sracer

Do the naysayers remember last year's ad? What exactly is so horrible about this year's printed ad over last year's? Specifically. Did they forget that the "real" doorbusters didn't make it into the printed ad last year? Do they consider that by NOT printing door-buster deals that gives them the flexibility to offer even BETTER surprise deals? I really hope that everyone who complains DOESN'T camp out.... it will help reverse a trend of longer lines being formed earlier.

I was thinking the same thing, though I would have it say "#3" for more authenticity.

That $200 laptop least year was NOT in the BF flyer though. It was one of those last-minute deals. The only thing that I see that is noticeably worse than in years past is that there is no desktop PC bundle for under $200 in the flyer. It will probably be a last-minute announcement.

I think that the ad so far is fine... no better than previous years, but not that much worse. Hopefully there will be many who agree with you.

IMO, no. LCD TVs vary greatly in quality. The perception of picture quality is highly subjective though so you should try to check one out personally. (what looks bad to me might look good to you) But I wouldn't take a Westinghouse LCD TV even if I was given one for free. But that is me.

I agree. Definitely speak with the store manager. Get his/her name. Ask specifically about how the store will handle the situation. Ask about those who try to line up earlier. Ask about these "homegrown" systems.

That's odd. I don't go to stores that have a "dash-n-grab" system. I find that type of system, like at Walmart, to be degrading and demeaning. - - - - - Selling tickets for BF doorbuster items is just mega-commercialism (commercializing a commercialistic event) I'm not angry at those who do it (I am usually about 20th in line every year) but I feel that they're missing out on the fun aspects of camping out. I've met some very interesting people on BF campouts. There are some people that I met on BF campouts that I only see at subsequent campouts. I see some of these regular irregulars more often than some of my relatives.

Blu-ray players typically play regular DVDs better than standard DVD players. Do your research because different models have different features. Except for high-end videophile models, the Sony PS3 is considered the best blu-ray player. I have one and it does a phenomenal job with regular discs too. (it upconverts/upscales them) It also makes a great multimedia hub for music, photos, and other videos. You can even watch tv shows and movies from hulu.com (for free) straight on the PS3's built-in web browser.

For me it will depend upon what is going to be on sale and the tenacity of others. In an experience similar to paketel's, people seem to start lining up 3 hours earlier than the year before. Last year I arrived on line @ 5pm Thanksgiving day and was 12th in line. (the first 6 people in line arrived @ 1pm in an RV and had their T-day meal in their RV. I enjoy the Black Friday experience for a variety of reasons, but if the tough economy causes more people to be more determined to get in on these deals, I can see the dynamic of things changing this year. There was a camaraderie among the fellow knuckleheads who are crazy enough to camp out for Black Friday. In the past, when economic times got tough, there was a more somber, less jovial attitude by those camping out. The number of people on line 12 hours before store opening will be a good indicator.

The format war is over, but market penetration of Blu-Ray is still very small, so I think the manufacturers will still be looking to generate some buzz with the product. Manufacturers aren't so desperate for market penetration as they were when there was a format war going on. The format war was quite costly for them and they want to recoup those losses. And they want to have blu-ray tiered at a higher price than DVD that has razor thin margins. It is possible that there will be another "free discs w/player purchase" but it is less likely than it was last year. Certainly be ready to jump on such a deal... just don't plan on it.

I highly doubt that there will be any "buy a blu-ray player and get 'x' free movies" deals this year. The format war is over so there is no incentive to do that. There may be some aggressive pricing on the older non-network-enabled blu-ray players.

Only if you buy 2 more spindles this BF.

I'm not getting to amped up about BF this year.... primarily because I'm not expecting spectacular door busters this year. Because of the economy, there will be less incentive to offer great DB's. People have less discretionary income to spend which means that the attach rate to DB's will be low to non-existent. There is little incentive to offer great door busters if people will visit the stores ONLY for those door busters.