Manatee County shoppers can find Black Friday deals on hot items such as Star Wars light sabers, action figures and gaming systems
MANATEE -- Classic toys and new gadgets will bring customers out for what the Florida Retail Federation expects to be a successful holiday season, which kicks off next week on Black Friday.
Best Buy, Walmart and Sears compete to give consumers the best deals on TVs, DVD players, video game systems and necessary technology accessories. Casting devices like Roku or Chromecast, which give users the ability to stream Netflix, Comedy Central and other shows at any time, are popular gift ideas this year.
Bobby Borges, general manager at the Best Buy on Cattlemen Road, said fitness accessories and smart watches, which can function as fitness trackers, are also hot gift ideas. Some gadgets and electronic big ticket items are consistently popular from year to year, Borges said, like TVs, tablets, laptops, headphones and smartphones.
"This holiday season there's going to be quite a few things," Borges said. "4K TVs will be popular and the iPad Pro just came out. I think it will be popular because it's different than other tablets on the market." The iPad Pro features a 12.9-inch Retina display with 5.6 million pixels, the most in an iOS device, according to AT&T, and almost double the CPU power of the iPad Air 2.
4k TVs, a new concept in TV viewing, offer a stronger high-definition experience with quadruple the number of pixels found in a traditional HD experience. The extra pixels are said to deepen colors, sharpen detail and provide more depth in the picture.
Beyond gadgets, parents can get excited about finding deals on what they'll wrap up and put under the tree for little ones.
Star Wars makes a return to stores this year in the form of bright plastic light sabers and action figures. The rush of Star Wars paraphernalia is spurred by the Dec. 18 release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Shopkins, made by Moose Toys, are another popular toy for the 2015 holiday season. Shopkins are more than 100 grocery store items-turned characters with names like Toof the Toothbrush for kids to collect and trade.
Kids are also asking Santa for a chance to go on the prowl with Paw Patrol toys. The Paw Patrol is a rescue adventure crew led by a tech-savvy 10-year-old named Ryder and comes with action figures, plush toys and board games. Toys R Us has Paw Patrol rescue sets on sale for 50 percent off and Shopkins ornaments for $5 each with two exclusive Shopkins in each ornament, according to the Toys R Us ad.
The Florida Retail Federation predicts traditional toys such as Barbies and Legos will remain popular, as well.
President and CEO of the Florida Retail Federation, Rick McAllister, said several factors will contribute to a 4.5 percent increase in sales for Florida's retailers this holiday season.
"Florida continues to see a strong increase in its economy thanks to record-setting tourism, increased consumer confidence, a surging real estate market, and a seven year low in unemployment, all of which mean big expectations for retailers this holiday season," McAllister said.
This story was originally published November 19, 2015 at 5:07 PM with the headline "Manatee County shoppers can find Black Friday deals on hot items such as Star Wars light sabers, action figures and gaming systems ."