Wal-Mart throws in $100 gift card with Blu-ray player purchase
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
andrewgreene @ Jun 3rd 2008 10:56PM
I actually got this deal last night with a 40GB PS3, the $100 gift card definitely helped with the wife acceptance factor.
hughjars @ Jun 3rd 2008 11:04PM
Very good news indeed. The Magnavox can be had for $198. A sub-$200 BluRay player is what a lot of people have been waiting for.
shawnmos @ Jun 3rd 2008 11:12PM
I just forwarded this to my dad. He might be interested in the Magnavox player for $198.
SimbaDogg @ Jun 3rd 2008 11:32PM
gah'd damnit...if i didn't have my ps3 already i'd apply for that sony credit card so i could get $100 off the MGS4 bundle, and then use the gift card for some food and maybe a movie or two.
StealthMonkey @ Jun 3rd 2008 11:36PM
Wow, BD is almost at the price point HD DVD was at. Nice Sony. Keep up the good work. Oh, yeah, wait. If you buy your Profile 1.1 player today, you get the privilege of upgrading it to profile 2.0 later on to bring it up to speed to the original HD DVD specification.
DrXym @ Jun 4th 2008 4:10AM
You realise Toshiba heavily subsidized its players right? Now you're complaining that BD players are managing to reach the same price without that advantage. Some HD DVD crybabies are never happy.
As for internet connectivity... big deal. Buy a PS3 if you must have it, or a Samsung BDP1500, or hang on for several other models appearing shortly. I'm sure it will be as compelling a feature as it was in HD DVD, i.e. not at all. Of course profile 2.0 mandates 1Gb storage instead of the pathetic 128Mb in HD DVD, so maybe some day we'll see a studio produce an online experience actually worth visiting. .
Eric D-J @ Jun 4th 2008 12:06AM
Best Buy will match it too
Smart People Play Tuba @ Jun 4th 2008 2:30PM
I don't see anything about that on bestbuy.com. Where did you see that?
HD4ME @ Jun 4th 2008 1:05AM
Wow, only $200 for a POS Chinese 1.1 Profile DVD player,.... throw the dang kids and the goats into the RV Cleetus, wees going to buy us one of them there bargains, and while where there, lets grab a couple of those $15 John Wayne movies, what a deal, it's all most theft, hell this will just bring our 22" CRT alive, I caint wait!
Dave @ Jun 4th 2008 3:05AM
Hey hd-dud fanboy am sure that if this was for Chinese hd-dud player your crappy comment will be the opposite.
DrXym @ Jun 4th 2008 4:01AM
Funai is Japanese and the player has been very favourably received by those who have bought it.
Mr. E @ Jun 4th 2008 10:55AM
How long will you keep trotting out this B.S.? At least change your name, because if HD was really for you, then you'd be embracing Blu-ray wholeheartedly.
Mike @ Jun 4th 2008 1:42AM
Didn't we see $100 gift cards with purchase of PS3 this past Christmas? Big deal.... We want $100-$120 players.
So just when does this super scaler come out?
ChiWax @ Jun 4th 2008 5:28AM
I might take Wal-Mart up on this and get a PS3 just for it's Blu-Ray capabilities. As for the masses giving a damn about HD? I don't think so. As far as I can tell from my position...they do not care for it. They don't know what they are missing and they do not care that they are missing it. Think MP3 and CDs....like it or not...Q
EEL @ Jun 4th 2008 3:35AM
Oddly, the PS3 is and will be the most available "SA" blu player at WalMart for the time being even though some will carry the Magnovox NB500MG9 for $298 in store.
A different web blog claims that this and the other Funai manufactured Blu units will NOT be upgradeable from Profile 1.1 to 2.0:
http://draiken78.wordpress.com/2008/06/01/insignia-ns-brdvd-magnavox-nb500mg9-blu-ray-players-detailed/
Can anyone else confirm or deny this?
Can't believe consumers have to still deal with over-priced SA Profile 1.0 and 1.1 options (the Funai units excluded) and Sony STILL has the best option: their GAMING system, the PS3.
Are BDA members such as Panasonic, Samsung and LG legally restricted from offering a price-friendly option NOW that is firmware upgradeable to Profile 2.0 like Sony's PS3?
(...Glad I built a HTPC -- one less headache.)
DrXym @ Jun 4th 2008 3:59AM
Samsung BDP1500 is currently $350 in walmart so with the voucher it is effectively $250. Other new models are appearing in the next few months. Chances are Pansonic will knock down BD30 player when the BD50 appears.
