Today’s Cheapskating features 36 scrumdiddlyumptious deals.
We’re leading off today’s Cheapskating a little differently than tradition dictates with this week’s big Intel Haswell 4th generation processor release. Many gaming laptops and desktops from the top 3 computer manufacturers (HP, Lenovo, and Dell) are being refreshed or newly released with the latest CPU technology. Here’s a look at what’s worth gaming on with the new Haswell chip.
HP’s old Envy 15 and Envy 17 laptops have returned from their long absence on HP’s website. Those two PCs were discontinued in October of 2012, but this week they’ve been re-released with a slimmer design, higher screen resolution, and the new Core i7 “Haswell” processor. The laptops ship with a GeForce GT 740M graphics card that’ll handle modern games on medium settings, but soon enough we should see a GT 750M GPU option for a more solid gaming machine.
Lenovo refreshed their Y400 and Y500 laptop lines with new Haswell-equipped Y410p and Y510p models. The GeForce GT 750M comes standard, and you can even SLI two cards for an extra $270. Furthermore, the Y410p’s display can now be upgraded to 900p from the less-than-thrilling 720p base configuration spec.
So far, no Dell laptops have received the coveted Haswell upgrade, but the powerful XPS 8500 line becomes the 8700 line with Haswell chips, and the Alienware X51 desktops also get a processor refresh. The X51s also come with the GeForce GTX 660, which you can swap out for a 670…but we’d recommend buying 3rd party to pay less than the $250 upgrade fee Dell charges.
New Haswell-equipped Gaming PCs |
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Lenovo IdeaPad Y500 59371965 Core i7-3630QM, Full HD 1080p, GeForce GT 750M 2GB, 1TB HDD — $819 at Lenovo. List is $1,299. |
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Lenovo IdeaPad Y410p 59369921 Haswell Core i7-4700MQ, HD+ 900p, GeForce GT 750M 2GB, 8GB RAM — $849 at Lenovo. List is $1,299. If you’re on a budget and are willing to sacrifice pixels, there’s a 720p display configuration available for $719. |
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HP Envy 17t-j000 Haswell Core i7-4700MQ, Full HD 1080p, GeForce GT 740M, Blu-ray — $996.50 plus $9.99 shipping at HP. List is $1,049. |
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HP Envy 15t-j000 Quad Edition Haswell Core i7-4700MQ, 1080p, GeForce GT 740M — $836.94 plus $9.99 shipping at HP. List is $881. |
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Dell XPS 8700 with Haswell Quad Core i7-4770 (4th Gen), Radeon HD 7570, 8GB RAM — $749.99 at Dell Home. List is $875. |
Hot Deal of the Week |
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Oct. 25: Batman Arkham Origins (PC Download) — $40 at Green Man Gaming. List is $50. |
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Last Tuesday’s release: Crysis 3: The Lost Island (PC DLC) — $12 at Green Man Gaming. List is $15. |
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2K Sports Combo Pack – MLB 2K13/NBA 2K13 (Xbox 360, PS3) — $59.99 at Best Buy. List is $80. |
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Last Tuesday’s release: Remember Me (PC Download) — $37.49 at Green Man Gaming. List is $50. |
Upcoming PC Releases |
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Last Tuesday’s release: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Legendary Edition — $48 at Green Man Gaming. List is $60. |
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July 9: Sid Meier’s Civilization V: Brave New World — $21.60 at Green Man Gaming. List is $30. |
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Aug. 13: Europa Universalis 4 — $39.99 at Green Man Gaming. List is $40. |
Xbox 360, PS3, PS Vita |
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NHL 13 Stanley Cup Collector Edition (Xbox 360, PS3) — $39.99 at Amazon. Next best is $53 at Target. |
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Dragon’s Dogma Dark Arisen (Xbox 360, PS3) — $29.99 at Amazon. Next best is $38 at Walmart. |
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Assassin’s Creed 3 – Pre-owned (Xbox 360, PS3) — $17.99 at GameFly. Next best is $30. |
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Batman: Arkham City Game of the Year Edition (Xbox 360, PS3) — $14.96 at Amazon. Next best is $20 at Best Buy. |
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Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 (Xbox 360) — $39.99 at Amazon. Next best is $53 at JR.com. |
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Star Wars: Kinect (Xbox 360) — $13.99 at Amazon. Next best is $20 at Best Buy. |
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Soul Sacrifice (PS Vita) — $29.99 at Best Buy. Next best is $37 at Walmart. |
PC Downloads |
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Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 — $39.99 at GameFly. Next best is $60 at Green Man Gaming. |
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Grid 2 — $33.49 at GamesRocket. Next best is $50 at GameFly. |
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Crysis 3 — $24.95 at GamesRocket. List is $60. |
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EA Action Bundle — $12.99 at GameStop. List is $60. |
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Oh So Fine and Dandy Bundle — $9.99 at Amazon. List is $90. |
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March of the Eagles — $8 at Green Man Gaming. Next best is $20 at GameFly. |
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Strike Suit Zero — $6.78 at GamersGate. Next best is $20 at Green Man Gaming. |
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Inversion — $5.44 at Green Man Gaming. List is $20. |
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Mortal Kombat: Arcade Kollection — $4.99 at Amazon. Next best is $10 at GamersGate. |
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Ridge Racer: Unbounded — $4.80 at Green Man Gaming. Next best is $20 at Amazon. |
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Dungeonland — $4 at Green Man Gaming. Next best is $10 at GameFly. |
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F.E.A.R. 3 — $4 at Green Man Gaming. Next best is $20 at Amazon. |
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Hotline Miami — $3.38 at GamersGate. Next best is $10 at GameStop. |
Gaming Hardware |
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PlayStation Vita 3G / WiFi with 4GB Memory Card + PlayStation Plus (1 Year Membership) + Unit 13 Voucher — $299.68 at Amazon, and comes with a bonus $50 Amazon credit. |
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PlayStation Vita WiFi — $247.48 at Amazon, and comes with a bonus $50 Amazon credit. |
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Xbox 360 250GB Slim Console — $229.99 at Rakuten. Next best is $300 at Best Buy. |
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Xbox 360 Live 3+1 Month Gold Subscription Card + 400 Points — $14.99 at Best Buy. List is $25. |
