The Cheapskate

Buy an iPod Touch, get a $50 gift card

Apple's price on the second-generation iPod Touch (8GB): $229. Best Buy's price on the same model: $229.99, plus sales tax in most states.

However, the latter is currently offering a $50 gift card with the purchase of the 8GB Touch. That's a pretty solid deal if you're planning to do more shopping at Best Buy anyway.

Because I continue to encounter folks who, shockingly, don't know what the iPod Touch is, here's the scoop: it's an iPhone without the phone. It plays music, movies, games, photo slideshows, audiobooks, podcasts, etc. It surfs … Read more

Pocket a 4GB flash drive for $5.99 shipped

Couldn't leave for the weekend without sharing this: Newegg has a Super Talent 4GB USB flash drive for $5.99 with free shipping.

What else is there to say? That's a couple bucks cheaper than I've ever seen a 4GB drive. It has a lifetime warranty; otherwise it's pretty much your basic thumb drive.

Unfortunately, it appears to lack any kind of loop or other keychain-friendly hardware, so it can't replace the drive that just broke off my key ring. Otherwise, I'd be ordering faster than you can say "cheapskate."

Dock your iPod for $59.99 shipped

The Altec Lansing inMotion iM600 iPod speaker dock has a list price of $149.95, but until Saturday, you can score one from RadioShack for $59.99 shipped.

That's pretty sweet for a dock with an FM radio, rechargeable battery, and four-star rating from CNET.

One thing straight away: The iM600 is compatible with most iPod models (including the Touch), but not the iPhone. It doesn't charge newer Nanos, either. It does, however, feature a remote, an alarm clock (if your iPod already has one, that is), a stereo input jack for connecting other devices (ah, there's … Read more

Get a 24-inch LCD monitor for $199.99 shipped

Now that 22-inch monitors have shattered the $200 barrier, are 24-inchers next in line? Here's a kick-ass indicator that they are: Buy.com has a refurbished "famous maker" 24-inch wide-screen LCD for $199.99 shipped. Just one hitch: You must use PayPal to get that price, otherwise it's $249.99.

These are going to sell out fast, so I'm going to make this quick. The good: 1,920x1,200 resolution, VGA and HDCP-compliant HDMI inputs, four USB ports, and the ability to pivot 90 degrees for portrait mode!

The bad: a 90-day warranty, and that … Read more

Five dirt-cheap tech gifts for the holidays

Two-week warning, folks. That's how long you've got left until the fat man sings. (Chanukah-celebrators have even less time.) If you're still shopping for stocking stuffers, secret-Santa gifts, fifth-night-of-Chanukah trinkets, or whatever, look no further: I've got five guaranteed-to-please gift ideas:

Buy.com has four HP-branded 4GB USB drives for $29.99 shipped (after a $10 mail-in rebate). That works out to about $7.50 per drive. Knock out four stockings with one purchase! Buy.com also has a refurbished 4GB SanDisk Sansa e260 media player for $37.99 shipped, though you must pay with PayPal … Read more

Get a Dell Mini 9 Netbook for $299 shipped

My (new) thinking regarding Netbooks: They have their place in the world, but if you're going to spend more than $300 on one, you might as well spend $400 and get a full-fledged notebook. Anyone who agrees should check out Dell's Inspiron Mini 9, currently on sale for $299 shipped.

Available in Obsidian Black or Alpine White (other color choices are available, but add to the cost), the Mini 9 runs Ubuntu Linux and comes with 512MB of RAM, a 4GB solid-state hard drive, and an 8.9-inch LED display.

Dell gives you a host of configuration options, … Read more

Track price drops with ShoppingNotes.com

Want to know when there's a price reduction on that PS3 you've been eyeballing? Or the Amazon Kindle? Or just about anything else sold online?

ShoppingNotes.com tracks individual products and sends you an e-mail alert whenever there's a price drop.

There are two ways to use ShoppingNotes. First, you can copy and paste a product-page URL into the site's Web form, then enter your e-mail address for receiving alerts. Alternately, you can install the ShoppingNotes bookmarklet, which greatly simplifies the price-watch process: when viewing a product page, just click the bookmark.

You can also sign … Read more

Seven awesome iPhone freebies

As a mostly ecstatic new iPhone owner, I've spent considerable time checking out--you guessed it--the hundreds of freebie apps available from iTunes. Here's a list of seven I'm loving right now. (Note: all links are for iTunes.)

AroundMe Instantly find nearby banks, gas stations, coffee shops, and other businesses and services. Dashbuster Manage your Blockbuster or Netflix queue anytime, anywhere. Great for those times when a friend recommends a movie and you think, "Yeah, I gotta rent that." Movies This Flixster-powered app finds cineplexes near you, then serves up show times, trailers, and even upcoming … Read more

GPS with real-time traffic for $99.99 (after rebate)

The Navigon 5100 GPS features real-time traffic updates, and you don't have to pay a subscription charge for it: The service is included free for the life of the GPS. The last time I featured this model, it was $130. Now, eCost has the Navigon 5100 (refurbished) for $99.99 (plus shipping, and after a $10 mail-in rebate, which just about even each other out). That is one seriously suh-weet deal on a GPS.

In addition to the traffic service, which will advise you of trouble spots and suggest alternate routes, the Navigon offers text-to-speech capabilities (it pronounces actual … Read more