ready to fork over that extra $50 to get the sweater that i want to complement the amount on the gift card. >> come to think of it, i think i had a pretty good gift card sitting in my wallet that you're reminding me of. >> reporter: see. >> what kind of cards are among the most popular this year? >> reporter: times evare still little tough with the economy. a lot of gift cards that are the most popular are the ones that offer a lot of utilities, like the amazons where you can buy almost anything, the walmarts, home depots, even restaurant cards. a lot of those cards have been very popular this holiday season. much more so than some of the specialty retailers, but, of course, those were given a lot as well. >> my niece and nephew love those mall cards that you can use in practically any mall in america and go into any store. they just love those. courtney, thank you so much for keeping us honest on the retail front, as always. >> reporter: thanks. the republican presidential candidates have just a few days before iowa holds its caucuses. nearly all of them are in the