Sinh Truong @ Jun 4th 2008 4:22AM
do you get it after the purchase or can you take it off immediately at the register? it seems like some people may be mistaken. *shrug*
ChiWax @ Jun 4th 2008 5:34AM
It's after the purchase. So no matter how people spin this, it's not $100 off the very expensive players. The PS3 isn't technically expensive considering what it does. But who needs a PS3 if they have a WII or a 360? If I buy the PS3 it will simply be to play Blu and maybe play an occasional PS3 only game. Problem is I would have to use the $100 off to get an HDMI cable. Cause they are a must with these systems...Q
Mr. E @ Jun 4th 2008 10:58AM
Use partsexpress.com or monoprice.com for the HDMI cable. Should be around $7 maximum for a 2-meter cable.
XDragon @ Jun 4th 2008 6:51AM
This is great news! Some Blu discs for $15 and at least 1 sub $200 player but the PS3 is also included at $100 off! At least Wal-Mart knows what they're doing and if Best Buy is matching the offer, then it should be an interesting week to observe!
okeygrak @ Jun 4th 2008 9:28AM
It is astounding to me that some people still harbor such bitterness about the format war, as if they cannot let go of a pathetic allegiance to a small plastic and metal box. You can argue endlessly about the merits and advantages of each format, but at this point it is futile.
The question that it all boils down to is: Do you enjoy watching your favorite films in the highest quality video and sound, and you want studios to continue releasing content that maximizes your home theater setup?
If the answer to this question is 'yes', then right now there is only one horse to back. When Blu-Ray takes an attempt towards mass adoption, such as this article, where is the benefit of senselessly bashing it and comparing it to a format whose demise was arguably a product of these false "advantages". It is not even worth my time to illustrate the how ultra cheap players and fire sales by Toshiba squeezed the format into a one-trick pony, as it is water under the bridge.
There is definitely criticism warranted towards blu-ray, and it is constructive by many of the commenters here. However, there are a select few whose motivation just seems flawed to me. Most of us push for improvements and progression of the format, and others seem to just take every avenue to predict its ultimate demise. A sound mind would understand that the only option right now is Blu-Ray, and although it is not perfect, it is a clear leap forward from DVD. I feel as if some are pointlessly waiting for a moment where they can say " Hey, I told you so! HD-DVD did have it right with X feature ". It is quite obvious to me, that these people stick around here constantly trolling these blu-ray centric articles for one reason, you really f'in enjoy high def movies!
So let up, forget about that time in grade school when you got beat up during recess, bury the hatchet about that HD-DVD player (that also upconverts DVDs, word! ) , and tell that girl Suzie from HS that is now married to some douche that you are sorry you didn't ask her out: AND get down to business: Watching High Def movies and pushing the studios and manufacturers to keep making better products and putting out the material we want.
Gus @ Jun 4th 2008 7:24PM
I posted this comment on another topic, but I thought it very appropriate here also.
Can you understand that being anti BR has got nothing to do with HD DVD.
For me personally, I will buy BR when a quality spec 2.0 standalone player is in the $150 bracket, at the current rates that should be about 2015, but a lot of people myself included, just do not like, and will not support sony which has a dreadful record for failure when trying to force proprietary formats onto consumers at grossly inflated prices.
You may be happy outlaying an outrageously large amount of $ for an slightly improved DVD player, but the majority of the population is not.
So will you all get off the HD DVD bitterness campaign, that is long since gone and forgotten, but there are still plenty of us who will not blindly follow sony on its well beaten path of self destruction at the expense of early consumers.
XDragon @ Jun 5th 2008 7:05AM
Gus,
What's frustrating to read is your comments about supporting Sony. Sony is not Blu-Ray, it is one of the many supporters and because the PS3 is the best player option, it looks like Sony is at the forefront.
I don't care if you like or hate Blu-Ray but you're wrong for hating it if you hate it because you think you're supporting Sony with their propritary and failed formats of the past. Even if you're barinwashed to believe that Sony is Blu-Ray, keep in mind, this time it is the winning format unlike their past attempts.
Gus @ Jun 5th 2008 8:22PM
@XDragon......Quote.."Sony is not Blu-Ray, it is one of the many supporters"..unquote............sony is the founder of BR, it has 95% market share and owns a movie studio, if sony isn't BR, then , as they say in Limey Land, my dick's a kipper!
