Tech Bargain Thread: Post Your Deals Here!

[Couperin47]

 
Two more things AMD did (that proved helpful) - they bought ATi and now have one of the top two (if not the top) offering for the graphics space. Likely because of this, they were able to get their embedded/miniserver CPU into the eighth-gen consoles. AMD is in more systems now than ever, mainly because of Radeon, so I that's a small victory.

 
ATi gave them a lead in graphics, Intel has simply never been interested in really being competitive in gaming graphics, what they have is always 'good enough' for business and now average media. The console market is the main niche I was referring to where Intel has quite deliberately stayed out, there were a few years where that business saved AMD. As Sumner notes, Atom is finally gaining traction in the tablet market, where AMD had great hopes and has completely flopped. LOL in graphics it's close to a dead heat and there really are just 2 players... everyone else ...like Matrox ..has faded into irrelevance.

 

[Couperin47]

A ton of Newegg promo code deals thru 9/24...but not all that much that's interesting:
http://promotions.newegg.com/NEemail/Sep-0-2014/SSDs-23/index-landing.html?nm_mc=EMC-IGNEFL092314&cm_mmc=EMC-IGNEFL092314-_-EMC-092314-Index-_-E0-_-PromoWord&et_cid=11425&et_rid=2267858


The Intel 530 240 Gb SSD is a good deal, espcially for those who need a manual way to invoke TRIM command, since the Intel toolbox allows this. $120

Ditto for the Intel 520 at $110.

The Seagate 4 Tb external USB 3.0 at $120 is dirt cheap if you like Seagate.

EVGA 1000w 80 Plus Gold PS for $110 after rebate is about as low a price as you will find for a device that can electrocute small mammals.

The Team Elite 8 Gb DDR3 1600 at $68 is the first 'standard' memory I've seen below the $70/8 Gig price in quite a while.

The Corsair CX500 PS for $30 after $20 rebate is good enough for most builds, even with a modest separate video card.

The Corsair Carbide 200R case for $40 after $10 rebate is a quality case for adults at a bargain price.

 

[Couperin47]

The mx100 is a fine product. It's my boot device on my new machine, reviews were solid and I'm happy with it. That seems like a pretty good deal on it to me, unless prices have shifted dramatically in the last 45 days.

 
There are 240 Drives down at $80 but they are slower and simply not worth it, all the quality brands are right at $100 for a 240/256 and the MX is square in that group.

 

[derekson]

Maybe true a decade ago, but the landscape has changed a ton since AMD vs Intel. Intel doesn't even account for a simple majority of CPUs sold, let alone enough to have monopoly control over the market. ARM's been eating them for lunch for the most part, though the Atom is finally showing signs of getting an Intel toehold in the mobile market.

 
The problem is that Intel has shifted a ton of their resources from developing better Desktop and Laptop chips to Tablet and Ultrabook chips to compete with ARM since AMD isn't really offering any kind of competition in the desktop space and ARM is their biggest competitor for overall marketshare. So yeah, now they're looking at releasing Atom and Broadwell M chips that are finally providing better performance and similar efficiency to ARM offerings but it's coming at the cost of slowing down desktop development, and since AMD isn't even close to them in that space there is no impetus to shift any resources back in that direction. So we end up with getting absolutely nothing for Desktop or high-end laptops in 2014 other than a 200 Mhz boost to the Haswell chips released in 2013. Intel can take all the time they want to release improved i5s and i7s because they have absolutely no competition. Obviously this affects the prices we pay for these chips as well, because computer manufacturers have no choice but to buy Intel chips if they want to make high end or even mid-range computers now. Only the lowest end systems can be substituted with AMD chips anymore.

 

[SumnerH]

 
The problem is that Intel has shifted a ton of their resources from developing better Desktop and Laptop chips to Tablet and Ultrabook chips to compete with ARM since AMD isn't really offering any kind of competition in the desktop space and ARM is their biggest competitor for overall marketshare. So yeah, now they're looking at releasing Atom and Broadwell M chips that are finally providing better performance and similar efficiency to ARM offerings but it's coming at the cost of slowing down desktop development, and since AMD isn't even close to them in that space there is no impetus to shift any resources back in that direction. So we end up with getting absolutely nothing for Desktop or high-end laptops in 2014 other than a 200 Mhz boost to the Haswell chips released in 2013. 

