If it's too good to be true, it probably is. A statement, as cliche as it might be, that holds true for pretty much anything in life, including shopping.When we are in the market for a high-ticket item we all want the best deal possible, and with prices that vary, to a huge degree, between retailers and on-line marketers, the urge to go with the cheapest can often land us in major trouble.
The Internet has made it easier to shop around, and with the click of your mouse you can buy pretty much anything.
I am looking for a new camera and I have been looking into the Canon EOS Rebel XSi. Prices (for the camera with lens) range between $649.00 and over $1,000.00. All these sellers (from camera shops to places like Best Buy) are selling the same item, but profit margins obviously differ for each. So when I saw an ad for the same camera for $409.00 I decided to check it out. Shopdigitaldirect.com was not only selling the camera kit (with lens), their package also included a bunch of other accessories. Sounds great right? Wrong! I wondered why their price was substantially cheaper than the least expensive one, so I googled their website and came up with a slew of complaints. It appears to be a bait and switch operation, which, in the long run, would probably wind up costing you more than purchasing from a reputable buyer.
One of the cheapest places for my camera turns out to be amazon.com itself, not one of their merchants. Dell.com and Circuit City also had some of the cheapest prices.
Your best bet, when it comes to finding the best deal for whatever you want to buy, do your research. Know what you want and then google away. Check some of the comparison sites and then check dealer reputation on resellerratings.com.
Save yourself from being ripped off by being a savvy consumer.
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