Holiday Gifts Recipes Food Cooking International Guide
Holiday Gifts And Sticking To Budget
By Katerina Octanova
This Christmas season, more and more shoppers are turning to
their home computers to find holiday gifts. The ability to browse
catalogs and get personalized shopping selections is a big draw
for many people. Consumer reviews and price comparison sites are
also making cyber-shopping a cut above the rest.
Why waste money on gas rushing from store to store when you can
get free shipping? And why fight the mobs to be the first one
in the store at 6am, when you can get bargain "internet-only"
deals from the comfort of your own home any time of the day or
night? The only question that remains is, what shall you buy?
Electronic Christmas Gifts
Electronics are big for Christmas gifts, making up 4/10 of the
top wish list items for 2008 (Consumer Electronics Holiday Purchase
Patterns Study). Nearly 80% of adults and 84% of kids said they’d
like an electronic gift this year. So what’s hot for this Christmas
season?
Computers, video game consoles, portable MP3 players, mobile
phones and digital cameras topped this year’s Christmas wish list.
For computers, check out laptops at www.dell.com,
where you can find products for as low as $376. The Nintendo Wii
is still the game console of choice this year, with its wide array
of fun virtual-reality-type games. The price has come down a lot
over the years, retailing for around $300.
iPods And Portable Mp3 Players
The X-Box 360 is another good option for the gamer. In the world
of portable MP3 players, iPods still reign supreme, retailing
between $149 and $300. The iTouch is the most coveted mobile phone
on the market for 2008, known for its touchscreen, application
support and versatility.
For cameras, check out the Canon PowerShot series, where you
can find great value for under $300. The Nikon SLR cameras have
come down in price a lot and the Sony CyberShot is said to be
a good buy as well for that perfect Christmas gift.
The Amazon Kindle
Perhaps you’re buying holiday gifts for that gadget guy who seems
to have all the major items already. What more could he want?
Well, here are a few Christmas present suggestions that are bound
to impress. The Amazon Kindle is a portable electronic reading
device that will hold more than 200 magazines, newspapers, book
downloads and blogs.
For the versatile Youtube buff, the Sony Style Network Sharing
Camera accomplishes a lot for just $200, as it can film five hours
of web-ready video, while transforming into a 5-mega pixel digital
camera at the push of a button. Another cool gadget is the SanDisk
Sansa TakeTV Video Player, which is ideal for the guy who incessantly
downloads videos online or watches internet TV.
This $99 to $149 gadget will take computer files and allow you
to watch on your TV. The $29.99 Nike iPod Sport Kit is perfect
for that athletic running hunk; just stick the sensor in his shoes
and he can track the distance, time, pace and calories burned
during his workout!
Sticking To A Sensible Budget
No matter what kind of holiday gifts strike your fancy, don’t
lose your head on Christmas shopping. Make a sensible budget and
stick to it. Don’t fall for all the store promotions promising
"No interest for a year" and "20% off today when
you sign up for our store credit card." It is these types
of decisions that will leave you feeling miserable once the holiday
joy has subsided. It’s best to establish a budget, giving yourself
a little bit of leeway for taxes, shipping, gift wrap and tags.
If your list of people is looking long, discuss a Secret Santa
sort of structure with family to save or ask friends if they want
to do something smaller this year. The best thing you can do is
stay organized and on top of things. List the people you’re buying
for, the gifts you’d like to get them, how much you plan on spending
and how much you are over/under once you make the purchase. This
will make shopping at Christmas much less stressful!
About the Author:
Katerina Octanova has written a number of articles on food and
cooking including Christmas
Gift Baskets, The
Christmas, Christmas,
Santa
Claus, Christmas
Gift Food, Christmas
Hamper, Christmas
Gift For The Office, Christmas
Gift Idea For Family.
Keep a lookout for more of her articles on this website.
Did You Know This About Christmas?
There is a chill in the air and holiday lights are hung up in
towns all over the world. Christians are preparing to celebrate
Christmas. Celebrating this holiday is great but it also means
that your little ones will be out of school on break.
So what do you do to keep them entertained? Maybe you should
consider making crafts and providing puzzles to entertain them.
There are many different crafts, puzzles and pictures to color,
it will keep them busy for hours and give you a break.
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