The Cheapskate

Update 2 (10 a.m. PT): Looks like it's back up again. See? Told ya. Crazy Dell. Why do you torment us this way?

Update (8 a.m. PT): Well, I am NOT giving thanks for Dell this year, as this deal has already expired. My apologies, peeps. Watch for something even better later today--you have my word.

Still on the prowl for a Netbook? Sorry for all the grief with that Lenovo deal last week. (Anyone actually get one?) Hopefully this one makes up for it.

Dell is offering the Inspiron Mini 10v Netbook for $229 shipped. That's after removing the Bluetooth card from the configuration (switch to List View and scroll all the way to the bottom).

Of course, if you need Bluetooth, the $249 price tag is nothing to sneeze at. Indeed, it was nary a few months ago that finding a 10-inch Netbook for under $300 was virtually impossible.

I have little use for Bluetooth, but I'd probably think about dropping an extra $30 to get Windows 7 Starter (the Mini 10v comes standard with Windows XP Home). That'd get you out the door for $259--still a solid deal.

The system's other specs are fairly standard: an Atom N270 processor, 1GB of RAM, a 160GB hard drive, and a 1.3-megapixel Webcam. It comes with a three-cell battery; an extra $35 buys you a six-cell--another upgrade worth considering.

CNET had lots of good things to say about the Mini 10v, which, incidentally, was $334 (with the six-cell battery) when we reviewed it just three months ago. Not sure why we dinged it for a lack of configuration options, though--Dell offers more than most Netbook vendors.

I'm hoping this doesn't sell out, like, five minutes after I post it. (We've been down that road, right?) If it does, check back later in the day and even in the days to come; Dell often gets replenished stock.

I'm off tomorrow, so let me take this opportunity to wish everyone who celebrates it a happy Thanksgiving. I'll be back on Friday (and Saturday), and in the meantime you can catch me embarrassing myself almost daily on CNET's Holiday Help Desk, which airs live at 1 p.m. PT/4 p.m. ET. (Here's yesterday's show if you just can't wait.)

This 99-cent app serves up a wealth of free Redbox rental codes.

Good news for fans of Redbox movie-rental kiosks: the new Redbox app (free) lets you browse and reserve movies and find the kiosk nearest you. Cool.

Better news for Redbox fans: the new Red Box Free Rental Promo Codes app (from third-party developer Neese) means you may never have to pay for another movie.

The app aggregates codes from around the Internet and various promo mailings, updating them every 12 hours so you're sure to have the latest and greatest.

When you get to the Redbox checkout screen, just tap "Rent with a Promo Code," then type in any of the codes listed in the app. If one doesn't work, try another.

Red Box Free Rental Promo Codes costs 99 cents, so the first time you nab a free rental, it pays for itself.

I haven't had a chance to put the app to the test just yet (it does require a visit to a kiosk--you can't use the codes when reserving movies), but I'll update the post if I run into any problems. To me it seems like a can't-miss way to score free movie rentals.

While we're on the subject of using your iPhone to save money, be sure to check out "Five iPhone apps that can save you money," "iPhone apps for Black Friday shopping," and eBay's new holiday-deals app.

All this gets me wondering: Could your iPhone actually start paying for itself? I mean, if you can rack up 70 bucks' worth of savings per month by way of various apps, that would cover the cost of AT&T's low-end plan. Hmmm...

The 720p-shooting Kodak Zi6 is on sale for just $99.

(Credit: CNET)

The deals are coming fast and furious this week, to the point where I couldn't pick just one for today. Instead I've rounded up a little cheapskate trifecta. (Note: All have a high sellout risk!) Take a look:

1) CompUSA has a 24-inch Synaps LCD monitor for $159.99 shipped. It's a 1080p display with VGA and DVI inputs (no HDMI, alas), built-in speakers, and a 5ms response time. User reviews are overwhelmingly positive. And this is almost an all-time low for a 24-inch monitor.

2) Amazon is offering the Kodak Zi6 HD pocket camcorder for $99 shipped. It can record 720p video on inexpensive SD/SDHC cards (here's an 8GB card for just $15.45). CNET liked its "solid video quality" (read the full review here), and Amazon customers collectively rated it 4 stars out of 5.

3) At US Appliance you can score a new LG BD270 Blu-ray player for $94, plus $5.99 for shipping. (Use coupon code welcome10 to get that price.) That's not the best Blu-ray deal I've seen, as this model doesn't do BD-Live or Netflix, but it's definitely rare to see an LG for under $100. CNET hasn't reviewed it, but user reviews on Amazon are very high.

