len_mullen

It is a good deal. It's a penny, right? People use this for laundering rewards. Usually the limit on the rebates is between three and ten.

You are correct. Kohls Cash is taken off your order before discounts are applied, but is otherwise treated as cash. So, you buy qualifying items, get the KC, then use that to buy non-qualifying stuff.

It probably is given the 'regular price', but the remote's product placement buttons look 'special' to me. Given the shake up of the Roku 2/3 units and the release of the R4, this might be a new unit -- maybe a Roku 1 without the composite jacks.

I prefer 'If you can read this, I probably got your doorbuster!' on the back, but if you go all super hero, the back should read 'my super power is gottadeal.com!'

Finally saw a teardown of the Roku 4... http://www.avsforum.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=1027121&d=1446149922 http://www.avsforum.com/forum/39-networking-media-servers-content-streaming/2159233-roku-4-announced-20.html#post38496425 I recommend against purchasing this device. Cooling issues with this streamer are more fatal than a lack of thermal paste. Thermal paste overcomes surface irregularities between a heat sink and processor. Usually, the heat sink is attached to the processor package or at least the same surface as the processor. In the Roku 4, the heat sink is attached to the plastic lid. Plastic is not a particularly stable material and is vulnerable to distortion in the presence of great or sustained heat (it melts), so the distance between the heat sink and processor could change with environment and use. The small fan's small vent is small and near the bottom of the unit. Heat rises, so the fan is working extra to get the air from the top of the case to the vent at the bottom. The size and location of the vent make it particularly vulnerable to obstruction -- insufficient space between the unit and a wall of an entertainment center or accumulated dust. Compare to the Fire TV which has no fan but runs cool. In this picture, the FTV is upside down. Note that the board/processor is attached to the heat sink and note the number of places very close to the processor that the sink is secured to the pcb. Note too the heatsink compound. http://o.aolcdn.com/hss/storage/midas/f805f8bb1a9f40737c584c26ece4ef2b/200008060/amazon-fire-tv-teardown-ifixit.jpg http://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/fire-heatsink-640x480.jpgIn rev 2 of the Roku 4, the heat sink needs to be secured to the processor and the heat is vented through the top of the device.

1. Approximately how many years have you been shopping on Black Friday? - about 45 (though we just called it The Day After Thanksgiving) 2. Do you plan to spend more, less or the same amount of money during Black Friday week this year? - less 3. Do you plan on shopping online during Black Friday week this year? - yes 4. How many people do you plan on shopping with on Black Friday this year? - three (me, myself, and I) 5. If you could make stores change one thing about Black Friday besides opening times, what would it be? - make it festive: decorated for Christmas, food and raffles

The Rokus are fine when they are working properly. You simply arrow through a bunch of tiles and press the OK button when you are on the one you want to run. Click back or home to get out. The problem is their developers and support are terrible. Every f'n update is a game of Russian Roulette with five chambers loaded. They had to roll their last update back. Their gen 4 device is loud and hot and has lots of other problems. The thing with Amazon is that they will eventually get it right. For people who do not stream a lot of apps, the FTV devices are nice in that the most used apps appear to the right of the place which has focus when you hit the home button or power up the device. So, you right click a couple times and click the OK button to run the app. After a short time, your favorites fill that row.

Listen kids, they will open on Thanksgiving until they stop making money on Thanksgiving. You and I are free to patronize the openings or not. Employees are free to work the event or not. Some rely on the money and others thrive on the excitement. Let's not have every announcement turn into a should they or shouldn't they debate. Maybe Brad can start an official should they or shouldn't they thread?

