david: is there a minimum for folks watching? >> we have accredited investor situations and things like that and pretty high minimums. david: good stuff. >> liz: j.c. parets, congratulations. david: "willis report" is next. we'll see you tomorrow. gerri: hello, everyone, i'm gerri willis. we begin tonight with a warning to all parents and grandparents. as you hit the toy store this season you want to check and double-check the safety of those toys on your christmas shopping list. according to a new study, toy related injuries are up 60% since 1990. here with their annual list of dangerous toys that can still be found on store shelves is the u.s. public industry research group. thanks for coming on the show tonight. if people don't think this is important list. let me explain. this is your 29th annual. as a matter of fact the federal government recalls a lot of toys you shed a light on, up to 150.

tell me what are the most common problems that you find with toys? >> well, one of the most common problems is choking. we have found over the years many examples of toys on store shelves just too small for young children under three to play with. young children as we all know put everything in their mouths and so the risk of choke something very high. that is actually the largest threat to young children. david: the other thing you're testing for toxic hazards. things kids can put in their mouth that hurt them. noise hazards as well. i really want to get to some of the toys because i think that is the real payoff here. some of these toys are actually on target's shelves right now. start with edu-shape. tell us what these are? they are textured blocks. what's the problem. >> they're textured blocks. marketed to children ages two and up.

unfortunately we found blocks in the set that can fit into a small choke tube, that is, created to test whether a toy is safe for children to play with. what this means is, that if a child as directed two years or above plays with this toy, there is a choking hazard. >> there is tambourine. jake the netherland pirates tambourine. this is different kind of hazard. this is cream yum. tell us about that -- chromium. >> chromium is chemical added to materials to soften them and make them shiny. if a child is exposed to this chemical it can cause skin irritation, rashes and we found levels of chromium in this tambourine that exceeded cpsc safe limits of 60 parts per million. gerri: consumer products safety commission. badge playset this is lead for goodness sakes. >> we all know lead is a

dangerous substance. it was banned in paints many years ago, gasoline. and there is a good reason for that. when children are exposed the chemical can cause behavioral problems. it can cause lowered i.q. unfortunately we found elevated levels of led higher than allowable limits in toy badges found in a dollar store. gerri: rubber burns sy ball. this is choking hazard. they look super cute but got to tell you maybe not so much. >> they are. they're super cute and colorful and very attractive. natural gift for a parent or grandparent to want to give to their child. unfortunately this ball fits into the choke tube so is unsafe for a child under three. gerri: our generation, sidey lee and stars. what is this? in your eyes. what is this toy? >> this toy is a small doll. it was found at target, on target shelves. and the problem with this toy it contains a part, the small yo-yo fits into the choke tube and even though the toy is actually

marketed for ages 3 to 6, so above the 3-year-old threshold, the law mandates that a toy marketed to 3 to 6 but contain as small part needs to have a warning label on it that says, is unsafe for children under three. that is because many children between ages of three and six, they often have younger siblings. also we want parents to know, this is not a cognitive development issue. this is, oh, my child is smart enough not to put something in their mouth. this means children under three really put everything in their mouths. we should be very cautious. gerri: you make some very good points there, including maybe younger children in the household. i think that's fascinating. of course parents, if you have these, you got to get rid of this stuff. get it out of the house. that is my advice. you have a complete list though at toysafety tips.org. i want everybody to get that. because the reality it is very easy to buy this stuff. the takeaway for parents, don't

buy toys with small pieces. and you're going to have to watch out to make sure you don't get toys made out of materials that could harm your child. thanks for coming on. great to meet. >> you thank you. >> well, cyber monday that is, arrives on the heels of thanksgiving, black friday and small business saturday. the beats go on. although some may argue it was a soft weekend for retailers, cyber monday data is showing online shopping day is off to a strong start. here with more retail analyst, lori wachs thanks for coming on the show. this is great stuff. i have to tell you there is real debate how some of this is going even cyber monday. we don't have the real numbers n the national retail federation famously saying we think it will be worse than last year by a long shot. other independent analysts culling through actually what is it going on physically out there, well it, could be much stronger, as much as 17% stronger.

