Find the Best Deals on Tech and Electronics Gear
Looking for great buys? Now's the time to bag a bargain. Here's where you can expect to get some.Michael Cahlin, Special to PC World
Michael Cahlin is a freelance writer based in Ventura, California. He has been writing about technology since he bought his first computer in 1983.
Say hello to great buys in 2005. Forget gimmicky year-end inventory clearance sales and fake factory blowouts. Industry analysts say increased production and good old-fashioned cutthroat competition are the real drivers behind plummeting prices on new-fangled PCs and related consumer electronics.
"There's always price aggression when manufacturers fight for market share," explains IDC's Vice President of Client Computing, Roger Kay.
What's different this year is how many tech manufacturers are swimming out of traditional PC-centric pools into the more lucrative--and hotly contested--consumer electronics waters of digital cameras, LCD TV monitors, and MP3 players. Their pain is your gain. Early this year, expect to see some attractive deals with digital cameras, desktop PCs, computer and TV displays, and audio players--as described here and in the following pages.
And to find out where you can shop for great deals, see "Where the Buys Are." Don't forget to check out the latest price alerts for tech products in PC World's Bargain Finder.
Snap Up a Digital Camera
Experts call it Moore's Law: If you wait long enough, the features get better and prices come down. This adage is especially true with digital cameras. Today, you can buy a 3-megapixel digital camera from companies like Concord Camera for under $100--$20 to $40 less than it was in December. And the price of a 5-megapixel digital camera like the Photosmart R707 from HP hovers around $275 (depending on where you shop)--less than what most 4-megapixel cameras were selling for just a few months ago.
Looking ahead, Amazon's director of consumer electronics Glenn Cunningham predicts a significant drop in digital camera prices through the fourth quarter of this year, especially in the $200 to $300 sweet spot for 3-plus megapixel digital cameras. Expect to see 4- and 5-megapixel cameras becoming more mainstream.
On higher-priced cameras, manufacturers may try to protect their prices by offering more "soft" discounts in lieu of hard price drops--including rebates, special promotions, mail-in coupons, secret discount codes, and unadvertised specials--advises Gartner Group analyst Martin Reynolds.
Case in point: HP currently offers a $50 mail-in rebate on digital cameras, photo printers, and camera accessories like memory and docking stations.
Quick tip: To track down similar deals, try running a search on a product's name and the word "rebate" or "coupon" via Google or your favorite search engine. Similarly, you can also try running a search on the names of retailers and the word "promotion" or "discount."
For the latest digital camera reviews, specifications, and prices, check out PC World's product ratings in Top 10 Advanced Digital Cameras and Top 10 Digital Cameras (Point and Shoot).
Special Promotions Drive Desktop and Media Center PCs
To jump-start 2005, PC makers are offering a smorgasbord of discount deals including special promotions, mail-in rebates, and instant savings. Alienware, for example, is currently providing a $500 mail-in rebate, which you can use toward any Area-51 desktop purchase. (You'll need to enter the code MIR500MC2 in the Agent ID field on the shopping cart page to take advantage of the rebate.)
Gateway recently announced a new line of low-cost EMachines desktop PCs starting at $360 (following a $50 rebate).
Promotions like these change every week or two, so if you see one you like, jump on it, says Garter's Reynolds. And, if you miss one, don't fret: Keep your eyes peeled for the next big promotion--another often follows, be it a week or a month later.
Following the trend in digital cameras, look for prices of last year's Media Center PCs to decline while new models are introduced at lower prices--and with features that are easier to use. Another trend: the emergence of more sophisticated "living room"-style form factors.
At $799, Gateway's 3250X is one of the cheapest Media Center PCs available. Not only does it cost $200 less than the company's previous models, it also currently sports several free upgrades, including a 15-inch LCD flat-panel display (if you buy a CRT), 8-in-1 media card reader, extra memory, and a CD-RW drive.
Check out PC World's Top 15 Desktop PCs.
Fat Price Breaks on Slim Flat-Panel Displays
Across the board, the biggest tech price breaks are expected in flat-panel displays--encompassing everything from computer monitors to LCD and plasma TVs.
Amazon's Cunningham reports that LCD monitor prices plummeted 10 percent during the holidays--and he expects the trend to hold. For example, you might have seen ViewSonic's 19-inch LCD VG910b sell for $599 in November to $479 in January. And in the last couple of months, Dell, HP, LG, and Sharp, all started offering 19-inch flat panel monitors ranging in price from $580 to $700.
You'll probably find even better deals on older 17-inch flat-panel LCDs. For example, you can buy LG Electronics' 1710SK for under $299 (at selected retailers), versus $399 for the new 17-inch Flatron L1730S flat panel.
See PC World's Top 17-Inch LCD Monitors and Top 19-Inch LCD Monitors.
Sales Galore With LCD and Plasma TVs
Nothing beats the bargains found among plasma and LCD TV monitors--their prices are dropping faster than we can report them. For example, ViewSonic's N2000 20-inch LCD display has fallen roughly $400 over the past six months--from a high of $999 to $799 in December to $599 today.
Sometimes, the newer products can actually be cheaper than the models they're replacing. Two examples: ViewSonic's N2750w, an ultra-thin 27-inch LCD TV with an MSRP of $1399, replaces the $1799 N2700w. The N2750w is expected to arrive at retailers by the end of the month. Also, Gateway's 26-inch HD-Ready LCD TV comes in at $1300 (after a $700 on-the-spot discount). Expect to see other 26-inch to 30-inch LCD TVs from other manufacturers dip under the magic $1000 price tag as we move well into 2005.
Dell recently knocked $500 off the price of its W4200 42-inch High Definition Plasma TV--the price dropped from $3499 to $2999.
