The most popular deal request I am asked for help with continues to be the Apple iPod Touch. Even with this year clearly being the year of the tablet, it seems like everyone still wants to get an iPod Touch as a gift for a friend, colleague or family member. Last week I learned that HTC offers a similar device called the “Flyer” which is like an iPod Touch except that it is based on Android instead of iOS – I wonder why this hasn’t seemed to catch on as of yet (at least it’s not a popular item on the deal boards.

Here are this week’s top deals for the iPod Touch – frankly the Amazon deal is the best one because, for most, there is no sales tax. The key is that you should absolutely not purchase the iPod Touch at the Apple Store – save the cash and use it for apps or music!

Best Buy – Here the deal is on the 8GB model – for $189 plus a free $30 Best Buy gift card. (deal details)

Amazon – It seems Amazon has matched the deal from Best Buy (they seem to be matching a lot of electronics prices as of late) – purchase the 8GB model at Amazon for $189 and get $30 to use towards MP3 songs from the Amazon Music Store. Smart move here by Amazon because it gets you to buy songs from Amazon versus from iTunes. (deal details)

Target – If you want a larger iPod Touch, Target will be your best option. Purchase the 32GB iPod Touch for $295 and get a $40 Target gift card. (this is an in-store deal)

I have a 8GB iPod Touch and I really like it for walking – the Galaxy Tab has replaced most of my at-home general game playing.

Note: Amazon link is an aff link.

Find more stories about: Amazon, Apple, iPod, mp3

Last year the best Apple iPod Touch deals were around $229 – $40 gift cards. This year the deals are even better because Apple dropped their price on the iPod Touch to $199. Here are three of the best deals I’ve found so far on the device. The deals below are for the 8GB model and most have the white and black models.

UPDATE: Amazon has now listed the black iPod Touch 8GB as a “Lightning Deal” for 9PM PT this evening. No price is noted and the lightning deals usually go within seconds so you if you want one, you better have your mouse finger ready on the page at exactly 9PM PT. You can find the deal listed here – just keep scrolling until you get to 9PM (aff link).

Best Buy has the best deal so far – $194.99 and they throw in a $50 Best Buy gift card. The device is currently showing a sold out status but it is worth checking in today periodically as they have been known to replenish the supply throughout the day. (hey Best Buy webmaster, how about a short link or a URL to share that isn’t 2,000 characters?!?)

Target is offering the 8GB model for $195 with a $40 Target gift card.

Amazon has matched the price from another retailer on the 8GB model to $189.98. For most there is no sales tax and Amazon is throwing in a free $2 MP3 certificate (aff link).

All 3 retailers are offering free shipping so if your city charges an 8% tax rate, here’s how the deal works out:

• Best Buy – $210.59 – $50 = $160.59
• Target – $210.59 – $40  = $170.59
• Amazon – $189.98 – $2 = $187.98

If you want a guaranteed device, I’d go with the Target deal immediately. You can always return the item if Best Buy does open up more inventory.

Find more stories about: Apple, iPod, mp3

It sure looks like the newest generation of the Apple iPod Touch is the electronics item that has seen the most deals — both online and offline. More than ever I’ve noticed Amazon going head-to-head with Target. When Target has an electronics item on sale, Amazon appears to match the price nearly immediately.

I think these iPod Touch deals might be the last great buys of the year — certainly the last buys if you are planning to get the device for a Christmas gift.

Amazon is offering the 8gb iPod Touch for $205 with a free $25 Amazon gift card. This brings the net price down to $180 – this is $50 less than the Apple Store and if you include tax savings from buying on Amazon, the total savings is somewhere around $70. If you have a Prime shipping membership with Amazon, I think you should still be able to get the device home before Friday and certainly if you add in the extra $4 for overnight shipping.

This second deal isn’t for the deal newbie. If you do the legwork, you can get the 8gb iPod Touch for $162.50 + tax at Target. The deal requires some Target coupons and includes a gift card but if you are willing to do the legwork, this is the best deal overall. I still prefer the Amazon deal above because it’s easier and doesn’t require dealing with lines at the store and/or potential coupon issues. The deal instructions can be found on Your Best Source on the Net.

If you prefer BestBuy, they have the iPod Touch for $229 with a $50 Best Buy gift card. If you are one of their Reward Zone members, I believe you can also grab some free headphones. Remember with Best Buy you will pay sales tax on your purchase.

Side deal – if you need iTunes credits, BestBuy has $50 cards for $40 this week with free shipping. With all the iTunes gift card deals out there, please don’t pay full price buying direct on iTunes without a gift card.

