>I've been avoiding the HD-DVD/Blu-Ray wars.
>
>But the wars have just heated up a bit with the Toshiba A2 HD-DVD player being sited at $99 at Walmart. The problem is that this news has gotten far and wide. So you have to be at Walmart in the morning, when the truck arrives to make this purchase.
>
>Circuitcity.com has it at $129. So it's a little easier.
>
>Has anyone gone ahead with this here?

Yeah, once I bought a DVD burner in Walmart, and actually spilled serious money on it (a $200 Sony, no less), hoping I'd finally get something that'd last. No way - its lifespan was just below two years, as happened with pretty much any other drive.

Corollary #1: I'll buy my hardware online, mostly on newegg, where I can read the comments of those who bought it before me

Corollary #2: I'm not buying anything with moving parts in Walmart. I've already thrown away that dvd-burner, a microwave, a TV (OK, that one lasted six years - but then, once upon a time those used to last at least twice that) and a few other things which lasted far shorter than stuff bought elsewhere. Walmart forces manufacturers to go too low with the price, and they manage to squeeze only as much quality to pass the "one year of moderate use" mark. Walmart - consumables only. (and actually even that is mostly because they're the physically closest grocery)