This is Hunter White’s submission for the HP Magic Giveaway. Feel free to leave comments for this article as you see fit – your feedback is certainly welcomed! If you’d like to submit your own how-to, what-is, or top-five list, you can send it to me. Views and opinions of this writer are not necessarily my own:

Last year I sent Chris a top ten list for Xbox 360 gifts for the holidays. This year it is a top five list for gifts under a 100 dollars each. In the economic crisis we are experiencing, we all have to save money over the holidays. We cannot all necessarily buy new iPods or iPhones, and I thought that this list would give some great ideas for those on a budget. So sit back, read and enjoy!

1. Peggle Deluxe- $9.99
This critically acclaimed, deceivingly complex game is like a mix among Pachinko (the popular Vegas luck based game) and Pinball and will have you expecting to play for just five minutes or so, but then you look up at the clock and realize its three in the morning.

2. Two pounds of Leonidas Belgian Chocolates General Collection. $68.00 at Amazon.com
There are few things on this planet that almost everybody likes, one of these amazing items just happens to be chocolate. So when you find some chocolate you want it to be the best it can, what I have found is an amazing set of chocolates from the Amazon store. The Leonidas Belgian Chocolate General Collection. When you see the price it may seem expensive but remember you’re paying for excellence and if that is to expensive for you there is a one pound version also available.

3. The epic Left 4 Dead ~$50.00 (Left 4 Dead for PC / Left 4 Dead for Xbox 360)
This year the Xbox 360 and PC were graced by another beautifully constructed piece of software from Valve. I am of course talking about Left 4 Dead. With some of the best online co-op ever seen before, it throws you and three of your friends into an epic escape from the infectious zombie hoards. Although this game has single player it is meant to be played with friends. Also it is very short topping in at about four hours but with the help of the AI director it helps increase replay value immensely.

4. Case o’ Bawls $32.99-$39.99
What do you drink in the mornings, a Starbucks Coffee, Monster, Rockstar, Bawls? If you answered yes to any of the previous except the last one you are drinking the wrong thing. Try the Case o’ Bawls from Thinkgeek. This delicious Guarana (kind of similar to a Shirley Temple) flavored beverage is the thing I drink in the morning. Why, well for one it doesn’t taste like vitamins and it is also has the perfect amount caffeine so you do not crash mid-way through the day.

5. Indiana Jones Fedora $99.99
Are you a geek? Of course you are. And as all you proper geek’s know Indiana Jones is epic, ok maybe not the last one but definitely the first 3. And you all know you want to be just like him. I can help with part of that, Thinkgeek.com is selling a hand crafted Indiana Jones licensed fedora like the one from the movies. I was telling my girlfriend about this and sure enough on our anniversary guess what she brings out! Yes – this hat. Trust me it does not feel cheap or anything like that.

• Finding the Right Christmas Gift
• Want a Personal Digital Shopping Assistant?
• ShopNBC Black Friday Sale
• ShopNBC Coupons
• ThinkGeek Problems
• The Best Christmas Present?
• 50 Geek Gift Ideas (My Wishlist)
• Mobile Stocking Stuffers

This is CharlB’s submission for the HP Magic Giveaway. Feel free to leave comments for this article as you see fit – your feedback is certainly welcomed! If you’d like to submit your own how-to, what-is, or top-five list, you can send it to me. Views and opinions of this writer are not necessarily my own:

The Holiday season is here! This is when the stress begins to find the perfect Christmas gift.

I know the excitement of waking up Christmas morning; searching under the tree, hoping the gift you open is the one you have been hoping for. I know I am not the only one who dreads opening the gifts from the distant aunts and friends of the family, who give the “I don’t know them very well” filler gifts. Everyone likes to receive things like Chia Pets, Clappers and all the other “As seen on TV” gifts for Christmas, right? Of course not! The question I ask is, “Why would you give someone a gift you would place in the circular file?” Every year I have a problem finding the perfect Christmas gifts for the individuals in my family and friends. The conversation always begins like this, “What do you want for Christmas?” The usual response is, “Oh I don’t know, you know what I like, just get me whatever.”

I am tired of all the guess work behind this JOYOUS gift giving season. This year, I am a sucker to the merchants no longer. I will not buy just any old run of the mill gift, just so I can say I my shopping list is complete. Instead of asking everyone what they would like this year, I have searched the web and found some very useful websites to help me find the perfect gift for each individual on my list.

