Comments on: Wal-Mart has Black Friday-style deals on Nov. 8, including a $298 laptop

Mega-retailer Wal-Mart is offering a selection of one-day in-store specials, a few of which caught our eye, including a sub-$300 laptop.

[jmkim17]

so, do you drive chev or ford, which is "bottom of the barrel junk" and american brand like compaq?
I guess not, you must be driving either porsche or benz.....

[gary85739]

This computer will be good enough for most. It's a deal! The nay sayers have a point, but it'll last 4-5yrs.

Most computer owners don't need much, all they do is surf, email, minor photo editing.

[David77123]

How long until Walmart acheives world domination?

[tjmile1]

I'm sure Barack will have something to say about that. World domination is his bailey wick.

[Mistermellow]

Price price price. What is the true cost of having a WalMart push its way into your little town. Never mind. The article left me wondering how WalMart's deal comparted with OTHER store's deals and other manufacturer's deals, not what other deals are available at WalMart. Obsequious journalism is just advertising. Sorry, too far? Plastering WalMart's sign next to their you're-not-patriotic-if-you-object-to-WalMart American flag was unnecessary, too. I've done it now. Never mind, back to surfing on my 5-year-old PowerBook, my second Mac and second trouble-free computer owned since 1992. Oh geez, now I'm going to get jumped on...

[tjmile1]

WalMart has nothing to do with the fact that this is a good deal. I'm sure others will offer laptops at similar prices as the season goes on, but after looking at all the specs, this is a good value, period.

I'm typing on my Dell 8250 desktop that I bought refurbished in 2003. Namebrand computers are reliable in general. What's your point?

I'm sure you paid well over $298 for your PowerBook. You probably could have bought 3 or 4 of these Compaq's, and I'll bet it's not as fast as the 2.0 GHz Celeron.

[flirtaciousboi]

I believe this laptop has Intel Celeron processor. Yuck

[tjmile1]

If you don't have a computer and can't afford a $500 dollar machine, a Celeron processor is just fine. I have a Toshiba (I paid $798 on sale at BB) that's a few years old with a 1.8 GHz Celeron and yeah it's a little slower than I would like, but it gets the job done for internet, email, MS Office, and even Quickbooks Pro. I actually use it at my business as a desktop replacement (small office). For many, many, people Celeron's are fine. That said, for $500 you can find some Core2Duo models. A couple hundred dollars is a big difference to a lot of people. I could buy a $5000 computer, but why should I when there's a point of diminishing returns at around $1000, and these things depreciate more than cars.

[nierlich]

This might be a perfect computer for a youngster -- small footprint and portable -- and not expensive.
Since extended warranties are generally tied to the retail value of the computer, if you are worried about reliability, buy a 2 year extension, and get some piece of mind. Likely you won't need it but--

I was in Fry's the other day, and next to me a couple was shopping of a laptop for their 12-year old. The salesman was showing them $900-1,000 models. The virtue of the latter is that it would be hopelessly outdated in 4-5 years. But one doesn't know with a 12-year old; it's like getting a puppy for a kid. Will it be cared for, or will it be quickly lost.

[tdemulling]

Guys - lay off Dan. It's a good article, and I read it before I bought one. It's for my mother-in-law's birthday so price was very very important. She's a basic internet/email user. Time will tell how it holds up. Sometimes you get what you pay for and sometimes you get lucky.

[tjmile1]

I think "Dan" can take it. You're proof of what I was saying. For a lot of people this an ideal machine. I would bet it will last just fine. I bought my mom a $500 Acer for internet and email. Acer isn't my favorite brand, but it works fine for her.

I'm curious as to why anybody doesn't consider this a good deal. Where are the other $298 namebrand 2GHz Celeron (yeah it ain't dual core, but it works), 15.4"m, 160GB, SuperMulti 8X DVD±R/RW, laptops? This is an amazing deal. Think about what $300 bought a few years ago.

[tjmile1]

Google the model # and it says it has a 2GHz Celeron. Why wasn't the reviewer able to find out what processor it uses? This is a great deal for if you don't plan to be on battery power much.

I know a lot of people who make barely over minimum wage and a $100 difference is a big deal to them. The CNET reviewer is way off on this. Show me a better name brand laptop for less, pause....(sound of crickets chirping) What? Silence, I thought so.