Find more stories about: Amazon, Apple, iPod, iTunes, mp3, Target

I’ve been a fan of QVC for a long time – I think they have always done a good job of being the tops of television shopping when it comes to the quality of their programming. Their sets and graphics are always improving and their hosts seem a notch ahead of competitors including HSN. QVC pushes their social media efforts and even hired “social media host” Courtney Cason earlier this year.

One of the things that is pretty amazing is how well they are able to take electronics and create “packages” which sell for a much higher price than the item sells for alone. Their packages remind me of my days working at The Wiz in NYC where every salesperson knew that the best spiffs were on accessories and rarely on the main products themselves. That’s why a computer rarely went out the door without a surge protector or mouse pad.

If you are wondering if anyone actually buys the packages QVC offers – they claim to have sold 7,500 of the iPod Touch 8gb packages this month.

I have two examples of how QVC maximizes revenue on their electronics sales — the iPod Touch and the Nintendo Wii.

iPod Touch – QVC vs. Amazon/Apple Store

The 32gb 4th generation iPod Touch launched today as a bundle on QVC for a whopping $426.80. Before we get to what’s included in the QVC bundle, the base device is currently selling for $299 in the Apple Store and Amazon is selling the iPod Touch device for $244 after $25 gift card. QVC charges a whopping $11 for shipping plus sales tax in all states.

The simple math comparing QVC to Amazon – QVC total price $474, Amazon total price $244. That’s a $230 dollar difference! You could buy a 2nd iPod Touch from Amazon for the same price as the bundle on QVC!

So what does QVC include in their “bundle” to make it a great value? Remember the V in QVC stands for Value!

• AC charger
• DC car charger
• Audio cable and FM transmitter
• Stereo splitter and extra earphones
• Plastic case and four screen protectors
• Silicone case with armband strap

Here’s what each item costs on Amazon – I’ve provided a link to the search results for each category so you can see all of the offerings for each to help compare.

• AC charger – $0.71 to $3
• DC car charger – $1.68 to $3
• Audio cable and FM transmitter – this one has the biggest range $3-30
• Stereo splitter and extra earphones – $3
• Plastic case and four screen protectors – I bought this at Fry’s for $5
• Silicone case with armband strap – $8 to $15

The total for the accessories ranges from about $18-40. You could easily find these items even cheaper on eBay. But if we take Amazon’s price of $244 and add in the accessories for an average of $25, we end up at $269. This is still $200 less than the QVC total price of $474. That $200 sure could buy a lot of iTunes gift cards!

Wii – QVC vs. Amazon and Newegg

While I won’t go through the item-by-item comparison as I have done for the iPod above, you can see a similar “bundle” deal when you look at the Nintendo Wii. The QVC bundle includes the retail Wii package, an extra game and some plastic pieces you connect to the Wii controller including a tennis racquet, baseball bat, etc. Interestingly, the “Wii expert” doesn’t even use these plastic pieces when he demos the product on tv and I doubt many customers will use the plastic pieces for any amount of time.

• QVC bundle price – $319 + tax
• Amazon price – $177 + extra game price of $23
• Newegg price – $199 + extra game price of $35

It appears that for QVC, bundling electronics with accessories appears to be the way to great bottom line revenues!

Find more stories about: Amazon, Apple, iPod, qvc, Wii

Yesterday I noticed that QVC is selling a 8gb iPod Touch for a whopping $341 by including a bunch of “accessories”. I will do a post this week about the techniques QVC uses to sell electronics for big profit by creating bundles. It’s an interesting technique as they claim to have sold 7,500 of these iPod Touch packages this month.

Last month during Black Friday through Cyber Monday, I reported that Amazon was offering big discounts on the entire Apple iPod Touch line – most of the deals included an Amazon gift card which you could use for a later purchase.

Today Amazon is offering a latest-model 32gb iPod Touch for $269 plus a bonus $25 Amazon gift card. So the net price is $244 with free shipping and no tax for most (sorry Giants fans!). This is $55 less than purchasing the iPod Touch at the Apple Store and when you include tax for all at Apple Store, the total savings is about $80. That’s a lot of iTunes songs and Apps you can buy with that $80!

Amazon notes that the offer is good through December 18th or while supplies last so if you want one, I’d grab it now.

Find more stories about: Amazon, Apple, iPod, mp3

I’ve always been a big fan of Starwood hotels (that’s Westin, W, Aloft, etc.) — mainly because their points system is the best for earning points. Because of the points, I get to stay at nice hotels a couple of times a year on points (like the trip this week in San Francisco).

Today I learned via an email from Starwood and inside the hotel itself that you can now use Apple Facetime on your iPhone or iPod Touch to speak with their customer service hotline. Gadling reported that the program began last month.