Pretty cool for employees to get a paid day off.

http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopoly_fs/1.1525735!/img/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/article_970/blackfriday23n-2-web.jpg

I'm not sure this is a big problem if you care for your brewer properly. I would recommend only putting clean water in using a clean container, removing the used k-cup immediately after brewing, and keeping covers in place at all times. It's a good idea to descale/clean with vinegar regularly. from http://www.snopes.com/medical/toxins/keurig.asp from http://www.rodalesorganiclife.com/home/natural-disinfectant

I would not get a k-cup brewer for anyone who has not expressly shared a desire to own one. k-cups are expensive, refillables are inconvenient, the smaller brewers are not especially convenient to use, and a lot of people think they are an environmental problem. In other words, there are a lot of reasons for a recipient not to like your gift. I own three. It took me a long time to get my first one (see above). I like them a lot. I would try to avoid the 2.0 models just because of the 'copy protection' on the device. You can defeat this, but don't expect a giftee to do that. I did try the refillable cups. Gave them to my sister last night. She is willing to do that. I am not. I did a lot of research and math and jumped on a good deal at staples back in 2014. All three of mine are the OfficePro model. I selected this model because most pro reviews claimed the commercial quality pump would last a lot longer than the pump in the home brewers. So far, so good. I also think the reservoir makes the OfficePro much more convenient to use. I bought all three at Staples at times when stackable promotions reduced the cost below $40. For instance (my first)... Obviously, not helpful for you except that you should pay attention to sale prices, coupons, and rebates at Staples. Note that Easy Rebates do not require a UPC, so box looks good for gifting. There is a long time until Christmas and last year Staples had the OfficePro for $108.07 on BF. They had $15 off $100 and a 25% off breakroom stackable coupons. There was a $20 gift card after easy rebate, so $50ish net. Of course, the cost of the k-cups can quickly gobble up any savings on the brewer. k-cups can cost more than $1 per cup. While this is inexpensive compared to Starbucks or even Dunkin Donuts, you can brew very good coffee for ~$0.30/cup in a conventional brewer. Because you are looking at these as gifts, you should not assume the recipient will be interested in bulk purchasing via Amazon or ebay. I have found Staples once again to be the most reasonable place to purchase 18-48 count boxes of my favorite cups. They allow coupons and discounts on the k-cups (kohls no longer allows this) and you can use those shop discover gift cards for an additional 20% discount. I like Caribou blend. This morning, 18 cups is $8.99 on Staples.com and in store. That's $0.50/cup -- almost twice as much as Dunkin Donuts from a Mr. Coffee. That is about the best you can do without jumping through hoops. If you know someone who covets a single serve coffee brewer, make sure the brewer is easy to use and durable. Be aware that some people (http://www.killthekcup.org) think the k-cup is destroying the planet. Don't expect your gift recipient to jump through hoops to save on coffee (refillables and discounts). Do not expect someone who goes to a high end coffee shop to find the k-cup experience to be just as good. Otherwise, sure these make great gifts.

The best deal for me in 2015 was the $299.99 TiVo Roamio with Lifetime. I got three. $67 Prime was a good deal just in time for Christmas shopping. The season is young.

My mother used to go out the day after Thanksgiving, but it wasn't called Black Friday. I enjoyed shopping with her the day after Thanksgiving in the 60s. The stores literally transformed into Christmas mode overnight. In the 80s, Zayre's department stores stayed open all day and all night Thanksgiving. We stocked the shelves and decorated for Friday and a handful of customers wandered around the stored enjoying Friday's sale priced a day early. I guess that was my first Black Friday.

http://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Opalina-Nine-Lives-ebook/dp/B00ODHBMEE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1445546067&sr=8-1&keywords=opalina I would like to recommend this book. It's very expensive as a paper book, but very inexpensive as an ebook. When I was in grade school, I read this every single year. It was what I did in September. I have spent the better part of the last 25 years looking for a reasonably priced copy of this book and now it is available for the Kindle for $10. Your kids will love it. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61iqU7-9%2BHL._SX348_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg

I have a wall across from the pool table where I want to put a large LED. I have two 32" LCDs for the opposite corners from that wall. You really cannot have too many televisions.

You are preaching to the choir, Pnambic! The only way to shop for a television is in person. I watch enough SD that a high definition set that did not render SD well would not be in my home. I watch enough sports that a television that suffered motion blur would not be in my home. BUT, some of these 4k sets do everything very well and are worthy of consideration even if you will not be watching 4k. That's not true. Plus upconverting 4k disc players will do for BD what upconverting BD players did for DVDs. Streaming 4k will not be fun. They are testing 4k OTA. Het a 4k disc player to be amazed. Just go into stores and look at the difference. It's real. That's not the case with 4k. It's the same geometry. Worst case, one pixel is rendered 4x. I'm not getting one either (unless something 70" or better drops into my lap for over the pool table), but there is NO DENYING how good they look. People looking to upgrade an older set or buy something new should AT LEAST look at these sets. If you wanted to compare a PLASMA to a 4k set, I'd listen, but, even then, I would encourage you to visit a store. Specs are nice, but seeing is believing.

