sracer

It might be a possibility (since it doesn't look like the WinCE included is burned in ROM). The problem will be to find a Linux distro that supports that CPU and basic hardware. You may find yourself having to build a custom kernel. The netbook comes preloaded with a web browser, word processor, spreadsheet, and presentation. It is safe to say that this device might be fine as a first notebook for a young person with the proviso that "what you see is (all) that you get". Don't plan on expanding it by adding applications. don't expect do to anything other than simple, very simple tasks. don't expect to browse sites that are much more complicated than the classic Google page. I think that I just talked myself into getting one for the curiosity factor. LOL

Also keep in mind that not all Windows CE devices can run Windows CE apps. Each WinCE device comes preloaded with a certain set of libraries. If an application requires a version of those libraries that are NOT installed on the device, then that app will be unable to run. When considering this device, do NOT assume that apps can be added.

For $119 it is a good deal if you know what you are getting. But for those who will mistake this netbook for the typical netbook by Asus or Acer, they will be sorely disappointed.

If you are looking for netbooks this year, you need to be very careful about what operating system is installed on them. There is one netbook that will sell between $99-$119 on Black Friday but the operating system is Windows CE. Windows CE is NOT compatible with XP, Vista, or Windows 7. It is the operating of PDAs, cellphones. although it is an instant-on device with great battery life, the web browser is severely crippled and productivity applications are virtually non-existent. buyer beware!

I completely agree. But in the context of "which was the better deal" I still feel that what you got for the extra $100 was worth it.

True (and the $379 notebook is perfectly fine as it is), but it isn't about what it costs Best Buy to do it, but how much it would cost an individual to upgrade the $379 notebook to the $479 specs. To bump up the RAM and harddrive space alone would cost more than $100. That A/V software is worthless so I don't count that. But the mouse and case ARE worth something, so one could turn around and sell it, or give it as a gift, or use it. I DO agree that it is a subjective choice and depending upon the purpose, one is better suited than the other.... price vs. capacity.

If we are to believe what Walmart stated, then it simply wasn't enough. An argument could be made that walmart was quite aware of what would happen and knew the extent and that is why they (supposedly) took the precautions that they did and should've known that more precautions were required... if not outright canceling the "event". As for what else could they have done? How about.... Requiring the first 100-200 people stand in a single-file line (or # of individual lines that can safely be accommodated by the doors) and enter the store in that order. Stern warnings that running is completely unacceptable and that anyone caught running will forfeit the opportunity to purchase items. And more effectively, hand out numbered vouchers for the limited doorbuster items. Why didn't they institute changes that have been proven to dramatically improve things? Answer: because they prefer the mayhem. Walmart gambled that they could have "controlled mayhem"... they lost that bet. It is a bit disingenuous to refer to the shooting at TRU or the armed robbery at a Target parking lot as if they are equivalent to what regularly happens at many walmart stores each and every Black Friday.

Apology accepted, but unnecessary IMO. You provided information that you believed to be trustworthy. But either deliberately or accidentally, your sources were wrong. Those things happen. http://img24.imageshack.us/img24/1157/shrug8fl.gif

Taz gave some good solid advice. After getting skunked out of the $379 Toshiba deal (my local Best Buy erroneously double-counted their $379/$479 notebooks... The $479 laptop is actually part of their $379 laptop allocation, it is the add-on package that had a separate quantity), I did manage to get the HP/Canon $350 combo. I'm not a fan of HP. I had a dv9000 battleship of a notebook whose wifi died after 10 months and then went casters-up 3 months later. (their own support forums show that the defective wifi issue is epidemic across the HP line) In contrast, the Compaq that my stepson has been using for 3 years (was a pre-Black Friday special 3 years ago) has been running flawlessly. So I'm hoping that this low-end HP (which will replace that Compaq) will be just as reliable. Maybe it is like some car companies.... there are some companies that make great inexpensive economy cars, but their high-end models are error-prone. I DO love Canon printers though. And while the combo scanner/printer/copier uses 1 black tank and 1 color tank (my Pixma ip3000 has separate color tanks) I know that it will be a dependable device. Given an option, the Toshiba $479 was the best deal, the $379 next best, but I don't think that the $350 HP/Canon is a bad deal. Time will tell though. :)

I think it depends upon the laptop in question. This year there was the $379 Toshiba, then there was a $479 Toshiba which was the $379 model plus a $100-value upgrade. There was a lot of confusion about that. It was an either/or deal. They didn't have a minimum 15 of the $379 and a minimum of 15 for the $479 notebooks. The ad specifically stated a minimum 15 of the laptops ($379) and a minimum of 15 packages (the $100 add-on package) Some Best Buys, including my local one, erroneously double-counted.

Brad, thanks to you and the rest of the team. This site and forum have been an invaluable resource every holiday shopping season. But maybe it is time to hang around all year round. :)

Let's avoid melodrama. Who said that walmart's actions give these monsters the right to do what they did? Exactly who is saying that? Just because society has a problem with personal responsibility doesn't mean that the concept of partial culpability doesn't exist. Walmart deliberately orchestrates and encourages "blitz" "dash-n-grab" stampedes on Black Fridays. That is no secret. Nobody is surprised. They are responsible for creating a hazardous situation. Walmart may not have made the human decision to act in such a barbaric way, but they did create a situation to encourage barbaric acts. I highly doubt that you would be defending an establishment, such as a restaurant that offered to cut the cost of a patron's meal in half if they took a punch at the person sitting to their left. It is essentially no different. You make it sound like every other retailer has this problem. They don't. There are many retail outlets that never (or virtually never) have something like this that seems to happen at many walmarts EVERY Black Friday. So either Walmart is deliberately doing something to cause this, or Walmart attracts barbaric people. Which one is it?

