According to the CEA, this year could be a record-breaking holiday shopping season for consumer gadgets--with spending levels reaching a 17-year high.
Although overall spending is expected to be down by 2%, consumers will be spending more on consumer electronics. According to the reports, 73% of U.S. adults (up from 67% last year) are planning to give gadgets as gifts this year.
But is everyone going to be a big winner this holiday season?
Definitely not.
While companies like Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), Google (GOOG: 587.19 ,-8.67 ,-1.46%) andMicrosoft (MSFT: 25.78 ,-0.44 ,-1.70%) could break the bank with their new devices, other companies like BlackBerry-maker RIM (RIMM: 56.30 ,-1.48 ,-2.56%), Palm (HPQ: 41.75 ,-0.78 ,-1.83%) and, interestingly enough, Nintendo could watch their products collect dust on the shelf.
Here is a quick breakdown of the expected winners and losers of this year’s holiday shopping season:
1. BY PRODUCTS:
Winners:
- •iPad: Competitive tablet pricing and rock solid OS and features. New features such as multitasking, AirPlay, and wireless printing with the upcoming OS 4.2 upgrade will bolster an already stellar product.
- •Kinect: The tremendous base is going to lead to a significant amount of curious consumers. Love it or hate it, this new type of control is bound to be at the top of the list, even if just from a curiosity standpoint.
- •Droid Pro: What could be a final blow to RIM, the Droid Pro looks poised to take a bigger slice of the enterprise and consumer market.
Losers:
