Best time to buy gamer gadgets and TVs

by Blake Snow { Sep 15th 2006 at 8:00PM }

Smart Money examines optimal buying times for consumer products on the cheap. We thought computer and electronic purchases along with TVs from the buyer's guide might be of interest to any accessory shopping gamers this weekend.

A CNET editor suggests buying new computers or gadgets "just after a new model is launched." (We really hope you knew that one.) In regards to buying TVs, the article recommends waiting six to 12 months after a particular model is released because new units drop in price after only a few months on the market without compromising significant quality or features. Many times, local and regional furniture chains have outlet centers (read: old inventory with slow turnaround) so you'd be wise to check there for a discounted tube or plasma as well.

Mind-blowing tips they are not, just sound advice for the impulse buyer. So how do you stay thrifty, Mr. Frugal?

[via Lifehacker]

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Dario @ Sep 15th 2006 8:06PM

"buy new computers or gadgets just after a new model is launched."

woah... i gotta write this down... once PS3 is release i gotta get myself a PS2.. :-)

Wulkar @ Sep 15th 2006 8:17PM

HAHAHA at #1

Mark @ Sep 15th 2006 9:02PM

I just bought a 30 in. widescreen hdtv.(yeah me!) I can't wait to get my 360.

dsub @ Sep 15th 2006 9:05PM

with TV's this is totally true. Another tip I can give is this...if you can, get your TV from somewhere like wal-mart/sam's club or target. The prices at these places (especially wal-mart/sams club) are CONSTANTLY dropping and they have a 90 day return policy on TV's. Last christmas I got a cheap-o Sanyo 28" HDTV that didn't even have HDMI for $599. I went to Sam's Club three weeks later and found a beatiful Panasonic 32" HDTV with HDMI for only $530. Since Sams and wal-mart are the same company, I went to wal-mart, returned the TV and said it was broken, they gave me a refund on a store gift card and I walked right next door to Sam's and bought the panasonic and new game for my 360. Then again a month later the same panasonic was on sale for $479 on clearance, so I returned it again and saved myself another $50. It can be a bit of a hassle if your TV is in a tough to reach place since these are the normal tube HDTV's I'm talking about, but if you've got a pickup truck and a friend to help you, it's a piece of cake. Just make sure you save the box.

airpolgas @ Sep 15th 2006 9:12PM

dsub,

Can't you just tell the truth and ask for the money back in some form of rebate? A friend of mine bought the Vizio LCD at Costco, and then two weeks later, they had a $300 discount on it. He just went up to member services and said, would you like me to return the one I got then buy a new one, or can you just give me $300? They gave him the $300. Then again, that's Costco.

otakucode @ Sep 15th 2006 10:23PM

I got my first (and still only) HDTV 3 or so years ago, and I'd have to concur with Cnet on this. I knew the set that I wanted, and I went in to Circuit City many times to see it. I called around to various places, but the price was always more than I was willing to pay. Well, a good while later, on a whim, I checked the CC site. It was gone. A few days later, I went to CC for something entirely unrelated. My TV was still there. I asked about it and found out it was on clearance, open box, the display model. I talked them into free delivery, got the matching stand for free, got the set itself at about half the price it was when I started looking at it, and I even got them to sign a statement saying that the bulb was covered under their default 1 year warranty. This was early in the HDTV game, and I don't think they knew that bulbs weren't covered under warranties usually, at least not ones that come for free with your purchase. Needless to say, the bulb that was in the display model blew after about 8 months. I was honestly surprised it lasted that long after having sat in the store, on all day every day for the entire retail life of the set. They really didn't want to replace the bulb, but they relented and replaced it for free and even had a technician come and replace it once they saw the written guarantee I had.

