Cyber Monday and You

It’s almost here – the day when retailers lead you to believe most online shopping gets done. (It’s not, that day comes about two weeks before Christmas.) Earlier, I refreshed an old post about what you need to buy if you’re heading out into the real world.

In it, I alluded to finding deals that were too good to be true (something I’ve written about before). So here’s a simple tip – if you find a place with a great deal, before you click on anything or fill out any forms, do a little research. Type the name of the store and “review” into your favorite search engine and see what pops up. Read a lot of the reviews, see if they have sketchy practices. You can also head straight to places like ResellerRatings.com and search there. (They usually end up at the top of the search results.)

Every few months I get a report back from a students saying they found a great deal on the camera they wanted, can I believe they got it for $500 less, new, then everywhere else? No, no I can’t … and a few days later they realize that, no, they didn’t … and the circle of hell gets extended another rung.

If it seems too good to be true, it probably is too good to be true.

So, what should you shop for tomorrow? The chances of great deals on Apple laptops are pretty slim, but some places will discount refurbed ones. Hard drives and memory deals might be found. (For those heading to the spring Documentary Photography class, this could be a good chance to score a 320 GB (or more), FireWire 800, bus powered, 7200 RPM external drive.)

You may see camera bags or belt systems on sale, too. Start putting together a wish list of stuff now, then search for it on Cyber Monday.

And if you want to help out the kids here at UGA, buying through this Amazon.com link would generate a little bit of support for this site and my students. Just sayin’.