Promo	Starts	Ends	Highlights
Electronics Sales Event – Save up to $690 on select TVs and Electronics	Ongoing	11/26/09 11:59 PM CST	Sony BRAVIA 55″ KDL55V5100 120Hz 1080p LCD HDTV $1769.10 after $529.90 instant off Nokia N86 Unlocked Smartphone $369.99 after $130 off
Ultimate Value of the Season. Black Friday at Dell Home + Free 3-5 day shipping on all items on landing page	11/27/09 12:00 AM CST	11/27/09 11:59 PM CST	The new Inspiron Zino HD desktop for only $199 Mini netbook for only $249 42″ Sharp TV for only $599 (limited quantities available)
Entertainment Sale – The great offers continue at Dell Home!	11/28/09 12:01 AM CST	11/29/09 11:59 PM CST	Mini 10v netbook with TV tuner only $499 Xbox 360 Elite Holiday Bundle only $269.99 after $30 off
Great Cyber Monday Deals at Dell + Free 3-5 day shipping on all items on landing page	11/30/09 12:00 AM CST	11/30/09 11:59 PM CST	Inspiron 15 laptop for only $449 TomTom One 130 GPS only $79.99 Corel Photo & Video Bundle Software $69.99
Black Friday Alienware Special: Get $200 off when you purchase $200 or more in upgrades.	11/27/09 12:00 AM CST	11/30/09 11:59 PM CST	Upgrades are FREE if worth $200

CST stands for Central Standard Time. If you’re not familiar with this time zone, more information is available here (you can use the time zone converter here as well). As mentioned above, the promos only apply in the US. Black Friday and Cyber Monday are American institutions anyway.

Don’t forget, other “Black Friday” promos by Dell are still ongoing!

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	Offer	End Date	Coupon Code
	Complete desktop package featuring the Studio XPS 8000 desktop and 20″ monitor for only $999 after $329 instant off.	11/23/09 5:55 AM CST	None Required
	Studio XPS 13 laptop only $999 after $369 instant savings!
	Check out the new TOUCH Studio 17 laptop at Dell! Don’t miss our other great deals on touch screens!	“Ongoing”
Check out Dell’s most popular PCs with the all the options you want starting at less than $500 + free next business day shipping!
	This Inspiron 15 laptop only $399 after $100 instant discount and coupon code 40M?6?W03KFH93. Plus get free next business day shipping.	12/4/09 11:55 PM CST or after 500 redemptions (whichever comes first)	40M?6?W03KFH93
	This Inspiron 15 laptop only $479 after $220 instant discount and coupon code 1R$ZL9Q7CFG69V. Plus get free next business day shipping.		1R$ZL9Q7CFG69V
	Nov 19-Dec 4: Only $419 for the Inspiron 11z laptop + free next business day shipping! Use coupon code $9532Z?LL5DB9$.		$9532Z?LL5DB9$
Save up to 39% on Dell’s most popular laptops. Includes free standard shipping.		11/26/09 11:59 PM CDT	None Required
New Lower Price on Dell Netbooks! Now starting at only $279 + free standard shipping.

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Another notable trend becomes clear when comparing brands. Here’s the list of nine different brands, ranked from most reliable to least, in terms of malfunction rate:

1. Asus
2. Toshiba
3. Sony
4. Apple
5. Dell
6. Lenovo
7. Acer
8. Gateway
9. HP

Looks like Asus‘ marketing department have a new talking point to advertise, while Apple has another reason to stick its nose up at Dell. I’m also sure Sony would like to mention being second in reliability while pimping its stylish VAIO lines.

The most depressing trend noted, while somewhat obvious, is still a bit depressing: From an average of 7.2% after 12 months of ownership, the average rate of “total failure” rises to 19.7% after 24 months, and steadily rises to 31% by the third year.

Great info from Squaretrade, relevant to makers and consumers alike. What I’d like to see though is a survey on the reliability of desktops. In any case, do you own a laptop? How reliable (or not) has it proven to be?

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It also seems Alienware’s picked up Dell’s tendency to offer free shipping: Light Up The Holidays With Alienware and receive free shipping on all Alienware laptops and desktops. Ends 11/12/09 5:55 AM CDT.

Some more promos to check out:

• Studio ONE 19 all in one desktop with touch screen monitor and free color upgrade for only $699! End Date: 11/30/09 5:55 AM CDT
• Shop Smart. Shop Early. Laptops starting at only $499 after instant savings. End Date: 11/12/09 5:55 AM CDT
• Save over 20% on the Studio XPS 16 laptop. Only $1149 after savings hi-def performance with ATI Graphics and 6 cell battery. End Date: 11/12/09 5:55 AM CDT
• Studio XPS 8000 desktop. The newest member of the Studio XPS desktop family designed for a more immersive media experience for only $899 after more than $200 in savings! End Date: 11/12/09 5:55 AM CDT

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Users cannot directly install applications on Litl; updates are streamed automatically via WiFi. There’s also no on-board drive; the Litl operates completely online, apparently totally reliant on cloud computing. Therein lies a potential flaw for this $700 product. Constant online access is a great thing, simply because it allows real-time information updates. But that’s only possible in the ideal, where internet service providers create enough infrastructure to support their user base, and where downtime rate is somewhere between 99.9% and 100%.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Litl cannot function when it has no access to the Internet. I’d rather pay $700 for a device that still does things even when offline, not on a product that’s totally reliant on the quality of your internet connection. It’s possible though time will prove me wrong. Maybe internet connectivity will become as reliable and “default” as electricity is today. I’ll reserve my final thoughts until I’m able to secure a review unit, so stay tuned!

