I'm excited....

[pyrate83]

I am excited b/c I just saved a bunch of money(rebates) on a stick of 512mb. Thanks to the ppl here, I learned that there are rebates for everything and if you look for em you can save a lot of money. This will also be the first time I install something on my computer so wish me luck...although I know memory upgrades are the easiest to do!

Thanks again, u guys are great!

:P :P :P :P

[jeex]

good luck. the companies are always out to screw you..

check out this article..

http://slate.msn.com/id/2084210/

[pyrate83]

Its a good point man. Makes you think before buying.

[poopyhead]

want some good deals???

http://forums.anandtech.com/categories.cfm?catid=40

http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/categories.cfm?catid=18

[pyrate83]

Some of those deals aren't too bad.....

[flaninacupboard]

yeah, rebates are a shitty idea. glad to say i never see them in this country!

the idea is stupid anyway, unless consumers are really lazy they will always frind retailers who offer fair prices (mainly decent websites) and will consistently save money, wheras these one-off offers look great, but every other price in the shop is too high.

[gmatov]

Flanina,

You're right, the rebate is a stupid idea.

BUT, if you can let the money sit for a few months, you WILL get some stuff cheaper, sometimes much cheaper, with a rebate.

And, in many cases, it is to clear more or less obsolete, or soon to be obsolete, components.

I bought 160 gig HDDs for 70 USD + tax, have to wait to get my 80 USD rebate, 3 to 6 months. I would not have bought them for the asking price of 180.

Office Depot, right now, has a 17" monitor for 58 USD after 70 USD rebate.
3 yr warranty. I've bought them at shows for half that, refurbed, warranty whatever they give, if you ever see them again.

It seems, from these forums, that you Brits have to pay more for everything, and you don't even have the "rip-off" rebate to cut you an occassional break.

You know, some of the rebates that are to try to clear obsolete stuff, ( or soon to be ) are on the same stuff your local shop is also going to be stuck with shortly, but he is still going to charge you a "fair" price, because he can't afford to take such a loss.

[poopyhead]

I bought 160 gig HDDs for 70 USD + tax, have to wait to get my 80 USD rebate, 3 to 6 months. I would not have bought them for the asking price of 180.

got it from staples??? just received my rebate check...

however, i'm still stunned by the fact they don't disclose the check in an envelope, where ppl can't tell there's a huge fat check in there that they can cash at places that don't check ID.

they're trying to save a couple of cents and use check postcards that completely expose the, in this case $80, check to the outside for whoever wants to steal it.

[tgpo]

I bought 160 gig HDDs for 70 USD + tax, have to wait to get my 80 USD rebate, 3 to 6 months. I would not have bought them for the asking price of 180.

got it from staples??? just received my rebate check...

however, i'm still stunned by the fact they don't disclose the check in an envelope, where ppl can't tell there's a huge fat check in there that they can cash at places that don't check ID.

they're trying to save a couple of cents and use check postcards that completely expose the, in this case $80, check to the outside for whoever wants to steal it.

I agree. I just received my rebate check from Maxtor and was shocked that it was just a check in the mailbox. No envelope, nothing even covering the fact that it was a $70 check. Anyone could have taken it. Luckily no one did, but I still can't understand what would posses them to do such a thing.

[poopyhead]

but I still can't understand what would posses them to do such a thing.

same as why DVD+R was created when DVD-R already came out.....

[gmatov]

All,
I guess they could really care less who cashes it. If you should ever complain, they just get a copy, say, well, here's the cancelled check, you've been paid, if you can't control your mail, tough.
Still, there is a lot of stuff I would not buy, obsolete or not, if I didn't get it, basically free, without rebates..
Wuld you buy a spindle of CD-Rs at 29.95 if they didn't have 2 mail in rebates of 7 and 20 bucks, 2.95 after rebates.

I have to admit, some of them have such small windows, if you don't send them in immediately, you are SOL. I just sent in the 2 160 gig Max rebates the day before the deadline, don't know why I looked at them to see this, just glad I did.