 
Which is fine because the CPU's really not the bottleneck on most desktops.  Contrary to the 1990s when almost annual upgrades were normal to see huge performance gains, I'm basically never constrained by the CPU nowadays.  Certainly things like SSDs and other I/O improvements stand to bear a lot more fruit on the desktop, and if I had to choose I'd much rather have more engineering resources going toward low power and other mobile innovations than to desktop CPU speed.  That pendulum will eventually swing again, but it seems like the market has this one pretty right.

 

[Couperin47]

M.2 2242 SSD formfactor. I've mentioned this as an internal option in many new Lenovo, HP and other latops which can be used as a boot drive. There are 2 brands available atm in this size: MyDigital SSD and Transcend. My Digital does capacities up to 120 Gig and Transcend actually has a 240 Gig model. The MyDigital uses an Phison controller, Transcend is being cute, they claim a Transcend controller, but there is zero evidence Transcend has ever designed a controller, it appears to be a custom verison of the same Phison controller.
 
Who is Phison and why them instead of Sandforce, Marvall or some company better known.?.. having explored it...the reason is simple: None of the mainstream controller makers ever focused on miniaturizing their products, no one foresaw this new formfactor. Meanwhile Phison has been around for years making such miniature controllers for embedding in all sorts of industrial products. It remains to be seen which other maker will design for these, meanwhile the benchmarks for the Phison are mid-pack for a 2 channel device. While I have quoted the size , you don't really get the impact of how silly/small these are until you see one. I just received one to install in my new E531 Thinkpad:
 

 

[Harry Hooper]

Woot.com is selling 4TB Hitachi refurb hard drives for $99.99 plus $5 shipping. Could be worth it in a RAID or ZFS-type setup. Bare drive with 60-day warranty.
 
 
 
Edit: Sold out now, but FTR it was the HDS5C4040ALE630

 
 
This offer is back on at Woot.com.

 

[leftfieldlegacy]

The cassette will probably work.  If you do get something with an aux jack you can plug the iPhone straight in or go with a bluetooth setup like this one.
 
http://www.amazon.com/Belkin-Hands-Free-Bluetooth-BlackBerry-Smartphones/dp/B004CLYJ2I

We got the cassette today from amazon. My son put the cassette in the player and the cassette player spit it out and then started making clicking noises like it was still trying to play the cassette. I finally had to pull the fuse to get it to shut down.
Tried the cassette in my Honda and it worked like a charm. So we are going to keep the cassette in my Honda and try the Belkin Bluetooth you mentioned for the Jeep. Thanks for your help. 

 

[Couperin47]

Newegg promo sale, most probably good for at least 3-4 days
 
http://promotions.newegg.com/NEemail/Sep-0-2014/9DealsBack_25/index-landing.html?nm_mc=EMC-IGNEFL092514&cm_mmc=EMC-IGNEFL092514-_-EMC-092514-Index-_-E0F-_-Desktop&et_cid=11480&et_rid=2267858
 
Crucial MX100 512 Gb SSD  for $190  til 9/26  One of the best and now prices for sizes that seriously eat into mechanical hard drives are arriving.
 
Gateway i5-4440 (3.1 Ghz), 4 GB ram, ! Tb 7200 rpm HD, DVD burner, HDMI & Displayport video, Gig Ethernet, keyboard & mouse Win 8.1    $370
 
All the basics, very fast i5, 2 of the 3 common video outputs (you can use an inexpensive hdmi to DVI cable if you require dvi). An excellent buy if you don't intend many changes except adding memory. Gateway (the bargain brand for Acer these days) has designed this so there's no chance to expand or change: PS is proprietary, connects to mb with a 'special' 12 pin connect, zero additional sata or other power leads. There's a pci-e expansion slot, but no way to generate extra power lead so you're restricted to only low end video cards. There appear to be extra sata inputs, so with splitter cables you can probably add an SSD. BTW the PS is 300W and we do get 4 memory slots. Last annoyance: USB 3 are only on back.
Still a lot of desktop for under 4 bills.
 
Corsair CX430 PS 430w after $20 rebate = $16
 
Ironically, the perfect upgrade PS for the machine above... if it could fit and work. This PS is perfect for easily 90% of low end medium bargain builds and the price is just silly. For this price, you just ignore all the no-name stuff which gets churned out...
 
Toshiba 3 Tb 7200 rpm HD in retail box  $100
 
WD's HGST offering, 3 yr warranty, retail box protects in shipping...good deal.

