Are Best Buy’s Black Friday Deals Worth it?

Best Buy is offering three notebooks as part of its Black Friday specials, all under $400.  And these aren’t netbooks, either. These are full-size notebooks. But could that money be better spent, say, on a Nintendo Wii? Let’s find out.

Note: All of these notebooks, except for the $197 G60 will be available for online purchase on Black Friday.

HP G60-507DX $197

CPU: 2.2GHz Intel Celeron 900
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit)
Hard Drive size/speed: 160GB/7,200 rpm
Screen Size/resolution: 15.6 inches/1366 x 768
RAM/expandable to: 2GB/4GB
Wi-Fi: 802.11b/g
Size: 14.9 x 9.9 x 1.7 inches
Weight: 6.6 pounds

At its non-Black Friday price of $549, we’d tell you to forget about the G60–not even HP sells this system with such an old processor. However, for $200, if you need to get a notebook for grandma so she can e-mail you from time to time, this would be a steal. Of course, since this is an in-store only deal, you may have to run over some septuagenarians to get one. Its hard drive is small (160GB) but fast (7,200-rpm). Its 15.6-inch screen has a resolution of 1366 x 768 which is more than sufficient for something this cheap.

Sony Vaio VGN-NW235F/W $399

CPU: 2.1GHz Intel Pentium Dual Core T4300
Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium
Hard Drive size/speed: 320GB/5,400 rpm
Screen Size/resolution: 15.5 inches/1366 x 768
Optical Drive: 8X DVD +/- RW
RAM/expandable to: 4GB/8GB
Wi-Fi: 802.11b/g/n
Size: 14.6 x 9.8 x 1.2 inches
Weight: 6 pounds

An even bigger markdown than the HP G60, this 15-inch notebook is usually priced at $999- which is a bit of a ripoff, if you ask us. We gave a similar system fairly decent marks when we reviewed it over the summer, though that system had a more powerful processor and Blu-ray for less than $900. For $399, this is a definite maybe for a stylish, but basic machine.

Buy the VAIO NW235F for $399

Compaq Netbook (110c-1100DX) $179.99

CPU: 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270
Operating system: Windows XP Home
Hard Drive size/speed: 160GB/5,400 rpm
Screen Size/resolution: 10.1 inches/1024 x 600
Optical Drive: none
RAM/expandable to: 1GB/2GB
Wi-Fi: 802.11b/g
Size: 10.3  x 6.8 x 1.3  inches

Basically, this is the HP Mini 110 rebranded with the Compaq logo. Best Buy has it normally at $399, also a bit overpriced considering the newer netbooks on the market, but at $179, it’s not too bad of a deal. When we reviewed the Mini 110, we generally liked the system, but two things give us pause: first, the mouse buttons are on either side of the touchpad, which is a big no-no, and this system only comes with a 3-cell battery, which only lasted 2:45 on our Wi-Fi surfing test. That’s a lump of coal if we ever heard of one.

Buy the Compaq Netbook for $179