[pyrate83]

I sent my rebate in the day after I bought the memory...before I even installed it. I tend to forget and didn't want to miss out on the rebate.

[gmatov]

Yeah,
I tend to forget too. Lost some bucks, thataway.

[pbhalerao]

Why do the comapnies have mail-in rebates anyway? Why not offer the discount straight across the counter? After all, do not these companies have to employ people to check the rebate claim, process the check and send it by mail? Does this not cost money?

We, in India, do not have such complicated procedures. Either you get the discount strainght or you don't. And yes, you have to be prepared to bargain for everything - from vegetables to cars - and our women are experts at these, more than the men.

One rule here in India is - taxes are applicable on the original retail price and not on the discounted price. This way the government does not loose out on the deals. But then, there are many tax chaeaters any way.

[gmatov]

pbhlerao,
I am happy that you can whoop your computer in kickboxing, but be cautious, these things learn.
Over here, taxes are charged on the retail price, also, so actually, you are being screwed . You pay tax on a 100 item, though it costs, finally, 30. ( I use numbers to get around coversion )
Can you say you are getting a good deal if you do not know what a good deal is? It seems that every one in the rest of the world pays more for everything than we do here. Why, I do not know. Is your money worth more than the official numbers? The rupee is some 24? to the dollar, no?

[pbhalerao]

pbhlerao,
I am happy that you can whoop your computer in kickboxing, but be cautious, these things learn.
Over here, taxes are charged on the retail price, also, so actually, you are being screwed . You pay tax on a 100 item, though it costs, finally, 30. ( I use numbers to get around coversion )
Can you say you are getting a good deal if you do not know what a good deal is? It seems that every one in the rest of the world pays more for everything than we do here. Why, I do not know. Is your money worth more than the official numbers? The rupee is some 24? to the dollar, no?

gmatov, I think that I have confused the issue a little - my original question was "Why have mail-in rebates? Why not offer the discount straight over the counter?"

As regards to knowing "whether I am getting the best deal or not", there is no guarantee. I am pretty sure that the seller will always make the profit after all the discounts. How much is what he and the Lord up above alone know.

I agree with you that prices in US are most competitive - rest of us pay much more.

The rupee at 24 to a dollar? 47 is more like it.

[pacmania_2001]

The companies use mail-in rebates instead of straight out discounts because it saves them money. They go by the theory that most people are lazy and therefore won't bother sending in the rebate or will not follow the terms and conditions properly and therefore also won't recieve the rebate.

[poopyhead]

i'll do you one better pacmania_2001

these rebate companies will go out of their way to reject legitamate rebate claims....they're hoping most ppl will forget (or get confused) about the rebates they have sent in. maybe they send so many in, they can't tell which ones have come back yet. others are just too lazy to keep up with their legitamate rebate claim....rebate houses have ways to make it hard on you to follow up on your rebate.

[gmatov]

pbhalerao,

Click on and read this link, copied from Jeex post, second one on this thread;

http://slate.msn.com/id/2084210/

It gives some explanation of rebates.

Of course, not enough. There has to be some advantage to the retailer other than increased customer traffic, people coming into the store for the rebate item and buying full priced ( overpriced ) stuff, also. How much do they have to sell to make up for the "discount"? No one knows, except them.

Our food merchants claim they work on 2% or less gross profit. They have buy one, get one free, so if you buy a 2 dollar loaf of bread, you get a 2 dollar loaf of bread free. That should mean they have to sell 100 dollars more of product to compensate. I find it hard to believe that they do.

This should, logically, apply to other retail outlets, as well.

As an aside, does a loaf of bread cost 100 rupee, there?

[Treebeard]

Why do the comapnies have mail-in rebates anyway? Why not offer the discount straight across the counter?

Having taken a marketing class, statistics show that only 15-25% of people submit rebates. this justifies the rebate offers b/c sales is driven up.

