Tech Shopping deals...

irvine_home_owner_IHB

irvine_home_owner_IHB

New member
Since we don't have a Shopping forum and I geek out on gadgets:



<strong>PS3 now lowered to $299</strong>



(It's everywhere so I didn't provide a link)



That's for the 80GB model, the 160GB one is $399.



But I would wait until Sept 1st, Sony is coming out with a smaller, slimmer model, the PS3 Slim which has a 120GB hard disk and is still $299.



<strong>Acer Notebook: $279</strong>



<a href="http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9396851&type=product&id=1218099043398">http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9396851&type=product&id=1218099043398</a>



This isn't a netbook, but a full 15.6" Windows Vista notebook with a DVD-RW drive, 2GB ram and 160GB hard disk. It even has the keyboard with a dedicated 10-key for you awgees out there.



<strong>Samsung 46" 120hz LED TV: $1699</strong>



<a href="http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9238835&type=product&id=1218065985439">http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9238835&type=product&id=1218065985439</a>



That's LED... not LCD. Thinner, lighter and more energy efficient than LCD TVs... and it wasn't too long ago that this was $2699. Competing 120hz LCD TVs are around this price so getting LED is a deal.



If you want just an inexpensive name brand LCD, watch the Fry's ads on the weekends. For the last few months they have been advertising a 46" "Major Name Brand" TV for $899 as a 1-day sale. A couple of times it was a Sony Bravia (which I ended up getting) but lately it's been a Samsung (the BEST LCD TV IMO). Had I not got the Sony a few months ago, I would have definitely got the Sammy. $899 is the kind of price you pay for no-name brands like Dynex... so if you see it... you should definitely buy it.



EDIT: Forgot to add the size to the LED TV
 
[quote author="Daedalus" date=1250692332]This is the IHB. I'm waiting till 2012, when I can pick these things up for 40% less. ;)</blockquote>
At the rate technology is dropping... I don't doubt it.



It was just last year when notebooks dropped sub $500 and I was shocked... but to see it hit $279 BEFORE Black Friday has me thinking that they may get as low as $200 or less. And again... this is not a netbook that's dinky, not too powerful and has no optical drive... it's a FULL notebook.



I think cell phone makers are going to find it much harder to charge $200+ on smartphones that need to be subsidized with a 2-year committment when stuff like computers are selling in the same range.



And the LED TV is already close to 40% off... when a 46" LED hits close to $1k, I'll grab it (just like money and good looks, you can never have enough TVs).



Oh yeah... forgot to mention that BluRay players are now heading towards the $150 range (which is also probably why Sony had to do a price drop on the PS3). If you've never watched BluRay on HD... you must see to believe.
 
What's the best way to keep up with Fry's ads if you don't get the paper? I'm looking to buy a LCD, preferably Samsung, and would love to get a 46'' instead of a 40'' for $899.
 
[quote author="Shooby" date=1250725040]What's the best way to keep up with Fry's ads if you don't get the paper? I'm looking to buy a LCD, preferably Samsung, and would love to get a 46'' instead of a 40'' for $899.</blockquote>
www.ocregister.com.



They have the Fry's ads online under Deals | Search Newspaper Ads.



When you see the sale item (they usually don't disclose the brand), get the item/SKU number and search for it on Frys.com to tell you what brand it is.



It's usually the Sammy 550 (last year's model) which is a 60hz LCD but still one of the best out there.



And yes... bigger is ALWAYS better.
 
[quote author="irvine_home_owner" date=1250718869]It was just last year when notebooks dropped sub $500 and I was shocked... but to see it hit $279 BEFORE Black Friday has me thinking that they may get as low as $200 or less. And again... this is not a netbook that's dinky, not too powerful and has no optical drive... it's a FULL notebook.



I think cell phone makers are going to find it much harder to charge $200+ on smartphones that need to be subsidized with a 2-year committment when stuff like computers are selling in the same range.



And the LED TV is already close to 40% off... when a 46" LED hits close to $1k, I'll grab it (just like money and good looks, you can never have enough TVs).



Oh yeah... forgot to mention that BluRay players are now heading towards the $150 range (which is also probably why Sony had to do a price drop on the PS3). If you've never watched BluRay on HD... you must see to believe.</blockquote>The times, they are a-changing. It was only 7 years ago that I was buying 20" LCD monitors for $1500 and flipping them for a profit on fleabay.
 
[quote author="High Gravity" date=1250727142][quote author="irvine_home_owner" date=1250725706]



And yes... bigger is ALWAYS better.</blockquote>


46" isn't that big</blockquote>
It's bigger than a 40". And in Irvine... where our rooms are tiny... it's big enough.



(I have a 52" which when I bought I thought was too big... and now I want a 60-65"... hehe)
 
[quote author="irvine_home_owner" date=1250727453][quote author="High Gravity" date=1250727142][quote author="irvine_home_owner" date=1250725706]



And yes... bigger is ALWAYS better.</blockquote>


46" isn't that big</blockquote>
It's bigger than a 40". And in Irvine... where our rooms are tiny... it's big enough.



(I have a 52" which when I bought I thought was too big... and now I want a 60-65"... hehe)</blockquote>


Recommended viewing angle for a good immersion experience in movies is about 30 degrees. Go for the the 65" even if you are only sitting 10 ft from it!!!
 
the laptop is very inexpensive, I'm in the middle of upgrading a 2006 laptop, after I finished my research yesterday, the parts will cost me $100: new battery and maximum memory allowed, and still is heavy, compared to the new ones.
 
Just curious will Best Buy price match the Fry's ads? Say If i print out a fry's 1-day sale ad, will they honor the $899 price for a 46'' LCD Samsung? OR is that why they put "Major brand" in order to eliminate price matching techniques?
 
