• ares35@kbin.social
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        1 year ago

        there’s a couple decent deals on basic laptops… that aren’t shit-tier specs, either. that’s about all i’ve seen–but then, i haven’t been “looking” either. rent keeps going up, can’t afford anything so i don’t even bother to look at ads and sales on things that aren’t absolutely essential to simply exist.

        i do plan on going to wm on friday… but later in the afternoon–for a few groceries.

    • MeatsOfRage@lemmy.world
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      It definitely does, I’ve already made out pretty good on a couple things but you have to know the actual price well in advance and shop outside of Amazon

  • RotatingParts@lemmy.ml
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    1 year ago

    The only way to know if a Black Friday price is good is to know the usual “regular” price of the item. That takes planning to jot the price down a month or more in advance and then wait to see what the Black Friday price is. It’s all a game.

      • keylogthis@midwest.social
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        1 year ago

        I use Keepa, same type of thing, and I’ll just set it to notify me when it reaches the desired low price again. I rarely buy anything unless it’s on sale prices now.

  • driving_crooner@lemmy.eco.br
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    1 year ago

    Years ago, in October I wanted to buy a new TV, my wife said we should wait for black Friday but I just bought it anyway. I keep checking the price day after day and the price of it keep rising slowly every day, until black Friday when it had a 40% sale off and was still more expensive of what I paid two months before.

  • tilcica@lemm.ee
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    1 year ago

    in slovenia we just passed a law that requires shops to state the price change of an item in the last 30 days :)

    • ximtor@lemm.ee
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      I think its a thing here in norway as well. Thats why they just increase the price in early october, just a month ahead of black week bullcrap. Have seen plenty of electronics “super discounted” to the same price they had in september/october

    • Vincent Adultman@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      Brazil’s consumers rights department listed itens prices so stores can’t fake advertise them. Countries with regulations: ok, we can do Black Friday, but…

      • Jamie@jamie.moe
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        1 year ago

        I like how for all the problems Brazil has, the consumer protection laws are consistently some of the best around.

    • ximtor@lemm.ee
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      1 year ago

      I think its a thing here in norway as well. Thats why they just increase the price in early october, just a month ahead of black week bullcrap. Have seen plenty of electronics “super discounted” to the same price they had in september/october

      • ohlaph@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        Big items I usually start watching a few months out. If I see a store or brand that pulls tthis garbage, I simply go elsewhere. If I can’t find it on offer, I buy it regular price at the smaller retail store.

      • Mnemnosyne@sh.itjust.works
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        1 year ago

        It might actually work if the requirement was a year instead of 30 days.

        Also mandate minimum font size for it and that it must be displayed along with the current price anywhere the current price appears.

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          I honestly think 1 year would be too far back to be actually relevant to the current price, but I can see a 3 month period being a good middle ground.

      • MashedTech@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        Oh… Im so sorry to hear that. Second thing I do is check the second hand stores near me. I have one that validates their products and offers a 1 year warranty on the second hand stuff I buy from them, and it’s kind of awesome. They even rate the quality.

    • Evil_incarnate@lemm.ee
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      That’s why I live in the EU, and they have to include the lowest price in the last 30 days with the “discount” price.

      • MrShankles@reddthat.com
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        1 year ago

        So if you raise the price 31 days prior, and then put the discount on, you should still be good to squeeze more profit!

          • MrShankles@reddthat.com
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            Maybe the 30 day decrease in profit would be worth the additional units sold later (possibly at a slightly elevated price), due to the marketing of a perceived “deal”.

            I guess there’s a lot of variables that could come into play (type of product, inventory, how many units need to sell over a time period to break even, etc), but it doesn’t seem implausible, so much as it does dependent. But idk, I still can’t figure out how the fuck magnets work, let alone accounting

        • GoodEye8@lemm.ee
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          1 year ago

          It’s a relatively new (became applicable in 2022) thing called price indication directive. The TLDR is what the other guy said, the only addition is that member states can set different rules for certain goods.

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            Wouldn’t a loophole be to relist something to include some extra trinket with the main product (e.g. lens cleaner with a camera) and argue the “new” listing is something completely different than before?

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              Or raise the price 31 days prior, and “drastically discount” it after. It seems like a cool policy in theory, but it also sounds like it doesn’t really have any teeth. Like a “political theater” kind of law. But who’s to say, maybe it could be someone’s poli-sci thesis some day.