[i_am_dave]

Having taken a marketing class, statistics show that only 15-25% of people submit rebates. this justifies the rebate offers b/c sales is driven up.

Not to mention the fact that they sell your name to mailing lists!!

Nice avatar, Danger Mouse Isn't it? Man I used to love that show!

[pbhalerao]

As an aside, does a loaf of bread cost 100 rupee, there?

No, of course not. No one will buy anything then. Food is relatively quite cheap in India in terms of Dollar$. An indiactive price comparison:

- A loaf of bread - Rs. 10 to Rs. 16 depending on size
- A kilo (2.2 lbs) of Potatoes - Rs. 12 to Rs. 20
- A kg. of Tomatoes - Rs. 20
- A full chicken - Rs. 80
- 1 kg. (2.2 lbs) of Pork - Rs. 55
- 1 kg. of Mutton (goat or lamb meat) - Rs. 120
- 500 gm butter - Rs. 65
- A 400 gm tin of chedder cheese - Rs. 70
etc.

At $1 = Rs. 47, make your comparison.

[pbhalerao]

pbhalerao,

Click on and read this link, copied from Jeex post, second one on this thread;

http://slate.msn.com/id/2084210/

It gives some explanation of rebates.

Of course, not enough. There has to be some advantage to the retailer other than increased customer traffic, people coming into the store for the rebate item and buying full priced ( overpriced ) stuff, also. How much do they have to sell to make up for the "discount"? No one knows, except them.

gmatov, Thanks. I understand the rebate scam now. I have claimed rebates three or four times when I was in the US. I was lucky enough to get back the rebate check. So I wondered ... Now I am the 'initiated' one.

Regards,

[gmatov]

pbhalerao,

Economics must elude me, in some way.

A loaf of bread, 450 to 600 grams, 1.99USD, 94 Rs
Potatoes, 2 kilo plus (5 pounds) 2 to 3 USD , 100 to 150 Rs
1 pound, 1/2 kilo tomatos, 1 USD to 1.69 USD, 94 to 160 Rs,
A full chicken, 4 to 5 USD, 200 to 250 Rs,
1 pound, 1/2 kilo pork, 2 to 3 USD, 100 to 150 Rs,
1 pound of lamb, 1/2 kilo, depending on cut, 2 to 9 USD, 100 to 450 Rs, and this is almost a sin, as I am Serbian by descent, and love lamb.
1 pound butter, 2.99 USD, 150 Rs,
400 g cheddar cheese, 4 USD +, depending on brand, 200 Rs. Is this "cheese food", or real cheddar cheese?
That is another hangup of mine. I love good cheeses, the sharper, the better, Blue, Gorgonzola, Provolone, Imported, not domestic, as we are not permitted to make nor sell cheese made from nonpasteurized milk, unless aged more than 60 days.

Anyhow, as I said, I can't understand international finance. In China and other Asian countries, they work for 12 to 20 cents per hour, and clean our clocks in manufacturing, but can still afford to buy the basic necessities, such as food and housing, and clothing. I read one time in Forbes magazine that there are 300,000 people in India with incomes of 30,000 Rs, and that they had an equivalent buying power of 100,000 USD.

How can this be? And, the Turkish lira is about 1 and 1/2 million to the dollar. How can that be?

I'll never know.

I pay 1.39 for a pound of rice, 140 Rs?

As far as computer components go ( to get back to the forum ) I am given to understand that many European countries prohibit price competition. In the US, they brought suit many years ago to prevent manufacturers from dictating what a product may be sold for. There was just a large ( what a laugh ) settlement with the CD industry that found the distributors guilty of overcharging the consumer, and they were forced to pay about a 75 million USD fine for overcharges of about 450 million USD. A good deal, wouldn't you say? If you robbed someone of 500 dollars, and were required to make restitution of 100 dollars, wouldn't you go out every day to rob someone else?

As I say, I don't understand.

Cheers,

George