laddhorn

Flashlights? I like the sticker idea. Maybe just a round logo we could put on our back windows, or something with one of those square scanable things (technical term...I forgot what they are called). Perhaps maybe even a logo on a stun gun...you know...for those fights..lol

My mom uses android, but I am an android person. Just get your mom a smartphone similar to what you use. After all, you will be the one helping her! If you are concerned about price and ease of use, consider the Samsung Galaxy S5. (it will be cheap as it is 2 years old, yet still works well). Samsung devices have a setting called "Easy Mode" that makes it look similar to an iPhone.

I've had my Netgear Nighthawk R7000 for almost 2 years now. I think I have rebooted it twice to resolve connection issues. It is fairly stable and is able to reach through my whole house. (It is on the 2nd floor at the back of 3300 sqft.) I can use a laptop on the 5GHz on my front porch. It has been acting a little flaky recently, but not enough to warrant a reboot, yet.

If your son is "techie" he may enjoy building his own. Generally, Fry's Electronics and Tiger Direct has package deals on the parts. This is generally MUCH cheaper than purchasing a branded one. For example, you can build a desktop for less than $1000 with the same specs or better than a $2500 gaming computer.

I don't know if this counts, but I always go with DW. We plan together, then shop together. We also "divide and conquer" as needed. I've dropped her off at the mall, went to another store to get what we wanted, then met her back at the mall to finish up. Alone can be boring, but you can get more accomplished. The key is being on the same plan. If you both have separate plans, something will end up being sacrificed.

1. Approximately how many years have you been shopping on Black Friday? About 12 years. I worked in retail before and was on the other side of the line. 2. Do you plan to spend more, less or the same amount of money during Black Friday week this year? About the same. 3. Do you plan on shopping online during Black Friday week this year? Absolutely! It seems the easiest way to get all the items on the list. 4. How many people do you plan on shopping with on Black Friday this year? Typically, it starts with 4 or 5 of us and ends with just me and DW. We are more hard-core than the others. lol 5. If you could make stores change one thing about Black Friday besides opening times, what would it be? The checkout lines need to be streamlined much better. Opening additional mobile registers would help many stores process people better.

Last year I did probably about 60% online. I would like to do more, but DW keeps changing her mind about what she wants to get. We'll see about it this year.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0108GHAK8/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=LJEPOVZUSTAO&coliid=I2RY1ZGUOZM9S1&psc=1 Accessory hanger. DW and DD are both in need for one!

http://www.amazon.com/Binocktails-Bev-Brush-Paddle-Brush-Secret/dp/B00ESYPSHY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1445462800&sr=8-1&keywords=hair+brush+flask For the people who enjoy sneaking things in...lol. My boss actually is considering buying one.

The micro is a very low end computer (slow). It would work the same way as a desktop, but would run slowly, but work fine for surfing the web and using email. There is little ability to upgrade, for example, you could get a larger harddrive and (possibly) install it, but you would need to reload the whole thing from scratch. Memory is probably maxed out already. A DVD or CD drive may or may not come with the micro (usually not) and you would need to hook up an external drive. Available USB ports are minimal. Positives include the size (obviously smaller). Typically, they have few (or no) fans, so they are potentially quieter.

They may be legit. The link is dead now.

Harbor Freight....10/13

I've been seeing deals on Fry's electronics on LG 4k TVs. Mostly 55-65" sets. The 55" sets go "on sale" for about $900 and the 65" typically runs $1200. I have seen both $200 lower once. I am hoping to find a 55" 4k set for about the same price, but hopefully lower. Pnambic is correct about the viewing on a 4k set. The TV will slightly upscale the video stream, but it will not be the same as watching true 4k content. The reason I am looking for one is to use as a computer monitor when not in use as a TV. I have blown up my computer fonts to 2x the typical size, so I can see them across the room. Unfortunately, this has pixilated the words a bit, making it difficult to read on sites such as Facebook or Gottadeal. In theory, the greater resolution will cut down on the pixelation, allowing me to read the sites much better. For actually viewing TV, I don't expect much more than what I see on my 1080p set.