[quote author="Shooby" date=1250736288]Just curious will Best Buy price match the Fry's ads? Say If i print out a fry's 1-day sale ad, will they honor the $899 price for a 46'' LCD Samsung? OR is that why they put "Major brand" in order to eliminate price matching techniques?</blockquote>
Funny you ask that... story time:



So... like Shooby, I don't want to go all the way down to Fry's and find out they don't have any in stock (which happened to me the first time it was on sale). I asked a BB salesguy and he said as long as I bring in the ad on the day of the sale, they can look up the SKU on Frys.com to verify it's the same model as they have, it should be fine. BTW, for that particular ad they did say it was a Sony so I guess that helped... however... being able to match the SKU and verify what the "Major Name Brand" model is should suffice (I believe they do that because of manufacturer guidelines for advertising... which is why you often see "before rebates/savings").



Well, the ad ran again and I did just that... brought it to a BB (a different one). The guy said he would honor it but it was out of stock and he would have to order it. Well, I was impatient and I asked if there were any BBs that had it in stock and a local one did have it. So I went over there with my Fry's ad confident that it would be a smooth transaction.



It was not. The first salesperson had to ask a manager and told me no. I asked to see the manager. The manager also told me no saying that they can't sell below their own employee prices. I asked him who his manager was (this was on the weekend) and he said that he was the top guy at the time. I asked him to show me in their price match policy where it says they can't match the price and explained that not one but TWO other BBs said it would be no problem as long as it was the day of the 1-day sale. He tried to cite that their policy does not match Black Friday deals (trying to compare it to a 1-day sale) or limited item sales. The problem with that it wasn't a limited item and it was not Black Friday. After about half an hour of looking for other deals to give me (he tried to get a Sammy down to $1100), he gave in and said that since I was patient, he would do the match.



Now... it was probably all delay tactics and he just didn't want to sell the item for a loss, but it was a hassle for me and I was surprised I didn't go off (which he said was another reason why he was more willing to deal with me).



So... the moral is... YMMV (your mileage may vary for [reason]).
 
[quote author="Astute Observer" date=1250730834]That you mean the field of view of the TV need to occupy 30 degree of your vision?</blockquote>


I guess I should've said "angle of view" to make it more precise.
 
[quote author="irvine_home_owner" date=1250737284][quote author="Shooby" date=1250736288]Just curious will Best Buy price match the Fry's ads? Say If i print out a fry's 1-day sale ad, will they honor the $899 price for a 46'' LCD Samsung? OR is that why they put "Major brand" in order to eliminate price matching techniques?</blockquote>
Funny you ask that... story time:



So... like Shooby, I don't want to go all the way down to Fry's and find out they don't have any in stock (which happened to me the first time it was on sale). I asked a BB salesguy and he said as long as I bring in the ad on the day of the sale, they can look up the SKU on Frys.com to verify it's the same model as they have, it should be fine. BTW, for that particular ad they did say it was a Sony so I guess that helped... however... being able to match the SKU and verify what the "Major Name Brand" model is should suffice (I believe they do that because of manufacturer guidelines for advertising... which is why you often see "before rebates/savings").



Well, the ad ran again and I did just that... brought it to a BB (a different one). The guy said he would honor it but it was out of stock and he would have to order it. Well, I was impatient and I asked if there were any BBs that had it in stock and a local one did have it. So I went over there with my Fry's ad confident that it would be a smooth transaction.



It was not. The first salesperson had to ask a manager and told me no. I asked to see the manager. The manager also told me no saying that they can't sell below their own employee prices. I asked him who his manager was (this was on the weekend) and he said that he was the top guy at the time. I asked him to show me in their price match policy where it says they can't match the price and explained that not one but TWO other BBs said it would be no problem as long as it was the day of the 1-day sale. He tried to cite that their policy does not match Black Friday deals (trying to compare it to a 1-day sale) or limited item sales. The problem with that it wasn't a limited item and it was not Black Friday. After about half an hour of looking for other deals to give me (he tried to get a Sammy down to $1100), he gave in and said that since I was patient, he would do the match.



Now... it was probably all delay tactics and he just didn't want to sell the item for a loss, but it was a hassle for me and I was surprised I didn't go off (which he said was another reason why he was more willing to deal with me).



So... the moral is... YMMV (your mileage may vary for [reason]).</blockquote>


Sounds like you are a frequent visitor to FW and SD
 
Actually... I don't. I know someone who does so if there is something good, he'll tell me.



I read the Fry's and BB ads and I do a lot of reading of gadget sites. FW and SD are good... especially during Black Friday but sometimes there is a lot of junk to comb through. I'll go there once in a while to find a coupon but I don't do a lot of online shopping which FW/SD refers to.



I hear buying a TV off of Amazon is actually a really good experience.
 
Oh... forgot to mention that FatWallet and SlickDealz are good for those ad leaks. If they get an ad before it's supposed to come out, I usually buy an item I see on sale just in case they run out during the ad period. Since most stores have price matches (esp to their own sales), I just come back in and get the adjustment.



I've done this once and it worked out because the item I got sold out the same day the ad hit the papers.
 
<img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_UV5RuxaDkGU/SbqHOKzgcvI/AAAAAAAABI0/YaM78dDtnDc/s400/Justin+Timberlake+funny+face.jpg" alt="" />



Watch TV like this and the 30 degree projection is reduced to a smaller TV to save some money.
 
Today's Fry's ad has the Sony 46" s5100 LCD for $899. It's the newer model and it makes me sad (since I got the v4100 for the same price).



I hate technology obsolescence!



They also have the Sammy LED 46" for $1699 and you get a free BluRay player.
 
The new PS3 Slims are out now.



The BB at the District just put 10 on the floor and sold 2 within minutes.



I really want one of these but have to clear it with the boss first.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top