Software

Techno- Savings

While we all know that computers, smartphones and app purchases cost us money, I wonder how many of us take advantage of the ways they can save us mon- ey. If you become familiar with a few good resources and are willing to spend an extra couple of minutes prior to making a purchase, your computer or smartphone can nearly always save you some cash. At the very least, it can let you rest assured that you're getting a good deal.

Retailmenot.com is a website that I visit frequently whether I'm purchasing online or off. Whether I'm renewing my anti-virus soft- ware, buying volleyball shoes from Nike for my daughter or looking for a free Redbox rental code, I can find discounts on Retail- menot.com.

For instance, let's say I need to purchase a baby shower gift for a friend who is registered at Target. By visiting www.retailmenot.com and searching for Tar- get, I can view a list of avail- able coupons. I immediately see one for 15% off Kids and Baby Apparel (plus free shipping for orders over $50).

If you're heading out of town for a "real life" shop- ping trip, be sure and check out the Printable Coupons tab at www.retailmenot.com before you leave. There you can print out coupons for $5 off $25 at Kohl's, 30% off one item at Aeropostale (or 20% off an entire purchase), 40% off entire purchase at Hollister, and 20% off rue21. Of course, all that shopping will make you hungry so be sure and print the Buy-oneget one-free entrée coupon to Macaroni Grill, a 50% off coupon to Papa John's (to bring a pizza home for dinner) and a $2 Jamba Juice coupon.

If you'd rather shop from the comfort of your home, you'll find plenty of on- line savings by clicking the Coupon Codes and Free Shipping tabs. The site even has sections for Grocery Coupons and Back to School specials.

Retailmenot.com does have its own smartphone app and if you have a favorite store - Home Depot, or Bath and Body Works, perhaps - you can sign up for deal alerts to be notified of spe- cials by those retailers.

Speaking of smartphone apps, there are a couple of those I use regularly as well. The ShopSavvy app is one of my favorite price com- parison apps. Simply scan the bar code of a product you are looking to purchase and ShopSavvy will bring up a list of both local stores and online retailers with their prices for the same item. If there is only a couple bucks difference, it's generally worth it to me to buy directly from the store. However, on occasion I've been sur- prised to learn that I can get the same product from Amazon for nearly half the price. With Amazon Prime, which provides free two-day shipping, the short delay in gratification can be worth it.

Another way to save money online is through comparison sites like www.mysimon.com or www.google.com/shopping. Here, you simply enter the item you're looking for to find a list of prices, complete with shipping and tax calculations. This can be especially helpful when making a large purchase like a camera or vacuum. When I did a search for a Dyson DC24 I found prices ranging from $279 to $429. Now that's a signifi- cant difference.

Whether you're shopping online or hitting the mall, spending a few minutes with your smartphone or computer before making a purchase has the potential to bring a significant return on your time investment.