy cheese, though. I suppose they could do better.
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pnut166 said 1:18PM on 10-03-2009
WTF is wrong with them??? WTF were they thinking ???
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Marguerite said 12:42PM on 10-03-2009
people actually go to wisconsin on vacation?
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