Preorder the new 12.4″ Surface Laptop GO 2 for $700-$800

Per The Fairness Doctrine (TM), since we previously mentioned the M-series MacBooks we must also mention a Microsoft Surface product 😉

And what a coincidence, the “Surface Laptop GO 2”, a multi-touch 12.4-inch actual laptop is now available for pre-ordering for $700 (128GB on-board) or $800 (256GB) at B&H Photo and Amazon and such…

This has 8GB RAM, 2.4 GHz Intel Core i5 4-Core (11th Gen), 12.4″ 1536 x 1024 PixelSense touchscreen with Intel Irix Xe graphics, Wifi 6, Bluetooth 5.1, one of each USB A and C ports, fingerprint reader, Windows 11, etc.

The laptop supports the Surface Pen but it is NOT included. It promises up to 13.5 hours battery life.

PS: 128GB is just too “Apple” (aka too little) for the price 🙂

14″ HP Chromebook 14 for $140

It’s a Chromebook day at the Adorama dialy deals running until Friday 8/20/21 at 10am ET (or earlier if sold out):

+ 14-inch HP Chromebook 14 (model 14-CA010NR) for $140
+ it’s all about the number 14 with this laptop 🙂
+ Celeron N3350 1.1GHz, 4GB RAM, 32GB eMMC, Snow White color scheme
+ Intel HD graphics, 1366 x 768, WLED-backlit, HD SVA
+ two USB-C and two USB 2.0 Type A ports
+ looks like it reaches “end of auto updates” in June 2024 per Google Support

+ Eggtronic 63W 20,000mAh Universal Power Bank for USB-C Laptops, Tablet and Phones for $45

+ Togo Power Pioneer 330, 288WH Portable Power Station Lithium Battery 330W (660W Peak) for $230

+ 2pk 64GB Lexar 2000x SDXC card for $137
+ this is DEFEATED by the $117 at the Amazon Lexar sale for Thursday 8/19/21

13.3″ MacBook M1 Air for $899 {w/AppleCare+ for $1128}

The newly announced “Spring Loaded” Apple gear (M1 iMac, M1 iPad PRO) are going on pre-order at the end of the month, but if you must needs have M1 now, B&H Photo has a M1 MacBook Air on sale until Monday 4/26/21 at 11:59pm ET (or earlier if sold out) as follows:

+ 13.3″ MacBook Air (late 2020, three color options) for $899
+ 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD, 13.3″ 2560×1600 Retina IPS, 7-core, 16-neurals

+ and if you …care about Apple Care, you can get it bundled with AppleCare+ Protection for $1128, that’s a +$229 on the laptop alone

Google Pixelbooks drop $100 (all three options)

If you are a fan of “The Way of the Google”, all three Pixebook laptops are now down $100 at Amazon by Amazon itself making the entry-point $900, the 256GB model $1100, and the i7/512GB go for $1549. Meanwhile the Pixelbook Pen has dropped to $83 whether you buy it on its own or bundled with a Pixelbook.

(ENDED) BF Only: Thinkpad X1 Tablets (five options, $600 to $950)

These lighting deals expired… For the latest, check our string of Gold Box posts

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4-Day Computer Sale at B&H Photo

B&H Photo just launched a 4-Day Computer Sale featuring a variety of laptops and desktops and AiOs. You can use the various product type and price range tabs up top (over there) to filter them by your interest. You can also filter by brand on the right hand side. This is based on a desktop. The page layout may be different on mobile or laptop. More on these tomorrow… For more B&H offers, check their Featured Deals

Now shipping: Google Pixelbook

If you are a fan of the Google Pixelbook, they have began shipping! The i5, 8 GB RAM, 256GB option is in-stock and shipping by Amazon itself for $1199, while the i5, 8 GB RAM, 128GB option is in the mysterious “Ships when available in 1-2 days” condition for $999.

A stylus is not included. It is available for $99 on its own [in-stock; limit 3], or in bundles with the stylus which are +$100 than the Pixelbook on its own.

This is obviously a premium device as a ChromeDroid flagship, but if you prefer a more bang-for-the-buck approach, the Samsung Chromebook PRO goes for $500 and a stylus is included.

