When to Buy a Camera, MP3 Player, or Cell Phone

Camera vendors like to introduce their newest models in January & February to coincide with massive trade events, including the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) & the Photograph Promotion Association (PMA) convention. As new cameras arrive, sellers deeply discount the older models--ar boon for bargain hunters who don't need the latest & greatest expertise. "A lot of people don't recognize that cameras are very seasonal, so February's an very, lovely time to look for deals," says Richard Doble, who has written books on photography & is the editor of Savvy-Discounts.com. Presidents Day sales tend to mark the peak of the discount season for cameras, according to Doble.



"It's feasible to get nice deals--whether on Amazon, on Craigslist, or through your local brick-and-mortar retailer--pretty much year-round, depending on which models are being sold down and discontinued," says Kevorkian. For example, they found a Toshiba Gigabeat 60GB model advertised at Conns.com for $225, a substantial savings from its preclearance list cost of $400.


MP3 Players
The best time to buy an MP3 player is when new models reach the market, which usually occurs late in the third quarter or early in the fourth, says IDC consumer audio analyst Susan Kevorkian. Of coursework, the new players usually won't be discounted, but there is a nice chance their predecessors will be.


Cell Rings
Mobile phone customers usually get deals on a new handset when signing or renewing a long-term (usually two-year) contract with a service provider. Since the carrier doesn't need to lose your business, you are in a nice position to negotiate a lower price--or no cost at all--on a new phone. Another tactic is to request more minutes for the same every month fee.


You have several ways to buy a new phone, including from an independent dealer in a brick-and-mortar store, from a cellular service provider's Web-site, or over the phone with a cell provider's sales rep. Which technique is best? David Wood, mobile phone professional for ConsumerAffairs.com, says that an independent might offer a lower-price phone than a carrier-operated shop, but that the contract terms are often better at a carrier store. (A phone bought from an independent might over higher fees, for example.) Wood stresses the importance of reading the fine print before signing a contract: "A kiosk in a mall might have a better deal on the phone, but then they might also have an additional termination fee. I have seen fees as high as $400, in addition to the carrier termination fee," says Wood, who was a mobile phone salesperson before becoming a consumer advocate.