Get Apple TV for around $60 effectively with two step process

If you are tempted by Apple TV or you want to be among the first to try the new HBO Now service that looks like it may need an Apple device to sign-up for during the first three months, the $70 Apple TV is the lowest entry point, since iPhones, iPads and iPods are more expensive. I believe the apps will need at least iOS 7, because HBO Now uses the technology from the MLB (yes, baseball) streaming service, and their apps are at least iOS 7. So if you have older iPods/iPhones/etc, they may not be good enough.

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LG 450 Black (T-Mobile) for $22.50 [Pay As You Go]

For the shopping week of March 15-21 in 2014, at Walgreens brick and mortar stores (their website does not offer it), you can get the prepaid no-contract LG 450 Black Flip Phone for $22.50. This is because of a 25% off sale on select prepaid pay as you go phones. The phone includes a SIM but no airtime. This is no contract, no commitment, you just pay for it at checkout. It typically goes for $30. No coupon is needed. There should be a discount sign in the store. Availability may vary by store and region, and obviously I have no way to checking every store in the country.

This is a fairly simple phone, with a camera and front status display, you can see details and customer reviews at amazon.com.

The lowest price Pay As You Go plan at the Uncarrier is $3 per month, which includes 30 minutes of talk. They have $10 refill airtime cards that last 90 days, so technically, you pay $10 for 3 months. Every month, it will deduct a $3 minimum from your balance.

Note that this phone is locked to T-Mobile.

[DEAD] Roku 3 drops to $77 (new condition)

As of 3/17/15, the price is $90. However, the price has been jumping around recently, so it may drop again. With the good old Apple TV dropping under $70, and the Roku 3 being two years old (see Wikipedia for timeline and feature comparison), there’s bound to be price volatility.

Regardless, if you can’t wait for the new condition price to go on sale again, you can get it certified refurbished for $73.

NOTE: with the HBO Now announcement with a three month Apple exclusive in terms of streaming boxes, and no published plans yet (see FAQs) for other boxes, it may be a tricky decision to figure out what to do. On the other hand, from a cord cutter perspective, buying a streaming box costs less than one month of a cable TV subscription, perhaps even half if you got hogtied into a “Triple Play” in order to get a decent price initially when you signed up. But that’s a story for another day…

Want to be a cord cutter and at the same time support smaller independent companies instead of big cable and big corporate? The current Roku flagship, the Roku 3, is on sale for $77 (was $85.50) with free shipping at Amazon.com by Amazon actual.

Among other features, it has wired Ethernet connection (in addition to Wifi), microSD slot for extra storage, and USB input for personal content. Its remote control has a headphone input, another nice feature.

Price updated on 3/17/15.

Samsung SGH-T199 Prepaid Phone for $5 (T-Mobile)

If you are looking for a very simple prepaid phone with a SIM card, for example, to save your landline phone numbers from getting lost as you go mobile, the Samsung SGH-T199 for T-Mobile is currently on sale for just $5 at Fry’s Electronics (online or stores) and at 711 Stores (YMMV on availability).

If neither one of these options is available or convenient, you can get it for $10 instead at Best Buy and by Best Buy’s eBay store.

Free after $15 Statement Credit (via Easy Rebate): Staples Mobile Register Card Reader

At Staples brick and mortar stores, good until 4/2/15, if you purchase their $15 Mobile Register Card Reader (SKU 572566), you can receive $15 as a statement credit via an Easy Rebate. You won’t receive a $15 postcard-check by mail like their other Easy Rebates, but a statement credits. Their weekly ad describes the rebate process in this way:

  1. (if you don’t already have an account) register for account access at the Staples Merchant Services website
  2. logon to your account, and go to References tab
  3. select Rebate from the list and follow the instructions
  4. you will receive a $15 statement credit on your second monthly statement

3M Adjustable Monitor Stand MS80B for $22.50 (limit 3)

If you are looking for an adjustable monitor stand, the 3M MS80B is currently on sale for $22.50 at amazon.com with a limit of three per customer. It can support up to 80 lbs of weight per the product description. It averages 4.6 out of 5 based on 270 customer reviews and has 38 questions answered if you are curious about it.