what is your best guess here? >> well, as it relates to online i think it will be up pretty much in line with what we've seen all year which is up 12 to 14%. but with all the focus and attention that goes to cyber monday, it should tick up a bit on a day like today. if you're not shopping online today, you don't have to fight the crowds and you have got great deals then you won't be shopping on line. gerri: i think a lot of people out there, feel like they're hammered though by many solve these online retailers and their email in box. i know i am. what kind of trend with online retailers clearly trying to get your attention? what are the newest methods for getting people shopping? >> well the interesting thing with the online deals, you can adjust and fine tune your promotional strategy almost on a dime. whereas, if you're talking about at the physical stores, there is a lot going into changing signage and hard marking the goods. so if we look at today's promotions, they're pretty much

in line with what we saw last year and what we saw overblack friday. so i would then venture to say, that it was not the difficult weekend that the national retail federation has said it has been. in terms of what i think the retailers doing it right are doing with their online promotions they're offering a seamless transaction for the customer. so if the customer goes to buy it online and it doesn't exist in their inventory, they then can go to the stores and pull the merchandise because you don't want to ever have to walk sales. that is really important thing. >> before you go on i just have to ask you -- >> with 40% off and 50% off. tell me instead this is what we're focusing on this week i'm more likely to believe this is one day or one-week sale. gerri: let me stop you there for just a second. why would the national retail federation get it so wrong? seems they're incented to say it is a great year? >> they are and they have a pretty good track record but they have a tough time now culling what's going on with the

big shift to online. so they have a really hard time interpolating the data. given the shift that we're seeing, and with promotions being pulled up earlier this year and november started off quite strong and inventories are lean, so retailers didn't have to get as promotional, i just don't think, black friday is not what it once was. i think we're at a real paradigm shift. gerri: very interesting. there is a hook we should be talking about, right? the world has changed. i just think people know the season will go on for a long time. it is starting earlier and earlier. maybe people don't spend less over holiday shopping season. they spend more dollars across more days. adobe is in the marketplace trying to figure out what people are spending on cyber monday. midnight to 10 a.m., year-over-year growth was something like 17%, keeping in mind cyber monday is a far smaller kettle of fish than

black friday four days, $50 billion in sales. do you think that 17% is likely to hold when all the dollars and cents are counted? >> i think as it relates to just cyber monday we could see a number in the high teens. i think over the course of the season it will probably still be in the teens but probably settle down to closer to 13, 14% as it relates to online shopping. >> lori, thanks so much for coming on the show tonight. great to meet. >> you my pleasure. >> well, you know it's easy, easy to get carried away in clicking your way through the shopping list this cyber monday. according to market watch, there are items you should avoid buying today, starting with televisions and laptops. unfortunately the deals already rolled out on black friday, if you missed out, hold out to january for the new flat screen when prices begin to fall again. there are excellent deals for laptops during the back to school shopping season. while you're at it, skip buying appliances and household goods.

according to retail experts, september and october may be the best time to buy appliances and save sheets and curtains for new year. white sales are in january. that is the tradition since the late 1800s. a piece of jewelry is never a bad gift under the christmas tree, better wait for after-christmas sales and valentine's day promotions. prices are better then. what you should be shopping for, what are the deals now? clothing, shoes, beauty think products and small electronics like headphones. still more to come this hour including your voice. your voice is important to us. that's why during the show we want to you facebook me or tweet me @gerriwillisfbn. at bought hour i will read your tweets and emails. it is an early christmas gift to drivers. gas prices are hitting the lowest levels in years but how long is this goodness going to last? details coming up after the break. ♪

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billions of dollars back into consumers products but can the fracking industry survive the low prices it brought on? plus how low can prices go on your christmas travel? we ask patrick dehaan, gasbuddy.com and. welcome to you both. patrick, i will start with you, how low will prices go? this is literally putting prices back into people's pockets. >> if anybody has a good answer for that, there are dozens of food answers. we don't really know how far it will go. we know given what we know so far we know how low it will go and the national average could drop into the 2.50s by christmas. could be more depending what shakes from here on out. gerri: we'll hold you to the 2.50 by chris's ma. that is what we're looking for. -- christmas. regular right now, 2.77. unbelievable. last year at this time it was

