Big Christmas Sales

From listening to what people are saying and looking at the ads, it seems like the two big Christmas items this year are small laptop or notebook computers and HDTVs. Small portable computers are really coming into their own. They can do most everything you need a computer to do, you can take it anywhere. If you have a few peripherals at home, external hard drive for storage, CD/DVD drive and burner and maybe a printer, you don't need another computer at all. They're dirt cheap now.

HDTVs were a big item last year. It's not hard to see why they are again. The prices are a lot cheaper and the picture quality is a lot better. The Chinese are getting more efficient all the time.

I could use an HDTV. The cable service I have is going to quit transmitting the old VHF format soon and I'd have to get a converter box. Too much trouble. I think I'll bet that it won't be a very good Christmas season for retailers and wait until the clearance sales next Spring. I think I'll pass on a laptop, too. I like old towers for now, you can take them apart and replace stuff. If you have a good source of used parts, it's dirt cheap and you can keep an old, used computer running as long as you want it to.