 

[jayhoz]

We got the cassette today from amazon. My son put the cassette in the player and the cassette player spit it out and then started making clicking noises like it was still trying to play the cassette. I finally had to pull the fuse to get it to shut down.
Tried the cassette in my Honda and it worked like a charm. So we are going to keep the cassette in my Honda and try the Belkin Bluetooth you mentioned for the Jeep. Thanks for your help. 

 
The Belkin piece will only work with an aux jack.  I thought you said the Jeep doesn't have one?

 

[Couperin47]

Newegg quarterly promo codes... til 10/2
 
http://promotions.newegg.com/NEemail/Sep-0-2014/QuarterEnd-26/index-landing.html?nm_mc=EMC-IGNEFL092614&cm_mmc=EMC-IGNEFL092614-_-EMC-092614-Index-_-E0-_-PromoWord&et_cid=11500&et_rid=213639
 
20 % off many Rosewill cases & power supplies offers some very good bargains:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&IsNodeId=1&Description=PPSSBEWGOWUWFK&bop=And&Order=PRICE&PageSize=50
 
among the best is Rosewill Redbone U3 case after promo code & rebate = $30
with front panel usb 3 and 3 decent fans it's a great basic case.
 
Lite On DVD burner iHAS124-14 with promo code $13
Burners have become commodity items, LiteOn is one of the 3 top brands, at this price it's just stupid.
 
WD Green 3 Tb HD  with promo code $90 only til 9/28
 
TP-Link TL-PA4010 500Mbps powerline kit  with promo code $30
Sumner swears by this.
 
Webroot SecureAnywhere AV 2014 for 3 devices with promo code $5
One of my favorites, works on PC, Mac, Android, iOS and can actually install on at least 5 devices. Cloud based, light on resources, plays well with other AV, with the news this week
re: Shellshock... time for Mac users to wake up and deal with the real world: you're just as vulnerable as everyone else.

 

[Harry Hooper]

Intel Cherryville 520 Series 120 GB SSD for $59.99 at Amazon.

 
 
This deal is almost back. it's $65 this time. LINK

 

[HriniakPosterChild]

 
 
This deal is almost back. it's $65 this time. LINK

I see "new from $235" at that link.

 

[jayhoz]

I see "new from $235" at that link.

Click the 120 GB capacity.

 

[Harry Hooper]

Whoops, yes 120 GB. LINK

 

[kelpapa]

This isn't thread worthy, so I figured I'd check in here. I have two Lenovo laptops that have VGA outputs on them. I'm trying to hook them up to our HDMI CAT 6 extender for the tvs in the office. I picked up a VGA to HDMI converter, but it's not working. I'm wondering if the VGA to HDMI converter screws up the HDMI Cat 6 extender. Is that the case? Any ideas for getting that signal over to the tv?

 

[Couperin47]

This isn't thread worthy, so I figured I'd check in here. I have two Lenovo laptops that have VGA outputs on them. I'm trying to hook them up to our HDMI CAT 6 extender for the tvs in the office. I picked up a VGA to HDMI converter, but it's not working. I'm wondering if the VGA to HDMI converter screws up the HDMI Cat 6 extender. Is that the case? Any ideas for getting that signal over to the tv?

 
Let's be obvious, when you connect the vga to HDMI output directly to the TV..does it work ? If it does, then, yes, the extender is not happy with that signal. If it doesn't, then that converter isn't producing a standard HDMI signal the TV is recognizing. Why you want to do this, considering the horrendous quality of 800x600 on most modern TVs, is an entirely separate issue...

 

[jayhoz]

I believe your are converting the signal two times.  Analog (VGA) to digital (HDMI) and then a conversion to whatever works over Cat 6.  This seems like a recipe for failure.

 

[kelpapa]

 
Let's be obvious, when you connect the vga to HDMI output directly to the TV..does it work ? If it does, then, yes, the extender is not happy with that signal. If it doesn't, then that converter isn't producing a standard HDMI signal the TV is recognizing. Why you want to do this, considering the horrendous quality of 800x600 on most modern TVs, is an entirely separate issue...

Yes, it works when it's directly connected.
 
It's in the conference room at work, and our HDMI plugin is in the middle of the conference table. I don't want to run HDMI cables 20' across the room. I'm kind of out of options if those laptops don't have HDMI. They are Thinkpads, and both bought new within the past year.
 
The tv is hardwired to the Internet. I need Allshare to work for everything, not just certain programs. I may be better off just buying a dock with an HDMI and leaving it in the conference room.

