Technology touches all areas of our daily lives, from home entertainment systems to cell phones to computers. These much-loved items are also some of our priciest purchases, so it pays to do your homework and shop smart. Here are some of my favorite tips for saving money on tech:
Consider a previous generation
Sure, the latest models have new features, but do you need all of those bells and whistles? Earlier generations of the same device can often hold their own and will cost a great deal less than the new model, especially right when the new model hits the shelves.
Timing is everything
There are certain times of the year when tech will be on sale. You can save a bundle by timing your purchases just right.
- 3-Day weekends & holidays: You’ll find deep discounts on electronics during major holidays and 3-day weekends, like Black Friday/Cyber Monday, July 4th, Memorial Day weekend, and Labor Day weekend.
- Amazon Prime Day: This sale usually takes place the second week of July and October, and this year’s July sale is July 16+17. By shopping on Prime Day, Prime members can save up to 60 percent on items like smartwatches, AirPods, small appliances, power banks, robotic vacuums, and more. The deepest discounts will be on Amazon’s proprietary brands, like Ring, Echo, Fire, Kindle, etc. Other retailers, like Walmart and Target also often host competitive sales around the same time.
- Pro Tip: Want Prime Day savings without a Prime membership? Sign up for a free trial of Prime to take advantage of the deals and cancel before the trial period ends.
- Semi-annual sales: Check out sales like NewEgg’s semi-annual clearance, which happen in the summer and fall, with up to 50 percent off tech.
- Black Friday in July: Some retailers that carry tech, like Best Buy, Costco, and Sam’s Club have sales in early July.
- Back to school: These sales usually occur in August as students prepare to return to school and college. Retailers tend to offer deals on computers and tablets, especially on previous models that need to be cleared to make room for the newest releases.
Use deal sites
Use a deal site like Slickdeals where savings are reported from across the internet. Another handy feature is their deal alert. Once you set an alert for a specific item, you’ll automatically be notified when it goes on sale.
Get cashback and coupons on tech purchases with sites like CouponCabin, Rakuten, and PayPal Honey. Install their browser plugin, and you’ll be alerted to available savings as you shop online. Some will even test coupons for you at checkout!
Compare prices
PayPal Honey is particularly helpful with price tracking. As you browse online a popup will let you know if the price is low or high right now. If you’d prefer not to use a browser extension, you can search for items by name using Google Shopping.
If you shop at BestBuy, their Price Match Guarantee program applies to Bestbuy.com vs. your Best Buy store, and major online retailers like Amazon.com, Crutchfield.com, Dell.com, HP.com, and TigerDirect.com (does not include items sold by third-party sellers on any of these sites) as well as warehouse club prices like BJ’s Wholesale Club, Costco, and Sam’s Club.
Skip the insurance or warranty… maybe
Before purchasing extra insurance or an extended warranty, see what protections your credit card offers. For example, many American Express cards offer up to one additional year of extended warranty coverage on the original manufacturer’s warranty of five years or less. Also, if you treat your tech gently and you are not accident-prone, it could make sense to skip the added cost.
Buy certified refurbished
Yes, refurbished items are “used”, but refurbished items are carefully inspected and repaired and often come with a warranty. Here are a few good resources for refurbished items:
- MPB.com: This is an online platform where people can buy, sell or trade in used photography and videography equipment, including cameras, lenses and accessories. Every camera, lens and accessory is inspected carefully by MPB product specialists and comes with a six-month warranty to give customers peace of mind that buying used doesn’t mean sacrificing reliability.
- eBay: eBay is a reliable destination for refurbished tech. Use their app to easily keep track of tech you’d like to buy, with access to daily deals and app-only special offers and discounts.
- Decluttr: is another good site for purchasing refurbished tech, Decluttr offers a free 12-month limited warranty and free shipping on all tech purchases.
- They will also buy your unwanted tech with a quick and painless process.
- Best Buy: Best Buy’s refurbished program is available through their Outlet. Items are repaired and returned to an “as-new” condition and covered by Best Buy’s Return & Exchange Promise.
- Best Buy’s Outlet has discounted Open Box items and Clearance items. Open-box products are returned items, floor models, or products that were opened by the store for quality inspection after shipping. These products are covered by Best Buy’s Return & Exchange Promise.
- Best Buy also has trade-in or recycle programs where you can get cash, gift cards, or discounts toward your next purchase.
- Pro Tip: See something on display that you like at Best Buy? Ask if the store will sell it to you as an Open-Box item!
- Apple: If you’re looking for Apple items specifically, Apple’s certified refurbished deals are very reliable.
- At the time of this writing, you can save $260 on a refurbished iPhone XS 64GB or you can save $410 on a refurbished 13.3-inch MacBook Pro
- Pro Tip: Stack your savings by searching for coupon codes from sites like CouponCabin to apply to your refurbished tech! eBay, Decluttr, and Best Buy often have deals. Apple deals are less frequent, but they do happen.
Buy used
You can buy used (not refurbished) tech from sellers on sites like eBay, BackMarket, or Swappa. Or, if you’d like to shop locally, try Facebook Marketplace, OfferUp, or Craigslist.
- Sign up for alerts for info on items you are interested in as well as special offers.
- If you have a knack for wheeling-and-dealing, try negotiating on price!
- If you’re buying via auction on eBay, use a tool like eSnipe to automate your bids and make last-minute bids to win an item just before the auction time ends.
Take advantage of your discounts
Students and educators:
- College students, their parents, and faculty can get discounted education pricing with Apple. I recently used this and got $100 off, 20 percent off Applecare, and a $150 Apple gift card.
- Check other tech brands, like Dell, Microsoft, and HP for similar offers.
- Best Buy offers featured deals for students like $100 off select iPad Pro 11-inch models or $300 total savings on select Windows laptops.
Seniors
Some tech retailers offer senior shoppers.
- Seniors 50+ can save an extra 5 percent sitewide at Lenovo.
- Verizon has special discounts for seniors 55+ with savings of up to $40/month; T-Mobile offers an unlimited 55+ plan with special discounts and benefits like Netflix included at no extra cost, Mint Mobile has a 55+ plan with unlimited date and 24-hour support for $15 a month, and seniors living in Florida can get a special 55+ plan with AT&T.
Veterans and military
- Several brands, including Apple, offer a discount to current and former military members and their immediate family members. Some of these discounts are available year-round and others are offered on holidays, like Veteran’s Day.
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