Consumer confidence is down, the foreclosures keep coming, and you're pinching pennies while Wall Street seems to have reverted to business as usual. Fortunately, one thing may bring back your holiday spirit: cheap TVs. That's right, this year's holiday shopping season may bring TVs at deeper price cuts than usual.
What You Can Expect for Black Friday 2010
At those prices, don't expect to snap up a full-featured 3D TV with a 240Hz refresh rate, though; for that kind of money, you're probably looking at lower-tier manufacturers like Emerson, whose sets are already pretty cheap.
Still, we're willing to bet that the price cuts will extend to big-name brands, too. That's because practically every TV manufacturer is making the transition from CCFL-backlit LCD TVs to LED-backlit TVs in their midrange and high-end sets. Even manufacturers like Panasonic, who have traditionally stuck to making plasma TVs, now offer at leasr one LED-backlit LCD model.
It doesn't stop there. After all, if LCD prices plummet, they'll eat into plasma TV sales, since plasmas typically cost 25 percent less than an equivalent LCD TV. The net result: Manufacturers are likely to cut prices on plasma TVs so that they won't end up with a similar inventory problem in early 2011.
Not up to the challenge of Black Friday shopping? Don't worry. Though you might miss out on a shot at those elusive $200 to $300 HDTVs, you'll still be able to find a good deal on a good television. That's because the inventory oversupply most likely will linger until January.
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$200 HDTVs: Not for the Discriminating Shopper
If you're salivating at the prospect of a $200 no-name HDTV, don't feel bad. Outside of hardcore home-theater enthusiasts, most people simply try to buy the largest TV their budget allows, without thinking much about brand or extra features.
If you're not especially picky about color accuracy or motion blur, a cheaper TV can work well as a secondary TV--something the kids can use for playing video games, which typically have more saturated, cartoony colors than movies. Keep in mind that you're more likely to notice image quality problems in larger sets than in smaller ones, because the same image is displayed over a larger surface, making the flaws easier to spot. So you might find that a $300 32-inch set looks better than a $500 42-inch set because its imperfections are harder to spot.
Don't forget to read "10 Things You Need to Know Before Buying an HDTV" and our "HDTV Buying Guide: Making Sense of the Specifications" for more tips on picking the best TV for your budget. If the idea of assembling your own setup appeals to you, check out "Build a Better Home Theater for Less Than $1000" for some suggestions on how to put together a solid home entertainment center on the cheap.