40-inch TCL 40FS4610R Roku HDTV for $300 w/low price guarantee

If you like the idea of having the Roku experienced baked into your HDTV, there’s a new discount on the 40-inch TCL 40FS4610R, it has dropped to $300 with free shipping at Amazon.com which offers a low price guarantee on most HDTVs sold by Amazon actual. It has three HDMI inputs among other things. Please note that this is not eligible for gift wrapping (because of the way it is delivered). It averages 4.4 out of 5 based on 275+ customer reviews, however, note that the reviews are shared among three different TCL-Roku HDTVs (this and the 48″ and 55″ models).

Free Kindle eBooks from Microsoft Press: W8.1, Azure, SQL Server and more

If you like free technology e-books, you can scoop up the “Introducing Windows 8.1 for IT Professionals” Kindle ebook (140 pages, Oct-2013 publication) by author Ed Bott from the Amazon Kindle store. I don’t know if this is a limited time offer or like this on an on-going basis. This is a Microsoft Press book, it’s not some random self-published book.

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Buy Optoma HD161X, Get Bonus $100 Amazon Gift Card

If you are planning to buy the Optoma HD161X Home Theater Projector, for a limited time only, you can receive a bonus $100 Amazon.com plastic gift card if purchased at Amazon.com by Amazon actual. The promotion ends by 1/31/15. You must add both the projector and the gift card to your shopping cart and then complete the purchase. Details and terms at the promotion page. The projector price as of the time of writing is $1300.

Digital Productivity bundle for $60: Evernote, Pocket, LastPass, Wunderlist

If you have been trying to decide whether to go premium on the following services, but don’t want to pay the big bucks to buy them individually, for a limited time, these four companies teamed up to offer a productivity bundle for $60 that includes one year of Premium for each service. This is a limited time offer at this page. It includes Evernote Premium, Pocket Premium, LastPass Premium, and Wunderlist Pro. All these are one year subscriptions.

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YMMV: Amazon Fire TV for $80

This is a targeted offer, thus the YMMV in the title. Amazon is offering some shoppers a $20 off discount on the $100 Amazon Fire TV. To figure out whether you are eligible, you must be already logged on to your Amazon.com account and then visit the offer page. If you are eligible, you will see the offer. If you are not eligible, you will see a message telling you that you are not eligible. Regardless, this promotion expires by the end of day on 1/20/15.

Below you will find two screenshots, the first one is of an eligible account, followed by one that is not eligible. I have no idea how Amazon decides who is eligible – probably based on past purchase history and such.

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39-inch TCL 720p HDTV with free Roku stick for $267

If you are looking for a 720p HDTV and want to have access to the Roku content network, Amazon.com has a bundle for you, you get the Roku streaming stick (model 3400X) for FREE when you purchase this 39-inch TCL 720p HDTV for $267 with free shipping. The free item is included automatically by the Amazon shopping cart.

[DEAD] Roku 3 flagship player (new condition) for $78

As of Dec-29-2014, these sales ended but with a competitive market for streaming boxes, they will undoubtedly return at a later point in time…
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Targus Trek Backpack for 16-inch laptops for $13

If you are looking for a backpack for your 16-inch laptop, the Targus Trek, model TSB193US, is currently on sale for $13 at Amazon.com. You can buy as many as you like. It averages 3.8 out of 5 based on 50 customer reviews, so obviously don’t expect features and function of one that costs five times as much. There are four different pictures of it to help you get a better feel for it.

PS: not all 16-inch laptops are the same in terms of size. The actual screen may be so, but there are other aspects of their design that affect how well they fit in different bags, so there’s always a YMMV factor until you actually try it with our very own laptop.

[DEAD] Refurbished Roku 1 (2710X-B) for $30 w/free S&H

As of a 11/21/14 recheck, the price went up, this deal is dead…
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