The Facetime customer service option is only available during the day although I was unable to find any specific Facetime information on the Starwood web site.

Perhaps having a face-to-face conversation with a customer service rep will lessen the yelling, screaming, cursing that usually goes along with many customer service calls. It’s easy to do all of the former when you are hiding behind a phone but when you are “seen” will you want to be as aggressive?

Find more stories about: Apple, Facetime, iphone, iPod, Starwood

As all deal hunters know, the one company that rarely (or nearly never) puts their products “on sale” is Apple. When I decided to buy my first iPod Touch this past September, I went looking for deals and found three ways to save. I eventually purchased the 8gb iPod Touch from Amazon for $223 with no tax and free shipping.

So far I like the iPod Touch a lot – it’s so interesting to think about the processing power and graphics this device offers versus the Gameboy I received many years ago. It did feel a bit odd to be moving the iPod up and down and left and right as I navigated a game on a plane at 35,000 feet. This device has made my old Samsung Ace WinMo phone gain a bit of new life. My only complaint is that the camera is crap – I would have sacrificed a pinch of added depth for a better camera.

Tonight begins the pre-Black Friday sales around the U.S. I remember the days of lining up with tents in the middle of the night to make sure you were the first one into the store(s) that had the items you were interested in. Back then, the deals were actually good and were worth waiting for. Today there are so many deals every day that Black Friday has become boring for most deal hunters. But there is one deal that has everyone up and clicking…

UPDATE 2 – Amazon is now offering a $25 gift card on the 8gb iPod Touch! – This brings the price down to $175 – do not walk – run to get this deal since I have no idea how long it will be available.

UPDATE: Amazon is also offering the 32gb iPod Touch for $279 with a bonus $20 gift card making the final price $259!

Amazon is currently offering an 8gb Apple iPod Touch for $199 currently. I say currently because we have no idea how long this deal will last. Apparently it is a price match to the Black Friday price at Target. It appears that Amazon is aggressively trying to compete with Black Friday pricing at brick-and-mortar retailers by offering similar (or better) pricing and a day earlier. For those states where Amazon doesn’t charge tax, this is about a $45 discount over the Apple.com price. If you have Amazon Prime, two-day shipping is free and one-day shipping is $4.

There is some talk that Fry’s will offer the 8gb model for $224 – $50 gift card but Fry’s has tax at all locations plus you have to deal with the lines (some of the longest) and you have to hope they have one once you get to the front of the line.

Find more stories about: Amazon, Apple, iPod, mp3

What would be your reply to the following question, “what’s your most prized possession?” UK-based online insurance company Protect Your Bubble asked 500 people on Facebook and the responses are just as expected. Unfortunately no demographic data was provided on the respondents which makes it hard to take the results seriously. Naturally if you ask wealthy youngsters what the most prized possessions are, you will get a very different set of results than if you ask a group of senior citizens.

The Apple iPod comes out on top with 12% of respondents noting that the device is their most prized possession.  All of the Apple products on the list add up to 35% of all of the responses. Interestingly dogs beat out cats which typically online only cats get any love. And sorry Apple fanboys but the Blackberry beat out the iPhone with 11.5% vs. 10% respectively.

Here are the full survey results:

• iPod 12%
• Blackberry 11.5%
• iPhone 10%
• Laptop 9%
• Dog 9%
• Games console 8%
• Macbook 7%
• iPad 6%
• Cat 5%
• Camera 5%
• Television 4.5%
• Car 4%
• Video camera 4%
• Other jewellery 4%
• Wedding ring 1%

I’ve been trying to think about what is my prized possession since I first read this press release yesterday. I guess it would have to be my worldwide transit poster and map collection including a large-scale 1960s NYC transit map. My most prized possession is certainly not my very old, refurbished iPod Nano.

Find more stories about: analytics, Apple, iPod, social media, Social Networking

Last week Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced a new version of their most popular iPod, the iPod Touch. I’ve wanted to buy an iPod Touch for a while but my friend Andreas kept telling me to wait as the new model would be introduced in early September and might include a camera. So I waited…and he was right! The new iPod Touch does have a camera – actually two cameras – and includes a bunch of other new features that made it worth the wait. I did sadly learn that the camera is not as good as the camera provided on the iPhone 4.

If you read CN regularly, you already know I am a deal hunter. I hate paying full price for anything I buy online. So I went on the hunt for ways to save over buying the new iPod Touch at the Apple Store for full retail price. It’s typically hard to find any deals on Apple products which makes the hunt that much more challenging.

