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Just go online to Costco or WalMart or Target or where ever and buy it online.

It will ship within days.

Problem solved.

Ah, but now you can compare it to the XBox Elite (est. $480) and the fact that to get a Wii you have to buy it second hand (starting at $379.95 on Amazon last I checked).

No, the Wii sells in retail bundles online at Costco and WalMart that are priced far far below that - and ships within days.

See http://www.costco.com/Service/FeaturePage.aspx?Pro ductNo=11173266

I think you can buy it online at Costco online and they will ship it to you.

The bundle they chose is pretty sweet, unlike the one I saw at EBX.

at the EBX (aka Gamestop) at Pacific Place Mall in Seattle, and were 6th out of the store (yeah, that was my son with the RESERVED sign).

Our well-oiled and hot cocoa filled band of three got there around 11:30, only 18 in line ahead of us, but some were like us, a group of people there as support staff. After delegating tasks, we managed to pick up our pre-ordered Wii and got out sixth (6) from the store, with official Nintendo staff taking pics of us. Even though we had forgotten to preorder a memory card, an extra Wii-mote, an extra nunchuk, or any games, we left with the only copy of Rayman's Raving Rabbids as well as someone's preordered Legend of Zelda game. All the controllers - both Wii-mote and nunchuks - were sold out ahead of time, as well as most cool games.

Drove over immeadiately to the Fred Meyer just a few blocks from our house, which apparently let customers into the store (but couldn't purchase) at 11 pm. They were sold out of Wii consoles (they had 70) and controllers as well, by the time we got there at 12:30, and had closed the doors.

We set it up and made Mii versions of ourselves, storing one on the Wii-mote, and played a quick game of bowling, and boxing. Then we went to sleep until 7 am. OK, only four hours sleep. Total cost still way less than a PS3 or an xBox360, with Sims 2: Pets and guide books for both Zelda and Sims 2: Pets thrown in. No, not a Wii version of Sims 2: Pets.

Next morning, tried out the boxing game (fun! exhausting!), tennis, bowling, and golf. Played Legend of Zelda until one of us had to leave (his mom came over, so it was down to my son and I). Also played a fantasy RPG (dungeon) for the GameCube, using GameCube controllers, on the Wii - graphics were sharper, load times were superfast, plays like a dream.

After talking with some friends, we figured out the Sears store might have some controllers and Wii consoles left over - our friends had picked up two consoles out of three people.

So, back in the car, went to Sears (next to Starbucks international HQ), picked up one of their two last nunchuk controllers (sold out of Wii-motes), and got Excite Truck (they still had one copy). Next door, picked up a 1GB SD memory card for the Wii at OfficeMax for $19.99 - sweet!

Then drove over to Costco. They said they won't get delivery until Tuesday, but if you get their sweet package (dirt cheap), you get both Zelda and Excite Truck with it! Best of the bundles we heard of! Think they may also sell it online if you're a Costco member. Well, no Wii stuff, but we bought four two-packs of beef jerky and some nuts, so worth going there.

Back home - played various games. A wonderful day!

I don't know about hotels, but Costo won't take cash when buying gasoline: Costo membership form - check the fine print at the bottom: "Cash and checks are not accepted at Costo Gas Stations". Or, visit one and look at the pump for the same message ....

I don't know about hotels, but Costo won't take cash when buying gasoline: Costo membership form - check the fine print at the bottom: "Cash and checks are not accepted at Costo Gas Stations". Or, visit one and look at the pump for the same message ....

I have a Costco card and a Sam's Club card already. I don't like Sam's club as much, since they have higher prices, lower quality, and more rednecks starting fist-fights in the parking lot.

This article is really about informal buying co-ops. Co-ops were and are a good idea, and are widely hated by "real" and "legitimate" businesses because they cut into profits. That means it's about time they make a big comeback, aided by the Internet as a way to "spread the word".

There's a 42" LCD for $1999 that does 1080p. That's significantly larger than the 32" analog 4x3 set I have now and given how much wall space I have to put a set against I doubt I could fit anything larger than 50" anyway.

Also, I would hold out for a set that can receive 1080p via digital inputs, and display it at 1080p. The first generation of 1080p is quite tricky (some receive only up to 1080i and internally convert to 1080p, check AVSForums) but I don't think there will be a better home theater video standard than 1080p for quite some time.. At least until home fiber is ubiquitous..