I am considering the Compu-sticks that have been recently released. They are full-blown windows computers about the size of a USB flash drive that plug into an HDMI port. They run full windows 8.1 or Windows 10 and cost between $100 and $150. They will be replacing my media centers as they can be fully hidden. They also have a USB port and some support extra flash memory (such as SD cards), they contain wifi and bluetooth. A wireless keyboard/mouse combo will turn any TV into a full computer, allowing me to stream any content without restrictions. I am also looking into the Kodi sticks, but I think I want more functionality.

Yay! Contests are making it seem even closer!

4k TV. We cut the cord this year and stream everything from a genuine computer. The extra resolution should help when doing other things besides watching tv.

For all the "students" out there, Amazon offers something called "Student Prime." It is free for the first 6 months and $50 after it expires for 1 year. I don't know if that continues as you prove that you are still a student or not. You just need a student email to verify your status. It does not tie with the student email account (unless you want it to) and works with existing accounts. I think during the free period you don't get streaming, but I haven't tried it to see yet.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/sony-cyber-shot-dsc-wx80-16-2-megapixel-digital-camera-red/7594173.p?id=1218853500842 Clearance for $100. We have one and it takes good photos.

Congrats pogiporkchop!

Online shopping is the way to go. You don't lose time with your family, you don't fight crowds, or come into contact with unruly people. You can also get done shopping quicker as you can check out without standing in line, even if the website is running slow. Thanksgiving openings allow people who will not wake early a chance to get to the stores for the doorbusters. This can increase total sales and benefit the company. Opening earlier on Thanksgiving will give decreasing rewards as people still like to cook for Thanksgiving dinner. A 7 or 8 am opening time may show an increase, but the store will not see much sales increases after about 10am through 3 or 4 as people are either cooking or eating their dinner. Any early morning sales spike will drop significantly as people leave to cook or eat their prepared feast. Black Friday, as such, is now gone as it has been moved to Thanksgiving evening. If a store opens at 5am after being completely closed on Thursday, they will risk few people showing up. This is because most people went out on Thursday to all of the other sales and became too tired to shop by 2 or 3 am (or earlier). A 5am opening will have decreased sales because most of the shoppers will be sleeping or too exhausted. The Friday numbers also reflect the items that are now out of stock. The only way for a store to combat the fatigue would be to have a set of staggered doorbusters, similar to how Walmart is doing it. Perhaps open at 6p on Thursday with a set of doorbusters, again at 8p to filter out some of the people. Friday doorbusters should start at 8am or 9am allowing for people to get a little sleep and perhaps bring out the people who avoided the crowds the night before (at least that would be for the first couple of years.) This may bolster the Friday numbers and increase overall sales.

I saw several at 2 different Walmarts. The microsoft store is selling the xbox ones for $25 currently

Last year the brand was "Funai" and many were returned the next week because they didn't work. If you buy one, be sure and check it before you wrap it!

Got mine! Thanks Brad!

I have not seen them yet, but I'm sure that one of the providers (ATT/Verizon/Sprint/TMobile) will offer something like that on Black Friday. We'll have to wait for their flyer to surface. Tablets generally are data only. Some do have sim slots, but none in the ads so far have one. None of them will make phone calls. But, you should be able to use Skype or some other software that transmits voice over data. The Galaxy Mega would probably offer you the best/cheapest solution if you want to actually use it as a phone. The Note series has higher specifications and are typically more expensive. If you want to purchase one without a contract, another option to consider is the One Plus One. It is a nice phablet that you can purchase off contract at a reasonable price and is very good. OPO review: http://www.engadget.com/products/oneplus/one/ Purchasing one may be difficult as they are in limited supply. You can get an "invite" from someone that already purchased one or catch one when they open to the general public (occasionally). There will be no sale on this phone, so no waiting needed.

I purchased a Netgear Nighthawk last year (@$199) and it has worked fine so far. Linksys is now owned by Belkin, and I wouldn't recommend a new one. The old one (a "G" router) worked great for about 5 years, until I had a lightning strike.