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Get a BlackBerry PlayBook tablet for $169.99

Before you get too excited, it's a refurb--and Best Buy is offering no warranty beyond a 30-day return option. Still, it's tempting.

Rick Broida Senior Editor
Rick Broida is the author of numerous books and thousands of reviews, features and blog posts. He writes CNET's popular Cheapskate blog and co-hosts Protocol 1: A Travelers Podcast (about the TV show Travelers). He lives in Michigan, where he previously owned two escape rooms (chronicled in the ebook "I Was a Middle-Aged Zombie").
Rick Broida
RIM

A couple weeks back I wrote that RIM had once again cut BlackBerry PlayBook prices, with the 16GB model down to just $199. My question at the time: Was it worth buying at that price?

My feeling was that the PlayBook faced an uncertain future, and therefore might not be the best choice.

Man, did I get an earful. PlayBook owners are a vocal and passionate bunch, and they rightly noted that the tablet does have GPS, while a forthcoming OS update promises to open the door to Android app compatibility--which is a big deal.

And speaking of deals, that brings us to today's: Best Buy has the refurbished 16GB BlackBerry PlayBook for $169.99, plus sales tax and around $9 for shipping.

Now, that's a pretty killer price for any full-featured 7-inch tablet. The downside is this: although Best Buy offers a 30-day return policy, there is no warranty.

Deal-breaker? You tell me. It doesn't seem like there's all that much that can break on a tablet (save for the screen going bad), and any existing problems are likely to reveal themselves within that 30-day window.

That said, it might be worth spending an extra $30 on a new PlayBook with a full warranty. Like I said, you tell me.

Also, sorry for the back-to-back tablet deals, but, hey, you gotta go with what's hot!

Bonus deal: Game time! Amazon has Mass Effect and "="" section="transformed-regular-link" link-shortcode-text="Mass Effect 2">Mass Effect 2 (both for Windows) for $4.99 apiece. These are the download versions of two top-rated action-RPGs.