              Or I’m just dumb and don’t understand something fundamental about it; I also except that

    • Einar@lemm.ee
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      For anyone who is unaware of what this refers to, it is this website:

      https://camelcamelcamel.com/

      The website describes it’s services like so:

      Our free Amazon price tracker monitors millions of products and alerts you when prices drop, helping you decide when to buy.

    • MrShankles@reddthat.com
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      What’s up with this product price of $99 for a “re-usable straw” that listed near the beginning for me

      It’s list price is $99,999 with an average of $68,267.48?! I obviously wouldn’t be purchasing from that vendor for many reasons; but how easy is it to manipulate prices for a website like this? Or maybe it’s a vendor that’s trying to make the website seem useless? Or just a one-off?

      Idk, it caught my eye right off the bat though lol

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    I take screengrabs through the year of products I’m interested in and keep records. So I tend to see when they raise their prices in early November, only to drop it to just above the original price for their Black Friday “deals”.

    Really there needs to be changes in consumer law to tackle this. We either lost a bunch of legal protection after Brexit, here in the UK, or the retailers realise they can get away with it. Amazon is really bad at this. So are the really big tech retailers.

        • Drusas@kbin.social
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          You don’t need to use it as an add-on. You can go to the website and set up a price drop alert for whatever it is you’re interested in.

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              There’s maybe 4 things I buy a year on Amazon. I set the price watch, when it hits the price I want I chick the link and buy it.

              Not sure why you would need to buy more things to make it worthwhile.

            • Drusas@kbin.social
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              It’s pretty quick and easy, but that’s more than I’ve ever monitored in a year, so it would be more work for you than it has been for me.

  • Ensign Rick@startrek.website
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    As a past retail worker. Black Friday was miserable. I worked at Bestbuy. I saw a lot of people breakdown and quit thay day due to the stress. Don’t encourage it. If you do go out. Be respectful and remember it’s just things that don’t really matter. I have never gone out and don’t support it especially the trickling of businesses forcing employees to work on Thanksgiving.

    • JokeDeity@lemm.ee
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      Currently at work at the worst company you could ever work for, Big Lots. We’ve even got extended hours today, but hardly anyone here shopping. ANY corporation that has shareholders has no choice but to become increasingly evil and vile to their employees.

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          Honestly my entire life is a wreck, my fiance is probably going to leave me because I absolutely can’t seem to find a real job and I’m my debt has ballooned like 3x it’s size in 6 months because even though I’m a manager who does literally everything you could do working retail, I get paid $10.50 an hour. I quite literally can’t afford to eat and am going hungry most days for the last month. Yet the only thing my mind can seem to focus on is saving my relationship but I just feel it drifting every day I can’t secure a real job. I’ve applied to literally hundreds of jobs over the past 6 months, gone to many interviews, called called called and called some more, and yet nothing, no one wants to give me a chance even though I have a decent resume, I’m polite, I’m very good with computers and have no criminal or any kind of bad history. Definitely thinking about ending it a lot lately. Sorry to dump on you, just feel like I need to write this out somewhere instead of just festering in my head.

          • Ensign Rick@startrek.website
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            1 year ago

            🤗 I’m sorry your having such a tough time… Everything is temporary. I know it feels hard right now… Don’t make a permanent solution to these temporary problems… Things will change. Keep going. Best of luck to you. 🤗

              • NotSpez@lemm.ee
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                Your situation really sucks. The most important part is to tell yourself you can be happy again, even if it feels very far away right now. Being happy is the best thing there is, and worth a lot of effort and tough times to get to again.

                Life gets overwhelming. You don’t need to see the whole staircase to take the first step. You’re doing your best. Be sure to talk about your feelings with your SO.

                There is a mentalhealth community. As you’ve said, sometimes it is really good to write stuff down. Best of luck to you my friend.

                • JokeDeity@lemm.ee
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                  Thank you, I have talked to her a lot, but she has valid reasons. I have not been an equal contributer and the weight of everything has been on her for too long, I would do anything in my power to not lose her, but what NEEDS to happen just doesn’t seem to. I know I need back in to see my doctor and see if she can get me on an antidepressant, but the number one thing I need is sadly just money. My income, even though I bust my ass for it, feels like drops in a very very large bucket. Thanks again.

