In this funky economy, everyone is looking to get the biggest bang for their buck. When it comes to tech purchases, a little bit of research goes a long way. I wish there was a magical place I could send you to, where unicorns lead you to the end of the rainbow where all the best deals could be found. Unfortunately, there is no such place. I apologize for getting your hopes up. If you want the best price for your new laptop or hardware upgrade, be prepared to shop around a bit.
One thing you can consider, especially for larger purchases like computers, is looking at refurbished items. Sometimes you can get a great deal on a factory returned item that has been refurbished to "new" condition. Most of the big name PC companies like Dell and HP have outlet sections. Remember, however, that warranties are win! It's not a good idea to buy a big ticket item without a warranty, and sometimes retailers will charge extra for warranties on refurbished items. Take a moment to picture the sound of your heart breaking when your new laptop catches fire and you can only hold yourself accountable. Add a year or so of protection to your purchase, and see if the price is still competitive with something new. If you find a smaller ticket item, refurbished, you don't necessarily need to spend extra for a warranty. I've risked it before. Just do whatever you feel comfortable with. Before you buy, check the description thoroughly first to be sure it comes with all the same cables/cds/adapters included with a new one. Some refurbished or open box items do not and that could end up being an extra expense.
If you can, try to avoid the urge to have it right this second. A little bit of patience can save you big bucks. I recently purchased a DVD burner sold locally for $44.99, online, for $17.99 with free shipping. My favorite sites include Fry's Home Electronics, Newegg.com, Amazon.com and Tigerdirect.com. The cool thing about Fry's and Tiger Direct is that they do have some stores. So if you happen to be lucky enough to live close to one, you can spec out your purchase online and pick it up in your local store. Make sure you check your local store availability before you drive over there! Nothing is more disappointing than driving half an hour only to find they are out of stock. On a side note, if you haven't been to Fry's and you're close to one...go. Go just to witness its splendor. It's like they built a store to enable gamer nerds (which doesn't resemble me in the slightest...cough) to only leave the house TO GO TO FRY'S! They sell just about anything that lights up or plugs in along with an astounding selection of snacks and beverages. I kinda want to go right now...
OK, since they're not paying me in any kind of monetary or deep fried currency for that plug, I'll get back to the topic of the hour.
Compare different sites! The cool thing about Internet shopping is that you can do this in just a few clicks. I've saved a lot of money by just navigating over to another site and typing in the model number of the part I'm looking for. Factor in the cost of shipping before making your final decision. Most of these sites will have deals on shipping, especially if you're ordering more than one item so make a list of everything you need and see if you can get it cheaper by ordering it together.
Always order things like cables online! Big name retailers like Best Buy will charge you $30 or more for an HDMI cable that you can get for $10 online. I like to order networking cables in multiples, so I'm never left having to pay through the nose for convenience.
Speaking of Best Buy, I'm not going to tell you to avoid it all together. What I will say, however, is avoid just wandering into the store to make your purchase. If you want to go there because it's convenient, try to find what you want on their website and purchase it to pick up in the store. Their store will not honor their website's prices any other way. When I was monitor shopping last year, I went to Best Buy and pulled up their website on my iPhone. I found the same monitor I was looking at, on sale, for $50 less. Even though I had the ad in my hand and showed it to the clerk and his supervisor, they refused to honor the price. I could have just bought it using my iPhone and walked up to the front to pick it up but I don't tolerate difficult people or poor customer service very well, so I walked out. I've bought stuff from there since, so I'm not boycotting it, it's just my last choice.
Don't forget to play it safe! If you find what you're looking for on mega sale on some website you've never heard of, make sure to Google them first. You're looking for lots of good reviews from satisfied customers. Avoid websites with many negative customer reviews or no reviews at all. There are lots of fly by night businesses out there that will sell you junk, or worse yet, are just looking to get their hands on your credit card information.
Now get out there and spend some scrilla, kids! And if you do decide to visit Fry's...tell them they owe me some Cheetos or something.
Have had mixed experiences @ Best Buy too. We set out to buy a 'puter there with a printout of the ad from their site. The first associate we spoke w/said they didn't have the bundled package box but since it's in an ad, they would give us the separate components and honor the price. The mgr then said, oh, no. We have to order, will take 4-6 weeks to get bundled box. Wrong answer! Went, bought 'puter elsewhere. Then bought an appliance there and the service was very good ...
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