Many gift websites are similar, and each sports a very “user friendly” interface. Every one of them asks a series of similar questions:

• General Questions
• Occasion: Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa
• Gender or Who the gift is for: Grandma, Grandpa, Mom, Dad, etc.
• Age Group: Goes form 0 – 65 and over
• Interests

From there it will give you the option to select pricing, a list of categories (Clothing, Electronics, etc.) or pages of potential gifts. Some of the sites allow you to purchase the item directly from the site and the others will direct you to a different site were the item can be purchased.

My favorite site? Findgift.com – this site is simply amazing! When you are finished with the general questions you will get a list of over 1000 potential gift ideas and 20 different categories! There the website presents you gifts far beyond your imagination. The next step is to click on the item you want and it directs you to the website where it can be purchased. I went shopping for most of my family members in a matter of minutes. This year there will be no money WASTED on the “circular file” gifts.

And after you find the gift you’re looking for don’t forget to check our coupon site to and save even more money:

• Gifts for Geeks Under $100
• Top 5 Bargain Video Games for Christmas
• Want a Personal Digital Shopping Assistant?
• ShopNBC Black Friday Sale
• ShopNBC Coupons
• ThinkGeek Problems
• The Light Night Before Christmas

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ClayValet ClayValet was a presenter at Live Pitch 2008 in Seattle. ClayValet provides a service for shopping websites that allows them to give personal attention and advice to their customers. Their shoppers are normal people who are experienced and comfortable with online shopping. They are not experts themselves, but they know where to look, how to compare prices and whom to trust. Right now, the service is completely free! You can submit up to five requests per week, at no cost to you.

ClayValet

• Business Category: Tech Startup
• Founder: Mikhail Seregine
• Inspiration for Product/Service: We saw our friends who shop online being frustrated by overwhelming choices and difficult websites. In helping them find what they wanted, and watching ourselves shop, we observed behavior patterns that could be translated into a scalable service.
• Target Customer/Audience: The end users of our service are online shoppers, but our customers are comparison shopping websites that emphasize selection and choice.
• Synopsis of Product / Service: We provide a service for shopping websites that allows them to give personal attention and advice to their customers. A shopper can submit a form or email to the website with a request written in plain English, such as “I want a toy for small children to develop manual dexterity”. Behind the scenes, our software orchestrates automated research and human attention to produce simple, useful recommendations.
• Main Company Contact: Darcy Camden

FirstRSS ERROR: "http://blog.clayvalet.com/ci/feed/" NOT FOUND!

What do you think about this business idea? Leave your thoughts!

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• Gifts for Geeks Under $100
• Finding the Right Christmas Gift
• Tips for Buying Hardware
• Tips for Buying a New Computer that is Just Right for You
• How to Buy a Laptop (Notebook, Portable Computer)
• Buy a Computer
• ShopNBC Black Friday Sale
• ShopNBC Coupons
• ThinkGeek Problems

ShopNBC will be releasing their Thanksgiving deals tonight at Midnight PST and their Black Friday deals the following night, and those deals will be posted here automatically.

• ShopNBC - Save money with ValueShipping - Posted on 11/10/09 and Expires on 12/31/15
• ShopNBC - $10 off $99 + Free Shipping (new customers) using coupon code 6108 - Posted on 3/27/09 and Expires on 12/31/15
• ShopNBC - Last Chance Closeouts - Posted on 9/8/08 and Expires on 12/31/15
• ShopNBC - Below Cost Bargains - Posted on 9/8/08 and Expires on 12/31/15
• ShopNBC - Receive a $25 ShopNBC Reward Certificate for every 2,500 points earned w/ your ShopNBC Credit Card - Posted on 8/27/08 and Expires on 12/31/15
• ShopNBC - 15% off 1st Purchase using coupon code 8508 - Posted on 8/20/08 and Expires on 12/31/15

• ShopNBC Coupons
• Gifts for Geeks Under $100
• Finding the Right Christmas Gift
• Want a Personal Digital Shopping Assistant?
• ShopNBC Cyber Monday Sale
• ThinkGeek Problems

I’ve often thought about why ShopNBC selected such an odd name for their online store. I mean, when I’m looking to do a little online shopping, “NBC” isn’t the first brand that springs to mind. ShopCBS, ShopFOX, or ShopABC would sound just as strange. Then again, who am I to argue with a good bargain on watches – especially since I know that Ponzi wants a new one (not to mention, more jewlery for her growing collection). Depending on the coupon, we might buy a few items for the home there as well.