 

[Couperin47]

Yes, it works when it's directly connected.
 
It's in the conference room at work, and our HDMI plugin is in the middle of the conference table. I don't want to run HDMI cables 20' across the room. I'm kind of out of options if those laptops don't have HDMI. They are Thinkpads, and both bought new within the past year.
 
The tv is hardwired to the Internet. I need Allshare to work for everything, not just certain programs. I may be better off just buying a dock with an HDMI and leaving it in the conference room.

 
sadly, as I've mentioned in almost all my posts for laptops and desktops, vga output is now, as a practical matter, obsolete for almost any reason you want to connect external video. Which model Thinkpads ?
What anyone wants is HDMI or DVI output, (almost no laptops or desktops using cpu integrated video will offer displayport), either of which can easily be converted via inexpensive passive cables.

 

[kelpapa]

So, dock with an HDMI output is my only chance?

 

[Couperin47]

Newegg promo code sales, expirations vary:
http://promotions.newegg.com/NEemail/Sep-0-2014/FallIntoSavings-30/index-landing.html?nm_mc=EMC-IGNEFL093014&cm_mmc=EMC-IGNEFL093014-_-EMC-093014-Index-_-E0-_-PromoWord&et_cid=11589&et_rid=213639
 
Notable:
 
Today Only
 Samsung 840 Pro 128 Gb SSD   $90
Their fastest, enterprise quality, 5 yr warranty, 7mm thickness, truly premium SSD.
 
Intel 530 120 Gb SSD   $76
Intel's equivalent to the Samsung above, also 5 yr warranty, also today only.
 
Crucial 16 Gb (2x8 Gb) DDR3 1600 SO-DIMM laptop memory  $133
If you want a ton of ram in your laptop, this is quality standard memory, we rarely see any sort of memory for under $70/8 gig. Of course this means you'll have to discard your current memory, but eBay and Craig's List are your friends selling it.
 
Corsair CX750M 750w PS  after $20 rebate = $60
Bronze, modular, good enough for almost any build.

 

[Red Sox Physicist]

 
almost no laptops or desktops using cpu integrated video will offer displayport

 
This isn't really true anymore since Haswell supports DisplayPort 1.2 and up to three digital display interfaces. 141 out of 372 Socket 1150 motherboards on Newegg have at least 1 DisplayPort or mini DisplayPort connector.
 
The ThinkPad T440 ships with Intel HD4400 and mini DisplayPort: http://shop.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/thinkpad/t-series/t440/#tab-tech_specs
 
If your ThinkPads have mini DisplayPort connectors you could try one of these: http://www.monoprice.com/Product?c_id=104&cp_id=10428&cs_id=1042802&p_id=5311&seq=1&format=2

 

[Couperin47]

 
This isn't really true anymore since Haswell supports DisplayPort 1.2 and up to three digital display interfaces. 141 out of 372 Socket 1150 motherboards on Newegg have at least 1 DisplayPort or mini DisplayPort connector.
 
The ThinkPad T440 ships with Intel HD4400 and mini DisplayPort: http://shop.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/thinkpad/t-series/t440/#tab-tech_specs
 
If your ThinkPads have mini DisplayPort connectors you could try one of these: http://www.monoprice.com/Product?c_id=104&cp_id=10428&cs_id=1042802&p_id=5311&seq=1&format=2

 
It's definitely getting better. yet all the $400 and below prebuilts (lenovo, hp, acer, dell) I've mentioned in the past few months basically have only either hdmi or dvi. What you're pointing out is exactly why one wants to build, not buy, since it's hard to find a mb that doesn't have all of these. All the low end prebuilt desktops are brutal with the stuff they omit, just to save a few pennies. And kelpapa, just above, somehow managed to buy Thinkpads this year that only had vga . 

 

[canderson]

Couperin47, this might not be up your alley but I need to (UGH) order Comcast Internet asap. Any tips to get a better deal than what their website is offering - $55/12 months for Blast (105mps)?

 

[Couperin47]

Couperin47, this might not be up your alley but I need to (UGH) order Comcast Internet asap. Any tips to get a better deal than what their website is offering - $55/12 months for Blast (105mps)?

 
They don't do any deals on single services, for both Comcast and TW all the deals are some sort of crappy bundles (invariably including their phone service). btw I'd kill for 105/mps down at that price, I'm paying more than that for 30 down/5 up and the max service available here is half that.

