After you've hit the pool or before you take up kayaking this weekend, maybe you plan on checking out J&R's Weekend Sale. If you are, you should know that some of the retailer's "sales" may not be worth your time.

Included in J&R's Weekend Sale is a LaCie 500GB rugged external hard drive, an Acer notebook, a Garmin GPS watch, and an HP wireless all-in-one printer. If you don't live in NYC where J&R stores are located, you'll have to pay shipping costs for most of the products on sale. Let's find out which deals are a steal and which deals are duds in today's TechSaver Test.

LaCie 301371 Rugged 500GB USB 2.0 / FireWire Hard Drive
(Was $349.99; Now $139.99)--Bad Deal!
In the past, LaCie hard drives have earned average ratings of 3.6 out of 5 stars by PCMag analysts. This particular model has a mini USB 2.0 port, FireWire 400/800, and a scratch-protected aluminum shell. At $140, you're definitely paying for the rugged feature for just a 500GB drive. So is it really a good deal, when you have to add about $10 for shipping (a total of $150)? (And if you're a New York State resident, you can add tax on top of that.) NOPE! Amazon.com is selling the 500GB drive for $144.59 with free shipping.

Get more TechSaver Test results, after the jump.

Acer Computer AS4520-5464 14.1" Notebook PC
(Was $429.99; Now $379.99)--Good/Only Deal!
Unlike the LaCie hard drive, the Acer notebook is available with free shipping, so you won't be dishing out any extra money (unless you live in NY, of course). With this laptop you get an AMD Turion X2 TL-60 Dual-Core processor, 3GB of RAM, a 160GB hard drive, a 14.1-inch LCD screen, and Vista Home Premium. Wanna know what else you get? A good deal! Really, it's the only deal I could find on the Web.

Garmin Forerunner 305 GPS System for Runners
(Was $349.99; Now $169.99)--Bad Deal!
You can track your heart rate and how far you've run with this exercise-friendly watch. Based on where you live, you'll probably pay about $10 for shipping, for a total cost of $179.99 (again, add tax if you live in NY). Sorry, but put away that credit card. You can find a lower price at several retailers: Amazon.com for $162.84 with free shipping; BuyDig.com for $159.87 with free shipping; and the winner, TigerDirect.com, for $141.98 (includes $1.99 shipping).

HP CB057A Officejet 6500 Wireless All-in-One Printer
(Was $199.99; Now $149.99)--So-So Deal!
This wireless-enabled printer features a 35-page automatic document feeder, automatic two-side printing, and can print, copy, scan, and fax. Shipping can cost around $15 or so, totaling about $165!; you're better off going to the store to buy it if you live in NYC. But if you're not near the store, check out these free shipping deals from Staples.com ($149.98) or NewEgg.com ($149.99).