Vizio's VBR110 goes sub-$100 for Black Friday at Costco.

(Credit: Vizio)

We knew it was coming and now it's here: Costco will be serving up Vizio's entry-level VBR110 Blu-ray player for $99.99 on Black Friday. As usual, this comes with the disclaimer: "While supplies last."

In case you're wondering, while the VBR110 is an entry-level player that retails for around $150, it does have an Ethernet port and BD-Live capabilities. And you also get a free HDMI cable.

Here's a complete list of all of Vizio's Black Friday deals:

• Vizio VBR110 Blu-ray player with free HDMI cable: $99.99 at Costco and online at Costco.com from November 27 to 29, while supplies last ($40 savings).
• Vizio VSB210WS sound bar with wireless subwoofer: $199.99 at Costco from November 27 to 29, while supplies last ($50 savings).
• Vizio VA19LHDTV10T 19-inch HD LCD TV: $178 at Wal-Mart; available now through the end of the year ($30 savings).
• Vizio VA26LHDTV10T 26-inch HD LCD TV: $248 at Wal-Mart from November 21 to 27, while supplies last ($99 savings).
• Vizio VO320E 32-inch HD LCD TV: $339.99 at Sam's Club, Samsclub.com, Costco, and Costco.com; available now through November 29, while supplies last ($50 savings).
• Vizio VL320M 32-inch full HD 1080p LCD TV: $399.99 at Costco from November 27 to 29, while supplies last ($50 savings).
• Vizio VO400E 40-inch full HD 1080p LCD TV: $599.99 at Costco from December 3 to 20 ($100 savings).
• Vizio VF550M 55-inch full HD 1080p 120Hz LCD TV: $1199.99 at Costco and Costco.com from November 27 to 29, while supplies last ($300 savings).

Save up to $5 on each game in Konami's impressive iPhone catalog.

I once wrote for an app review site where the guidelines insisted price shouldn't factor into a game's rating. Nuts, right? That's like saying as long as you like the car you're test-driving, forget about the sticker.

For a cheapskate like me, price absolutely matters, which is why I'm happy to see every game in Konami's iPhone catalog temporarily on sale for 99 cents each.

That includes Metal Gear Solid Touch, which is widely regarded as one of the top iPhone shooters. It normally sells for $5.99 (and was $7.99 at launch).

Other 99-cent titles include:

• DanceDanceRevolution S
• DanceDanceRevolution S+
• Field Prowlers Police Rush (a brand-new game)
• Frogger
• Krazy Kart Racing
• Power Pros Touch
• Silent Hill The Escape
• Silent Scope

These prices are good until Saturday (November 21), at which point they'll return to their previous levels: anywhere from $2 to $6.

Most of Konami's games have earned pretty high ratings from users, but there are some--like Frogger and Power Pros--that I just wouldn't buy for $2 or $4 (respectively). (Again: cheapskate.)

But 99 cents? That's my trigger point, the number that pushes me into what-the-hell mode. So I'm stocking up.

How about you? Does price factor into whether you'll buy an iPhone/iPod Touch game? If so, what's your magic number?

It's the penultimate episode before our 404th episode of The 404. Yes, the Internet will exploded when we run our live show tomorrow. Today's episode, though, might keep us from ever reaching that magic number. In our first half, we discuss our recollections of learning about the birds and the bees. In the second half, we have a great Calls from the Public section, and we mention Best Buy's latest snafu.

(Credit: CNET)

So, why the birds and the bees? Well, according to a study by Symantec, children are searching the Internet to learn about sex, not necessarily from their parents. While that might sound quite disturbing, Jeff, Justin, and Wilson reminisce about how we learned about it, and most of it involved dirty magazines and shared videotapes. Plus, we swapped tips on how to catch a glimmer of the Spice Channel by either jiggling the remote or hooking up a black box to our cable outlet.

We round out the show with some delightful Calls from the Public. We love it when a woman calls. Finally, we chat a bit about Best Buy and its mistake of putting a high-end Samsung HDTV on sale for $9.99. People are upset that the company won't honor the price. Well, duh. Come on, you knew it was a mistake when you bought it!