 

[Time to Mo Vaughn]

I'm going to be in the market for a cheap wireless AC router over the next week while I'm converting my phone jacks to ethernet and installing a gigabit switch.
 
If anyone sees a deal on one, I'm not looking for absolute top of line, but a reliable one for sub $100.

 

[Couperin47]

I'm going to be in the market for a cheap wireless AC router over the next week while I'm converting my phone jacks to ethernet and installing a gigabit switch.
 
If anyone sees a deal on one, I'm not looking for absolute top of line, but a reliable one for sub $100.

 
you're aware most wireless routers will include a a 4 port gig switch, I assume you're adding an additional switch ?
ASUS generally have the best reviews these days, their cheapest AC1200  Dual Band is the RT-AC56U  $105 at Newegg or Amazon.  Most buyers go for the RT-N66U which can use open source firmware, etc. and is $130 everywhere atm. Rebates and promo sales come and go frequently and can generally knock another $20 off these prices. Of course, none today but generally someone runs sales on ASUS every week or 2.

 

[Time to Mo Vaughn]

I've got 6 or 7 phone jacks throughout the house and all terminate down in the basement, so I ordered a cheap but highly rated 8 port gigabit switch to put down there.
 
Right now in my home office, I've got the wifi router/modem that comes with Verizon, but my living room and master bedroom are on the other side of the house so while they get a signal it's fairly weak/inconsistent. I realized that all the phone lines in my house are wired with Cat5e, so I'm going to replace all the plates and add the keystones, install the switch and then get a second wireless router that I'll set up with the same SSID in the living room once I've got ethernet running to it. None of the cables are labeled, so I need to determine which are which as I do want to keep one or two of them wired to the phone, and thus will probably take me a bit of time. Hence, I don't need the router immediately and am on the lookout for a deal. Thewirecutter likes the Asus router you mentioned, so a rebate to knock $20 off would be just about perfect.
 
Thanks

 

[Couperin47]

TigerDirect sales are annoying because they never tell you when they expire...anyway
 
Intel i7-4790K Quad CPU  $310 free ship
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=9085222
 
The top of the line Intel Quad processor, before we get to the 6 core and Extreme cpus (which are mostly extremely expensive without the performance to justify the silly prices). Unlocked for overclocking, this is $30 cheaper than everybody else unless you buy at a Microcenter, if you have one anywhere near you.
 
Ultra Rogue M295 full tower case $100 - $20 coupon - $20 rebate (Good til 10/4) = $60 with free ship
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=2851012
 
Good full tower case, dual front panel usb 2 & 3, card reader, 3 120mm  fans & fan controller.

 

[kelpapa]

So, dock with an HDMI output is my only chance?

Turns out they make VGA CAT5 extenders. No idea if they work well or not, but I'm going to give it a whirl.

 

[Couperin47]

Rakuten deals:
 
Canon MF4770n B&W Multifunction Laser with promo code $90 free ship   TIL 10/4
http://www.rakuten.com/prod/canon-imageclass-mf4770n-black-white-laser-multifunction/238756585.html?scid=em_Promotional_20141003Daily&adid=17992
 
My favorite series, does it all, does it well.
 
Dell C1765NF LED Color Muiltifunction    $180 free ship
http://www.rakuten.com/prod/dell-c1765nf-led-multifunction-printer-color-plain-paper-print-desktop/245540204.html?scid=em_Promotional_20141003Daily&adid=17992
 
Dell's color printers don't have a great reputation, this is a complete multifunction: scan, copy, fax too. You probably should think of this as a disposable: a set of replacement toner carts will cost almost as much as the unit, to quote the description "Keep maintenance costs low: Save on upkeep with a single drum/fuser unit designed to last the life of the printer. All you have to replace are the toner cartridges."
So even Dell sees it as a disposable, nor are we told how many toner cycles the drum will last. But it's still only $180 for a true color MF... you're not going to find anything cheaper.
 
Newegg promo codes, generally 10-15% off on a wide range of stuff:
http://promotions.newegg.com/NEemail/Oct-0-2014/Coupon-03/index-landing.html?nm_mc=EMC-IGNEFL100314&cm_mmc=EMC-IGNEFL100314-_-EMC-100314-Index-_-E0-_-PromoWord&et_cid=11687&et_rid=2267858

 

[Harry Hooper]

Lenovo's online store {NOT the refurb outlet} is having an early Black Friday sale. The code is DOORBUSTER to use on various laptops and PCs. For example, you can get a new i3 PC for $349.99.