(and for all the 1080p hatas, 1080p24 utilizing proper 3:2 pulldown should be sUPER hAWT for movie watching... And if I wanted p60, I'd boot up my HTPC...)

Seems to me that both the 360 and PS3 are overpriced but a lot of folks are buying 360's at $500-$700 on ebay so there's clearly a market for expensive game machines.

Microsoft introduced the 360 at an artificially low price and the product vanished. Prices are still high. I found a 360 for a shade under $500 at Costco Pricewatch has one offer at a $508.

Sony's saying the price is going to be $500 - right where the 360 is right now. When Microsoft finally delivers a $360 at the advertised $300 then, and only then, might you be able to afford a Revolution/360 bundle. Until then, they're just blowing smoke.

This costco http://www.costco.com/ ? Because looking around (and granted it wasn't an all encompassing survey of the landscape or anything) but they don't have all that great a price. PS2 with roughly $100 in addons: 219. On Amazon, PS2 individually 129, plus roughly $100 for the add-ons.

Mostly it looked like the standard $5 off on video games you can get at any of the warehouse stores. The only thing that I saw that WERE good deals.

Also, the video game industry has the power to set its own price for (a) games and (b) consoles. That's why when the PS2 went down to $200, it went down everywhere. Same with it's drop to 150, and now it's apparent drop to 129. Same thing happened when every store in every town dropped the Dreamcast to $100, and then down to $50. Happens with most games too.

Video games aren't a price competition model. If it was, then the stores would rely more on selling the units (selling units means selling at least a few more games) instead of selling bundles (with the high mark-up accessories like joysticks and memory cards) then when the X-Box 360 came out, Walmart or some other store would have marked the price down $25 and reaped thousands upon thousands more pre-orders (which would have been filled proportionatly because of the shortage yes, but at the same proportion they would have at any other store)

You must have just been very lucky to get that bundle, but I wouldn't expect anyone else to duplicate that with a PS3 for a while. I'd use the 360 price for comparison, but they're not offering it on their website so I can't check it against other stores.

No worries, you can still get your urns shipped directly to you.

Don't forget to order by 2pm!

What does tinfoil have to do with the Chinese Overseas Shipping Company?

.. Oh, I get it.. You meant COSTCO !

I'm so all over that when Costco carrys these. The question though: does it go with Urns & Caskets or Electronics, Cameras & TVs?

I'm so all over that when Costco carrys these. The question though: does it go with Urns & Caskets or Electronics, Cameras & TVs?

In the US not only is the price of sugar artificially high, HFCS is artificially low. These two things combined is what led to the explosion of sugary goods in the US.

Yes, the prices are affected by these artificial constraints. Yes, there has been an explosion of sugary goods. But there is really no significant relation here.

I can buy a 10 pound bag of pure cane sugar for under five bucks. This is enough sugar to make about 156 12-oz cans of Coke.

So switching to high fructose corn syrup could not possibly save more than 3.5 cents per can of soda. It probably saves more like 1 cent per can.

Now, reducing the cost of production by even 0.1 cents per can is a strong motivation for the Coca-Cola Company, and they will jump at such a chance. But if the price to buy a sugary beverage is reduced from $0.55 to $0.50, that by itself is not going to make people drink twice as much. If people really cared about the price that much, you would see a lot more people drinking store-brand soda instead of overpriced Coke or Pepsi.

Another argument against your position is the fact that the population in Western Europe has also increased its intake of processed + sugary foods, and has also gained weight on average (though not as much as the US people).

What's really going on is a lot more complicated... and this makes it more difficult to address. It would be nice if these problems has such simple causes, and could be solved easily.

In order to get 1600x1200, I would have had to buy at least a 20". And judging from the current prices at NewEgg, that's at least $600.

So shop other than at NewEgg.

20" pretty decent 1600x1200 20 inch LCD:
http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product.aspx?prodid=1 1044707&whse=&topnav=&cat=&s=1

I picked up one of these babies for less than the above price last summer, and they've come down further since (under 500 now if you know when/where to look):
http://www.sceptre.com/Products/LCD/Specifications /spec_x20g_NagaII.htm

It will do 16:9 or 4:3, has picture in picture, multi-input (DVI, VGA, S-Video), USB Hub and built in speakers. Great colors, excellent brightness (important to me because my window faces the morning sun), good response times, and very nice video quality.

