Laptops are often thought of as an unnecessary expense when your office desktop computer works just fine. But since laptops can add efficiency, portability and convenience, the expense may be worth it. Although laptops generally cost more than comparable desktop computers, there are many ways you can cut costs. For example, if you can get by with a smaller screen, a shorter battery life and less-than-lightning-fast speed, you can take hundreds of dollars off the final price tag. The key to finding the best laptop that fits in your budget is to:
1. Comparison shop.
2. Find a deal on a closeout laptop computer.
3. Shop where you can name the price on a laptop.
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done
Go outlet shopping for cheap laptops
This form of outlet shopping doesn’t require you to head out on the freeway to the nearest outlet mall, but rather go online to find a cheap laptop from one of the many laptop computer manufacturers who offer cheap deals at their online outlet.
I recommend: Find cheap refurbished laptop computers, overstocked merchandise, scratch and dent, returned laptop computers and cheap used laptops online at
Dell,
HP,
Gateway,
Apple, and
Sony. Also search for cheap computer laptops at the
Open Box Outlet Store,
Clearance Outlet Store and
Refurbished Outlet Store from
PCMall.com and the
Open Box Outlet Store,
Clearance Outlet Store and
Refurbished Outlet Store from
MacMall.com.
Find deals for cheap laptop computers
Manufacturers, retailers and online retailers routinely offer rebates or coupons on certain laptop computer models. Take advantage of these.
I recommend: Check out
BensBargains.net and
NotebookReviews.com for coupons, rebates and deals on computer laptops and other electronics.
Comparison shop
If you decide to go for a new laptop computer rather than a used or refurbished one, the key to finding cheap laptop computers is to comparison shop at various retailers.
I recommend: You can compare current store sale circulars to figure out which retailer has the best deal right now at
SalesCircular.com. At
TechBargains.com you can sign up for email alerts on specific computer notebooks when they reache a desired price. For daily blowout sales on cheap laptop computers, check out
USANotebook.com. For more comparison-shopping, check out
Bizrate,
Dealtime,
Pricegrabber and
Froogle.
Get a cheap laptop through an online auction
If you want to name your own price and you don’t need your new computer notebooks yesterday, you might want to shop an online auction for cheap laptops. This allows you to bid on a new and used laptop computer and sometimes find an absolute steal!
I recommend: Ebay and
InetBid.com offer online auctions for laptop computers, including many
used laptops.
Find cheap laptops at warehouse stores
Don’t forget to check out your local warehouse club for deals on computer laptop and computer notebooks.
I recommend: Costco and
Sam’s Club often offer deeply discounted electronics - including laptop computers and computer notebooks - that are available exclusively to cardholding members.
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