This year promises to be one of the most exciting Olympics of all time.  Why?  Because of the advances in high definition technology.  In every home, high definition television is becoming the standard as cable and satellite companies scramble to outdo each other with the most number of high definition channels.

Why does this matter to us?  Because over the last few days, we’ve seen an unprecedented number of television deals.  With the Olympics coming in the next few days, and the downturn in sales, merchants are scrambling to offer the most compelling TV deals possible.

Take, for example, Second Act, who is offering the refurbished Philips 42PFL7422D/37 42 inch 1080p Flat Panel LCD HDTV for only $850, or $750 off the MSRP of $1600.  Or the refurbished Samsung LNT5265F 52 inch 1080p Flat Panel LCD HDTV for $1400, or $2900 off the MSRP of $4300.

Dell also has a great sale on TVs, where you can Save up to $600 on select TVs.  And of course, there’s always our TV Deals page, where you can browse all the latest offerings from Second Act, Circuit City, Dell, Best Buy, and more.

Enjoy!

At Restaurant.com, they’re running their greatest promotion ever.  For those who aren’t that familiar with Restaurant.com, it’s a great way to save money on dining.  With their standard offer, you can purchase $25 dining gift certificates to select restaurants in your local area for only $10.  On a good day, they have a coupon for 50% off this price, making it $5 for a $25 certificate.  On a better day, they have 60% off, or $4 for a $25 certificate.

However, today and tomorrow, they’re running a promotion where you can save 70% off the normal price.  That means you can get a $25 dining gift certificates for only $3!

The way it works is, you go to restaurant.com and search your area, either by city/state or zip code.  It will return all of the restaurants in their database.  You can then choose which restaurants you want, and the number of gift certificates per restaurant.

The catch?  Well, you have to spend at least $35 in most places, and that can’t include alcohol.  So it’s a great way to save if you go out with a group, or if you take the whole family to dinner.  In this case, you’ll get $35 worth of food for only $13, or a net savings of over 60%!

Have fun dining out.

What’s that smell?  <SNIIIIFFFFF>  Ahhhhh, it’s the smell of football season, right around the corner.

If you’re like me, and don’t live in your team’s home city, then you’re probably desperate to catch a game.  Even though I live in Austin, TX, the idiots at KEYE TV (our CBS affiliate) refuse to show NFL games for the Houston Texans, instead opting to show the Tennessee Titans every weekend.  It’s really annoying, which is why this year I’m thinking about bailing from Time Warner and switching over to DirecTV for the NFL Package.

In particular, DirecTV is offering a a free 4-month package of DirecTV’s best entertainment package w/ purchase of NFL Sunday Ticket.  This package includes HBO, Showtime, Starz, and Cinemax, all free for 4 months with the purchase of NFL Sunday Ticket.  So not only will you never miss your home team on Sunday, but you’ll also pick up some extra movie channels.  And let me tell you from experience, extra perks like this really make it an easier sell to the wife.  Trust me, DirecTV is not made up of a bunch of idiots, these movie channels were bundled with NFL ticket for a reason, so as the saying goes, “don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.”

I can’t wait for football season, especially since my baseball team (the Houston Astros) are in last place in the NL Central.  Football season can’t get here quick enough.

Enjoy!

George Costanza is my role model.  Played by Jason Alexander in the hit TV show Seinfeld, his character has taught me so much about life and the pursuit of happiness.

When he decided to build a cubby hole under his desk to take naps during the day, I felt his energy, his drive, his passion to bridge the gap between work and play.  When he became a hand model, I respected his love of art.

But definitely, one of my favorite moments in Seinfeld history was the episode where George combines food and sex.  The visionary nature of George’s character brought upon the revolutionary idea of combining two of his greatest passions.

So in the spirit of George Costanza, today we bring you the GPX 8.1″ Under-Cabinet LCD TV from Circuit City.  If you enjoy cooking and watching TV, which ironically is something I enjoy, this is a perfect way to unite these two passions as one.  With a $200 list price, you can pick this bad boy up for an awesome price of just $55 shipped (this price includes a $75 mail-in rebate).  Features include an 8.1″ color screen, composite video inputs, HD tuner, front speakers, swivel screen, and full-function remote.

Have a great week!

I can’t say I’ve always been real big on pool, billiards, or whatever you want to call it, but I certainly played my share in high school.  That was always the cool thing to do, go down to the pool hall on a Friday night, and watch as guys fought over girlfriends and all that fun stuff.

Anyway, I was thinking, I could bring the memories of high school back home in real life form by purchasing this sweet Mizerak Livingston 7 foot Billiard Table from Sears.  WIth a price tag of just under $200, it’s a $200 discount from the MSRP of around $400.  This is by no means a top-of-the-line pool table, and I’m not qualified enough to even tell you what the pros and cons are, but at $200, it certainly seems like a screaming deal.