$3.27. i've seen $2 and change all over the country on my thanksgiving day travels. andy i want to talk about something that a lot of people don't think about. once oil prices drop, oil is input into lots and lots of products. let's talk about what oil goes into the. what are the kind of things that oil is required ingredient of? >> well, sure, i mean beyond the obvious of gasoline, jet fuel and diesel, when you think about things like paint, or plastic, or those water bottles that you're buying, water in or said today bottles, things like that, how about carpet, which comes from nylon and carpet backing? so lots of consumer goods. even buttons on your shirt made out of plastic or even some of the eyeglasses, this plastic is coming from petroleum-based products. >> and toys. i just think of all the things in the world and we're showing g this huge scroll here. cameras, canned dills. this is alpha, so super long because we're only in the cs.

it is a critically important input, andy. when you think about what is happening with oil right now, once you lower prices is that going to be kind of a domino effect throughout the economy? >> well it certainly is. the consumer will benefit from not only these products that you have mentioned but even when we're delivering stuff on the rails like foodstuffs, corn and wheat to the cereal manufacturers and turning it into your morning breakfast and comes into your store by truck. gerri: exactly. goes on and on. impacts are hard to imagine. certainly at these levels. patrick, which states see the lowest prices right now? where are the best deals? >> not surprisingly most in the gulf where proximity to gulf refining infrastructure is key. you're talking missouri, oklahoma, texas, south carolina, the benefit of low gasoline taxes and like i said, proximity to the nation's infrastructure. gerri: andy, as you look at these numbers, folks say that

oil would be twice as expensive if it were not for track fracking. how important is fracking to the story? >> it is a big part of the story because as you know the increase in production in the u.s. as well as canada met the increase in world demand over the last couple years and will continue to do so into 2015. and that as a result that has tempered any price rises we've been age to see occur. you combine with poorer demand in europe, japan and china. as a result the market perception has changed. now we're at $70 a barrel and less. gerri: unbelievable. patrick, to you, i'm sitting here thinking about should i buy a bigger car? i think a lot of consumers out there will mull those kinds of questions. but what would be some type of typical pressure that would push gas prices higher in the coming months? are there seasonal factors that might be important here? >> certainly.

university of michigan are saying that consumers are starting to buy less fuel efficient vehicles. i caution there will be a rebound. we'll not likely see gas prices reach records in prior years but there will be a spring run-up in prices as refineries do maintenance work on their facilities. as epa mandated summer blends start to make their way to the pump. gas prices will likely start inch offing up. how much and exact time sergeant only question here. but gas prices will likely get close and breach $3 a gallon as soon as next spring. gerri: so, andy, famously opec here is not increasing production and looks like a real war out there. the thing that has been keeping prices low to date has been fracking. at what point does fracking become uneconomic? because prices drop and drop and drop? at some point you have to think those folks can't make oil profitably? >> we're really going to find out but conventional wisdom between 60 and $70 a barrel is the break even for new

investment up in the bakken as well as the permanent mean basis and eagle ford in texas. however the international energy agency came out and said most wells in the bakken will be profitable at $42 a barrel which is really hard to believe. gives you an idea these costs are continuing to decline as we get new technological improvements and greater efficiency. gerri: wow, 40 bucks a barrel, that's shocking. patrick, andy, thanks for coming on the show. great stuff. appreciate your time. >> thank you. gerri: we want to know what you think. here is our question tonight. are you spending more on christmas because gas prices are lower? log on to gerriwillis.com. vote on the right-hand side of the screen. i will share the results at the end of tonight's show. later in the show bond funds are, dashing for cash but what should consumers do? we'll cover your assets. more problems ahead for obamacare. next how prominent ceos are having buyer's remorse about

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gerri: the business roundtable, that's a group of prominent ceos, is considering ditching their support for obamacare. they're changing their mind because of a fight over work place wellness programs. obamacare encourages these programs but the feds are suing some companies because of them. with us now, trying to make sense of all this, paul howard, senior fellow with the manhattan institute. paul, welcome. so i am mystified by all of this. there is a big meeting with the president tomorrow.

how can the government on one hand say, well, you really need these wellness programs and then on the other hand, say, but we'll see you for having them. >> peter doesn't know what paul is doing. there are other laws, genetic non-discrimination act. gerri: hipaa. >> and hipaa. gerri: which is well-known. >> the trick you can't make it mandatory as condition of employment or having health insurance to do this but these are incentives. they're really going about, having a $1,000 incentive make it mandatory. >> need to describe the wellness programs a little bit because not everybody has them. we have them here. they are incentives for to you do the right thing. explain what companies are trying to get to you stop doing? >> trying to get you to stop smoking and eat healthy and cholesterol and risk factors having a heart attack. get on statins or diabetes medicines, that control chronic diseases that don't put you in the hospital later. it is in the your best interest and company's best interest to keep you healthy. gerri: important to keep you healthy.