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Took Pictures

Here are some pictures of the MSI Wind U210, featuring the netbook in various angles. Click on a thumbnail to see a large-size version of the picture:

Used Ninite

Ninite, if you recall, lets visitors choose the applications they want and download a customized executable to facilitate their installation. Based on my SO’s preferences, and what I thought she’d need, here’s what I ticked off:

• Chrome
• Skype
• Yahoo Messenger
• iTunes
• VLC
• Picasa
• Microsoft Office (Trial Version)
• Adobe Reader
• AVG Free Anti-Virus 9.0
• Flash Installer for Other Browsers
• Java Runtime Environment Update 18
• uTorrent
• WinRAR

All in all, it took about an hour-and-a-half for everything to download and install. Since Ninite did everything in the background, I was able to get some work done while waiting.

Wrote down My First Impressions

The MSI Wind U210 was very responsive, running Windows 7 smoothly. Keep in mind however that I was using a brand-new gadget, with barely anything on it, so let’s see what happens after a few months of use. The unit itself is very light and compact, but the keyboard is still near full-size, and proved easy to type on with my relatively large fingers.

While the keyboard is snappy enough to facilitate touch-typing, it’s build quality was a bit suspect, with the entire key assembly depressing a bit whenever I’d press U, I, J, K. The rest of unit felt sturdy though, and the finish is shiny plastic, the kind that doesn’t seem like it will wear out or discolor after months of constant contact with the human hand.

By far the best feature of the MSI Wind U210—at least the one I got—is the 9-cell battery, which promises a long life away from the wall socket. After two and a half hours of installing the programs above and working—with WiFi on and the screen at full brightness—Windows 7 promised over 4 hours of operation. The longer battery life comes at a cost of less portability though, with the extra cells bulging out from underneath the unit.

Considered Buying One for Myself

To make a long story short, I’m actually very tempted to buy this netbook for myself. I’m now at a point where I value portability, a good keyboard, and long battery life, and the MSI Wind U210 so far delivered on these. The only issues I have are the lack of Bluetooth, and I’m wondering if I can get a variant that has the 3G SIM slot enabled. Still, a mini Bluetooth dongle shouldn’t cost more than $5 nowadays, and tethering the Wind U210 to my phone for 3G access isn’t that difficult anyway.

Other than that, MSI has managed to cram a good mix of features into a small yet usable form factor. The MSI Wind U210 is light, speedy, and lasts long on a single charge. I’m simply trying to justify not getting this netbook, given the price for what you get.

You can buy the MSI Wind U210 (6-cell version) from NewEgg here: MSI Wind U210-008US Black/Gray 12.1″ WXGA Netbook ($430)

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Courtesy Nokia

That’s a bit pricey in my opinion. Sure, the 12-hour battery life and two-centimeter thickness of the gadget justify this price somewhat, but not entirely. For a 10.1″ netbook, nothing probably beats Nokia’s offerings in terms of specs, integrated extras (like HDMI), and battery capacity, but there are surely equally portable offerings that also include a built-in USIM slot.

What do you think? Personally, I’d rather spend my hard-earned money on something slightly more bulky, but significantly more powerful. Especially since Nokia already makes software that lets their phones sync with your average Windows 7 laptop. The Booklet 3G might appeal to metal finish addicts who want something small to lug around though.

More Nokia Booklet 3G specs emerge at Nokia World 09

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Still, the necessity that gadgets create in our lives is still very significant. We use them to work, avoid boredom, socialize with others, collaborate, and a whole lot more—in ways that are constantly changing.

That’s why these essentials also change, based on our changing sentiments. My laptop used to be a frequent companion, letting me work practically anywhere with internet access. Eventually however, I grew tired of carrying a laptop around, with my preference slowly shifting to the portability of a netbook. The recent announcement of the Booklet 3G only whets my appetite more.

Some essentials remain constant, like my mobile. The necessity it creates and fulfills—communication—will probably never fundamentally change.

So what gadgets can’t you live without? What used to be crucial to your techie-oriented existence, and what new necessities are in your life? Feel free to hit the comments below.

Inspired by

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Courtesy Nokia

Specs: Too Good to be True?

12 hours of battery life is awesome! But Nokia has learned to play the battery overestimation game? Will actual battery life be more like 3 hours, as the Booklet’s various connectivity features are generously used?

N-Gage Part Deux?

N-Gage was Nokia’s attempt to enter the portable gaming market through hardware. Will the Booklet 3G become another failed attempt by Nokia to diversify its dominantly phone-centric portfolio?

Appeal Outside the Phone Market?

Nokia is king when it comes to cell phones, but is the brand strong enough to attract netbook buyers? It might be an uphill battle for the Finns, as entering the low-margin netbook market is a very risky proposition.

Bloatware?

We already know Nokia needs to improve its desktop software. If it was slow on a decently-powerful desktop, how would it perform on a less powerful netbook? Worse, does Nokia consider the Booklet as a license to pimp Ovi to users with in-your-face software?

What do you think of the Nokia Booklet 3G? Feel free to hit the comments below.

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Courtesy Joy of Tech

True or false?

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