[tjmile1]

Compaq CQ50-139WM laptop $298
Intel Celeron Processor 575 (2.00 GHz, 1MB Cache, 667MHz front-side bus
Genuine Windows Vista Home Basic with Service Pack 1
2048MB DDR2 system memory
160GB (5400rpm) hard drive
Integrated microphone
SuperMulti EX DVD +/- R/RW drivve with Double Layer Support
15.4 diagonal WXGA high-definition BrightView widescreen display
Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD with up to 765MB total video memory
802.11b/g wireless LAN
Intergrated 10/100Base-T Ethernet LAN (RJ-45 connector)
3 USB 2.0 ports

[hurricane2099]

I would really advise against this laptop. It has a very low speed Intel Celeron processor. I can't describe how slow this is on Vista. It will get choppy if you want to watch YOUTUBE videos. Really...it's that slow. I sell computers for a living and I have sold this type of Black Friday laptop for several years. Every year, I have customers coming back complaining about how terribly slow it is. Do yourselves a favor, forget about the name brand because it's not important. Compaqs can be OK if you get descent specs. However, this thing is going to drive you crazy. It doesn't matter that it has 2GB of ram. It's going to drive you crazy.

[MarioMan94]

My Compaq has a pretty good build quality, imo. It's not very sprinty and it's vista performance isn't so hot, but physically it's lasted through drops and nicks and still looks perfect. I could assume with a bigger HD and RAM, this Compaq also has other better components, which would make this a great buy.

[marge121]

You know I have been buying computers since 1994 and all but my laptops have been from Walmart. I started out with a Packard Bell, then moved to HP(2). I only got new one's because I was ready to upgrade and I gave the old one's to family members who did not need much. I recently purchased a Dell Desktop with XP and monitor from Walmart for $498. I've really never had a problem with any of my Walmart computer purchases. And yes today I went to Walmart and got the $298 Compaq. It comes with DVD Burner/160GB Hard Drive/2GB RAM and Vista. All I had to do to get all of the specs was type the model number in Yahoo and I got the specs...I'm surprised the author of this review wasn't smart enough to figure it out without calling HP. Even if its not the top of the line, no computer last forever. If your kid wants a laptop for XMAS then this is a great deal and Walmart is smart enough to start their sales early to cut out all of those other sellers for Black Friday.

[teitei636]

Well, I BOUGHT IT TODAY for $298 for my mom and its a great laptop for those who aren't out to impress the world with how much money they can waste on other brands for the SAME specs! It's fast, love the mouse pad and just right for a baby boomer who likes online shopping but didn't need to waste anymore money in updating her old computer...I'm a fan of the cheap laptops from anywhere for the little my immediate family uses them for...they trust me and the hubby to strip them of the pre-loaded junk and make them usable for them. With the economy, I thought great price! We've had her house networked for Our (my siblings included) use...we wanted her to know how it felt to be all over her own house browsing and printing from anywhere :o)

Seriously though, its an attractive laptop!

[Maruuk]

Bought it, love it, it totally kills! Fantastic smooth porcelain-like sunken touch pad, looks very classy, handles all the normal tasks like a champ. The only chumps are the folks who missed it. My Wal-Mart had 48, and were sold out by 7am, at least all the tickets were handed out by then. Absolutely gorgeous screen, 2Gb (many of the bottom feeders come with only one), Vista Basic (thought it might come with Linux), it feels rock solid and even the keyboard feels good. If you want an $800 laptop, buy an $800 laptop. If you want a $500 laptop but only want to pay $300, buy a real fast DeLorean and have the Doc drive you back to this morning.

[minson20]

Lets just put all the theories to rest about this laptop because first of all i was the very first person to lay my hands on this laptop after waiting 5 hours for it and right now i think that it was damn well worth it. This laptop is super fast, way better then my older hp ze2000 laptop and this laptop is not a bottom of the barrel junk because i know i've only had this laptop for only over a day i just want to say that this laptop is great and wouldn't return it for the world at the moment because so far its a pretty nice one.