Just because someone works outside doesn't make them an expert on the weather. Go look at the sets and see what you think.

Staples

It's fun to watch the tussles on TV. In real life, I've only encountered camaraderie.

PHOTO #1: Black water goes here, right? http://blackfriday.gottadeal.com/images/cap1.png PHOTO #2: I can only take ONE of you home. http://blackfriday.gottadeal.com/images/cap2.png PHOTO #3: Bathrooms are all the way back on the right. http://blackfriday.gottadeal.com/images/cap3.png

Prime is not included with any Fire TV device. You can have many tablets, FTVs, and kindles associated with a single amazon account.

Saving on BF is no different than saving the rest of the year. - make a list of the stuff you want - research best brands and models - research best prices - shop for the best price - purchase using a credit card that doubles your warranty, provides price protection, or pays cash back - watch for opportunities to price match or return/rebuy With BF there is the slight twist in that you should try to make purchases late enough that the ads are out before your return period ends so you can ensure the best deal.

http://stream1.gifsoup.com/view6/2617045/laughing-kelso-o.gif

The Roku 4 was announced yesterday, so we know everything we need to know about streaming for the 2015 season. I thought the recent launches were incremental -- no new products, nothing unexpected. 4k came faster than I expected. Prices jumped unexpectedly. What do you think about what is going on with the television 'set top box' arena? Amazon Fire TVFTV added 4k, Alexa support, and a hardware upgrade. Amazon abandoned optical out but added an sd card slot. In its first year, FTV's app count has surpassed Rokus. At $99.99, FTV is the least expensive streamer -- and game console. Kind of unrelated, but not really, Amazon put Prime on sale for $67 last month. Apple TVApple added Siri, an interesting remote, and an app store. Their new streamer sells for $149 and $199 -- ideal for price insensitive Apple enthusiasts, but more expensive than any other streamer. Channel Master DVR+Channel Master launched their Linear TV this summer and added an enhanced remote. The DVR+ is now two years old. Google ChromecastAC wireless, better buffering, and some kind of audio feature which requires one Chromecast per speaker. Mohu ChannelsWhat ever happened to... RokuRoku added 4k, optical out, a remote finder, beefed up hardware, captive portal support, and AC wireless. And jacked the price 30%. This summer Roku added voice search. Simple TV DVRSimple TV DVR, we knew you well. After a difficult two tuner product launch, and a database crash, our friends at Real Simple Software have gone into hiding. The hardware is rarely seen in the wild. Tablo DVRTablo picked up the ball that Simple dropped, releasing two and four tuner DVRs to much fanfare. Their community and support are solid, but the product suffers a lot of the problems that doomed the Simple TV DVR. Regardless, Tablo updated their Roku app. TiVoTiVo announced their Bolt product. The Bolt supposedly targets new TiVo customers. It supports 4k and curated commercial skip. The price with 'All In' (aka Lifetime) will approach $1k! As far as I am concerned, the bigger news has been the $300 TiVo with Lifetime (still available on Amazon.com). TiVo added a Plex client this summer. Did I miss anything? Are there any other players out there? Assuming 4k is the theme this Christmas, people will be choosing among FTV, Roku, and Bolt. I don't think the Bolt is competitive, so most will be choosing between FTV and Roku. Objectively, Roku is going to have to work hard to overcome Amazon's advantages. Both products are available as part of Sling TV bundles (though I do not think Sling is a big deal right now), but Amazon will likely offer a Prime bundle and still offers more and better gaming options than any other under $100 device. FTV is significantly less expensive. Of course, all of the 4k sets will have 4k apps, right? And the Xbox and PS4 already support 4k streaming. Who is going to buy a streaming product this fall, is it an upgrade or an addition, and what is the driver behind the sale?