$30 DVD Writer, $88 Sony Color PDA and an £85 15-inch LCD

US and the UK
Burning DVDs is probably the most sensible thing to do as far as back-up is concerned. The cost of DVD burners has tumbled to a point where it doesn't make much sens to have a CD/DVD Combo. Also, a full DVD can contain most information that you will ever use, excluding audiovisual files.

For example, Computer geeks is selling a DVD writer named Yank ADRW-H00P-N for only $34. Now that's cheap, very cheap when compared to others, across the atlantic. And it is not even second hand. You can even grab a 10% discount, bringing the price of the drive to $30.6 by using the secret savings code - SAVEINSEPTEMBER at checkout.

The Yank DVD writer writes only to DVD+/+RW media. Its general features are pretty standard with a 2.4x speed for DVD+R and 16x for CD-R and a rewrite speed of 2.4x/10x for DVD+RW/CD-RW. Read speeds are also average. Note that this drive is rated at 4x by some sellers but in computer geeks internal test, maximum speed of 2.4x was reached.

Over at ecost, one old favorite, the Sony PEGSJ22U-R PDA is worthy of consideration. This product is probably the cheapest colour PDA available in the US at the moment. Although refurbished, it still carries the Sony brand name as well as the quality make. It uses a 33MHz CPU which is slow by today's landmarks but carries 16MB RAM and 4MB ROM. It also features Sony's patented Jog Dial navigator and Palm OS 4.1.

But the real attraction is the 65,000 colour screen which displays all its beauty on 320x320 pixels. In addition to that, you will also get a USB cable, an internal Li-Ion battery and a memory stick media plus the indispensable flip cover. The software lists includes everything that is essential for some work on the move: Address Book, Calculator, Card Info, Date Book, Mail, Memo Pad, Clie Paint, Graffiti, To Do List, Security. Also advisable is to have a look at the http://ciscdb.sel.sony.com/perl/swu-list.pl?template=EN&mdl=PEGSJ22 software updates and drivers to improve your Clie.

Obviously, since it is a Palm OS PDA, you will enjoy using the hundreds of applications available on the net. At $89 with free shipping, if it is not a bargain, then it will never be. 18 months ago the SJ22 was on sale for $199.

Retekdirect comes back with still another lovely bargain. What kind of graphics card can you get nowadays for £49.99+VAT? You can go for a glorified Radeon 9550 or a GeforceFX 5700LE, both of which will probably qualify more as entry level rather than mid range cards. What about an ex top of the range card. What about a Radeon 9700 non-pro. Although it lacks the Pro denomination, there is nothing to differentiate it from its elder brother except for the core/clock speed, 275/540 vs 325/620. For the rest, we see the same 256-bit bus width and the eight pixel pipelines, all this gives it a fantastic memory bandwidth of 17.6GB/s, well above today's AGP midrange. It has Direct X9 support and 128MB memory.

Note that this particular card comes nude with a 30 day RTB warranty. Performance wise though, expect no remorse as the R9700 shreds the competition to pieces. In every bencharmark, it scores more than double its direct competitors marks and directly compete with the Geforce FX5800. And this is even before overclocking as you can get that card to Pro speeds. German geekers have pushed it to 405/620Mhz. Try it yourself before it's too late.

PC efficient specialises in second hand stuff, I mean high class stuff like servers and LCD screens. They have two LCD screens that are likely to catch your attention. The Eizo Flexcan L360 15in flat monitor offers a true viewable area of only 14.6" and is on sale for £85+VAT, a tenth of its original price back in March 1999. If offers dual input connectors, a four-port USB hub and some well-designed setup software. The optimal resolution on this baby is 1024x768 pixels at 75Hz with a dot pitch of 0.297mm. It weighs only 14.3 pounds and will not take much of your deskspace especially if wall mounted.

It uses only 27w of power, less than an incandescent bulb. The screen surround is slightly discoloured but it is cosmetic only. The colour goes from light cream to purple cream. Bear in mind finally that that this is an ex-corporate item and comes with a 7 day warranty only. Another pretty impressive product in the range is a http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=3698&item=5125647040 Silicon Graphics 1600W 17.3in flat panel monitor complete with a 32MB PCI graphics card and an adaptor.

At £189.50, it is a second hand item but offers a widescreen format with a true resolution of 1600x1024 pixels and a 0.23mm pitch. Although it is somewhat heavy at 16Lbs, its slim size shape as well as its black design will win it more praises than not. This product also carries a 7 day warranty. Not that both products are ebay ones and that they may be purchased for much less depending on your luck. µ

As always, let the buyer beware. Although this is a round up of some of the cheapest kit on the net, always check and use your common sense before parting with your hard earned dosh