 

[JerBear]

Computers.Woot has the Motorola SB6141 cable modem for $60 + $5 shipping.  Factory refurb with 90 day warranty.  One of the best cable modems on the market.

 

[Time to Mo Vaughn]

I think I may go with the following router, which apparently is a Costco version of Netgear's higher end R6300v2 and is just limited by firmware but can be flashed with the R6300's firmware or DD-WRT.
 
There's an extra $10 off code mentioned on Slickdeals, but it appears you may need to be signed up with Newegg's deals site. I signed up now and am hoping it allows me to use the code later today or tomorrow:
 
This very popular router hasn't been getting off the Front Page at $65. It has the same hardware as the Netgear R6300 v2 AC1750 and can be flashed to it. See the previous discussion threads.

Netgear AC1450-100NAR Dual Band Slim Gigabit Smart WiFi Router [newegg.com] - FACTORY REFURBISHED

• $74.99 - $10 off Promo Code EXLWPPD25 = $64.99 + Free Shipping

If you are planning to flash your router, here is a link to DD-WRT firmware:
Kong K3 AC DD-WRT Builds for ARM 1450AC/R6250/R6300v2/R7000/AC56U/AC68U/DIR-868 [desipro.de]

 

[Couperin47]

Another interesting Tiger off-lease laptop option:
 
HP Elitebook 8440p i5-520M 4 Gb ram, 250 Gb HD, 14", Win 7  til tomorrow    $280
 
3rd Party 12 month warranty, these may be acceptable... the big issue, of course, is the state of the battery... see details
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=8437980&sku=S02-14020&SRCCODE=WEM4264TT&utm_source=EML&utm_medium=main&utm_campaign=WEM4264

 

[Couperin47]

Canon imageClass LBP7660Cdn Color laser printer  $230
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.1874592
 
Newegg combo, this is a low end business color laser, no rebates, just a combo that's including a free additional b&w cart for the printer.
Amazon wants $330 today for the printer alone and Tiger want's full list $499 plus shipping.

 

[Gdiguy]

 
I think I may go with the following router, which apparently is a Costco version of Netgear's higher end R6300v2 and is just limited by firmware but can be flashed with the R6300's firmware or DD-WRT.
 
There's an extra $10 off code mentioned on Slickdeals, but it appears you may need to be signed up with Newegg's deals site. I signed up now and am hoping it allows me to use the code later today or tomorrow:
 
This very popular router hasn't been getting off the Front Page at $65. It has the same hardware as the Netgear R6300 v2 AC1750 and can be flashed to it. See the previous discussion threads.

Netgear AC1450-100NAR Dual Band Slim Gigabit Smart WiFi Router [newegg.com] - FACTORY REFURBISHED

• $74.99 - $10 off Promo Code EXLWPPD25 = $64.99 + Free Shipping

If you are planning to flash your router, here is a link to DD-WRT firmware:
Kong K3 AC DD-WRT Builds for ARM 1450AC/R6250/R6300v2/R7000/AC56U/AC68U/DIR-868 [desipro.de]
 

 
Not to hijack this too much, but is DD-WRT currently the best? A couple years back I flashed an Asus router to tomato (which seemed to get better reviews at the time, and I had a pretty good experience with), but I can't tell if it's being as well supported now?

 

[Couperin47]

Newegg Columbus sale..some deals 2 days, some deals 4 days.
http://promotions.newegg.com/NEemail/Oct-0-2014/Columbus-10/A/index-landing.html?nm_mc=EMC-IGNEFL101014A&cm_mmc=EMC-IGNEFL101014A-_-EMC-101014-Index-_-E0-_-PromoWord&et_cid=11912&et_rid=213639
 
Notable items:
 
WD Green 2 Tb drive  $70, ten bucks better than most anywhere, great workhorse storage.
Crucial MX100 256 Gb SSD   $100  at least $12 better than anywhere else, 6 months ago you paid this much for a quality 128 Gig drive.
Samsung 840 Pro 128 Gig SSD   $90  the Pro series is one of the fastest drives out there, uses ultra-reliable NAND, 5 yr warranty, close to enterprise quality
HyperX Fury DDR3 1600 ram 16 Gb (2 x 8 Gb)    $141  we can' break below the $70/8 Gb pricing on memory, but this is top quality 'standard' memory and 16 Gb in the preferred 2 stick format as cheap as you
     can find it these days.