I did find three ways to save on the iPod Touch:

1. Buy at the Apple Store through FatWallet cash back shopping and get 1% back on your purchase. The big positive to this option is you will get delivery as soon as Apple releases the device next week and you will get a couple of dollars back on your purchase. The Apple Store is also offering free engraving when you purchase an iPod Touch.

2. Buy the iPod Touch through Mac Mall. You will save a few dollars ($224 vs. $229 for the 8gb) and could potentially pay no sales tax depending on your location which could amount to $20-50. MacMall is also including a free charger and free shipping. You can also buy through FatWallet to get 3% back on your purchase. The downside is that you won’t get the iPod Touch the first day it is released – my guess is 1-2 weeks later.

3. Buy the iPod Touch through Amazon (aff link). You will save a few dollars ($224 vs. $229 for the 8gb) and could potentially pay no sales tax depending on your location which could amount to $20-50. The downside is that you won’t get the iPod Touch the first day it is released – my guess is 1-2 weeks later. I’ve heard stories that Apple holds back product from Amazon and currently Amazon shows delivery in 1-3 weeks.

If you don’t mind waiting a couple of weeks, then options 2 or 3 are the way to go. You could save $30 which could buy 25 songs on iTunes. I will be waiting at least a couple of weeks and will buy through Amazon if they get product in stock.

If you don’t mind buying the old iPod Touch, there is talk on SlickDeals that you could score a 32gb iPod Touch 3rd generation for $148.

Find more stories about: Amazon, Apple, iPod, mp3

A couple of years ago we reported on the launch of Pac-man for iGoogle. Today we’ve learned that Pac-man is now available for the iPod Touch and the iPhone. I wonder what the gameplay is like seeing as you have to hit tiny buttons on the iPhone screen. The game costs $5.99.

Want to feel old? Read this line from Jonathan Kromrey, general manager for Apple Games for Namco Networks, “With tricks and traps, special items and battles against giant ghost-bosses, this isn’t your parents’ PAC-MAN.” Luckily the “old” version of Pac-Man is also available.

Without looking, can you name the orange ghost?

Pacman is great, but where is that hottie Ms. Pac-man? Useless bit of info: I won a Ms. Pac-man tourney in Atlantic City when I was a wee little kid.

Find more stories about: games, iphone, iPod, mobile, pacman

This month we announced a giveaway for an Apple iPod Shuffle. We just picked the winner and they have been notified. Apologies if you didn’t receive a winning email but thanks for sending in all of the links to other blogs you read and enjoy.

I’ve put together a list of some of the submitted blogs – I hope you find some new blogs to enjoy - I know I have.

• Hookedonwords
• demogirl
• Chip Chick
• Vintage Indie
• Crooks and Liars
• Right Wing News
• Dumb Little Man
• hilife 2b
• Gear Patrol
• LoHud Yankees Blog
• Springwise
• PSFK
• SpicyTasty
• Debt Free Adventures
• Boston Dirt Dogs
• very short list
• pretty much amazing
• Pop Candy
• Food Wishes
• Not Always Right
• About Harvest
• Accidental Mommies
• Cider Press Hill
• The Wander Girl
• Joystiq
• Workin on my Fitness
• Gotham Gal
• I Heart Talk Radio
• Let’s Be Friends
• Recipe Star
• Carrie Jones
• Bad PR Pitches
• The Energy Collective
• CollegeWeb Guy
• Sandruck Family Blog
• Bank Deals
• Dark Roasted Blend
• Girl on the Brink
• Appon’s Thai Food
• Wormtown Taxi
• foodgawker
• Advertolog
• Positivity Blog
• Dumb Little Man

Find more stories about: Apple, contest, iPod

*update* Only one more day to enter! *update*

This morning I participated in a feedback session and the company gave me a new iPod Shuffle — 4GB model. This thing is tiny – seriously tiny - like 3 chicklets are bigger than this iPod. This is the one that talks but does it listen? I already have an iPod Nano so I have no need for this device. I thought maybe I could use it to “woo” a potential Mrs. Stern, but so far it hasn’t worked. So my loss is your gain!

I am going to give away the iPod Shuffle to one lucky CN reader. Many companies and bloggers require you to spam the freak out of your friends on Twitter, post all over the net about how great they are just so you can get an entry. We will have none of that here! No sir!

To enter: send an email to (”myfirstname” – at – centernetworks.com) note the iPod Shuffle Giveaway and include two blogs you enjoy reading outside the tech sector. They can be food blogs, cat blogs, transit blogs, bacon blogs..whatever you enjoy. I will create a master list of the blogs and post it on CN. I love checking out new blogs outside the tech sector and I hope you will as well.

