10 'Black Friday' Deals to Watch For
Traditionalists might balk, but the holiday shopping season is already underway. Skeptical? Head to your local department store and you'll be inundated with Christmas trees and holiday ornaments. Bargain hunters, though, know that the real deals are over a month away.
Traditionally, Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving for the uninitiated) is when retailers truly slash prices. Early birds can shave hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars off their holiday bills. We checked with a few elves, who gave us a sneak peek at what you can expect deal-wise this year.
1. 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-inch laptops to go for as little as $249.
2. Blu-ray Players and Blu-ray Discs
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.
3. HDTVs (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.
4. HDTVs (Really big):
Need something bigger? How about a 46- to 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.
5. 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.
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, and a Garmin or TomTom unit for as low as $69.
7. 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.
8. Computer 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.
9. 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 1-terabyte (TB) drive to fall as low as $49 this year. Gottadeal is looking for 8-gigabyte (GB) flash drives to hit $15.
10. Freebies
If you're willing to jump through a few hoops, there are plenty of tech goodies that should be available for free this year. Expect everything -- from 802.11n wireless routers, to PC cases, to anti-virus software -- to be available free after rebate. Secure Digital (SD) cards and USB flash drives should be, as well. Just be sure to carefully follow the rebate instructions – and read close to see if you'll be getting a check or a debit card for the amount.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 5)
JJ said 1:29PM on 10-21-2009
*cringes at the sight of the word "memory" being used in reference to hard drive storage space*
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Nick said 10:09PM on 11-08-2009
haha same here. and being a sister-site to engadget makes me think they should definitely know better...
wolf said 1:04PM on 11-10-2009
Hahaha, yeah, i kinda read into that blindly, thinking they were actually talking about memory. I was trying to wrap my head around the idea of a 1TB chunk of RAM, and wondering if I'd somehow fallen asleep for the better part of a decade....
CrackerJCL said 9:27AM on 11-12-2009
Nerd!!
Mike said 10:29AM on 11-12-2009
A hard drive is a form of memory - it's just static, non-volatile memory, like your BIOS, or computers instruction set. Memory is just a generic term that is often confused with RAM.
Nathan said 11:49AM on 11-12-2009
Technically it's all memory and you know it. You're an electronics snob and that's about all there is to that. Most people have no idea of the difference you're even talking about.
ptsales said 12:17PM on 11-12-2009
HAHAHAHAHH!!!! I am glad you caught that. Dilbert :)
Derek said 1:57PM on 11-12-2009
I know!, People will never learn....lol
Jack said 8:38AM on 11-05-2009
Thanks, you always have great information and advice. I appreciate thge time and trouble you go through to keep us updated
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BoxerX said 7:55AM on 11-10-2009
If this site cant distinguish the simple difference between "Memory" and "Drive Storage" it is indicative of the hiring practices of a tech site these days....sheesh..it is hard to believe this site is related to Engadget.
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A Person said 8:08AM on 11-13-2009
perhaps they were trying to speak to the common person. Personally, I did not know the specific difference until reading these comments. Everyday people read these as well and perhaps people would have said, "What is the difference?" If they had referred to them as two different concepts entirely. Just a thought.
SubtleSprite said 3:09PM on 11-23-2009
Actually, it is all memory as someone already stated. the fact that most people I know use it to keep more of the computers memory open would put it in the 'memory' slot for me too. but if you have to be what the other person refered to as an electronics snob (personaly I'd have gone with TECHSNOB) then so be it. you are entitled to your oppinion too. =}
paul said 3:50PM on 11-12-2009
It's Idiot consumer like me that read these articles on Black Friday, we do not understand all your "GEEK" terms nor do we care; we only want to know if it can remember all the crap we put in..!
rader023 said 11:23AM on 11-10-2009
its hard for me to believe that you guys dont consider hard drives = memory......in the broader sense.
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UltimateRX2002 said 3:14PM on 11-12-2009
they are, of course, but speaking to the common person and just allowing for those terms to become so confused is what causes the confusion in the first place. The average consumer doesn't have to be a dim-witted plank of wood when it comes to buying any tech equipment, but they get away with it because of shoddy reviewing practices and the lack of need to know.
They can just go into a store, ask what's better, have someone like me sell them the most expensive thing, and they skip away with a blank smile on their face "knowing" they have the best thing out there, but not knowing why, how, or if it really is. For example, just last night while I was at work, I sold a guy the newer LG55LHX LED LCD TV at $3499.99. Since it was the first thing he saw, he thought it was the best thing ever. Wouldn't listen to me because he "heard LED is the best!(sometimes) and LG is a good brand right?(sorta) Why shouldn't it be the best?(because it's not)" where he could have had the Samsung 55" 8000 for a cool $500 cheaper and had a better display. The best would have been the XBR10 or Samsung 8500, but he never saw them, didn't know they exist, so he remains the uneducated "average customer".
Granted the LG is backlit as opposed to edge-lit, but polishing a piece of shit doesn't mean it isn't still shit. And LG knows it.
It's a cycle of ignorance that just repeats every day. It's a breath of fresh air when someone actually knows about what they're buying, and that should not be. Sadly, I get one maybe every few days. The rest, the first question I ever hear is "what's better/what's the difference between LCD and Plasma?" if they ever get that far. mostly it's "I don't want plasma, LCD is better because someone told me so"
RCBCU said 5:11PM on 11-10-2009
In contemporary usage, memory usually refers to a form of semiconductor storage known as random-access memory (RAM) and sometimes other forms of fast but temporary storage. Similarly, storage today more commonly refers to mass storage — optical discs, forms of magnetic storage like hard disk drives, and other types slower than RAM, but of a more permanent nature. Historically, memory and storage were respectively called main memory and secondary storage. The terms internal memory and external memory are also used.
The contemporary distinctions are helpful, because they are also fundamental to the architecture of computers in general. The distinctions also reflect an important and significant technical difference between memory and mass storage devices, which has been blurred by the historical usage of the term storage.
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Bob said 7:01PM on 11-12-2009
So tell me what is a SanDisk? Or a USB smart drive? Or any of the other myriad external "drives" that are really flash memory?
Get a life guys. I have been round computers since before you were a gleam in you daddy's eyes and memory is a term for any and all storage availble for a computer, hard drive, floppy, PCMCIA, USB, CDROM (see that M), flash, RAM and even core memory.
Cooper said 10:38AM on 11-12-2009
Give 'em a break. Probably less than 5% of the readers/commenters here have ever heard the term "main frame!" I've got $5 that says very, very few of us know what a punch card is and even fewer have ever seen one. So, I'm sure the vast majority of the commenters here don't consider a HDD "memory." Remember, people under 25 think their generation invented electricity, fire, and the wheel (at least that's the impression I get from my kids)!
joefabitz77 said 10:45AM on 11-12-2009
and so...what is sold state disk, cache in a hard drive, etc.?
bobbywalnuts1959 said 5:29PM on 11-12-2009
You rock!