When Dell, Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) became the biggest cheerleader for the new SSD (solid state drive) laptop PC, many other companies were waiting to see if the new product would be a success. SSDs are hard drives without moving parts and use computer memory chips to store data instead of a spinning hard drive. One problem is that laptops with the SSD feature cost about $900 more than standard laptop PCs. You can buy an entire extra laptop for that.

Even worse, it seems that the first crop of these PCs is not living up to the hype. The one saving grace is that an SSD-equipped laptop is silent -- but the speed gains and performance that would be the main selling points are just not there. And while Dell has been the largest proponent of the SSD laptop, Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) is also taking orders for Mac laptops with SSD drives. Other manufacturers may follow.

Reports state that a "computer manufacturer" is seeing a return rate of SSD-equipped laptop PCs of 20% to 30%. This is due to a high failure rate. Is the $900 price premium just not cutting the mustard? Probably not. The combination of slow performance and outright failure is said to be responsible for the high return rate of SSD laptop PCs, and this is probably not sitting well with Samsung Electronics, which makes the SSD drives inside these laptop PCs. Although nothing is perfect out of the gate, didn't OEMs like Dell and Apple test (and test and test) these newer SSD devices extensively in multiple scenarios before allowing these products to be sold inside their own products? From reading this, that's hard to believe.

Looking for an inexpensive but functional and possibly fully-loaded laptop or desktop computer this holiday season? Whether it's for the kids or a very nice gift for someone else (maybe even yourself), there will be some incredible bargains this Friday (and Saturday in most cases) at some of the larger retailers of PCs: CompUSA, Best Buy, and Circuit City.

Although some special deals require rebates, cellular activations, and other gimmicks for the lowest "advertised price", the wait may be worth it regardless. That's what Black Friday is for, right? As laptop computers have come down dramatically in price in recent years, this year's Black Friday deals on laptops especially should get millions of bargain hunters salivating like crazy.

With that said, below are some of the deals on laptops and a few desktop PCs as well. Of course, read the fine print once you do see the ads to see how many hoops you have to jump through to get some of these prices -- things like subletting your apartment and selling an ownership stake in all your cars. Just kidding.

CompUSA
Compaq 15.4" widescreen laptop -- $199
eMachines Windows Media Center PC -- $99
HP Media Center laptop with dual-core CPU -- $549

Circuit City
Acer 15.4" laptop with dual-core CPU -- $599
Compaq 15.4" widescreen laptop -- $99

Best Buy
HP 15.4" widescreen laptop with Core Solo CPU -- $379
Compaq desktop PC with 15" LCD monitor -- $399

Wal-Mart
Compaq desktop PC with 17" LCD monitor and printer -- $588
Compaq notebook PC with printer and external speakers -- $698
No mention of a $199 laptop here -- at least, not yet. Stay tuned for Thursday's ads, though. Although a Wal-Mart executive hinted at a $199 Black Friday laptop recently, Wal-Mart may be keeping that under very secret wraps for now.

Will Dell Inc.'s (NASDAQ:DELL) famous build-in-house model continue to work for its laptop business? That is the billion-dollar question of the hour as laptop computers continue to gain in popularity over bulkier and non-portable desktop computers. With larger screens, bigger hard drives and faster processors, laptops are increasingly desktop replacements.

While competitors like Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ) and Gateway have their machines built for them in Taiwan or China by third-party manufacturers like Quanta and Wistron, Dell continues to build the majority of its laptop computers itself, according to Cnet. This allows Dell customers to custom order a laptop system with the exact specs needed instead of purchasing a pre-built computer from HP that comes in a variety of configurations. The disadvantage for HP is that it rarely knows which configurations will sell nicely and which will be duds -- hence the possibility of inventories piling up, which is a huge drag on any company in any business.

Dell's build-to-order process eliminates much of this unknown factor. The problem is that building laptops is much trickier than building desk-top computers. They require special parts and precise engineering. Workers must be highly skilled and trained for a wider variety of difficult tasks. Can Dell keep up its world-famous custom-build strategy for laptop computers as they overtake desktops in popularity and units shipped? That's a huge question, but if that strategy can be made to work, Dell may just show up the entire industry once again.

How many reports of overheating lithium laptop batteries must we hear before airport security agents start cracking down on my Dell Inspiron or your Apple MacBook? Sure, the damage intended by terrorists from a seemingly innocuous-looking bottle of liquid would be terrible. But today's reports of overheating -- and in some cases, spontaneously combusting -- laptop batteries brought the considerable specter of an exploding laptop at 30,000 feet.

"Most of the incidents reported to the CPSC occurred around the home, but transportation-safety officials have become increasingly concerned about the threat of a laptop causing a catastrophic fire aboard a commercial jetliner," said the AP version of the report. The New York Times article brought up a fire in the overhead bin of a Lufthansa jet while on the runway in Chicago (no one has confirmed whether or not this battery was housed in a Dell laptop).

With Apple recalling MacBooks because of overheating in June, I have to wonder: how is it that shampoo is verboten, but a potentially flammable laptop can proceed on the plane, to huddle on the floor with all the other laptops, cell phones, Blackberries and illiquid snacks? Investors' minds clearly weren't going where mine is, with Dell down 1.41% in after-hours trading, Apple up a bit, and after-hours quotes unavailable for American Airlines and Delta.