Best Buy has gift cards with a scrolling LED banner that you can program with a message. I asked what the minimum was for a gift card and was told .01 (1 cent). Since you can spend the penny it make these free - and great gifts to give along with another gift. I had seen these several months ago at the Discovery store for about $10 - I think. I bought 22 of them to give out - so no apparent limits.

I wasn't sure if this should go into Free deals - but thought most people would miss it there. Moderators - please feel free to move this if you think appropriate.

I am adding this edit because of the responses. You can add money to these any time you want. Let's say that later I want to give someone a gift card for $10. I go to BB and add $10. Also since these cards can be reprogrammed - the recipient can then pass it along to a new recipient if they want - so it is endurable as long as someone thinks these are cute or novel. As to the posts regarding BB's cost - I think BB is neither going to go broke nor make a fortune on these. But you guys get a "A" for creativity!

where can we get the gift card at in best buy? Is this nation wide or just local? Thanks...

so you buy a special giftcard that you can personalize a gift message on it? Buy it at 1 penny is the price to own such a gift card?

I can see it as a "happy holiday" note that comes with the gift being given but I don't see how this can be a deal.

So you open up the present and you get the gift card with message and you get the gift. You are then happy for a brief moment until you found out that the value of such gift card is only a penny? You then reprogram the message and give it back to the person who gave you the gift with the message "thanks uncle cheapo"

Sounds like a great idea. Just hope the people you are giving the gift do not go through letdown if they expect there is monetary value ($5,$10,....) on the card only for find out it has a PENNEY.

wzbus said:if nothing else, it must cost BBY well over $0.01 to manufacture those cards...and a deal that costs BBY money is a hot deal in my book...

green!

Except that BB needs to recoup these costs eventually. Which means we will all be paying.

Hey Hey Hey not so fast I still have gift cards Iv'e had for 4 years!!

katx said:Lessthanzero said:wzbus said:if nothing else, it must cost BBY well over $0.01 to manufacture those cards...and a deal that costs BBY money is a hot deal in my book...

green!

Except that BB needs to recoup these costs eventually. Which means we will all be paying.

Or hopefully it would cause BB to declare bankruptcy and close shop.

And how is a closed store and the corresponding lack of competition good for FWers?

People, BB is a necessary evil. I was sad to see CompUSA close down from across BB, now I can't make their evils fight each other. With BB closing down, then we are down to CC, and that wouldnt be much fun. (Fry's, expand across the country already!!!)

Nothing wrong with bashing BB, they fully deserve it, but I'd rather BB stuck around and give me $55 750GB drives.

When they say the minimum is $.01, that's what they mean - minimum! These are meant to be sold as regular gift cards, with money on them for the recipient to spend. They just don't have a min $$ to activate them.

I think these would be great for anyone you want to give a fun gift, but not too expensive. Let them figure out what to spend it on. Or alternatively, you can be a cheapskate and give a $.01 giftcard as part of your gift.

yes, it costs BB something to produce these, but not really that much more than it costs to produce all the other colorful gift cards. The idea is to get people to spend money in their store - you can't decide where to buy a gift card for your friend, but you this one looks like fun, so you buy it. Now your friend is obliged to spend the money you gave at BB, not somewhere else. As with all gift cards, BB is betting that your friend will spend more than what is on the gift card, maybe much more. This is a ways to get that friend in their door. As for the cost, if you buy 1 $100 gift card, and you friend takes a year to use it, BB makes more than the cost of production back in interest on the $100 until it is used. In some cases, you friend will lose or forget the gift card, and BB gets ALL the money.

Why pay .01 for them? You only have to add money to them if you want them activated.

And how is a closed store and the corresponding lack of competition good for FWers?

People, BB is a necessary evil. I was sad to see CompUSA close down from across BB, now I can't make their evils fight each other. With BB closing down, then we are down to CC, and that wouldnt be much fun. (Fry's, expand across the country already!!!)

Nothing wrong with bashing BB, they fully deserve it, but I'd rather BB stuck around and give me $55 750GB drives.

WELL SAID!!!