Be sure to send in your favorite show moments and congratulate us on our 404th episode tomorrow! The number is 1-866-404-CNET (2638). Or send in a MP3 or WAV to the404 [at] cnet [dot] com. Tomorrow, we've got an amazing roster of guests, including Clayton Morris, Caroline McCarthy, Mark Licea, and more!

(Credit: The Boy Genius Report)

Ever since Apple launched the new iPhone 3GS, the older iPhone 3G has been going for $99 with a new two-year contract. Well, according to Boy Genius Report, there seem to be some indications that Apple may be about to bring out a new 8GB version of the iPhone 3GS that will take the place of the iPhone 3G and also cost $99.

Interestingly, BGR's source isn't AT&T but Rogers, a Canadian carrier, and a tipster sent the site some screenshots that seem to provide proof of the transition between models. None of this is confirmed, of course, but if AT&T (and other carriers like Rogers) offered an 8GB iPhone 3GS for $99, it would be another aggressive move by Apple in its quest to dominate the smartphone space. I'm not sure it spells doom for the $199 8GB Palm Pre, which is selling well, but it can't help its cause.

Comments? Is the 8GB iPhone 3GS at $99 a big deal?

(Via The Boy Genius Report)

Well, here's hoping you waited on that $99 refurbished iPhone 3G, because as of Monday you can get a new one for the same price. Apple just announced at WWDC 2009 that the 8GB iPhone 3G will stay on the market for $99.

Forget refurbs--now you can get a new iPhone 3G for just $99.

(Credit: James Martin/CNET)

So what do you think? Now that you can finally get a shiny new iPhone with a full warranty (one year) for less than a hundred bucks, will you pull the trigger?

Based on the comments in last week's aforementioned refurb post, I'm guessing no. For most of you, it's not the price of the hardware that's objectionable, but rather the service.

AT&T still charges a minimum of $70 per month for minutes and data. In these craptacular economic times, that's just too much. Me, I'd love to give the missus my current iPhone and snag myself a 3G S, but then I'd be looking at nearly $150 per month. She'd kill me, and I'd probably let her.

Thoughts? Is the iPhone 3G (and/or 3G S) just that good that you'll pay whatever extortion Apple and AT&T want? I'll admit I'd be lost without mine; I use it all day every day, for countless purposes. Damnit.

Update: AT&T dropped the price of refurbished 8GB iPhones to $79.99. My advice: steer clear. It's well worth the extra $20 to get a full one-year warranty. But the 16GB model is down to $129.99 (though currently out of stock). That's pretty tempting.

(Credit: Yamane Yasuhiro/CNET Japan)

MP3 playback? Check. Two cameras? Check. Built-in mobile Buddhist altar? Che... Wait, WTF?!

You read correctly. The Odin 99 has landed on the streets of China, and a single tap of the phone's dedicated lotus-leaf button will load a private, customizable, animated altar.

The idea is to allow Buddhists to perform their dedications and rituals conveniently when away from home. You can simulate incense burning and purification rites and play music to help you meditate wherever you happen to be.

The Odin 99 comes bundled with a charm.

(Credit: Yamane Yasuhiro/CNET Japan)

As far as our knowledge goes of inventions that seamlessly converge religion with phone calls, this takes the gold medal. Gold paint has been taken to the phone too, encrusting the otherwise conventional-looking device. Also interesting is that it comes with a metal Buddhist charm to be carried by the user, and two batteries--the extra one considered "a gift."

At first we were amused. But then came objective inquisitiveness: Would a Buddhist actually find this useful? CNET UK lacks a Buddhist writer to ask, and crowd-sourcing opinions on Twitter came up with nothing.

Before now, we've seen iPhone apps like digitalBlend's Buddha Box (iTunes link)--created by a Buddhist to aid on-the-go meditation--and its reviews are favorable. But no U.K. networks carry a phone with such religious undertones, and we don't believe it's a hotly requested feature.

