Munchies. Beverages. A comfy place to sit. What else do you need to watch the Super Bowl on TV? That's right: a television set. Many retailers expected television sales to spike around the end of January in anticipation of football's biggest game of the year.

"That normally happens this time of year, especially with the higher-end sets," said Clarence Robinson, assistant manager of the Rex appliance store at the Prince of Orange Mall.

This year, customers are seeing more options than ever — plasma screens, high-definition, flat screens, panoramic formats and so forth — and "the prices are coming down," Robinson said.

Across the mall, Sears hung signs reminding shoppers to think about buying a new television set for the big game.

Also on sale at Sears were personal soft-drink vending machines that could be personalized with the logo of the professional team of one's choice.

The impending Super Bowl also means more people are getting their TV sets fixed, too.

"There has been a definite pickup on big screens," said Grace Starnes, an employee at Thacker's TV, a repair shop in Orangeburg.

"We've got parts coming in today," she said Thursday, adding she was confident she would get all of the TV sets back to their owners in time for the kickoff shortly after 6 p.m. Sunday.

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