Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

Given that $100 at Wal-mart is essentially as good as cash, we can only imagine how titillating this offer may seem for Blu-ray holdouts. Announced today, the mega-retailer will be offering a $100 gift card with the purchase of any Blu-ray player from June 8th through 14th — and yes, Sony’s PlayStation 3 is included. In case this wasn’t enough to maybe-possibly get the general public to actually pay attention to the format, Wally World will also sell “select” BD titles for $15 starting on the 8th. Since the format war ended earlier this year, we’ve seen report after report proclaiming that Blu-ray adoption just wasn’t taking off here in America, but with a theoretical net price now close to $200 (albeit for a few days only), we can certainly see the masses taking notice at long last.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

And you thought $49.99 was cheap. Word on the street has it that Microsoft’s Xbox 360 HD DVD add-on, which has been seen as slightly less valuable since Toshiba pulled the plug on the once mighty red format, has stooped to €9.99 across the pond. For those not savvy on the absurd devaluation of the US dollar, we’re talking $15.47 — and that’s with a Media Center remote bundled in, too. We’re totally straight-faced when we say that’s actually not a half bad deal if you’re a fan of the media already out there, but the parsimonious among us are definitely waiting for these to come bundled with our favorite cereals before pulling the trigger.

[Thanks, Conor]

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Gaming, HDTV, Home Entertainment

Truthfully, we reckon this moment is inevitable. With HD DVD hung out to dry by everyone and their long lost cousin, it’s simply a matter of time before players are being traded for rides on the carousel. Nevertheless, reports are already circulating that Microsoft’s Xbox 360 add-on drive could sink to $49.99 in the not-too-distant future, which may actually make it worth grabbing for the very respectable library of HD DVD titles already out there. Whatever you do, don’t pay full price for this thing.

[Thanks, Steve]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Gaming, HDTV, Home Entertainment

Truthfully, we reckon this moment is inevitable. With HD DVD hung out to dry by everyone and their long lost cousin, it’s simply a matter of time before players are being traded for rides on the carousel. Nevertheless, reports are already circulating that Microsoft’s Xbox 360 add-on drive could sink to $49.99 in the not-too-distant future, which may actually make it worth grabbing for the very respectable library of HD DVD titles already out there. Whatever you do, don’t pay full price for this thing.

[Thanks, Steve]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Laptops

Believe it or not, we’ve but three days before this year’s Black Friday arrives, and Best Buy has just unveiled that it will be offering up Toshiba’s Satellite A135-S7403 laptop and a Canon PIXMA 3-in-1 printer for the low, low price of $229. We’ve already seen Dell throw out a $399 lappie, but this machine hits even lower by offering up a totally weak (but potentially satisfactory) 1.73GHz Intel Celeron M 530 processor, 512MB of DDR2 RAM, an 80GB 5,400RPM SATA drive, 802.11b/g WiFi, Windows Vista Home Basic, Ethernet, a dual-layer DVD burner, GMA950 integrated graphics set and a 15.4-inch WXGA (1,280 x 800) TruBrite panel. Furthermore, you’ll find four USB 2.0 ports, a PCMCIA slot, built-in speakers, a Li-ion battery, 56k modem and a multicard reader for good measure. Best Buy claims that each store will have a minimum of 20 bundles on hand, but you better show up early in order to secure a ticket. Check out a few more shots of the pair after the jump.

[Via Notebooks]

Continue reading Doorbusting Toshiba A135 for only $229 you-know-when

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

Filed under: HDTV

When they say “competition’s good,” they obviously meant “competition means cheap HD DVD players”: Wal-Mart’s $198 Toshiba HD-A2 has been copied by Circuit City, which is now selling the same player for $197.99 online. Add it to your cart, and see for yourself. As one tipster said, with deals like this popping up this early, signs are looking good for one helluva Black Friday.

[Thanks to everyone that sent this in!]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

Filed under: Displays

If you’re looking for a cheap way to get your multi-monitor setup on, you probably couldn’t do much better than the $50, dodgy-brand, 17-inch LCDs being offered by random e-tailer HCDI Trading. Of course, there’s no such thing as a free lunch, and that rule certainly applies here, with this lowly-spec’ed display (12-millisecond response time, 500:1 contrast ratio, 260cd/m² brightness) lacking so much as a base — meaning that your Matrix-style array will be wall-mount only. Reassuringly, HCDI claims that these units are “not stolen” and goes on to admit that “we need the money” as two of the top ten reasons you should buy their product. Also, shipping will add another twenty-five bucks to your total, which is still actually a pretty small price to pay in order to, as HCDI puts it, “further shame your Etch-A-Sketch.”

P.S. 1,000 experience points to the first reader who can nail down the branding on this sucker.

P.P.S. Ding ding ding! We have a winner: meet the discontinued Sharp LL173CB. Experience points for all!

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!