That said, even NewEgg has 20" LCDs for under 600.

To get a 20" viewable screen in CRT you need to go to a 21" CRT. Of course there will be price differences. What's a 21" going for?

Samsung, NewEgg, 21" flat screen:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82 E16824001149
459 smackers. Definitely not a third of 600, actually comparable to what you can get a 20" viewable LCD w/extras. You got higher resolution but less space to use it with.

Comparing the price of an 18" viewable CRT to the price of a 20" viewable LCD is an invalid comparison.

offering rebates should be illegal

Oh, please. What you mean is that fraudulantly offering an unredeemable rebate should be illegal, which it already is. Rebates are usually offered by the manufacturer, not the point-of-sale retailer. For the manufacturer, it's a form of advertising, and they usually let a third party handle the transaction, usually by snail mail. This takes time to process.

Rebates are bait and switch, no bones about it

No they're not. I've never seen a low price on a product that was low because of a rebate when that wasn't clearly marked as a factor in the price. True on tags, true in mailers, and on web sites. Someone who is shopping around for a low price on a competitve item should have the IQ to actually see and understand the words "after mail-in rebate."

Personally, I love the way that Costco handles it: you get a register receipt with a URL and code on it, you visit the site, spend 15 seconds keying in a scrap or two of info, and you get a check in a couple or few weeks, without fail. Another reason I spend every consumer dollar I can on worthy products there (I know, which means a lot of those dollars go to China - but unless you're looking for a $400 handcrafted New England birdhouse or something, that's where the commodity brands ship from these days).

I've never had a problem with a rebate from Best Buy, Circuit City (who sometimes redeem the rebates at the register), an allergy drug manufacturer, car parts vendors... come to think of it, I can only think of one that seemed to have gone un-payed, and it was from a local grocery store several years ago, and was hardely worth the stamp and the envelope.

If you think you've got a fraud problem with a retailer, go to the Better Business Bureau. If you think you've got a fraud problem with a manufacturer, talk to the FTC about that instance unless you know for a fact that they're scamming everyone (and five minutes on Google will tell you that). Otherwise, if you don't like rebates (and I understand - on the big ones, it's annoying to know that you're minus that cash flow for a month, but figure that lost dollar-or-so of interest into the price you just paid on that piece of hardware, and get over it), just don't buy stuff through those channels. Use eBay instead, or choose a brand that allows the retailers to take incentives off of their own costs, and represent that during the transaction (which is how car and most furniture dealers do it, but then you've got to know the scoop - with a rebate, the retailer can't pocket the difference if you weren't aware of the incentive).

But mostly, don't penalize honest retailers, manufacturers, and consumers with a body of regulation that won't have any impact on people who are already making the decision to operate outside of the law. When scammers are already using fake/impossible rebate schemes (which can be prosecuted), another regulation saying they can't isn't going to help unless you remove that entire marketing mechanism from the market. If your objective is to get more government involved in transactions between private parties, though, you're headed in the right direction.

If Wal-Mart.com's return policy is the same as its stores, it doesn't hold a candle to Costco's.

It takes a gutsy business to promise to refund almost everything it sells, in any condition, ever, in cash (even if you pay with a credit card, as I usually do). They've made a lot of money from me because of it.

Thanks for the heads up.

You've got a workable solution with the Wolverine. Too bad it doesn't display images either. I did find a good price for it at costco, however.

I just walked past a copy of WinXP Home Edition in a "Bargain Bin" at Costco, on sale for $299 CAD... so who are the pirates? Linux is free. I could see maybe $99 or something, but it's overpriced and bug ridden. So if you want to know why people are not paying Microsoft, it's a no-brainer. If it's overpriced, loaded with bugs and unstable in any way, paying for it seems like shooting yourself in the foot. Every time XP shows the blue screen of death, I get buyer's remorse.

They already are pre-ordering at costco http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product.aspx?prodid=1 1005811

they are on the costo website right now, albeit with a stunningly huge 0$ discount.

I buy my hard drives at Costco. (They don't sell them online; only at local stores.)

A little known fact about stores like this is that their return policy is "unlimited". They have a sign posted that says "it is helpful if you return the product with original receipt, in 30 days", etc. "Helpful", but not required. Of course, it's likely that the product will drop in price by the time you return it so you'd better keep the receipt... but the timeline is only a suggestion. It is generally thought that this policy is only 6 months... but that's for COMPLETE COMPUTER SYSTEMS. ("Desktop and notebook computers".) Everything else in the store (including peripherals) can be returned as long as you keep your membership.

