Now that we’ve concluded giving thanks for family and turkey, the time is upon us to give thanks for retail indulgence. We’re not entirely convinced it’s truly is better to give than to receive, but we know how to kill two birds with one stone by gifting oneself. So regardless of gadget beneficiary here are a few compelling deals of the day running under $100:
Barnes & Noble Simple Touch Reader ($79)
A mere two weeks ago, Barnes & Noble’s compelling e-reader would have run you $139. Yet, they dropped the price to $99 upon the introduction of Amazon’s competing Kindle Touch. And today, brick & mortar locations are hawking the Simple Touch for just $79. Not only is it $20 cheaper than Amazon’s touchscreen e-Ink offering, it’s also ad-free. Beyond that, the Simple Touch Reader features better ergonomics due to the sculpted rear and physical page turn buttons… with more panache than Amazon manages. Possible downsides are the cream colored trim of this special edition that may show grime and of course many prefer Amazon’s ecosystem.
Slingbox SOLO ($99.99)
Slingbox SOLO hardware has been around for sometime. And while I wouldn’t mind a more compact form featuring integrated WiFi, it’s still probably the best placeshifting experience money can buy. As a quick refresher, hook a Slingbox up to your home DVR or set-top box to stream that video around the house or around the world to a variety, including desktop web browsers and smartphones ($30). The SOLO retails for $180 and can often be had for less… but we’ve never seen it for a low of $100 as it is today and tomorrow at Best Buy and bestbuy.com.
Elgato EyeTV One ($40)
Been thinking of turning your laptop or PC into a television? Buy.com is offering the Elgato EyeTV One for $60 off today. The USB tuner will pull in high definition over-the-air broadcasts. PC owners would pair this with built-in Windows Media Center functionality (and might find better deals elsewhere), but Mac owners will get to take advantage of EyeTV 3 software – providing tuning and recording functionality, in addition to a years worth of guide data. Further, the software enables you to share recordings with other Macs in your home or automatically export them to iTunes for iPhone/iPod Touch syncing. And if you’re looking for some Slingbox functionality, without the Slingbox, the optional $5 EyeTV iPhone app can receive live or recorded video from your Mac around the home or on the go.
Roku LT ($49)
The best value in digital media streaming has got to be the new Roku LT. Use Roku to stream Netflix, Amazon, Pandora, and a ton of other stuff for just $50. Amazingly, this isn’t special Black Friday pricing. It really is that cheap every day. The Roku LT is based on the new Roku 2 hardware, but to shave a few bucks they’ve drop gaming remote capabilities and max output is 720p – which has negligible real world implications. But, if you’re dead set on 1080p and fifty bucks is your max, Woot is offering the Roku XD (refurb) today. It’s prior generation product but provides that higher resolution streaming (where available) and Ethernet connectivity.