Unfortunately, we’ve already committed to a several-thousand-dollar makeover of our gameroom to turn it into a media room, so I think it’s a moot point unless I want to convert the garage.  But certainly, a pool table like this would make a great addition to a man cave, particularly for those who live up north and have basements.

For those of you who don’t know, I’m typically pretty bullish on J&R’s Weekend Sale.  Well this weekend is definitely no exception, as they have a ton of great products on sale today and tomorrow.

Take, for example, the Polk Audio RM6750 Black Six-piece 5.1 Channel Home Theater Speaker System.  With a retail price of $600, you can get a pretty decent home theather system for just $200, or 67% off the retail price.  The reviews come in with a solid 4 star rating, and for the money, I don’t think you’ll find much better.

J&R also has a sale on the Saeco Magic Cappuccino Plus Pump Espresso Maker.  For a low price of just $200, it’s $100 off the MSRP.  We bought an espresso maker a few months ago, or I should say, Mrs. Jack got one for me, and I absolutely love it!  Frothed milk, steamed milk, espresso, you can do it all with one of these systems.

Other great deals include the Panasonic ES7058 Men’s Vortex Triple Blade Hydraclean System Shaver for $45 (50% off the msrp of $90), which comes with a self-cleaning recharger, adaptor, detergent cartridge, and travel pouch.

There are certainly many other great weekend deals at J&R, so check it out!

-Dustin

We all have our vices.  One of mine happens to be wine.  There’s nothing more enjoyable than going out for dinner and enjoying a nice bottle of wine with the wife.  But sometimes it’s nice to stay in and have nice home-cooked meal with a glass of wine.  For us, the meal is usually planned at the last minute, and the wine is an afterthought.  Even though I have a few trusty favorite bottles that I usually pick out, I can’t say I’m an expert, and I’m left feeling like I could experience a lot more if I just knew where to turn.

That’s where Wine.com comes in.  With their extensive catalogue of wines, and a great rating system, you can easily uncover new favorites with relative ease.  And now, they have some great savings on six or more bottles.

For example, right now you can stock up and save 20% on 6 or more bottles of select wines with coupon code BARGAIN.  Or, with their vintage selection, you can save 15% on any six or more bottles of vintage wine with coupon code LASTVINTAGE.

Have a good Friday and a relaxing weekend!

Dell is currently running a promotion that gives some of the largest discount on their LCD monitors.  WIth a coupon code, you can save 25% off the normal price, which is a pretty drastic discount for Dell, especially on their monitors.

Take, for example, the Dell UltraSharp Widescreen 300 30″ LCD Monitor.  With a list price of $1399, you can get it for only $1049.  Or, take for example the DELL UltraSharp 2408WFP 24-inch Widescreen Flat Panel Monitor, with a retail price of $679, it’s only $509 with this discount.

This offer is good through 7/30.

Enjoy!

Sorry for the late post today.  I was off being awesome.  Off being awesome is code for “fixing major technical snafus”.  After writing this, I think I’ll go back to being awesome again.

First things first. NO, it is NOT 1080p.  Hell, it’s not even 1080i.  But…it’s new, it’s 42″ and it’s on sale for $699.99 at Second Act.  The Philips 42HF7444T/27 42 inch 720p Plasma Display TV is a great price for the size and ships for $120.

Because you want some specs:

So, if you’re looking for size without the newest bells,  whistles and resolution, and you’re ok with your arrogant neighbor making a chuckling sound when he asks you about your resolution, go for it and feel good about your bang for the buck.  And remember, your elitist neighbor paid double for his TV and hasn’t had a girlfriend in 3 years.

Cheers!

Jack

Smile pretty. I am to photojournalism what the cheetah is to the African grasslands. I am armed with a PowerShot A590 IS 8 Megapixel Digital Camera.

Think you can hide? Think again. I’ve got 4x zoom. You can’t outrun me. You’re smack in the middle of my high-resolution 2.5-inch LCD display. The DIGIC III Image Processor with Face Detection Technology and Red-eye Correction means that I’m gonna make you a star with my super-clear images. Optical Image Stabilizer Technology means that even when I am deep in the urban jungle without my trusty tripod, I’ll still get steady shots for all zoom settings.

To join the ranks of the photojournalistic cheetahs, all you need to do is head to Dell with $140. They’ll even toss in a 2GB SD Memory Card and free shipping. This camera is revered by many animals of the urban jungle, and 97 of them rated this camera with 4.8 stars at Amazon (where it sells for $13 more and doesn’t even have the memory card).  The $180 retail has been hunted and destroyed.

Be the cheetah!

-Jack