Marketplace Blog

March Madness has come and gone (with a heartbreaking finish by my beloved Spartans), but the NBA finals are just around the corner. If you're still watching sports, Lost, and other stuff on a standard-def tube, it's time to take the HD plunge.

MacMall (MacMall?) has the refurbished Westinghouse TX-47F430S 47-inch LCD HDTV for $639.99. That's pretty amazing considering that this model sells new for $1,400.

The TX-47F430S serves up 1080p resolution, an ATSC/NTSC/ClearQAM tuner, 4 HDMI inputs, two component inputs, and a VGA interface for PC connections. My favorite feature: the onscreen … Read more

Sorry to hit you with a one-day-only deal two days in a row, but this is too good to pass up: Woot has the fourth-gen iPod Nano (8GB) for $99.99, plus $5 for shipping. Yes, fourth-gen: the latest and greatest model.

These are refurbished units available in your choice of colors: black, blue, green, orange, pink, purple, silver, and yellow.

I don't own this particular model, but CNET had lots of good things to say about it. Standout features include sleek design, a tilt sensor, and a Genius playlist builder. I particularly like the shake-to-shuffle capability.

So, here'… Read more

Here's another great freebie from Giveaway of the Day: Paragon Drive Backup 9.0 Personal. It's a drive-imaging program similar to Acronis True Image, and today only you can pick it up for nada.

Let me repeat that: today only (Wednesday, April 8). As you might guess from its name, Giveaway of the Day is a site that offers a different commercial program each day of the week. When the clock strikes midnight tonight, Paragon Drive Backup goes back to costing $39.95.

CNET hasn't reviewed the program, but there's a good overview at PC World. … Read more

I've never heard of Synaps, but I am a sucker for low-price monitors, so I can't help but be tempted by this: CompUSA has the Synaps 21.6-inch LCD monitor for $129.99. Shipping? A mere $1.99. Rebates? Nope. And it's not even a refurbished model!

The specifications look good: 1,680x1,050-pixel native resolution, DVI and VGA interfaces, and built-in speakers. It also has a 16:10 aspect ratio, though someone will have to tell me whether that's good or bad.

Perhaps most amazing of all, the monitor includes a 3-year warranty. Want to … Read more

One of the reasons I love Ethernet- and Wi-Fi-equipped printers is that they're easy to share between multiple PCs. But what if you have a USB printer, one that can't be networked? Are you forever doomed to leaving a PC running 24-7 just to share the printer?

Not if you plug a print server into your router, then plug the printer into the server. Then all PCs on your network can tap that inkjet or laser.

This may not sound like a major deal, but trust me: Once you've sampled this kind of setup, you can't … Read more

Got power? Scratch that. Got enough power? Oh, who are we kidding, there's never enough. That's why no self-respecting iPhone owner should travel without an external power pack, a battery that clips on to provide extra juice just when you need it.

There are dozens of such products available, often with price tags in the $30 to 40 range. However, Meritline has an 800mAh external iPhone 3G battery pack for $10.99 shipped. (It normally sells for $35.99.)

The iPhone 3G Power Station plugs into the bottom of your handset to recharge the internal battery or supply … Read more

Raise your hand if this sounds familiar: you have just under $25 worth of stuff in your Amazon shopping cart--not quite enough to qualify for free shipping--so you go trolling the site for something small and inexpensive to tip the scales.

Of course, finding the right something is never easy, so you decide to treat yourself to an item on your wish list...and end up spending way more than you'd planned. Amazing how easy it is to justify spending money to save money, no?

Superfiller makes it a snap to find "filler" items that bring your … Read more

Calling all Mac users! Now's your chance to score some first-class software on the cheap and help charity at the same time.

It's called the MacHeist 3 bundle, and here's how it works: For $39, you get nine full, unlocked, commercial Mac apps (which have a combined value of $621.75).

At the same time, you get to a choose a charity to receive 25 percent of that $39. Action Against Hunger, Humane Society International, Save the Children, and Save Darfur are among the 10 available charities.

Already, it's a win-win proposition. But wait, there's … Read more

Ladies and gentlemen, we have a new low! OnSale.com has the Fantom GreenDrive 1 terabyte external hard drive for $79.99. UPS Ground shipping will run you a very reasonable $4.99.

OK, you knew there had to be a catch, right? Actually, there's a pair: rebate No. 1 (PDF) and rebate No. 2 (PDF). They're $20 apiece.

I don't have a problem with rebates, but I know that some people hold them in the same regard as AIG bonuses. (Surely, they aren't that bad.)

As for the drive itself, it features USB 2.0 … Read more