The ultimate guide to buying tech products at the best price
Looking to buy a new piece of tech and love a bargain? Here’s the ultimate guide to buying tech products at the best price.
For better or worse, tech has infiltrated almost every aspect of our life over the last few decades. What was once a novelty is now an inevitable part of our daily lives; from the alarms that wake us up to the TVs and e-readers we use to ‘switch off’ at the end of a long day.
Yet for all the good that tech brings us, it’s also great at sending our bank accounts into a spiral. Being savvy about how to make savings in tech is undoubtedly the singular best way to stay up to date while simultaneously saving some dosh.
To help, Carphone Warehouse is teaching people how to take stock of tech, with tips on when to buy what, and how to get the timings right.
1) Know the average price, and work from there
First of all, it can help to know the sorts of prices you should be looking at. That’s not to say you shouldn’t go under (or over) the average price, but it can help to have a benchmark figure. With that in mind, the most up-to-date averages are as follows: smartphones currently retail at £527.60, laptops at £680, TVs at £712.31 and digital cameras at £782.60.
2) Whenever you’re thinking of buying, look to the next holiday
When you want something, it’s tempting to get it immediately – but try to look towards the next upcoming sale date instead. Here’s a quick rundown of key dates throughout the year.
- January – Of course retailers will be selling off a lot of their Christmas stock at sale prices, from smartphones to cameras and TVs.
- February – Here you’ll find all the Valentine’s promotions for treating your loved ones, and you could find a saving or two for yourself as well. This usually includes smartphones like the Google Pixel, as well as cameras, TVs and laptops.
- July, August, September – The Back-to-School sales are a success every single year, with a whole range of amazing deals on TVs (mainly targeting students going to university), as well as laptops, computers and more.
- November – Black Friday and Cyber Monday are the biggest sales in the tech game, and you’ll find a whole host of lightening deals, flash sales, and discount codes across every type of tech imaginable. Apple, Samsung and Google smartphones are always in the mix in this period, as well as cameras, iPads, TVs, laptops and the latest game consoles.
3) For last-gen models, buy around the CES and MWC trade show times
Have you heard of these trade shows? The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) and Mobile World Congress (MWC) take place in February and September respectively. Notably, both have special reveals of the latest new cameras, TVs and smartphones coming out in the months following.
The good news is, that the months before and after these new releases are when the latest (or soon to be last-gen) model will see huge drops in prices. So, if you can hold out till then, your patience will pay off.
4) If you’re adamant about the latest model, make use of the pre-order period
For some people however, a last-gen product simply won’t make the list. If that’s the case, be in the know about pre-ordering. Sign up to notifications through app alerts or newsletters and get in early to make a saving on what will probably be a pricey product otherwise.
5) Know which products are best to buy, when
Here’s a quick guide of the best times to buy particular products:
- TVs: 55” models are the most popular size, and this means they’re usually the first to be discounted in big holiday sales.
- Tablets: You’ll usually only save on iPads when a new one has been released. For new Androids however, simply give it a few months and the price should have decreased somewhat.
- Kindle: It’s no secret that the best place to save on an Amazon Kindle is on Amazon, but, more specifically, try your luck around Amazon Prime Day.
Tech brings a lot to the table, but knowing when to pull the trigger and trade in the cash is imperative to making your money go further.
Photo by Francisco Andreotti
