5 Great Technology Bargains

When you're strapped for cash for a can't-avoid-it purchase, sometimes it's worth sacrificing a few frills. We zeroed in on a desktop, a laptop, an inkjet printer, a camera, and an HDTV. Each represents a great value in its category.

PC World Editors

Desktop PC: Dell Inspiron 518 ($654)

Need solid performance for everyday tasks in a budget PC? Dell's Inspiron 518 sports a 2.4-GHz Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 CPU, 3GB of PC6400 DDR2 memory, and a 320GB Western Digital Caviar SE16 hard drive (7200 rpm, 16MB cache). The Inspiron 518 turned in a respectable score of 108 on our WorldBench 6 tests, and while hard-core gamers might hold out for more graphics oomph than the unit's ATI Radeon HD3450 provides, the system sports some nice design touches such as a recessed storage tray on top of the system with two easily accessible USB ports (in addition to two on the face of the unit). We also liked the bundled 20-inch wide-screen LCD monitor with a built-in Webcam. For under $700 (in early February), this sounds like a good value to us.

Technology Moneysavers

These days we could all stand to save some money. Follow the tips in these stories and you could save as much as $7500.