On the Internet, does a site’s URL mean as much as it used to mean? Are you just looking for the best price available – despite the store? Here’s the latest ShopNBC coupons we could find – and you might know of others:

• ShopNBC - Save money with ValueShipping - Posted on 11/10/09 and Expires on 12/31/15
• ShopNBC - $10 off $99 + Free Shipping (new customers) using coupon code 6108 - Posted on 3/27/09 and Expires on 12/31/15
• ShopNBC - Last Chance Closeouts - Posted on 9/8/08 and Expires on 12/31/15
• ShopNBC - Below Cost Bargains - Posted on 9/8/08 and Expires on 12/31/15
• ShopNBC - Receive a $25 ShopNBC Reward Certificate for every 2,500 points earned w/ your ShopNBC Credit Card - Posted on 8/27/08 and Expires on 12/31/15
• ShopNBC - 15% off 1st Purchase using coupon code 8508 - Posted on 8/20/08 and Expires on 12/31/15

In the past, have you purchased anything from ShopNBC – and if so, what?

• ShopNBC Black Friday Sale
• Gifts for Geeks Under $100
• Finding the Right Christmas Gift
• Want a Personal Digital Shopping Assistant?
• ShopNBC Cyber Monday Sale
• ThinkGeek Problems

On December 15th 2006 – at 1:16 in the morning – Ponzi placed an order for three eStarling Wi-Fi Gmail / Flickr Enabled LCD frames through ThinkGeek’s Web store. To my knowledge, that’s the only way to get ‘em. They were out of stock, but at least our names were on the waiting list for new units.

On December 27th 2006 – hours before we were to leave on our honeymoon – Ponzi received a genuinely nice form letter from ThinkGeek’s order support staff. Our shipping and billing information were not in perfect alignment (no surprise, as we had just moved into our new house and she’s still in the middle of a name change). They needed physical documentation of the billing address – which was only days old for us. Ponzi responded:

Is there still a discrepancy in billing and mailing address? Everything is updated according to my credit card company, AmEx. If I need to mail in a bill stub I can do that now that we are starting to get bills in. I do not have a scanner to send you one via email. PS: Is this in regard to the picture frames I ordered?

ThinkGeek responded:

This is in regards to the frames you ordered. Also, we will need to receive one of the requested documents before this order can be processed and shipped out. If you have any other questions, please let me know.

I scanned Ponzi’s driver’s license, which had the old address on it. Again, we had absolutely no physical proof that we had moved across town into a completely new address. We returned:

Here’s a photo of my driver’s license and the credit card used for the purchase. We just moved to a new address last week, and if at all possible (since this is a gift for my husband), send it to [insert business address here, where packages were to be sent during our extended absence]

We didn’t hear back from ThinkGeek, so we (wrongly) assumed that they would understand that we no longer lived at the address which was used in the original order. Upon returning from the Caribbean, we checked her ThinkGeek account and discovered that there was trouble in geek paradise. This time, I sent an email to their support team on January 12th – which was later clarified with the following addendum on January 14th:

Upon further inspection, it seems the tracking number associated with that order revealed more details about the journey (and destination) of our package. Indeed, it arrived in Seattle – but as noted by UPS (and by Ponzi before the item shipped in the first place), “THE RECEIVER HAS MOVED. UPS ATTEMPTING TO LOCATE RECEIVER TO COMPLETE DELIVERY, NO DELIVERY WAS MADE;PACKAGE RETURNED TO SENDER.” Now, it seems the package was returned / signed for in Edison, NJ by Rojas on 1/11?

Maybe Pete Rojas moved to New Jersey, signed for our frames, and didn’t tell anybody?

I understand that ThinkGeek couldn’t ship to any address other than the one on file, but we told them that we were under a unique set of circumstances. Why they continued to send it to an address where we told them that we no longer lived, if it was the right address to begin with (as the one on the order form was missing a crucial “South” modifier), is beyond me.

I’ve yet to hear back from anybody at ThinkGeek on this issue – and I don’t know if the frames will be resent to our proper address, if we still need proof of billing (even though most of our mail is still forwarding from the old address), or what? The last message we received from ThinkGeek regarding this order was the 27th of December. I’ve sent several messages seeking clarification since then, and am really not sure what else to do at this point other than wait for someone to sit up and pay attention.

If we need to reorder, fine – but tell us we need to reorder. If we’re placed at the end of the waiting line again, fine – but tell us we’re at the end of the line. If we need to find another way to order several eStarling Wi-Fi Gmail / Flickr Enabled LCD frames, fine – but tell us that we need to find another way.

I’m chalking this one up to the holiday season; ThinkGeek gets the benefit of the doubt for now.

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