Sony's 37-inch Plasma WEGA HDTV is listed for $4500, but you can get the unit for less than $3500 if you shop around.
Look for prices to continue to drop as more brand name companies expand their bases of online retailers into more into mainstream electronics chains, such as Best Buy, and wholesale clubs such as Costco and Sam's Club.
See PC World's ratings for Wide-Screen LCD TVs.
Attractive Prices for DVD Recorders and More
The TV price plunge extends to ancillary products such as DVD recorders, TV tuners, and remote controls. The price drop of DVD recorders is so stunning you could finally toss your VCR. And we're not just talking entry-level models from manufacturers like GoVideo and Lite-On.
Philips's HDRW720, a DVD Recorder with a 120GB hard disc, dropped from $699 in November to $599 today--although you can find it for less than $500 if you shop around.
If you don't mind owning an old or discontinued recorder, you can save a bundle. Costco, for instance, is blowing out Pioneer's Tivo-enabled DVD/DVR 810H player (now discontinued) for $400--that's $600 less than its MSRP a year ago. At the International Consumer Electronics Show in January 2005, the company introduced four new DVD recorders. These are likely to be available in April; prices start at $259 for the entry-level DVR-233-S.
In the world of remote controls, Logitech's high-end units, for example, dropped over 10 percent since December. The Harmony 676 went from $230 in December to $200; the Harmony 659 from $200 to $150.
Audio Players: Tune in the Discounts
As the cost of flash memory continues to fall and more competitors attempt to bite into Apple's commanding market share, look for dramatic deals on MP3 players, says Gartner's Reynolds.
Already, new models from companies like Creative, Dell, and Rio boast more features--including color screens, more storage, longer battery life, FM and FM recording, and digital photo display capabilities--for less money than Apple's IPod.
As if bracing for battle, Apple just released two new flash-based IPod Shuffles, aimed at beating back competition from cheaper, upstart digital music players. The 512MB version costs $99; the 1GB, $149. If you prefer a display on your 1GB flash player, SanDisk's SDMX1 is now competitively priced with Apple's iPod Shuffle, having fallen by about $50 since its introduction last October.
Look for prices to fall, not only on audio players, but also on memory cards, carrying cases, and headsets. A year ago, for example, a Lexar Media 1GB 40X CompactFlash card cost $199. Today, you can find it for $85--less than half the price. Flash or thumb drives are also cheaper. SanDisk's 1GB Cruzer Mini flash drive, for instance, went from $219 in April last year to $100 today. The 1GB Disk OnKey Classic by M-Systems went from $500 in November to $270 (or less) currently.
Check out the latest product reviews in Top 5 Audio Players.
Broadband Bargains
Come the new year, just about every Internet Service Provider trots out special promotions to lure new customers. Most of them will toss in a broadband modem, others will offer one or more months of no-charge service. Sign up for a year, and Verizon's current $30-per-month contract, for example, includes a free month of service, a free modem and wireless router, plus a free one-year subscription to MSN Premium, a service that would otherwise set you back $10 per month. According to Verizon, the offer will be available until the end of February at least.
If you already have broadband service, don't be afraid to call your provider and negotiate a better deal. In many cases, you can save as much as 25 percent or more by taking advantage of discount bundling deals that fold in cable television and home-telephone services.
SBC Yahoo offers several DSL pricing plans. The best one gives SBC customers with unlimited long distance the option to get DSL for only $19.95 per month.
Where the Buys Are
Okay, we gave you our predictions for the new year's best buys, along with some product examples; here's where you can start your shopping spree.
Granted, we're a bit biased, but we recommend that you try our own Product Finder, a comparison shopping search engine powered by PriceGrabber. After you search for a product, you're presented with a list of merchants, prices, links to user reviews, and so on, which helps you figure out where you can get the best deal. You can also sign up for PC World's Deal Watcher, a weekly newsletter that highlights the greatest tech product buys of the week.
AOL recently introduced a service called InStore that also lets users set up e-mail price drop alerts and add up to ten items to a "remember list" without interrupting a product search (AOL keyword: inStore). InStore has it own Web site.
With a massive product selection, Amazon.com lets you buy from an aggregate of retailers, such as Circuit City, Best Buys, and Target--as well as its own monster store. Another cost-cutting option lets you buy new, used, and refurbished goods from merchants and individual sellers, all protected by Amazon's return policy.
Other comparison shopping sites include BizRate, My Simon, Shopping.com, and Yahoo Shopping. Keep in mind that each shopping service houses a different database of stores and it's likely that you'll encounter online retailers you've never heard of--including those offering the lowest price listed. Be careful with such low-ball retailers, however--occasionally, they're also the retailer with the lowest reputation, and often, what you save in upfront costs may come back to haunt you in pricier-than-expected shipping costs.
You might also want to try Dealcatcher. This site aggregates sales and coupon deals, and it has some rebate information (but it doesn't cover every single offer).
Then there's EBay. While most people think of it as a bidding auction site, it also warehouses online merchants and sellers with static Buy It Now prices. You can comparison shop, see what items previously sold for, and not worry about being outbid at the last second.
Still another way to save money is to hunt for unwanted holiday gift cards that are being sold off at discounted prices. Aside from EBay, you can find these gift cards on community sites like Craigslist or trade or sell them at Swapagift.com. Locally, check out the classified section of any newspaper, especially those distributed on college campuses.
Expect to pay about 50 to 60 cents on the dollar for a given gift card amount. Better, most sellers are willing to negotiate so you can potentially buy them for even less. The downside: It's easy to be scammed. The only way to be completely safe is meet the seller at the store and have the card scanned to verify the amount. Otherwise, call the merchant (most have a toll-free number) and verify the amount using the card number--ideally, before you commit to buying the card.