the way you get answers give you tests, medical tests. very important law and old law hipaa prevents that, right? >> well, hipaa has to maintain confidentiality. so people are saying we're worried this information might get out. the real big question appears to be for genetic non-discrimination. what if you have genetic predisposition to being obese or high cholesterol or something like that, how does that interact. if you can't control it why are you being penalized for it? gerri: that is great question. talking about big financial incentives and disincentives for folks employed with companies using these wellness programs. we took a look at some labor department regs. we're interested finding out what they talk about. they talk about measurement, testing screening. those are actual words in the rules for goodness secs. >> you have to. if you have incentives you have to know what you're measuring and how to respond to it. this is 30% of the premium for employee's health insurance plan. if you smoke, 50% higher for

smokers than non-smokers. pig figuring this stuff out can result in big changes. gerri: smoking is voluntary. being obese may not be. obama care sign-ups, with new year dawning for obamacare enrollment, how many people are actually signing up? >> we heard about 200,000 new ellen rolements if i remember at this point. gerri: 200,000 new sign-ups. 240,000 renewals. still mind the eight ball when it comes to how many people they thought they would have enrolled. >> we talked about a couple weeks ago, low bald reenrolement and new numbers. 9 million from 12 million. several million under. how many people who had plans from last year will reenrole. how many will get whacked with a bigger premium because their plans benchmark changed. no longer the second lowest plan. if it went up in cost and didn't change they could see increased charges. gerri: this is for small businesses and can't get anybody to sign up.

>> destined to fail. shop exchange which nobody paid attention to. hhs didn't get them up and running. had to delay them for a year. a lost features are missing. they're extremely complicated. smaller businesses with fewer than 25 employees, can get tax credits but so complicated a lot are throwing up their hands and not bothering. gerri: they predicted four million target. just like targets for obama care itself. here is my quick we to you which is this. if you told me two years ago people would not enroll i would be shocked because it looked like free money. because the fact that programs are so expensive is that because enrollment is underwhelming? >> look at small businesses if i had a preobamacare plan, the administration said you could keep it until 2016. why would you buy more expensive plan on the shop exchange when you keep it until 2016. gerri: all great stuff. thanks for coming on. later in the show, new alert for

consumers, cds that offer rising rates may not pay off in the long run. coming up deadline day for takata. the manufacturer must respond to questions about deadly airbags by today, but will drivers hear the answers? details coming up after the break. does your mouth often feel dry? multiple medications, a dry mouth can be a side effect of many medications. but it can also lead to tooth decay and bad breath. that's why there's biotene,

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gerri: at a time when experts caution that interest rates will likely rise next year, investors are considering something called rising rate cds. joining me now, bankrate.com's chief financial analyst, greg mcbride. good to see you. you can't blame people for looking for some kind of return here. the national average cd rate, six month cd pays 0.61%. a five-year cd doesn't even break 1%. so, you know, people are desperate for yield.

what's wrong with these right rising rate cds, and define them while you're at it. >> you're right, people are looking for yield. and i think the other regret investors have is they're going to put their money into a cd, and as soon as they lock their money in, they're going to see interest rates go up. they come in the different forms. there can be liquid cds that let you get your money out so that you can vest it elsewhere if interest rates rise, there are what is known as bump-up cds that give you the option to increase your rates, there are step-up cds that increase at regular intervals throughout the term. those are the most common. we also took a look at call able cds which, frankly, benefits the bank, not the individual investor. gerri: you can tell us what the pros and cons of these are. liquid, no-penalty cds. >> yeah. the idea here is that it gives you the ability to tap into that

cd prior to maturity without any kind of penalty. you can get at some or all of the principal. and the reason why investors like this in a rising rate environment is because they feel they can get some of that money out and reinvest elsewhere. but what we found is that the yields are much lower than what you could get on traditional cds or online savings accounts just by shopping around. the top yielding liquid cd in the survey we found, gerri yields about half of what the traditional cd -- gerri: well, that's not a big deal for me, i mean, i don't go for that. what about bump-up cds? >> even online savings accounts trumped the deal, so you could do better. bump-up cds, the problem here is that too often you're settling for a lower return on the front end just to have the option of bumping up to a higher rate on the back end. but the differential is wide enough that so many cases you're