The winner will be selected in a random drawing on May 15th. Note that anyone listed on the Twitter default list is not eligible to participate. Thanks for reading CN, I appreciate it!

Find more stories about: Apple, iPod, mp3

A year ago I reviewed the first episode of NBC tech drama Chuck. Overall the writers have done an excellent job in bringing in geek technology without making it appear fake. From dropping a wikipedia here and a router there, it’s a fun little show.

However in this week’s episode, a comment was made by Chuck’s sidekick Morgan that clearly had me wondering. I’ve embedded the clip below (30 seconds). Morgan (and clearly NBC as the creator of the show) didn’t get the memo from Diggnation founder Kevin Rose. You see Diggnation is sponsored by the Zune, the Microsoft music player. If Kevin and Revision3 are taking the $$ from Microsoft for the Zune, you know that it is a damn fine quality product and should not be joked with. Let’s hope that next week Chuck will check the current lineup of sponsors for Diggnation and properly handle them if the need arises inside of the episode.

Find more stories about: Apple, Digg, iPod, Kevin Rose, nbc, Quick News, Revision3, Video

There is a rumor that has been circulating that Apple is going to be introducing a music subscription service like Rhapsody. I don’t know if it is true, but hope that it is. I love music subscription services, and am a current subscriber to Rhapsody, but I would switch to Apple in a minute so I could use my neat iPod with it.

But what triggered me wanting to write about this was not the rumor, but the reaction to the rumor by certain quarters. Specifically, whenever you read about subscription services, you always read vehement and angry comments from people that don’t like the idea of subscriptions. It is certainly fine to not want it for yourself. But what is odd to me is the anger that said people have at the idea that I might want something different.

It’s fascinating that this response always comes from the "free" music crowd, and yet I am confident, if they had a magic wand, they would make such services illegal, or so socially or politically unacceptable that they would not be offered.

This vehemence strikes me as strange because clearly I should have the right to buy something the way I want and a vendor should have the right to sell it to me in the way that s/he wants.

In short, it strikes me that the free music crowd is really more a religious movement than one based in logic and reason. It is very similar to the way that certain fundamentalist religious groups demonize people for different beliefs. Here the free music community demonizes subscription services because, by definition, subscriptions must use DRM, which is "evil". And the irrational zealous passion brought to bear is exactly analogous to the behavior of every out of control religious group in human history. Ok, they haven’t gotten to burning people at the stake, but you know what I mean.

The point is, even if you have the wacky view that all music or intellectual property should be free, the idea that you should consider business and interaction models, and technologies like DRM that don’t match your world view to be "evil", is, to me, bizarre. This is particularly true when the DRM *enables* a, compelling, at least for some, business model such as subscriptions.

As I see it, this movement would be more appropriately lead by a religious figure like Pat Robertson, or John Hagee, or Richard Stallman, or… oh wait, it is!

This article was authored by Hank Williams who is a New York-based entrepreneur who explores the tech marketplace from 10,000 feet at Why Does Everything Suck?.

Find more stories about: Apple, Hank Williams, iPod, iTunes, music, Quick News

Macy’s department stores is announcing that they will be pushing out their electronics vending machines nearly chain-wide. They have been testing the machines in a few stores over the past year and apparently they have done very well. I’ve seen these machines in a variety of airports over the past couple of years as well. 

Macy’s says the machines are loaded with, "products including iPods (Touch, Classic, Nano and Shuffle); Canon 7MP and 8MP digital cameras; Samsung 7MP digital camera and 1GB Camcorder; MyVu Personal Media Viewers; Sony, V-MODA, Bang and Olufsen and Harman Kardon headphones; and mobile accessories by Belkin. Products range from $14.99 to $349.99." My guess is that pricing is list and isn’t discounted like most online merchants – but for impulse purchases, price is usually not a factor.

Returns appear to be handled by mail – no returns in-store. It also looks like there’s no customer service or ability to play with the device before purchase. Of course with most customer service going down the drain, does it even matter anymore?

These machines are the new gum and candy rack at the checkout. "I wasn’t thinking of buying a new iPod today but it’s right there, why not pick one up?" And since it’s a pain in the arse to return, I’ll just keep it.

I am still waiting for these machines to show up at Starbucks to deliver your beverage – just enter what you want and it sends it right out to you – I get that Starbucks is supposed to be the classy and high-end coffee shop, but we all know that image is gone.

Update: These machines would have even more of a chance of succeeding if they the products came charged – buy an iPod and it’s ready to go immediately. Or a camcorder, etc. – that would be killer.

Find more stories about: iPod, Macys, Quick News