Speaking of Samsung, we have the first “Amazon itself” token discount of the Galaxy Note 8 (unlocked, USA warranty) for $937~ instead of $950. The important thing here is that the discounting process has began, not that a $13 discount will sway millions to buy it 🙂

15.4″ MacBook PRO specials (4 options), 15% off Apple Care at B&H

A quartet of 15.4 inch MacBook PRO laptops are on sale at B&H Photo, along with 15% off in Apple Care. The four discounted MacBook PROs are:

+ MLW82LL/A or MLH42LL/A for $2099
+ MLH32LL/A or MLW72LL/A for $1899
+ late 2016 models

Pre-order 15.6″ Diet Bezel ASUS VivoBook F510UA for $499

This is a new “diet bezel” pre-order laptop that is generating a lot of traction at Amazon, it is currently the #1 among New Releases. It is the 15.6″ ASUS VivoBook F510UA Windows 10 laptop with a pre-order price of $499. No shipping estimate yet. Its full name is F510UA-AH51.

Its claim to fame is the “diet bezel” (not a professional term). Per the product description, this has a 0.3″ NanoEdge bezel and a 80% screen-to-body ratio. It is 0.8″ thick, it is physically 14.2″ wide but with a 15.6″ diagonal full HD display.

Other specs include 8GB DDR4 RAM, Intel Core i5-8250U 1.6GHz (8th generation; ranks a very respectable #373 at cpubenchmark.net for a $500 laptop), 1TB HDD (5400rpm), Intel UHD 620 graphics, SD card reader, HDMI, USB 3.0, USB 2.0, USB 3.1 Type-C (Gen1) ports, 802.11ac, 3.7 lbs weight, fingerprint sensor, etc.

No optical drive, no touchscreen. There is no mention of Bluetooth in the product description. This is brand new, there are no reviews yet.

(ENDED) 45% off Laptops and Desktops at Dell Refurbished with coupon

This weekend offer expired…

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Now shipping: the new Surface Laptop

Yesterday we mentioned a Chromebook, so the Fairness Doctrine requires that we must mention a Windows device within 24 hours. Which is convenient because today the brand new Microsoft Surface Laptop (actual laptop with screen glued to the keyboard) has began shipping at various authorized dealers including the official Microsoft Online Store and B&H Photo and various at Amazon.

Some options may not be available in-stock at every retailer. Prices start at $999 (i5, 4GB RAM, 128GB, HD 620), then go to $1299 (i5, 8GB RAM, 256GB, HD 620), then $1599 (i7, 8GB RAM, 256GB, HD 640), and $2199 (i7, 16GB RAM, 512GB, HD 640). The Platinum color has all four configurations. The other three colors are only the i5/256. A cellular model is coming later in the year.

NOTE: this comes with “Windows 10 S” out of the box, but you have until December 31 in 2017 for a FREE upgrade to “Windows 10 PRO”. This is officially mentioned in the Surface Laptop specs [under the “Software” box]. Once you go Windows 10 PRO however, you cannot switch back to Windows 10 S.

NOTE #2: No official Surface accessories are included, so if you want to use it with the Surface Pen, Dock, Dial, Mouse, you have to use your own or purchase them too.

Samsung Chromebook Plus Convertible Touch Laptop drops to $379

Temptation time! The Samsung Chromebook PLUS (PLUS = ARM processor; PRO = Intel) Convertible Touch Laptop, model XE513C24-K01US, is on sale for $379 with free shipping at Amazon by Amazon itself with a limit of up to three per customer.

Of interest if you want a multi-purpose device, as you get a ChromeOS laptop that can officially run Android apps through Google PLAY, a touchscreen display, a built-in and included Samsung stylus (S-Pen), a non-widescreen aspect ratio, a 360-degree rotating screen, and more.

This will not replace a Photoshop machine, but you can use it for all kinds of other tasks. Also handy when on assignment or when working with others, you can put it in Guest mode or they can login with their own Google account and pick up quickly from where they left off.

The PRO (Intel) model remains at $550 and was the one that got delayed because of hardware and software issues.

PS: I don’t know if the included S-Pen is compatible with (or which) other Samsung devices that have their own version of the S-Pen (phones, tablets, laptops, etc).

PS2: one lesser known feature of ChromeOS is that you can login with multiple Google accounts at the same time and switch between them as needed. You don’t have to login and logout all the time. Handy if you use it for both personal and work, or have one account with paid subscriptions (eg YouTube RED or Music All Access or extra Google Drive storage).

Orderable Again: Samsung Chromebook PRO for $550

If you are a boldly going early adopter, the Samsung Chromebook PRO is orderable again for $550 at Amazon by Amazon itself. It had returned a few days ago but then quickly became un-orderable again. But as of the time of writing, this is orderable again in the all-encompassing “temporarily out of stock” status.

The difference between this and the $436 PLUS model is that the PRO has an Intel processor versus ARM of the PLUS.