Hopefully I can hold off long enough not to get torn to pieces when they come out with SED sets next year. It would burn me for years to pay a huge premium for them even though they're cheaper to produce than LCD or CRT sets.... being impatient and cheap is a terrible combination.

delldude420 @ Sep 15th 2006 11:04PM

ya i know. me i'm waiting for atleast 2 years after sed tvs are out. for one waiting on proce drops 2, i want a nice 70 inch or more set. not rushing on hd tv til all stations are required to at minimum go digital tv which is still standard definition excvept digtal ( most will go hd though)

reallly wants a set thats higher resoloution than 1080p. well 1080p for tv but supports higher pc res for being used as a pc monitor. 1080p is just to low res for use as a pc monitor with a huge ass screen.

GameBoiPA @ Sep 15th 2006 11:51PM

I enjoy standing outside of Best Buy on Black Friday morning for my new tech toys. Got myself a nice $380 laptop last year. I don't need another PC (and Vista won't be out until '07 anyway), I may just get myself a nice flat-screen tv this year.

O'Neill @ Sep 15th 2006 11:20PM

I just bought my Samsung LN-S4092D at a nice $1884 and free shipping. Finally, I'm gonna have my own HD. No more going back to SDTV. Xbox 360 status: HAPPY.

O'Neill::

Nightfire @ Sep 15th 2006 11:48PM

I got my 27' wide-screen ViewSonic LCD TV from Costco for only about $704 CAD it had been on the market for quite a while (like around 7 to 10 months) and so far it's earning it's keep on how sharp the despite none of the major advanced stuff is on it like HDMI for example.

Besides in a few years when HDMI TV's become a dime a dozen and cheap to buy I can turn the 27' I have now in to a wide-screen computer monitor (it has an DVI port) and replace it with a HDMI TV for my living room set.

Now only if Microsoft can drop the 360's that have the improved chip-sets that address the overheating problems. Then I will be really in business.

DG @ Sep 16th 2006 1:55AM

I look to see who is selling at the most subsidized price. Then I know I'm getting the best value.

DaveKap @ Sep 16th 2006 3:34AM

I call bullhockey.

I've been in the market for an HDTV over the past 2 weeks. What have I learned? This week, HDTV prices went up around 200 bucks across the board. Previously, I could get a nice 42" LCD HDTV for 1100 bucks... now I can't even find one at 1400 bucks.

My tinfoil-hat side (the "possible correlation" side) says that stores know people are in the market for HDTVs since Dead Rising text can't be played without it and PS3 is going to pretty much require it. The only reason we're hearing "now is a good time to buy!" is because of a secret link between the stores and the CNET editor!

My non-tinfoil-hat side (the rational side) says I do a horrible job at finding good TVs at low prices. I wish luck to you other buyers-of-TVs.

greg @ Sep 16th 2006 12:20PM

I usually wait for everything because price comes down and in stuff like cars and gadgets. the second round usually gets the updates and changes are made to make them batter

jharr @ Sep 16th 2006 12:58PM

I am in the market to buy an HDTV and I was wondering what you guys thought. I have been looking in multiple stores including Sams Club and have been trying to find a floor model that I can get discounted. I also have been looking on craigslist for a used one and have considered buying one new. What is the best way to get a deal on an HDTV?

Chris @ Sep 19th 2006 4:16PM

Hey guys, In responce to all this hubbub, TV's NEED TO BE SEEN before you buy them. BUT they do not need to be bought FROM THE STORE YOU SAW THEM AT. Example: I found a TV i liked at Best Buy and other places for lowest price 1300. I looked at the tv, even asked the best buy guy if I could bring in my 360 to test it on and see how good games looked (he was fine with it) so I did. I then went online on TigerDirect and Newegg and PCMall and places like that (pricewatch was good too) and found my tv for 899 new with a 2 year manufacturers warrenty shipping $50 from an obscure place. Ordered it and 2 weeks later I had my TV. THE ONLY INCONVIENIENCE OF THIS is if the TV breaks, you can't return it to your local store, you need to call the manufacturer and get them to come out. I think that inconvienience is worth saving $350 don't you?