......quote...."keep in mind, this time it is the winning format unlike their past attempts."... unquote................. winning format?? BR may have won the battle with HD DVD, but it has a very long way to go to win the war, IMO BR will only ever be a quality niche product, to little change, and to late to market, DVD will keep the crown or something else will come along to knock them both over.
XDragon @ Jun 6th 2008 10:06PM
Gus,
You're not very bright are you?
1. Me saying its the winning format has nothing to do with with market share compared to dvd, all its saying is that it is the surviving new format, i'm not saying dvd is done for or Blu-Ray will slaughter DVD.
2. Just because Sony has, according to you, 95% doesn't mean Sony is Blu-Ray, its just at the forefront because right now, the only player that makes scence to buy is the PS3 but that will change s the prices of players come down lower than the PS3's $400 price point for a 2.0 player. One of the newer articles already shows sub $100 pc drives so those savings will pass down to players sooner then anyone thought.
Point being, Blu-Ray is something any of the electronics companies can get into now and Sony is the company that has been and is still doing the best and most for the hardware. That doesn't make it Sony's and you're honestly foolish to believe otherwise. No doubt thei dominace can be influential but its not the same as what you've stated.
Jason @ Jun 11th 2008 1:09AM
@ okeygrak
"It is astounding to me that some people still harbor such bitterness about the format war, as if they cannot let go of a pathetic allegiance to a small plastic and metal box."
Really, this astounds you? There are stil millions of rednecks all over the south that still fly the confederate flag and think the civil war hasnt ended. After all it has only been 140 years! We dont just harbor bitterness in this country we pass it on for generations!
theefman @ Jun 4th 2008 10:45AM
It will have an effect but probably wont spark the "mass adoption" the blu-sheep want as its a limited time offer (unless you expect everyone in the US to suddenly show up at Walmart for this deal). If those were everyday prices then you would see sustained sales increases consistently.
Funny thing, when HD DVD reduced their prices it was called a firesale. Now br does effectively the same thing and its hailed as the greatest thing since the discovery of fire. Blu-sheep are funny.....
DrXym @ Jun 4th 2008 10:58AM
Believe it or not, these promotions are for Father's day. There will be other promotions throughout the year leading all the way up to Christmas. How you manage to equate a store running a Father's Day promotion to format-wide clearance sale is beyond me. Grow up.
Mr. E @ Jun 4th 2008 11:15AM
Jeez, let it go already! You guys are like Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction, sitting in a darkened room stabbing yourself in the leg. If you liked movies on HD DVD then you'll like them on Blu-ray. It's as simple as that. An appropriate mourning period has passed, so it's time to move on, seriously.
okeygrak @ Jun 4th 2008 11:20AM
Theefman, See my post above.
Thanks for illustrating my point perfectly.
XDragon @ Jun 5th 2008 7:09AM
I guess our usual 2 hater trolls don't have much to say in this article as you really can put a bad spin on this and it proves even more that all their predictions were wrong ...as usual. While I'm sure they'll come up with something to say when they read my post, we can all enjoy watching them try to turn something good into something its not.
JimC @ Jun 5th 2008 8:59AM
You people who are whining about the BR player prices because they're too high, do you realize that Toshiba's prices were artificially low? Right now there are decent players to be had for $100 off at Walmart starting next week. If you cannot pay
JimC @ Jun 5th 2008 9:01AM
Stupid comment system cut off my comment again...here's the rest...
...less than $300 for a player now then wait. Meanwhile, as I have already seen, a lot of people *WILL* jump on this. A co-worker just yesterday had a 1080p upconverting sony DVD player ready to buy until I told him about this sale. He immediately said that changes his mind and now plans to get a PS3 next week. Taking $100 off these players will move hardware, have no doubt about it.
Once this sale advertisement hits mainstream media and newspapers, there will be public interest to jump into the BR boat.
You can stomp your feet and hold your breath in defiance until you're blue in the face but the adults in the room know you'll eventually pass out and take a deep breath and come to your senses eventually...unless you're hopelessly stubborn and therefore anxiously awaiting *ANY* alternative just so you can stand on principle and stick to the man!
Gus @ Jun 6th 2008 12:46AM
I'm sure this sale will be very good for PS3........................ and shouldn't that have been..... "blu in the face" :)
pahensley @ Jun 12th 2008 10:41AM
got a mgs4 80gb bundle at 12:01 this morning at my local walmart. $100gift card too.
Bob385 @ Jun 20th 2008 1:38PM
Was told today that WM only did that $100 thing for 2 weeks.