Recently, I picked up a Maxtor external USB 2.0/Firewire external 160GB 8MB Cache drive with all necessary cables for $109. It's not the largest drive on the planet, but the price is decent, and the "warranty" is second to none. If I decide I don't like the color four years from now, I can just bring it back. It was also nice that it shipped with both firewire and USB cables so it was ready to go, out of the box.

Granted, there's nothing that can give the peace of mind of a decent backup. Also, their selection is somewhat minimal. But data aside, I have yet to find a better guarantee for hardware than Costco's.

I buy my hard drives at Costco. (They don't sell them online; only at local stores.)

A little known fact about stores like this is that their return policy is "unlimited". They have a sign posted that says "it is helpful if you return the product with original receipt, in 30 days", etc. "Helpful", but not required. Of course, it's likely that the product will drop in price by the time you return it so you'd better keep the receipt... but the timeline is only a suggestion. It is generally thought that this policy is only 6 months... but that's for COMPLETE COMPUTER SYSTEMS. ("Desktop and notebook computers".) Everything else in the store (including peripherals) can be returned as long as you keep your membership.

Recently, I picked up a Maxtor external USB 2.0/Firewire external 160GB 8MB Cache drive with all necessary cables for $109. It's not the largest drive on the planet, but the price is decent, and the "warranty" is second to none. If I decide I don't like the color four years from now, I can just bring it back. It was also nice that it shipped with both firewire and USB cables so it was ready to go, out of the box.

Granted, there's nothing that can give the peace of mind of a decent backup. Also, their selection is somewhat minimal. But data aside, I have yet to find a better guarantee for hardware than Costco's.

I believe that Costco sells Dells now...here's their computers & peripherals page. There are a few of these stores in the NYC area. Go to their site and find a retailer closest to you. It's far easier than doing it mail-order (with your specific case in mind). You'll also (unfortunately) need to get a membership there which will cost you about $75 -- unless you've got a friend in the area with a membership or are really crafty.

I believe that Costco sells Dells now...here's their computers & peripherals page. There are a few of these stores in the NYC area. Go to their site and find a retailer closest to you. It's far easier than doing it mail-order (with your specific case in mind). You'll also (unfortunately) need to get a membership there which will cost you about $75 -- unless you've got a friend in the area with a membership or are really crafty.

Costco.com sells Gateway, Dell and HP/Compaq.

Cosco is a giant shipping company.

Are you sure you don't mean Costco?

Big different there.

digime: Try 256 MB for $49.99. See Costco.

you can get Sandisk Cruzer Mini 256MB USB Flash Drive for $49.99! That's a good price that I bought two (one for myself and one for my father [still uses 3.5" disks as well!]). The local store I went to had PLENTY!!

Rack mount hardware is made for business use. This means that the price is set by how much a business would be willing to pay for it. If there were a large demand for a consumer oriented rack mount solutions then you might be able to find less expensive rack mount hardware. As there is not a large consumer demand yet the prices are not likely to drop.

What are your requirements? Requirement examples would be; physical security (the kids keep hacking my hardware), floor space is at a premium (help, I live in a Manhattan apartment) or display (damn that looks slick). Rack mounts are not necessarily the right solution for the home or office or even the data center.

Do you like to be hands on with your computer/network hardware? I personally like to be able to take a machine down and rip into it on a workbench. Depending on your rack mount equipment that may be easy or it could become very difficult. In my experience it is usually the latter. (Think of how the dynamics of disconnecting plugs, accessing innards and lifting out hardware would actually work.)

Do you need a cabinet or will a stand do? If you have wall space available and your equipment is light/small you might consider a wall mount rack.

If you decide that you are going to go with a rack mount solution, these are my personal favorites:

Middle Atlantic - These guys have some really neat enclosures that are recording studio quality.

BUD Industries - Some of the lowest prices I have found.

MilesTek - Good selection of smaller rack mount solutions.

If you don't absolutely have to have a rack mount solution then my recommendation is a wire shelving unit and plenty of cable ties. You can come up with a good looking and highly effective bit of equipment. Here are some links:

Metro Shelving - The big kahuna of wire shelves. Great stuff but can be pricy.