Well, ultimately if you cannot see how walmart encourages that behavior then you won't be able to see it if someone explains it to you.http://img24.imageshack.us/img24/1157/shrug8fl.gif http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=f59_1227894726

You dismissed the situation at walmart as if it was equally possible at any other store. It is absolutely NOT equally possible at any other store. Violence at walmart stores on Black Friday are part of the Black Friday "tradition". Do you think that it is coincidence that these situations happen more frequently at walmart than at other stores? Every Best Buy that I've gone to on Black Friday is orderly but busy. That is because they have a voucher system for high-demand low-quantity items. They organize consumers into orderly lines. Walmart does none of those things. Walmart ENCOURAGES dash-n-grab. There are people who go to walmart specifically BECAUSE it is a dash-n-grab. Target has a modified dash-n-grab that is somewhere between an orderly voucher system and dash-n-grab free-for-all. I've NEVER experienced any mayhem at a Target or Best Buy on Black Friday. EVERY walmart that I've visited on Black Friday was chaotic. Disagree if you wish. But Walmart does NOT do a sale just like all the other stores.

Oh, they know. They know it WORKS for what they intend. They want the crowds. They want the mad dash of people running through the store. They want the pushing and shoving, elbowing and crowding. Employees stand by photograph and video-record the event. They don't want people to die or get seriously hurt, but they certainly don't mind people getting jostled and the occasional person getting knocked down.

This could NOT have happened at just any store. It DOES happen at walmart every year (to one extent or another). Walmart knows what happens each year... and they encourage it. While I believe that people need to be held accountable for their actions and their choices, walmart bears a portion of that responsibility for knowingly establishing an environment that is conducive to that type of behavior. I know that Walmart is a "dash-n-grab" Black Friday event and that is why I avoid them. But there are many, even here at this forum, who actually enjoy the mad rush, the running through the store, the elbowing out the "competition" to grab that desired item.

Arrived at Best Buy @ 5pm on Thanksgiving. There was about 25 people already on line. The people immediately in front of me arrived @ 4pm. The first person on line arrived 8pm Wed evening. The weather wasn't very accommodating but we were prepared. 4am rolls around and the store is extremely understaffed. Only 2 employees are handing out tickets. I managed to get a ticket for the $379 Toshiba laptop (the last one). I was surprised considering how many people were ahead of me on line. Then there was a pause of 20 minutes before any other tickets were handed out. There apparently was some sort of "error" with the $379 tickets. and employee asked those of us who had received a ticket to hand it back. I thought it was a bit fishy, but I handed mine back. The guy in front of me did as well. Turns out that they mismanaged handing out the tickets and that some of the people in the 10-15 spots in line were overlooked and didn't get tickets for the items that they wanted. Employee tells us that he's very sorry and thanked us for being cooperative. He tells us that he'll try to work out a comparable deal for something else. The tickets for other doorbusters are distributed... I managed to get one for the $349 HP notebook w/Canon scanner/printer. Employee returns with a card with his name and the store manager's name on it and tells us to go talk to the manager when the store opens. Store opens I go track down the manager. He's an oily haired used car salesman type. He thanks me for my cooperation and tells me that he can give me a Dell notebook, regularly $669 for $500. I say thanks but no thanks and looking for a non-HP notebook for under $400. He said he can't do it. (I figured as much) I guess that I could've put up a stink, but if everything went as it should've, I wouldn't have received a ticket in the first place. I could've also held on to the ticket, but I would not have wanted to be the cause of anyone ahead of me in line to NOT get the laptop because of an error. Oh well. I DID buy the HP/Canon combo for my stepson, so it turned out well in the end. But this will probably be my last BF at BB. My camp out limit is 12 hours and I just barely managed to get a DB of choice. Next year will require a longer wait. I DID manage to get Transformers on Blu-ray for $10, 4GB Sandisk Memory Stick Pro $20, complementary breakfast at Sam's Club and the Sylvania 4GB touch MP3 player for $60 at Walgreens.

That is fair and reasonable. You heard what you heard and it may or may not be true. Each person needs to decide for themselves what they want to do with this information (if anything). If I recall correctly, last year's special doorbusters weren't announced until late Thursday evening. I was on line @ 5pm and it wasn't until 9 or 10pm that I heard about the secret doorbusters.

No, the manager was serious and truthful. Just show up to line up @ 4am on Friday and you'll be fine.

Those generally echo my sentiments regarding Black Friday. But I think that in spite of the less than jaw-dropping sales prices, people will still be lining up earlier. The economy is in the tank. I suspect that there are more than a few people who think that this just might be their last Christmas to give larger/more expensive gifts (anticipating the rougher times ahead).

Agreed. I will not judge. For every person who thinks it is unreasonable to camp out days before BF, there are people who think that "camping out" for a mere 2 or 3 hours is unreasonable. :) (they'd think that the 6-12 hours that some of us camp out for is downright certifiably insane)

I have no first-hand experience with this particular item, but I am familiar with similar knock-off video games. They are never as good as the graphics on the box imply. And even if you think "awe what the heck, it's only $20" you'll find that it isn't even worth $20. If anyone is interested in a game system but money is an issue.... for $9 more you can get a Nintendo GameCube. (Note: it just sold out. But there are similar deals available online)Gamecube games are relatively inexpensive and if you decide to upgrade to a Wii, you will still be able to use those GameCube games on it.

I can't help but think that some of the people camping out at these stores are paid to do it by the stores themselves to get interest and excitement levels up. I know that this has happened in previous years it wouldn't surprise me. I'm not saying that EVERYONE who is now out there camping is a shill, but the possibility exists that many are.

abc123

The first person in line at the local Best Buy over the past few years (college kid) would sell his tickets for $10-20 each. By the time the doors open, he ends up getting his item nearly for no cost out of pocket.