Fifteen things that will be less expensive in 2015
The Great Recession may have聽, but that's probably a surprise to millions of Americans still worrying about their budgets. A modicum of relief is on the way in 2015, as prices fall on some popular goods and services 鈥� including one major necessity that affects many others: gas.
From cranberry sauce to a Kia sedan, read our predictions for items that will drop in price in the coming year. Peruse the list, then consider also checking out what聽聽鈥� as well as signing up for the DealNews Select Newsletter, so you can聽聽in the coming months.
Gas Prices
According to the government's Energy Information Administration, gas prices will聽聽in 2015 鈥� even lower than the聽聽of $2.94 per gallon. In聽, prices could even slip below $2 per gallon. If it seems to be good to be true, consider聽聽were already offering gas below $2 per gallon in December.
Transatlantic Flights
Though fuel prices are falling,聽. However, the聽聽because of added flight capacity, according to the American Express Global Business Travel annual forecast. Several airlines are also offering cheap transatlantic trips, including Norwegian Airlines, which started offering聽聽in June 2014, as well as bargain flights from Los Angeles and Fort Lauderdale. Iceland-based WOW Air recently started offering flights between the U.S. and Europe for聽.
TV Content Packages
Since 2010, the top 40 cable channels have聽聽because of "cord cutters" quitting cable TV, and聽, who have never paid for cable at all and instead watch shows online. The big news in 2015 is that聽聽in April,聽. CBS also is offering a la carte on-demand TV with its聽听蝉别谤惫颈肠别.
For this reason, too, pay-TV providers are increasingly looking to lure the "cord shaving" crowd, offering cheaper bundles with fewer channels at low prices in the hopes that these customers will eventually upgrade. And some even say that cable bundles might be the better deal, as聽, making cable bundles the better deal in some cases. So weigh your options before embarking on winter binge-watching. (Check out聽.)
Cloud Storage
Cloud storage companies are continuing to cut prices and increase storage in what's being called "." Consider the trend this past year: When聽. Across the board, price drops continued throughout the year, and the trend is聽.
In fact, Aaron Levie, CEO of cloud company Box, recently predicted "." Amazon is considered to be at the forefront of keeping things competitive, and the company recently added聽. Just consider storing聽someplace safe.
4K TVs
This Black Friday,聽DealNews聽saw super-cheap prices for聽, ranging in price from $375 to $1,300. (Keep in mind that in 2013, prices were in the $5,000 to $7,000 range, and聽.) These TVs that offer a 3840x2160 pixel resolution are hailed as the聽, and as they become more popular, prices can be expected to drop. (Remember when VCRs were expensive? Remember VCRs?)
And there's more to actually watch on 4K TVs as well. Amazon recently started聽. And Netflix has recently聽, but as competition increases, prices for content should drop. (Check out our discussion on whether聽.)
Smartphones
By the end of 2015, LTE聽聽are expected to be聽, even before subsidies. The聽, according to a forecast from International Data Corporation, meaning competitive pricing and lower prices. Those looking for smartphones for less than $200 can also expect more for their money, including HD screens.
Smartwatches
The much-anticipated聽聽in early 2015, at a price of $349 to potentially thousands, and an estimated 10% of consumers report that they're considering buying one. If you're looking to spend less, technology research firm Gartner predicts that聽聽will make up to 40% of wrist-worn devices by 2016 and the increased demand for wearable tech will cause prices from some manufacturers to drop below $150. In fact, some smartwatches could be聽, and Chinese company聽.
Tech Gear (like GPS Devices and Software)
Speaking of China, after negotiations at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Beijing in November, tariffs that have added 25% to the cost of tech products in the United States could be a thing of the past. According to a White House statement,聽, potentially affecting the prices of medical equipment, GPS devices, computer software, and video game consoles. We'll most likely see lower prices on products manufactured in China,聽.
Video Game Consoles
As a special holiday promotion, the聽聽from $399 to $349 through January 3, 2015. During Black Friday, we saw a lot of聽听补苍诲听聽deals for even less; in fact, the Xbox outsold the PS4 because of these deals, and we suspect Microsoft will be hesitant to inflate that price back up again. And even if they do, retailers might be forced to continue offering deals if customers are now accustomed to the lower price point. Plus, with the recent trade agreement between the United States and China expected to reduce prices of video game consoles, it's a safe bet that gaming systems will cost less in 2015.
Kia Forte
The 2015 model of the Kia Forte is $10 less than last year's model, making it cheaper than the Nissan Sentra. And if $10 in savings doesn't sound significant, keep in mind that this makes the Forte officially the聽.
Butter
Since 2013,聽, reaching an all-time high of $2.85 per pound in September. By October, butter had fallen to $2.53 per pound and聽聽in November, with聽聽predicted by the USDA in 2015.
Cranberries
The cranberry sauce for your Thanksgiving feast may have聽, and prices may continue to drop. News of cranberry excess聽, and to deal with the cranberry surplus 鈥� nearly at聽聽鈥� the U.S. government just purchased 680,000 barrels' worth in juice, sauce, and dried berries for distribution in food banks and schools.
Which price drops are you looking forward to? Do you have your own predictions for 2015? Tell us in the comments section below! And make sure to sign up for the聽聽to save money year round, or check out our聽.
听搁别濒补迟别诲听:
Josie Rubio is a contributing writer for , where first appeared.聽