Costco - Seville Classics Commercial Shelving unit and a bundle of cable ties from Costco is the best $70 solution I have found. (I have four of the shelving units and have no complaints.)

Dan

My friend Boris informed me that Costco is selling one of these.

$1500? Huh? Try $285 for a PS2 with games at costco

As a previous commenter pointed out (and I replied with details), Costco is selling Minolta-QMS color laser printers with PostScript support *and* 10/100 Ethernet for $599.

Check it out.

Their website doesn't mention ethernet but I know that these have it--I saw one over the weekend.

I saw this the other day when I was shopping at Costco (or was it Sams? heh, I don't remember, either). It was, IIRC, a Minolta. The printer was kind of cheesy--it had only one or two buttons and the LCD screen was really, really lame. But for $500, come on!

I don't see it on their products page so I'm thinking that it was a close-out. Amazingly, it had a 10/100Mbit ethernet connection on it. I've never seen anything like this in a $500 printer. Looking at the tech specs for one of their higher-end printers, I see PostScript level 3 mentioned. I have no idea if their ethernet device supports LPR, JetDirect, or IPP. It could, for all I know, use a proprietary protocol, but I kind of doubt it.

One very important thing to look into is the cost of the toner and the number of pages that can be printed on a set of toner carts.

UPDATE: I found the printer in question on Costco's page. Their page does not mention ethernet but I assure you, the printer I saw advertised it (and had the port).

costco coveres Local Toll Calls. They also cover intra-lata calls, intra state rates, and other long distance. see here

Costco -- the rebate form is printed on the register receipt. You only need to fill in your address and mail the rebate form. You can check the rebate status online.

Verizon Wireless -- pretty decent too, check if and when they sent you a check.

I am sure other vendors will follow the lead.

ps. I've received a check for every rebate I sent out.

Yes, it was a plasma. I saw it.
Here is the link. Though if you search Costco it doesn't show up, so it may not still be available. In my opinion the Daewoo is not worth US$3000, and pales in comparison to the Panasonic model with the same features, which is available for a few hundred dollars more.

-->New /. articles available here.

Yes, it was a plasma. I saw it.
Here is the link. Though if you search Costco it doesn't show up, so it may not still be available. In my opinion the Daewoo is not worth US$3000, and pales in comparison to the Panasonic model with the same features, which is available for a few hundred dollars more.

-->New /. articles available here.

The gateway tv is made by acompany called Sampo. This gateway model is the same as the Sampo PME-42S6.

While gateway's tv includes a tuner, the costco one for the same price includes the expensive (200$) wall mounts which are a must have. Assuming you have a cable box or sattilite, and don't use an anntena you are better off with the costco one.

The other posts are correct, the monitor is not HDTV it is EDTV (Enchanced definition television) but the picture still rocks. DVDs look very sharp as does the color, these monitors are far better then HD projection models.

Try Sam's Club. Until my local Costco started digital prints on the same Fuji Crystal Archive paper Walmart and Sam's Club use for $0.20/4x6 I used Sam's Club online. www.samsphotoclub.com They charge $0.24 and I found the qaulity to be better than that at Walmart online... You don't need to be a Sam;s Club member to use this service!

Balam

I think you'd be hard pressed to find any establishment that accepts AMEX and doesn't accept Visa/Mastercard.

Not really. (They're the only one I've run across, though...)

The company's called Cos Co

Damn you can get these things everwhere now! Even at Cost Co??? Next time I go pick up a 500-pack of Ramen noodles I will have to get one of these too!

Mark

I'm dying to give Halo a try, but after my short relationship with the PS2, I need to wait for CostCo to carry the Xbox, as they will take it back 6 months later when I'm bored with it.

-Toli

--

Then none of the developers on the team are worth their weight in crap. Out of the box Site Server is just samples. It is schema independent and if you feel that you where locked into the schema you must really need some relational database design help. Now don't call me a M$ supporter but I feel that the Site Server product is a good product if your client tells you to use NT as the web server. You just have to learn that the out of the box crap is all you can do with the server software. Look at Costco's website, or Gap's or even Starbucks. These sites are using Site Server and every single one of them works, and the code behind them is nothing like a sample store shipping with the Site Server Commerce Edition box. In any venture it comes down to the developers skill. Not what product is used. Some are just better and easier to use.
I am not a M$ Salesmen I just use tools that work in the enviroments I am forced to work in.