 

[AlNipper49]

http://dealnews.com/Solidoodle-4-Desktop-3-D-Printer-for-650-free-shipping/1166504.html

 

[Couperin47]

Lenovo Outlet has been very quiet on good deals for a while now:
 
http://outlet.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/outlet_us/LenovoPortal/en_US/catalog.workflow:expandcategory?current-catalog-id=A4A41B4CA13D4754AE2FBF7721EBF357&current-category-id=908B184AED4F29502E6EB3E1E76AFC13&menu-id=products&ref-id=products#/?page-index=1&facet-2=1&page-size=100&facet-6=2&sort-criteria=1
 
Today we have a smattering of single Thinkpads: E440, L530, L440 all in the $455 to $486 price range.
 
These are all good laptops: i5-cpus at 2.5 or 2.6 Mhz, 14' displays, 4 or 8 Gig ram, DVD burners, 500 Gb 7200 rpm drives.

 

[Couperin47]

Refurb Debranded HP TSS-25WB 25" IPS monitor   $160 free ship
 
http://www.neweggflash.com/product/24-238-029?utm_source=NFEmail101014&utm_medium=index&utm_campaign=SaleBanner_B2R_Monitor&cm_mmc=EMC-NFEmail101014-_-SaleBanner_B2R_Monitor-_-NA-_-24-238-029
 
HP routinely requires refurbs of their moniors be 'debranded' (cover their logo with a silly generic Globe symbol sticker). This is a decent low end IPS screen, includes HDMI and DVI inputs, 1920x1080 of course, LED backlit. Only 90 day warranty but these are usually very clean because they exist in fairly large quantities. Best Buy sold these for $290 new, these refurbs generally sold for $190...at $160 a great deal on a good 25" IPS.

 

[Couperin47]

Another Newegg promotion:
 
http://promotions.newegg.com/neemail/guerrilla/LP/14-OCT/index-monopen13.html?nm_mc=EMC-GD101314&cm_mmc=EMC-GD101314-_-index-_-Header-_-SeeAll&et_cid=11966&et_rid=2267858
 
TODAY ONLY
Samsung 840 EVO 1 Tb SSD    $390 free ship   This is a breakthrough price on a quality 1 Tb.
 
WD Green 3 Tb HD   $90 is a good price on workhorse storage

 

[AlNipper49]

Holy shit, unbelievable.  

 

[Couperin47]

Yet another Newegg 2 day sale:
 
http://promotions.newegg.com/NEemail/Oct-0-2014/48HourSale-14/index-landing.html?nm_mc=EMC-IGNEFL101414&cm_mmc=EMC-IGNEFL101414-_-EMC-101414-Index-_-E0-_-PromoWord&et_cid=12004&et_rid=2267858
 
Notable:
 
Seagate External USB 3.0  5 Tb drive   $160
   If you like Seagate tons of offline storage, requires wall wart power supply of course.
 
ASUS VN248H-P 23.8" IPS monitor    after $20 rebate = $135
     I'd actually skip this one... it looks like a good cheap IPS monitor...but... it has 2 HDMI inputs, that's all and HDMI is a media standard, not a computer standard, and many HDMI input monitors cannot
easily detect when computers go into sleep mode...it takes special circuitry to do so (DVI is a computer standard and includes sensor lines that quite specifically tell the monitor what to do...). This monitor isn't intelligent when your puter goes into any sleep mode and cannot recover unless you cycle to monitor on and off. It also has a particularly wobbly stand, numerous reports of lower left light bleed and then there's the decision to place all controls on the back....even ASUS has far better options.
 
Samsung 840 EVO 500 Gb SSD    $220
   SSD prices continue to tumble...
 
WD Green 6 Tb internal HD    $250
    Yeah that's 6 Tb in the standard 3.5" formfactor...so you can have a stroke if/when this ever starts clicking....
 
Antec HCG-750M 750w PS    after rebate= $60
    Bronze, modular, good quality supply for all but the most elaborate builds.
 
Corsair CX-750 750w PS     after reabte= $50
     Bronze, NOT modular, slightly less features than the Antec, if you prefer Corsair....
 
ASUS RT-AC56U AC1200 Gigabit router    refurb $70
    Serious Dual Band AC router, specs claim full 2 year warranty, new this runs at least $105, even includes a USB 3.0 port.
 