Anything strike your fancy? If not, be sure to check out Five Black Friday deals you shouldn't miss (if you haven't already). And if you spot anything awesome that I've missed, by all means post it in the comments or shoot me an e-mail. Happy shopping!

Microsoft's second-gen Zune isn't quite as sexy as the new Zune HD, but it's still a versatile, feature-packed media player and a worthy iPod alternative.

And now it's a cheap one, too: Buy.com has the refurbished Zune 80 player for $129.99 shipped. It sold for $249 when it debuted a couple years ago, and is still running around $200 new.

Obviously a big draw here is the whopping 80GB hard drive, which should be enough to hold even the largest music libraries, with room left over for photos, videos, podcasts, and the like.

You get to view all that stuff on a 3.2-inch glass LCD--way bigger than the screen on the only comparable iPod, the Classic.

Other perks include an FM radio, wireless syncing/sharing, support for Microsoft's Zune Pass subscription service (one of the few such services left), and a terrific interface.

What's more, a free firmware update endows the Zune 80 with many of the features added to the third-gen Zune, so be sure to read CNET's review of that model.

If you have a lot of media you want to keep in your pocket, the Zune transports it in style. My only complaint is with the 90-day warranty--a far cry from Apple's 1-year coverage for refurbished hardware.

The 10.1-inch Acer Aspire One.

(Credit: Acer)

This Sunday we have a pair of old-school Netbook deals for you.

First up is a 10.1-inch Acer Aspire One with a 1.6GHz Atom processor at Target for $199. It's listed at $289.99, but the price drops to $199 when you add it to your shopping cart. That's a savings of 28 percent.

It comes with a 160GB hard drive, 1GB of RAM (expandable to 2GB), 802.11g, an Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950, a three-cell Lithium ion battery, and a built-in Webcam. This Netbook runs Windows XP Home (for those of you who are quite happy with XP, shied away from Vista, and not ready for Windows 7).

So what so old school about this deal? No rebates, no coupons, no secret handshakes, no hoops to jump through. Also, no shipping--meaning you gotta head to your nearest Target store and pick it up.

Besides the no-shipping, there's one potential drawback. At this price, it's available in only one color: blue. But at a price less than $200, you could probably put up with any color.

The 10.1-inch Gateway LT2005u.

(Credit: Gateway)

If the color is an issue, Best Buy has the 10.1-inch Gateway LT2005u for $230. It comes with the same 1.6GHz Atom processor, a 160GB hard drive, 1GB of RAM, 802.11g wireless, an Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950, Webcam, and Windows XP Home.

So what's better about this model? It's in "NightSky Black" and comes with a six-cell Lithium ion battery. Is that worth $30 more? That's up to you to decide. But you can also have it shipped, which adds $12 to the deal, but you can opt to pick it up at your local Best Buy if you want to have it now and avoid the shipping costs.

The lust-worthy Sprint MiFi 2200 will be free on Black Friday.

(Credit: Sprint)

Here we go: one week until Black Friday. Am I excited? Pumped? Polishing the ol' credit card for a day of deal-crazed madness?

Eh.

Don't get me wrong: I enjoy BF as much as the next cheapskate. But I'm weary of the month-long hype machine, what with all the "leaked" ads, pre-Black Friday sales, and so on.

What's more, I have never, and will never, set foot in a retail store on Black Friday. I don't enjoy crowds, especially the deal-crazed variety. Oh, and 5 a.m.? That's sleep time, not stand-in-line-in-the-freezing-cold time.

My other issue: Like last year, the deals I've seen so far just aren't that great. Know why? Because everything's already dirt-cheap all year. Regular Cheapskate readers have seen the $50 GPS, the $80 Blu-ray player, the sub-$300 32-inch HDTV. Sadly for retailers, there's just not much room to go any lower.

All that being said, what kind of cheapskate would I be if I didn't give this hallowed shopping holiday a little love? So here you go: five deals/offers/promotions I'm liking this year. Want more? Dealnews has some of the best Black Friday coverage around--including these tips on using price-matching in retail stores.

This is one of five designer colors you can choose for this dirt-cheap Netbook.

(Credit: Lenovo)

Update No. 5 (7:40 a.m. PST, Sunday): Now Target has that same 10-inch Aspire One for $199! It's in-store only, though, so call before you drive. Thanks to reader Travisp11 for the heads-up!

Update No. 4 (7:45 a.m. PST, Saturday): Amazon has a deal that's nearly as good: the Acer Aspire One for $229 shipped. (Note: Add any of the available colors to your cart to see that price.) I've reviewed this netbook; it's superb.

