The Cheapskate

Back in February, wireless upstart FreedomPop made some bold promises about free mobile broadband service. Now it appears the company is getting ready to make good on at least one of them.

As reported this morning by Apple news site TUAW, FreedomPop is now taking pre-orders for the Freedom Sleeve, a $99 iPhone 4/4S case that provides "free" 4G wireless service -- among other benefits.

Exciting stuff, right? Before you pull out your credit card, check the fine print. For starters, FreedomPop's WiMax-powered 4G broadband isn't available everywhere -- like here in metro Detroit, where I live. more

If you agreed with me a couple days ago when I professed my love for Bluetooth speakers (in favor of their AirPlay counterparts), you might just be thinking about buying one.

Logitech offers some attractive models, and Amazon just made choosing one that much sweeter: when you buy a qualifying Logitech speaker, you'll get a rather substantial Amazon MP3 credit.

For example, the $76.67 Logitech Mini Boombox comes with a $30 Amazon MP3 credit. (You'll see a link to the details under Special Offers and Product Promotions.) So does the $76.24 Logitech Z515 Wireless Speaker.

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As a self-employed guy who rarely leaves his basement, let alone his house, I've never had much need for a Slingbox. But, ho, boy, do some people love them. I've heard them discussed with the same kind of gushing admiration usually reserved for TiVos and Kindles.

Curiously, although they've been around for years, prices haven't dropped much. Indeed, Slingbox deals are pretty rare, which is why today's is something of a sellout risk.

Today only, and while supplies last, Best Buy has the Sling Media Slingbox Solo for $99.99 shipped, plus sales tax in more

As I've mentioned before, the makers of DVD rippers and video converters seem to offer a new giveaway every month or two -- meaning there's little point in actually buying their products. (Don't feel guilty; this obviously works out for them, otherwise they wouldn't keep doing it.)

Digiarty Software, for example, is currently running two separate giveaways on five different programs. Sort of. Stay with me, because this gets a little confusing.

From now until May 20, as part of its Hello Summer promotion, you can get Digiarty's WinX DVD Ripper Platinum (Windows) for free.more

For anyone interested in accessing awesome services like Netflix and Pandora on their TV, the choice usually boils down to a Roku box or an Apple TV.

If you're voting solely with your wallet, the choice might seem pretty easy: the Roku LT sells for $50, the Apple TV for $100. Ah, but if you really want to compare (sorry) apples to Apples, you need to look at the $80 Roku 2 XD, which matches the Apple TV's 1080p output capabilities.

And guess what: Apple just started selling the refurbished current-generation Apple TV for $85 shipped (plus sales more

Buying an Apple TV or Roku box? A Blu-ray player? A $99 Xbox 360? These and other TV-centric devices have one thing in common: they don't come with the HDMI cables necessary for the optimal connection to your TV.

Shoppers often make the mistake of assuming that whatever the local electronics store charges for an HDMI cable is just the price you have to pay. But although retail prices have come down in recent years, they're still way higher than what you can find online.

For example, Best Buy charges $24.99 for a Dynex 6-foot HDMI cable. more

Not sure what prompted this, but over the weekend I received a handful of really nice e-mails from readers. It's deeply gratifying to know that you like what I'm doing here, and I offer my sincere thanks to everyone who's written me to say so. You people are the best.

Now that the touchy-feely stuff's out of the way, on to today's deals! Yes, that's "deals" plural. Sometimes I can't pick just one!

1. While supplies last, Secondipity has the used Acer Iconia A500-10S08u 10.1-inch Android tablet for $239.99 shipped. (Cool more

Recently I asked if it still made sense to buy a GPS, what with smartphones more than capable of navigating folks from point A to point B.

Many readers commented that, yep, their phone gets the job done. Of course, there's one small challenge to using it for this purpose: smartphones don't come with car mounts. You need a way to position it at eye level so you can see your maps.

There are countless universal-mount options out there, many of which use suction cups to adhere to your windshield and gooseneck arms to hold the phone. Not more

Any mom will agree: the best Mother's Day gifts (other than jewelry, a spa day, and a Kindle Fire) are the homemade ones. They show that you appreciate her enough to invest your time and effort on something personal, something unique, something special.

For example, you know all those photos in Mom's camera, the ones she's been amassing for years but never bothers to download or print? Why not turn them into a slideshow, one you can burn to a DVD and show during the Mother's Day festivities?

Don't have the right software? Now you more