Cracking the gadget pricing code: Buy now or wait?

December 14, 2012

I get an uneasy feeling every time I belly up to the Best Buy cash register and fork over my credit card to buy a big ticket item. My worst fear? A sudden drop in retail pricing—one that occurs immediately after I make my purchase. Ever since I paid $250 for a Barnes & Noble Nook e-reader back in 2010—and then saw it drop to $100 a few months later—I've become gun shy when buying anything more expensive than a thumb drive. There's no such thing as a sure bet when it comes to anticipating price swings. Who knew that devastating floods would hit Thailand in 2011, and jack up the prices of hard drives nearly 50 percent in the following months. And now, as we all splurge on buying tech gadgets for the holidays, I scratch my head and ask a seamingly unanswerable question: What consumer electronics gear is dropping in price the fastest right now, and which purchases should be delayed a few months to best leverage pricing trends? As a public service, I'm here to help other reluctant buyers like myself. I've spent the last week asking pricing experts the big, tough questions: Is now the best time to buy a PC, tablet, TV or camera? And what about game consoles, storage, e-readers and more? Here's what I found out. To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Link: http://www.pcworld.com/article/2020284/cracking-the-gadget-pricing-code-buy-now-or-wait.html