More details on what caused the delays and their plans for the future of the ChromeOS + Android marriage can be found in this Google I/O 2017 Verge post. It turns out the delays were a mix of software and hardware:

“The Chromebook Pro hardware itself needed to be redesigned. Issues with the thermals and antennas meant some things had to get shifted around. Google itself handles the software stack, so it needed to tweak that software as Samsung tweaked the hardware.”

Of photography interest is the combination of the S-Pen (for retouching and such), touchscreen, combination of Android and ChromeOS apps and options, a 3:2 QHD screen (if you prefer to work in this aspect ratio), and such.

Note however that it may take a few weeks/months before everything gels as Android apps are in Beta. On the plus side, it is on a six week update cycle, so fixes will definitely come faster than they do with Android phones.

If I wasn’t a poor blogger I would scoop this up 🙂 Please feel free to send me one 🙂

(GONE!?!?!) Pre-order Samsung Chromebook PRO (Intel processor) for $550

As of 5/16/17, the pre-orders disappeared earlier in the day, and now the page itself has been removed, it is a 404 page…

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11.6″ ASUS C201PA-DS02 Chromebook (4GB RAM, 16GB SSD) [supports Android Apps] for $159

UPDATE Thur 10:53pm ET: ships in 1-3 months, but still available for $159. Updated link below…

If you want to try your Android photo apps on a Chromebook (even Lightroom is on Google Play these days), AND you don’t want to wait for the IFA 2016 new ChromeOS announcements [see Trade Show Calendar], one of the devices that supports this new feature [running Google Play Android apps on ChromeOs devices] is on sale, the 11.6″ ASUS C201PA-DS02 (4GB RAM, 16GB SSD) for $159 with free shipping with a limit of three per customer. Other specs: 1366×768, no touchscreen, Rockchip 1.8 GHz Processor, TPM, promised long battery life, 2-years of 100GB Google Drive free, HDMI, USB, SD card reader (up to 128GB).

PS: with the web getting more bloated every day, and HTML5 replacing Flash (HTML5 can’t be blocked by blocking/turning-off Flash], 4GB RAM is minimum RAM even for a relatively minimalist OS like ChromeOS.

Apple 12″ MacBook (Early 2015, Space Gray) for $999

If you are a Mac fan, B&H Photo has a special sale on the Apple 12″ MacBook (Early 2015, Space Gray) (1.3 GHz Intel Core M (Broadwell), 8GB RAM, 256GB PCIe, HD5300 Graphics, 2304 x 1440 IPS, USB-C, 802.11ac Wi-Fi, etc) bundled with Parallels Desktop 11 for Mac (OEM) for $999 with free expedited shipping.

Case Logic CPL-108 DSLR Camera and iPad/Netbook Backpack for $25 w/free S&H

Bags and more bags, the Case Logic CPL-108 DSLR Camera and iPad/Netbook Backpack in the grey color scheme is on sale for $25 with free shipping at Adorama until 7/31/16 or earlier if sold out.

While there, they have the Dell 13 7000 Series 13.3″ Full HD Signature Edition 2 in 1 Touchscreen Notebook on special for $620 with free shipping with a limit of one per customer until 7/30/16 or earlier if sold out. This is Core i7-6500U 2.5GHz, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD, 13.3″ 1920×1080 screen, Stylus with holder, IPS, Win10, card reader, HDMI, backlit keyboard, Intel HD Graphics, etc.

(ENDED) 24-inch Acer KA240H bd Monitor for $90 (DVI, VGA, no HDMI) {Prime only!}

These daily deals expired…

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(ENDED) SmallHD 501 HDMI On-Camera Monitor with 3D LUT Support for $600

This daily deal expired… For more action, check the B&H Featured deals

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(SOLD OUT) Ends by Sun 1am ET: refurbished 13.3″ Toshiba Chromebook 2 (CB35-B3340) for $185

As speculated, this sold out during the day (and got replaced by a Windows laptop) before the full 24 hours elapsed…

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(ENDED) 1TB of Cloud for 2 years + 13.3″ ASUS Chromebook for $150 total

This limited time offer ended…

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11.6″ Apple MacBook Air MD711LL/B for $840 [limit 3]

If you are a fan of the SSD powered 11.6-inch Apple MBAs (MacBook Airs), model MD711LL/B is currently on sale for $840 with free shipping at Amazon by Amazon herself. Limit three per customer during this sale. Quick specs rundown: Intel Core i5, 4GB RAM, 128GB SSD, Intel HD Graphics 5000, 11.6″ screen, 1366 x 768 resolution, etc. I don’t know when this sale ends.