Or is it? If you're Buddhist and would find a device like this useful, please let us know in the comments below. We're very eager to hear your opinions, as other readers will be too, no doubt.

(Source: Crave UK)

Wired's Gadget Lab blog has a story about how a group of about 250 Kindle owners are staging an online protest over Kindle e-books that cost more than $9.99. The weapon they're using is Amazon's own tagging system, as price offenders are getting hit with a special "9 99 boycott" tag.

The roving--and most likely growing--band of annoyed Kindle owners includes such folks as Connecticut librarian Crystal O'Brien, who spends "a few minutes every day in the Kindle book store tagging the more expensive digital books with the '9 99 boycott' tag and removing it once the price drops below the threshold."

Frame job: the Kindle version of "The Likeness" costs $4 more than the paperback.

(Credit: Amazon)

I wish I'd known about the tag when I was searching for a new Kindle e-book the other day. I came across Tana French's "The Likeness" and was considering a purchase until I saw that the Kindle edition was priced at a shocking $14.27. What was so ridiculous was the $10.20 paperback version costs $4 less. However, I didn't notice the "9 99 boycott" tag until I read the Wired blog and went back to look to see whether it was tagged (it was).

Now, if you're new to the whole e-book pricing game, you might think Amazon's the villain here. But the unfortunate fact is that it's really the publishers who are behind the pricing.

Amazon isn't gouging the consumer, and according to my sources, may barely be breaking even on some best sellers that cost $10. You only need to look at the price of books in the eBook Store from Sony to get a pretty good idea that Amazon's trimmed its margins pretty close to the bone. (Typically, best sellers sell for a buck or two more in the Sony eBook Store--and Sony isn't turning big profits either).

Look, I understand publishers don't want to price the Kindle Edition too low for fear that it will hurt sales of the hardcover edition. But I still maintain Kindle best-sellers should cost a few bucks less than what the paperback version of the book would cost. Case in point: I'm not going to buy the paperback edition of "The Likeness" at $10.20. But I would have paid $7.99 for the Kindle version. Now, of course, no sale has been made.

To make my point, I'm slapping a 7 99 boycott tag on "The Likeness." An over $10 boycott is a start. But we really need to get to $7.99. Who's with me?

While not strictly for professionals, it is recommend that you at least know what 'ELO' stand for before diving in. As you can see from the screenshot, the level of complexity is intimidating.

(Credit: 99Games)

If you're interested in a chess game for the iPhone or iPod Touch, look no further than the App Store. I just searched for the keyword "chess" and found more than 10 entries, most of which were actually chess games.

With so many chess games to choose from, why would a developer want to release another into such a crowded market? Well, obviously they think they can do chess better than the next guy.

99Games must be pretty confident in its product, as it's going one step further. On Wednesday, it announced the availability of two new chess games: Chess Lite and Chess Pro.

Chess Lite is aimed at beginners and players (like me) whose skills are a bit rusty. It has a 2D theme and, according to 99Games, contains medium-level complexity.

Chess Pro is for the Bobby Fischers and Freshes of the world--players who know the rules and want a challenge. It has three levels of difficulty and three play modes, including Regular, Suicide, and Losers. According to 99Games, this version has the option of choosing a 3D theme for the coins and boards, but, from the screenshots, it looks more like "2.5" dimensions and not truly 3D.

Both games make use of a professional strength Chess engine with playing strength over 2,750 ELO.

Chess Lite is priced at $0.99 and Chess Pro at $3.99. They both can be downloaded from the App Store.

(Credit: iLounge)

One wonders what would become of iHome if Apple suddenly stopped making products. Sometimes it seems to have created a cottage industry all by itself with an endless supply of i-accessories, from lamps to bike speakers.

Its latest offering is the iP99, yet another alarm-clock radio dock with stereo drivers, remote, adjustable snooze function, and high-contrast but dimmable LCD, according to iLounge. Yet perhaps its most notable feature is the claim that it will block TDMA frequency interference and noise from the phone itself, something that may be irritatingly familiar to those who have been in the vicinity of one on a regular basis.