I bought it just because.....

dr_ rusko on 30/01/2012 - 12:01

12 months ago there is no way I could have resisted this deal
http://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/62238

I just would have bought it without thinking (possibly a quick price check to make sure it was a good deal) - but not much thinking about whether I "really" needed it.

It was funny to see that people were posting comments to this effect (ie buying it just b/c)

Is this something that just wears off after a while - if anything my financial situation has improved… just the "ozbargain effect" is not quite as potent.

What stuff have others bought "just b/c" - and have you found this impulse settles down over time??

General Discussion

Comments

  • tonyjzx on 30/01/2012 - 12:26

    atom netbooks are a dinosaur

    there's no need for them really except in exceptional circumstances

    • llama on 30/01/2012 - 14:48
      +3

      I completely disagree.

      We use our Lenovo single core Atom netbook every single day - it sits on the coffee table, and my partner and I, and our 7 year old all use it continuously.

      We all have iPhones or iPods, plus our own desktop computers as well. But when you need something ultra-portable to boot fast and look something up, the netbook is a major win. It gets used for Youtube, Email, Controlling the Media Player, heaps of Google searches. My partner uses it for recipes too.

      Since the battery lasts so long (power settings are really aggressive) it goes almost a week without dying of battery power. We take it away when we go away, and tether it to the phone… in this way it's our "main computer" when outside the house.

      It gets used as a Media Player, and has heaps of music on it. It can play fairly high bitrate MKVs (screen is less than 720p anyway) so we watch movies on it when away. We plug in a small amplified speker system and it's our stereo on the beach, etc.

      I use it when I am preparing eBay sales, both for research on future sales, and for processing my existing orders. It's tiny, so I can plop it down where ever I am working at the time and it's not in the way. The battery life is the biggest advantage - things with a "proper" processor and GPU would never last 6-8 hours of normal use!

      Yes, an iPad (or a Samsung Tab) would be heaps better - but that would cost heaps more.

  • Geewhizz on 30/01/2012 - 12:36
    +2

    Hubby bought 2 bottles of coke we didn't need (already have 4 in the cupboard) yesterday simply because I was 2 codes down on the maximum allowed on coke unleashed for the week.

    In the few months I've been on ozbargain it has cost me a fortune saving money on bargains I would not have otherwise known about.

  • bendertiger on 30/01/2012 - 12:56
    +1

    I have bought things I don't NEED, like a decent set of headphones, but only because I am tired of buying cheap crappy $8 chinese branded sets that do the job but are definately nowhere near the best. Was $28 from $100 though…so…

    Also, I have too many clothes but can't go past a reduced bargain, love my t-shirts with awesome prints on them. Most of them cost me around $10 so can't complain…will eventually use them one day!

    Same with shoes, whenever Target has a sale I'll drop in and scoop them up, my feet will never get bigger and always need more shoes…one day! I'm happy with what I've got at the moment, but there are things I really want to get soon, like a suit. Looking at spending $100-200 on it. Doesn't hurt to have certain things around the place.

  • tonyjzx on 30/01/2012 - 13:01
    +5

    i bought a car i didn't need… i thought petrol is only $1.05 a litre and well… may as well get it out of my system now… so i have a 280kW V8 6 spd manual sedan i rarely drive because i've racked up 3 speed fines with it already…

  • scrimshaw on 30/01/2012 - 15:36

    Bought a Kindle3 keyboard for $99.

    Had it for 3 months and only read 1 book with it, now it's just gathering dust.

  • Tsort on 30/01/2012 - 21:52

    Bought 4 double walled glass for about $40 - just because.

    Regretted it very quickly after paying. Why would I need 4 of them in a home of just 2 people.

    Regretted it much when the box arrived, 4 tall fragile glasses that aren't designed to last, the bottom is too narrow to stand safely, tumble-happy incident-magnet glasses…. As expected, soon one of them broke. Keeping 2 in the box, 1 in the cupboard, using it like once or twice only ever.

    Regretted even more when a visit to local Chinese goodies shop saw very similar glasses, same quality, same everything except for design (shorter version), but much cheaper!

  • shakoo on 30/01/2012 - 22:44
    +1

    Ended up buying a Coleman esky for 60-something including shipping, basically half price. Told the missus about it and next thing you know a second one was being bought. There goes the savings… Kinda…

  • dr_ rusko on 30/01/2012 - 23:12

    the question i am particularly interested in is - do these impulses settle the longer you spend on ozbargain…
    or is there no end in sight for my overworked credit card??

    • bendertiger on 30/01/2012 - 23:40
      +1

      Depends what it is… there are plenty of things that would make my life easier/save time but don't really need them. Then there is the purchases where you don't really need but are such high quality for so cheap you just end up hitting the 'buy it now' button without realising…

    • Geewhizz on 31/01/2012 - 07:47
      +1

      the question i am particularly interested in is - do these impulses settle the longer you spend on ozbargain…
      or is there no end in sight for my overworked credit card??

      Nope - there'll always be something you didn't previously realise you needed.

      • tonyjzx on 31/01/2012 - 08:38
        +1

        its a consumer society

        however look at your living environment… where do you put all the stuff

        and you tend to get more and more critical about what you buy

        eg. i haven't seen a laptop that fits my needs and price for quite a while so… you can judge whether an item truly fits your needs and pocket

      • dr_ rusko on 31/01/2012 - 15:36
        +1

        but surely after a while we get more level headed and the time between seeing the bargain and buying it increases (enough that a little comon sense can kick in)

    • bluedufflecoat on 31/01/2012 - 08:49

      depends on you, I think… I used to go to all the group buy websites etc… now I don't. Just because the deals may be a bit dodge. Logic won in the end, in this case.

      When allphones had the special on the SGS2 and other smart phones, I desperately wanted to get one - eventhough I just bought one a few weeks earlier! :P The price point was too high to justify getting another one, "just because". :)

  • ThePistonHead on 30/01/2012 - 23:28

    Optus My Tab. Piece of junk in comparison to my HTC Desire. Sold on here for a loss of ~$30 when i could have sold it on ebay for $150.

    • llama on 31/01/2012 - 09:13
      +1

      Yeah, the MyTab and that Telstra one caused a silly buying frenzy, really. Yes they were cheap, but the low CPU power and resistive touchscreen means a less than pleasant user experience.

      Unless a user is continually thinking to themselves "wow, this works so well", the gadget usually gets relegated to the cupboard pretty fast. Whilst I hate Apple, preventing their items being "cast off" by users is the one thing that they do extremely well.

    • scotty on 31/01/2012 - 15:51

      Someone's junk might be another person's best buy. I bought Optus MyTab from DickSmith for $99 last June, and am still using it everyday :)

  • retiredfeline on 31/01/2012 - 09:14
    +1

    A handful of Meritline gadgets recently. For a buck or two, it's good entertainment.

    When I examine it honestly, I don't think OzBargain has saved me money, but it has allowed me to get more for the same outlay. I try to get bargains on food and other consumables because durables take up space.

  • slowmo on 31/01/2012 - 17:13

    I was on a lookout for netbooks to run as a cheap energy efficient file server.

  • any123 on 31/01/2012 - 23:01

    Bought a camera because it was on sale. Still expensive but it was a lot of fun!

    • dr_ rusko on 01/02/2012 - 21:57

      I'm finding it hard to resist this entry level slr from Harvey Norman… Help!!!

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