We don’t really print photographs much anymore—most of the time, there’s some display we can show them on, and for the rare times we want physical copies, it’s cheaper to order through an online service like Shutterfly than deal with the total cost of owning a photo printer. But maybe you’re more retro than that or need instant gratification with your pics, in which case you might want to read Slate’s side-by-side showdown of six different photo printers.
advice
NBC Teaches Personal Finance Lessons On "30 Rock"
By 10.26.07
NBC is taking the “workplace comedy” concept to new levels of realism, by including a couple of scenes about a major character’s lack of a savings plan in this week’s “30 Rock” episode. After being awarded a $10,000 “GE Followship Award” for being such a great follower, Tina Fey’s character stuns her boss by revealing she doesn’t have a 401(k)—or, apparently, even a savings account.
Put Impulse Spending To Work As A Savings Builder
By 10.24.07
If you’re the type of person who thinks “discretionary spending” means “I can buy what I want, when I want,” read this person’s idea for how to create an Impulse Buy Savings Plan. It gives you a methodology where you can effectively trap your impulse purchases in a cooling-off period, while also seeing how that money would look if it were saved instead.
Use Halloween Candy To Educate And Annoy Your Kids
By 10.24.07
Sometimes parents like to drive their kids crazy by showing up on Facebook, or listening to rap music, or professing that Zac Efron is a cutie-patooty, but Grad Money Matters suggests a whole new level of annoyance: use their Halloween candy to teach them about money. Here’s how: on Halloween night, you buy all their candy off of them, then give them a pre-set limit of how much they can spend each day to buy choice pieces back, and as the days go along, you drop the “prices” on the candy so that they can purchase more if they want or forego the sweets in order to increase their savings.
Make Sure You Know What You're Doing Before You Invest In Gold
By 10.19.07
A lot of financial advisors have suggested investing in gold lately, since the U.S. economy seems headed for the crapper and gold tends to increase in value as the dollar plummets. And a lot of people seem to be following that advice, because gold is up above $750 an ounce now, “its highest level since 1980,” says SmartMoney. But gold investments can change value quickly and can be even more difficult to predict than regular investments, so don’t go all Scrooge McDuck on the gold hoarding.
How To Have A Low-Budget Halloween
By 10.19.07
Are you too broke to go trick-or-treating this year? Good! More candy for the rest of us! But even though Halloween brings out the competitive sweet-tooth in us, we want to share Kiplinger’s tips on how to have a cheaper Halloween.Two of them—”get creative on costumes” and “follow a…
13 Retirement Myths Debunked By Money Magazine
By 10.16.07
According to Money, there are 13 big myths about retirement that you need to be aware of—and the sooner you know about them, the sooner you can make any necessary adjustments to improve your preparations for those twilight years.Myth 1: You need a big income to have a big nest eggMyth 2: You…
Take Action On Money Tips You Read Online
By 10.16.07
David over at MoneyNing urges us to all take action on the money tips we read online—not just read them and then forget them, or dismiss them as unrealistic, or tell ourselves they don’t apply to us. “We read the tips, agree that it makes so much sense, then we sit there and flip on TV to watch other people make money while we spend money watching them.”
3 Ways To Improve Your Online Shopping Experience
By 10.12.07
SmartMoney offers three tips to improve some of the most common down-sides of shopping online: too many results, not enough discounts, and dreaded shipping fees.
Budgeting Tip: Use What You Buy
By 10.12.07
A columnist at Get Rich Slowly describes how her family learned to focus on getting the most use out of the things they purchase, rather than using them once or twice and then moving on to the next new thing. While it sounds like an obvious tip, it can be a little harder to practice in real life—but, she writes, the results can be eye-opening.
6 Online Shopping Scams To Watch Out For
By 10.11.07
1. Missing Auction Goods – Auction fraud represents over a third of Internet scam complaints every year. Your safest bet is to pay with plastic so you gain the protections of the Fair Credit Billing Act. When plastic’s not an option, setting up an account through PayPal or BillPay that connects to your credit card is the next best bet.
Upgrade Or Repair Your Home With Eco-Friendly Products
By 10.10.07
Despite all the media attention, buying well-made, affordable products that are also environmentally sound is still a difficult task. Kiplinger’s “Shopping Guide to Eco-Friendly Products” offers several suggestions to help you buy green and get a solid deal on major appliances, lawn care, building supplies, and home maintenance.
What's The One Thing You Hate To Spend Money On?
By 10.9.07
WiseBread asks an interesting question this week: what’s your frugal obsession? You know, that one thing you can’t stand spending money on: “Some people refuse to pay for bottled water; others refuse to shell out $4 to rent a movie when they can get them from the library for free.” Responses so far include software, soft drinks at restaurants, and gift wrap.
Find Out Your Nest Egg Score
By 10.8.07
A.G. Edwards has a short online quiz that determines your “nest egg score” based on criteria like how long before you plan to retire, how aggressively you invest, and where you live. It’s not meant to provide an in-depth portfolio review, just a quick sketch of where you stand—you’ll get a score very similar to a credit score, along with a comparative national average and a list of tips on how to improve your score.
Retirement Plans For Those Who Don't Have One
By 10.6.07
If you’re a freelancer, or work for a small company, or for some other reason don’t have a healthy start on a retirement plan, Smart Money has some suggestions for how to jump-start your investment before you hit your golden years.
A Little Tax Preparation Now Will Save You Headaches In 2008
By 10.5.07
Now that 2007 is drawing to a close, it’s a great time to take stock of this year’s income and expenses and see what you can do to lessen your tax burden for the year. Reuters offers several tips to help you increase your refund check (or reduce what you owe, if you’ve had one of those years). They also point out a couple of regulatory issues you might not be aware of that could trip you up if you’re giving gifts or funding retirement accounts.
8 Bluetooth Headsets Reviewed
By 10.4.07
A professed non-early-adopter has reviewed 8 different Bluetooth headsets in a range of prices, scoring them on design, functionality, sound quality, and value. Her favorite from the group: the huge Plantronics Voyager 520, which sells for around $100. Coming in last was the $100 Samsung WEP410, which kept falling out of her ear.
Online Guide To Home Energy Savings
By 10.1.07
The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy has just updated its Consumer Guide to Home Energy, which “draws on the latest research on home performance and energy use, translating research findings into the practical steps consumers can take to cut their energy consumption.” The guide is offered for purchase, but you can also access highlights from it fro free online.