not going to be able to bump up to a high enough yield in order to recoup that interest before maturity. so we found, again, the traditional cd is a much better way to go. as long as you're shopping around to find the highest deals, that was going to be a better option. gerri: step-up cds? >> now, this one has a lot more certainty to it. you know exactly when and by how much these yields are going to increase over the term, so you know what you're starting out at, you know what you're ending at. what we found even what you're fending at -- ending at is less by shopping around. so the moral of the story on each of these we find is, hey, in concept this sounds great, but in reality we just weren't finding the kind of value there that i think investors are expecting to find. gerri: so certificates of deposits don't stretch for yield, get the plain vanilla. greg, thank you so much. >> thank you, gerri.

gerri: well, today's the deadline for that takata to give feds reames of documents. in its saw wants to order a nation wile -- nhtsa wants them to give a nationwide recall. with us now, car czar doug browner. doug, thanks for coming on the show tonight. >> thanks, gerri. gerri: this is such a frustrating story because i keep expecting takata to make a move. frankly, we've had phone calls in to them all day long. actually, we've done it by e-mail asking them hasta cat that responded, what are you going to do if they refuse a national recall, have you heard anything? we have not. >> nor have i and i have, like you, a lot of sources within the industry. the silence on the part of takata, i would say, is stunning. stunning in its lack of seeming proactiveness with respect to this. the national highway transportation safety

administration is ready to act for a change very aggressively, and i'll tell you, congress is not happy. they're going to be holding hearings this week as they return from their holiday break. gerri: right. >> and i'll tell you, takata's going to have to answer to this at least civilly with some penalties, and there are some who are suggesting the u.s. attorney should look at it if they knew people were getting killed and failed to act correctly. ier jeff we're talking about airbags that are in many, many american, german, japanese cars, and when they expand and blow up, well, they might hurt you. how do people know if their cars actually need some kind of fix, a new airbag, whatever? >> yeah. more than eight million of us here in the u.s. are driving cars that have takata airbags that could be subject to the recall. the 17-digit vehicle id number, you got to know it. it's on your car in the door

jam, on your vehicle registration. your web site has a great link, you can go in and punch that vehicle id number. it will tell you right away whether your car is subject to a recall. you've got to do that like you check your credit report for your personal credit history. you need to be checking whether your car has any open recalls. gerri: what do i do if i get a recall letter? >> go immediately to your local dealership. and, remember, the recall does not apply to cars you may have purchased new, any car if you own it, even if it's bought secondhand, you go to that service department, and you say i want my car serviced with this recall, and i want it done quickly. that's your right. gerri: it may be my right, but takata may not have the airbag i need, isn't that the truth? this company is struggling under the weight of multiple investigations, some of them are criminal, and getting that new airbag may be very difficult. should people disable their existing airbags?

>> yeah. unfortunately, that's a terrible idea. no, you don't want to disable the airbag that you have, but you do want to be proactive with your selling dealership, and you're right, takata's market cap is about half of what it was a year ago because of the pressure you described. other airbag makers are trying to ramp up production to provide replacement parts. gerri: what can nhtsa do next? the reality is that, basically, a japanese company has said we don't want to do a nationwide recall. >> congress is not going to tolerate that. these guys have made a lot of money on american business, they're subject to our laws and our regulations, and they really need to step up. if they fail to, the penalties are going to be severe, and we could spell the end of this company which has a long history of building automotive parts like airbags. gerri: quick question, here's what nhtsa had to say about this previously:

gerri: so tell me, what are their powe? what can they actually do? >> right now the cap for fines is $35 million. a lot of people, including congress, says that's not enough, we need to raise that limit. and, you know, obviously, maybe putting pressure on automakers to not use any future takata products could be an option. it remains to be seen. but i'll tell you, the nhtsa has really not acted, i believe and many also do, in the full capacity of what they should have. they've known about this for a long time. gerri: national highway safety traffic administration. doug, thanks for coming on. >> thanks, gerri, you bet. gerri: coming up later, we have the best smartphones to ring in the new year and bond funds, loading up on cash. if they're this worried, what should you be doing? we're covering your assets. and here's your consumer gauge with the numbers that mean the most to you. we'll be right back. ♪ ♪ (trader vo) i search.