            • JokeDeity@lemm.ee
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              It’s funny how when you’re doing okay a message like that doesn’t feel like much from a stranger, but his a lot deeper when you’re feeling at the end of your rope, I appreciate your kindness and compassion. It’s just gotten worse and worse every year, I had stability at one time and I was an equal contributer, but I just feel like complete shit about myself constantly and nothing seems to go right. My vehicle which I’m still paying a loan on has been in a mechanics shop for 3 months, the car that I had been borrowing developed a major oil leak and can’t be driven so I am stuck getting rides across town with no decent bussing options (which I’ve admittedly never taken a public bus out of anxiety), my credit cards which I got initially to help my fiance with things have gone unpaid for about 6 months with daily calls from collectors, and whatever else I can’t bring to mind right now, but it’s all just a decline no matter how hard I try or how decent of a person I try to be to everyone I interact with in my life. And on top of that most of my friends haven’t talked to me in years and the one good friend I do talk to every few months or so has her own life and issues to deal with, I have no family anywhere near me and have a bad relationship with my father, my mother is wonderful but I feel even worse dumping my troubles on her because she has no way to help me from across the country and with her extremely limited resources and I know it makes her feel like she failed as a parent because she couldn’t provide me with the things she thinks she should have (I don’t blame her a bit, she really is a wonderful person), which means the only person who I can talk to about anything going wrong in my life is the love of my life who is being embittered towards me by every compounding issue. I recently got back on ADHD meds after being off them for a decade or more and it’s only seemed to serve to make me have energy and no appetite, but not help me that much, I want to try antidepressants for the first time in my life, but the doctors don’t make it easy, it was a struggle just to get on the ADHD meds even though I had taken Adderall for 5+ years in the past. It’s just overwhelming and never ever seems to let up. I can’t play video games any more, television just seems to fade into the background as I’m consumed by horrible thoughts constantly.

              • Sarcasmo220@lemmy.ml
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                1 year ago

                Do you have insurance or, if not, does your state provide Medicaid to low income individuals? If you have private insurance I would recommend looking up therapists and maybe even psychiatrists who are covered by your insurance. If you have Medicaid your county probably has a behavioral health department that can provide some help.

                If no to both, you can call 9-8-8 and ask for behavioral health resources that are available. in your area. You can also call that number to talk about your depressing and self harming thoughts if you feel like you want to give your friends and family a break.

                • JokeDeity@lemm.ee
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                  Thank you, I have my states ACA insurance which is the only way I’ve seen a doctor (hadn’t seen one in about 15 years before last month). I had never heard about that phone number, I might give it a call later, thank you so much.

    • elementalguy2@lemmy.world
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      Work at Best buy currently in inventory, last year all week of black Friday we have over 300 online orders at once until we were getting closer to the end of the night. This week so far the most I’ve seen is 50. We’re staffed the same, less so in fact with all the call-outs, but still we have a full team in tomorrow from 1am until midnight.

      • Ensign Rick@startrek.website
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        1am geezus back when I worked at Bestbuy. 2008ish I came in at 3:30am to sell shitty netbooks to customers waiting in the lines outside.

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          In 1998 I used to have to be in at 6AM.This thread is like a nice little timeline of the enshittification of America.

    • EmpathicVagrant@lemmy.world
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      I was on year 4 or 5 retail, working in a small strip mall that included a best buy. The people swamped the door so hard it came off when the poor kid unlocked them, literally doorbusters and he got trampled and died.

      Every year there’s a few deaths to the craze and I made a habit of checking the count every year.

  • kamen@lemmy.world
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    That’s why you don’t buy in a rush but rather track the price of something you’re interested in buying over a couple of months.

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        Nah, it is. It’s the same as folks who scream about how easy it is to be scammed on Amazon. It’s rare and if you are getting tricked into buying fakes every order the problem is you.

        Shopping for deals really isn’t as hard as you all make it seem.

  • demonquark@lemmy.ml
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    1 year ago

    Tbf, it depends. I just bought a pair of converse for 25 bucks. Granted they’re an unpopular color, but hey 25 bucks for a pair of chuck 70s is a good price.

  • Dettweiler@lemmyonline.com
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    That exact model was $599 in October. I would know, because I bought one.

    It’s actually a really great smoker, but the app is terrible.