New York ? The holiday shopping season got off to a solid start over the Thanksgiving weekend as retailers wooed discount-hungry consumers with specials on televisions, DVD players and other popular gifts.

Discounters like Wal-Mart and Target had the greatest success, plying customers with early bird specials and other come-ons, while major department stores and clothing chains generally met modest sales goals, according to analysts’ preliminary estimates. Online sales were also strong.

“It was as expected. It wasn’t a bonanza, but it was a good start,” said Steve Nevill, partner at Kurt Salmon Associates, a retail consulting firm, indicating that this is still expected to be a difficult season.

“One consistent thing we heard was that only things marked down were selling. Consumers want a bargain, especially around the holiday,” Nevill said.

Shoppers seemed to respond to the many markdowns.

“I’ve never seen so many sales. I feel like a kid in a candy store,” said Edna McCoy, of New Haven, Conn., who had picked up a pea coat from Old Navy at Arundel Mills Mall in Hanover, Md.

Nevill estimated that discounters had a 4 percent gain over last year’s post-Thanksgiving numbers, while sales at department stores and mall-based clothing chains were up 2 percent for the weekend.

That’s about in line with analysts’ modest projections for the overall holiday season. With consumers concerned about job security and shrunken stock portfolios, no one expects business to be robust.

Debra Curry, of Cincinnati, said she did not make any purchases Saturday because she was comparison shopping for a Barbie Sing-a-long Karaoke machine at discount stores.

“I don’t have much to spend this year, so I have to be careful,” she said.

Cheryl Lee, left, of Quincy, Mass., and Joan Lineman of Watertown, Mass., are loaded down with Christmas presents as they leave the Arsenal Mall in Watertown, Mass. The first weekend of the holiday shopping season was generally considered a success by retailers.

Target reported that while traffic on Friday was consistent with that of previous year-ago periods, customers seemed to “linger longer” and “purchase more items per cart.” Among the top sellers were MGA Entertainment’s Bratz dolls, DVD titles like “Monsters Inc.” and digital cameras.

A lack of must-have items could also limit sales, although very popular gifts included DVD players and other home electronics, kitchen ware and the Fur Real Friend, a hot toy cat by Hasbro that’s already in short supply.

Thanksgiving weekend isn’t necessarily a good barometer of how retailers will fare for the season: Over the past few years, the weekend accounted for less than 10 percent of sales, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers.

But with six fewer shopping days in the season than last year, Thanksgiving weekend becomes even more critical, according to C. Britt Beemer, chairman of America’s Research Group.

Wal-Mart set a record for one-day sales on Friday, generating $1.43 billion. Last year, Wal-Mart reported sales of $1.25 billion the day after Thanksgiving.

“There is no way you could have made up for this weekend, considering the shorter season,” he said. “This is the kind of kickoff that retailers need if they are going to equal last year’s numbers.”

Online merchants had a good weekend. Sales were up 61 percent on Friday, compared to the day after Thanksgiving a year ago, according to BizRate.com, a research company. Another research firm, comScore Networks Inc., reported online sales rose 40 percent.