Antec GX500 Illusion case     after rebate= $30
     Decent modern case, 3 120mm fans, front/top USB 3.0 ports, giveaway price.
 
Kingston 64 Gb OTG USB 3.0 dual flash drive   $26
     The new OTG standard for Android 4.0 microUSB at one end, female USB 3.0 at other for storage/transfer from mobile devices.

 

[SumnerH]

ASUS VN248H-P 23.8" IPS monitor    after $20 rebate = $135
     I'd actually skip this one... it looks like a good cheap IPS monitor...but... it has 2 HDMI inputs, that's all and HDMI is a media standard, not a computer standard, and many HDMI input monitors cannot
easily detect when computers go into sleep mode...it takes special circuitry to do so (DVI is a computer standard and includes sensor lines that quite specifically tell the monitor what to do...). This monitor isn't intelligent when your puter goes into any sleep mode and cannot recover unless you cycle to monitor on and off. 

 
This model sleeps and wakes just fine for me--are you using really old HDMI cables?  HDMI 1.4 (from 2009) and later should support power management (I'm not sure about 1.2 and 1.3, I know 1.0 doesn't).  
 
If that's not it it's probably a driver or config problem of some sort.
 

It also has a particularly wobbly stand, numerous reports of lower left light bleed and then there's the decision to place all controls on the back....even ASUS has far better options.

 
Agreed.

 

[Couperin47]

 
This model sleeps and wakes just fine for me--are you using really old HDMI cables?  HDMI 1.4 (from 2009) and later should support power management (I'm not sure about 1.2 and 1.3, I know 1.0 doesn't).  
 
If that's not it it's probably a driver or config problem of some sort.
 
 
 
 
Agreed.

 
OK there were several reviews about the sleep problem, all probably using ancient hdmi cable....the stand issue is endemic to all cheap monitors these days (and this Asus does have VESA mounting if you want to get serious). I take it you don't have the light bleeding lower left issue ?  The latest Asus monitor I bought has front controls with one that acts like a mini-joystick... different but OK, placing them on the back can be annoying...but then once you have any monitor set up...how often do we really care ?   and if those issues are not common... this IS an almost 24" IPS for the price of 23" bottom end TN junk....

 

[SumnerH]

 
OK there were several reviews about the sleep problem, all probably using ancient hdmi cable....the stand issue is endemic to all cheap monitors these days (and this Asus does have VESA mounting if you want to get serious). I take it you don't have the light bleeding lower left issue ?  The latest Asus monitor I bought has front controls with one that acts like a mini-joystick... different but OK, placing them on the back can be annoying...but then once you have any monitor set up...how often do we really care ?   and if those issues are not common... this IS an almost 24" IPS for the price of 23" bottom end TN junk....

I use it at work because that's what they bought.  The stand is wobbly, which is fine on a solid office desk but might feel flimsy at home.  The picture quality is largely unremarkable; it's at work, so I don't do any movie/dark viewing on it, so I'm not sure I'd notice any light bleed.  I *think* the Asus VS238H-P (which is only 23") that I have at home has a much better picture, but I could be mislead because of the crappy fluorescent office lighting environment at work.  

 

[Couperin47]

Yet more 'secret promo codes' from Newegg  til 10/16.
 
http://promotions.newegg.com/neemail/guerrilla/LP/14-OCT/index-unlocksupex_15.html?nm_mc=EMC-GD101514&cm_mmc=EMC-GD101514-_-index-_-Header-_-SeeAll&et_cid=12041&et_rid=2267858
 
Main takeaway: If you want the best value... you simply can't buy an SSD drive these days. Why ? Every 10-14 days somebody has a new sale on one of the quality brands that undercuts the last 'best price' by
at least another 10 bucks. It's simply ridiculous:
 
Here we have the Intel 530 120 Gb SSD for $70....2 months ago only 2nd rate brands were at this price
 
The Crucial M500 480 Gb SSD now $198 .... same deal
 
Now 120/128 Gig drives are close to hitting the floor, traditional hard drives never really dropped below $60 no matter what the size, same thing is going to happen with SSDs, the good news is bigger sizes still have some room. RAM may be relatively expensive, but these are the good times for SSD storeage.

 

[jayhoz]

If this goes the way of the USB flash drive, which it should, we will soon see 128 Gb drives being discontinued.  The industry will set a floor sell price and as costs come down just keep upping the drive capacity they sell at that price.