[daisy212]

Love my new Compaq Laptop from Wal-Mart! As a matter of fact I wish I would have purchased more for family and friends considering they had 100 in stock and no minimum purchase limit. My fascination with computers stems back 25 years and I can honestly say that so far I have been most pleased with my $298 "bottom of the barell purchase." Currently I have my Sony to the left of me and my Dell to the right and there is simply no comparison in the quality and performance of my new Compaq. So Cheers to all that successfully purchased this laptop yesterday morning! Realistically, anybody that is passionate about computers knows that they will be purchasing something new within a couple of years anyhow. Overall I have been pleasantly surprised with all of the features and that the laptop did not come with tons of preloaded garbage. :0)

[Maruuk]

BTW all the experts readily say that watching YT video is perfectly fine on a little netbook 1.6Mhz Atom processor with 1Gb, but of course the griefers in here want to scare you about watching YT video on a 2.0Mhz Celeron. Nonsense, YT video looks great on this Compaq, no problems at all. The extra Gig of memory is very helpful for video watching,

This appears to be a laptop worth at least $399, if not more. It has a 6-cell LI battery, MS Works for all the basics, a very nice wireless access indicator, the aforementioned killer touchpad, beautiful piano-black exterior. The folks in the boardroom will have no idea this a cheapazoid item. Physically it's right up there with the $1,000+ models. And I know of no better 15.4 widescreen.

Since this is a Wal-Mart-only skew, I wonder what their regular price for this is gonna be?

[marge121]

I checked and the similar product is around $548. I loaded MS Office and my Sprint Connection Card (USB) software and Itunes and so far so good. I also played a dvd (Casino Royale) and great picture.

[mattdiggsit]

I got to Wal-Mart around 7AM Saturday and I was the 25th person in line. At first they only brought out 19 laptops so I was pretty disheartened. Then around 8:15 they announced that they had 59 of them, so i lucked out and got one. I'm 28 and this will be my first laptop. When i was in college, laptops weren't that common and i really didn't need one... Anyway i had always told myself that $300 would be about my limit for buying a laptop but i was worried about bad specs. When i found out that this one had 2.0 Ghz processing speed, 160 GB of memory (!!!), 2GB ram, DVD writer, etc... I WAS FLOORED! This is the perfect computer for the price!

Once i started playing around with it, i was even more impressed.
-I didn't have to do all that much to get all of the loaded up crap/settings to go away.
-Vista looks pretty cool.
-Great screen
-The laptop is pretty sleek looking (shiny, similar to HP laptops).
-The touch pad isn't as bad as other laptop touch pads
-I like the fact it doesn't have a webcam. (i worry that someone may figure out how to remote in and look at you somehow!)
-160GB OF MEMORY!

SCORE!

[PowerOfThree3]

For $300, the Compaq will provide a better overall user experience than anything under $400. You'd be hard pressed to find anything other than a "netbook" for close to the price.

Admittedly, the Celeron 575 isn't a dual-core processor. But compare its specs to the Intel Atom N270 used in almost every netbook (and praised unilaterally by reviewers). The Celeron has a clock speed of 2.0GHz, FSB speed of 667MHz and 1mb of L2 cache memory. The Atom has a clock speed of 1.6GHz, FSB speed of 533MHz and 512mb of L2 cache. Granted, the Atom is typically used in systems running Windows XP or Linux, but Windows Vista Home Basic isn't nearly as taxing as the Home Premium version. If the Celeron was truly underpowered (VIA C-7 comes to mind), would it be the entry-level processor used by Lenovo and Dell on multiple mainstream models?

It also uses the new Intel GMA 4500MHD integrated graphics instead of the previous-generation Intel GMA X3100 still used on many budget laptops. The 4500MHD performance is exponentially better than the Intel GMA 950 or GMA 500 seen in most netbooks.

The display is the same HP BrightView 15.4" used in the Pavilion dv5-series. The optical drive will read and write both CDs and DVDs. The 160GB 5400rpm Hard Drive and 2GB of RAM are also decent for a budget system.

I would expect build quality and reliability to be similar to other HP products. It is rather hefty at 6.46lbs, but so are a lot of other 15.4" laptops.

The performance should be tolerable, if not especially quick. For those willing to spend another $90 for an official copy of XP Home (NewEgg- OEM version), it would actually be a quite solid performer.

[gerrald54]

I think that the only way to get ahead is to buy the cheapest product that will do the job, when it breaks through it away.