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♪ ♪ gerri: it is a mad dash to cash. the nation's big bond funds are rushing to even safer havens ahead of the fed e's widely expected rate hike. what do you need to do if you own one of these funds? we're covering your assets with barron's senior editor, jack howe. welcome back. >> thank you. gerri: what are they worried about that they're loading up on cash right now? >> i don't necessarily think they're panicked. i mean, the cash we're talking about around 7% of portfolios out there, so i think what they're seeing is more volatility, and they're thinking that may create opportunities down the road to buy bonds at better prices, and they want to have some dry powder available. gerri: oh, come on, they're worried about what's going to happen when the fed decides rates are going to go up. let's not pussy foot around it, okay? >> everyone's been worried about that for a long time. at the beginning of this year, everyone and their uncle bill was absolutely certain yields

were going to go straight higher and prices were going to go down. you've made about 6% this year. gerri: but this may be the year that it doesn't happen that way. so describe for our viewers -- >> okay. gerri: -- what is the risk? what might happen even if you've got a plain vanilla bond fund? >> the economy seems to be stabilizing, people are thinking late next year the fed could begin raising short-term interest rates and it could have a negative effect on bond. the broadest thinking on wall street is it should affect the short-term bond portfolios, those prices could take a hit. gerri: those prices could take a hit, did you hear that? >> yeah, but i should say we're not talking about the stock crash where your wake up and your fund is down 30%. we're talking movement of a couple percent. and if you're holding on to a portfolio for years, your coupon payments continue to roll in, and those can offset these price

declines. gerri: so you're getting the coupons, the interest that's paid on the fund itself, and then you're getting whatever that price is on that bond. >> and the best long predicter of performance in any bond portfolio is just your yield. that's -- if you want to make a bet, if you look at a portfolio -- gerri: so we're all holding these bond funds with no yield whatsoever, right? >> it's about 2%, it's not great. but the purpose is not your return's going to knock it out of the park, the purpose is to have an asset that performs in a dissimilar way to your stock portfolio so that those two things can offset each other. people, you know, bail out of stocks, often they'll go into safe bonds, and -- gerri: safe bonds. see, that's just the problem though. they're investments like anything else, you know? they go up, they go down. maybe not as fast, and my real fear here is that they don't, they're not as liquid. they're not as tradeable even for the bond fund managers as stocks are.

so we could have a rush to the exits in which people get smashed at the door, right? because fund managers are trying to get out, and they can't. >> it depends what kind of bonds we're talking about. the treasury bonds are pretty liquid. gerri: yeah. but there's a whole other world. corporates, junk, i mean -- >> yeah. you know, to your point, we've had interest rates so low that i don't think you're really being rewarded as much as you ought to right now for your bond fund, but i don't think people should necessarily panic, bail out of bonds. what are you going to put your money on, cash? you're better off collecting those small coupons. gerri: long end of the curve, short end, where do we go? >> the price declines at the short end tend to be gradual. i think you might see some price increases at the long end of the curve. bond yields look high relative to germany, japan. so there's people out this who believe we could see price appreciation on the long end of

the curve. for most viewers i think if you have a good asset allocation, what portion of your money should be in a bonds, they shouldn't be looking at this, you know, expectation of higher rates next year and say, hey, i've got to bail out of bonds before they plummet. that's not what tends to happen. gerri: people need to know what the risk is, and you did a great job of expressing it. thanks for the help. appreciate it, jack. and now we want to hear from you. here's what some of you are posting about our poll question tonight, are you spending more on christmas because gas prices are lower? kay writes this: i'm not spending more, gas is just a small part of it. groceries are more expensive, electricity bills are higher, wages are still the same, and i am working fewer hours. molly posts: price has nothing to do with how much i spend, i have a budget, and it's the same every year, i spend no more, no less. jennifer tweets: best to be prepared. interesting responses. in addition to following me on twitter and facebook, be sure to

like fox business on facebook. and still to come, my two cents more. and want to buy a new smartphone but don't want to get stuck with a dud for the next two years? "the wall street journal" put 25 smartphones to the test. next, which phone you need to consider and which ones to avoid. ♪ ♪ she's still the one for you. and cialis for daily use helps you be ready anytime the moment is right. cialis is also the only daily ed tablet approved to treat symptoms of bph, like needing to go frequently.

