A ‘List Price’ Isn’t Real Just Because Some Company Says It Is Image courtesy of QVC is now charging less, but it's a worse deal.
Yes, it’s pretty much consumer common sense that the “list” prices that companies use to convince us how great their bargains are can be more or less nonsense. Anyone can make their own list, then put prices on it. Just in case you need a refresher, though, here are two great reader-submitted examples of discount prices that aren’t all that discounted.
QVC is now charging less, but it’s still not a great deal.
First up, Landon noticed that QVC is still offering their iPad 2 deal, which is better than it was eight months ago. It’s still pretty bad when you remember that the iPad 2 is now even more obsolete. At least the “QVC Price” of the bundle has fallen, along with the currently-featured sale price.
Consumerist readers are generally quite fond of the Roku video-streaming device, but that doesn’t get them off the book: Adrienne noticed that their sales site does a bit of wildly inaccurate comparison-shopping on customers’ behalf, and the end result is a little misleading. She explains:
I recently got rid of cable to save money, but since I still enjoy watching TV I decided to purchase a Roku box (they are having a Black Friday sale, so how could I say no?). After selecting which box I wanted, they directed me to a the second pagethat was dedicated to selling me add ons. The first option was to buy HDMI cables where Roku proudly states that the typical cost of HDMI cables is $25, but you can buy them direct from Roku for only only $9.99. Sounds like a deal, right?
As a devout Consumerist reader, I took this comparison with a grain of salt and did a quick search for HDMI cables online. The result: I purchased the cables from Amazon for $4.99 including shipping. I’m wondering if Roku is quoting us Monster Cable prices, since they are notoriously inflated.
Heck, for just a few cents more, you can go to Monoprice and get a purple HDMI cable. Will a big-box electronics store try to charge you way too much for an HDMI cable? Most likely. However, they don’t cost $25 just because that’s what you’d pay for one as an add-on to your new TV at Best Buy. $10 isn’t a terribly overinflated price for an HDMI cable, but it isn’t the best deal you’ll find online, either.
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90% Off An Imaginary Price Is Not A Sale
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