Update No. 3 (11 a.m. PST): Sorry, folks, looks like the deal is definitely dead this time.

Update No. 2: Working again! Make sure you follow step 5 and add Bluetooth, otherwise you won't get the color choices.

Update: Sigh. I knew this wouldn't last. Looks like Lenovo has already taken it down (or at least removed the custom-color options necessary to drop the price). My apologies. Deals are so ephemeral right now.

Best Netbook deal of the year, right here, right now. I have no idea how long it will last, so let's get to it.

Lenovo has a 10-inch IdeaPad S10-2 Netbook for $208.70 shipped. The specs are pretty standard, including a 160GB hard drive, Bluetooth, and Windows XP Home. And it's new, not a refurb!

There's a little hoop-jumping here, so stay with me:

1. Head to the Lenovo Family and Friends page.

2. Enter passcode familyandfriends and click Sign In.

3. Wait for the red Holiday Gift Ideas banner to appear, click it, and then click it again on the subsequent page.

4. Click the Netbooks tab, then click Customize & Buy on the IdeaPad S10-2 at the far left.

5. Scroll down and add Bluetooth. Then choose one of the five designer color options (Flower Sea is pictured here). Alas, there's no preview, but they're all pretty gorgeous.

6. Click Continue a couple times and then add the S10 to your cart. Finally, apply coupon code USP12NETBOOK for a final price of $208.70.

Awesome. Just plain awesome. Gotta give shout-out credit to Dealnews for this deal, which should tickle those who've been waiting for a Netbook.

I don't even need a Netbook, and I'm this close to grabbing one anyway. How about you?

This sub-$300 32-inch LCD features tons of inputs.

(Credit: Best Buy)

Sorry to hit you with TV deals two days in a row, but Wednesday's 26-inch Mag sold out so quickly, it seemed like the right thing to do.

Likewise, Wal-Mart's recent 32-inch HDTV for $298 barely lasted the day, so hopefully this offer will stick around a bit longer.

Best Buy has a Dynex 32-inch LCD HDTV for $299.99. It's a new unit, not a refurb, and you can save around $44 in shipping charges by opting for in-store pickup. (You'll still have to pay sales tax, though.)

Dynex is definitely not a household brand, but based on the 4-stars-out-of-5 review average on Best Buy's site, the DX-L32-10A is a pretty decent TV.

As you might expect, it offers 1,366x768-pixel resolution (720p, which is fine for a set of this size). Less expected: an impressive three HDMI inputs, plus two component, two composite, and one PC. You can plug everything you've got into this baby!

I'm glad to see 32-inch TVs starting to settle into the $300 range. Hopefully the larger models (42- and 46-inchers, for example) will follow suit, as their prices have barely budged in the past year.

Think you'll grab one of these for the den, bedroom, game room, or somewhere else? Or are you holding out for an even better Black Friday deal?

Mag's 26-inch LCD HDTV can double as a PC monitor, albeit a fairly low-res one.

Update: I'm afraid this is sold out already, as I predicted. Sorry if you missed it!

Update #2: And now it's back in stock. Moral of the story: If something sells out, check again in an hour, a couple hours, or even the next day. You never know when the vendor will replenish its stock.

It's not even Black Friday yet, and already I'm seeing one of the best deals of 2009. CompUSA has a Mag 26-inch LCD HDTV for $199.99 shipped.

To put that in perspective, the last time I saw anything close was back in July: a 25-inch monitor (not TV) for $199.99 plus shipping.

The Mag Innovision UF261 sports a 26-inch screen, an ATSC/NTSC/QAM tuner, 720p output (or 1,366 x 768 if you're thinking in computer terms), and all the inputs you're likely to need: HDMI, component, composite, and VGA.

To my surprise, this is a new unit, not a refurb, and it's backed by a full one-year warranty. (Curiously, however, coverage is provided by Columbus Capital Corp., not Mag proper. Not sure if that's important, just FYI.)

I think the UF261 would make a great TV for a den or bedroom, and it would pair nicely with a game console.

You could also use it as a mammoth PC monitor, but the limited resolution might limit your enjoyment. (In comparison, a typical 22-inch monitor runs at 1,680 x 1,050.) Also, I haven't found any reviews of this model, save for the handful on CompUSA's site (they're mostly positive).

Still, as I said, this is perhaps the best HDTV/monitor deal I've seen this year, and consequently I'll be shocked if it doesn't sell out by the end of the day. Act fast if you want in.