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♪ ♪ gerri: well, it's the holiday season, and lots of folks would like to ring it in with a new smartphone. this season is the best time of year to buy, but not all handsets are created equal. "the wall street journal"'s personal effects columnist

tested 25 different smartphones. she joins us now with her findings. first off, tell me, what were the criteria, the issues that you looked at? >> yeah. it was an exhausting week because i tested all of these phones, i talked on them, i actually talked on the phone -- gerri: 25 in a week? >> i did, i did. so i did call quality, i did performance, i did software, i did camera, all the things that are really important -- gerri: did you get -- >> and battery life. you do not want to know what it looks like when you have all of these phones testing a video rundown test. yes, i really went all in on it and looked at a number of different categories, right? the best mainstream phone overall, what you usually find for about $200 on contract, looked at low cost -- gerri: i love this list. let's get down to brass tacks, what was the best overall smartphone? >> in my opinion, and i can hear the critics right now, is the

iphone 6. gerri: you believe it? you believe all of the hype? >> no, tim cook does not pay my salary, and i am not on payroll there. gerri: what sold you? >> the blend of all of those things that i tested on, right? you get good battery life, you get a really nice design, you get a great camera, the best you can get out of all of these mainstream phones right now, and you just get a really nice, fast software experience as well. that said, there are a bunch of other phones that are still really good, and many of them, of course, run android. so i looked at also my top overall phone is the iphone, but right in line with is the moto x. gerri: what does it have that really appeals? >> what really appealed are a couple of things, one that i think is actually really neat for the holiday season and for gift giving is that you can customize the design of this phone. you can get it in leather, you can get it actually in wood, so the design is one big thing.

gerri: pretty. >> it's very pretty. the software is another. the new version of android, android 5.0 lollipop, is just really stunning. it's easy to use, and it's clean. and you can get this phone with that clean version. most of these android phonemakers are customizing software. used to samsung sort of bright, not too easy to find things, kind of becomes a billboard for samsung. this is clean software. good battery life, good camera. gerri: verizon is offering the moto x for a penny. it doesn't get much better than that. >> and if you want it unlocked, they're offering it on motorola.com for 150 off. gerri: iphone 6, is will this a good police to buy that? >> -- good place to buy that? >> they're not really dropping the price on these right now. gerri: you also had the best smaller android. >> yes. the galaxy alpha. most of these android phones are huge, i think that's what spurred the movement. this one is same size as the

iphone 6, 4.7 inch screen. i had a really hard time deciding here, could not decide if i like the galaxy note 4 or the iphone 6 plus better. galaxy has better software, you can run through apps side by side, iphone 6 plus, best camera out of all the phones i tested. gerri: let's tell folks if you don't want to spend everything you've ever earned -- >> yes can. i really like the moto g in the low cost area, but i'm going to say that with a little bit of a disclaimer, because as the holiday season approaches you're seeing great deals on phones that are twice or three times as much as that phone. so, for instance, today you can get that galaxy s5 for free at many retailers. that's too good to pass up. just make sure you're looking at the prices and how they drop. gerri: it was a great story. joanne, thanks for coming on. good stuff.

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gerri: in some parts of the u.s. the average price for gas is predicted to drop below $2 a gallon, so are you spending more on christmas because gas prices are lower? we asked the question on gerriwillis.com. 5% of you said yes, 95% said no. huh, that's interesting. log on to gerriwillis.com for our online question every weekday. and finally tonight, it's all about the holidays now. christmas is fast approaching, and one thing you need to keep in mind as you try to whittle down that to-do list is to take advantage of those time and money savers like price comparison tools. one of the best, red laser, but there are men city of others. remember, online retailers are notorious for offering different prices for the same goods at different times. they call it dynamic pricing. i call it a pain. in the meantime, relax. after all, shopping isn't the reason for the season. that's my two cents more. and that's it for tonight's

willis report. thanks for joining us. don't forget to dvr the show if you can't catch us live. "making money" with charles payne starts right now. have a great night. ♪ ♪ charles: i'm charles payne, and you're watching "making money." congress is back in session, and now a big tax fight is brewing on capitol hill. companies like walmart closely monitoring this, you should too. rich edson joins us from washington. >> reporter: evening, charles. senior congressional aides say democrat and republican negotiators are trying to strike a deal for expiring tax breaks. if law make pers fail, some businesses and families would pay billions more in taxes, they include business expenses, state and local sales taxes, out-of-pocket teachers' expenses and renewable energy credits. key senators thought they were approaching a bipartisan deal to make permanent deductions for