Virtual Shopping

I’m the worst person in the world when it comes to buying big ticket items as I find myself lost in endless loops of reviews, recommendations, better options, different options, cheaper deals, discounts and before long I start to lose interest and end up just not buying something or, more often than not, I end up just buying ‘something’ which may or may not actually be the best option.

A friend of mine once commented on this when she asked for some advice on which mobile phone she should buy next, stating “I know you like to research these things a lot”.

Which at face value is true but, as it turns out, isn’t really true at all.

Funny how that happens. A lot.

See it’s not that I enjoy the researching process, it’s more than I’m scared to make a decision. Scared to decide that, yes, I WILL buy a Mac Mini, a big hard drive and use that as my main computer because there might actually be a better, and most certainly cheaper, option out there, it’s just that I’m not aware of it.

The new car was blighted with similar rounds of research, ponderingments and other such procrastinations. Admittedly most of the big manufacturers have ‘build your own car’ style configurators on their websites, which is always fun, but ultimately pointless as you never pay full price for a car, ever.

So whilst I sit here and think about buying sofas, beds, and other living room furniture (I won’t want for bookcases but few of them match..), I veer from my desire for minimalism and style, to what I can sensibly afford, to what I can afford at a stretch and then back to wonderous items that are just beyond my price range no matter which way I cut it. So I start over, with a budget in mind and still end up with too many options.

This affliction used to blight me when shopping for smaller items, clothes and whatnot, but I conquered that part of it by only ever visiting shops that I know are within my price range and trusting my first instinct.

Things is, when it comes to the big ticket items, my first instinct is usually the most expensive. It’s not that I choose things based on price, it’s usually the last thing I look at, but I seem to have expensive tastes.

Anyway, I need to stop THIS procrastination and make a decision.

This one, or this one?

Comments

  1. We usually end up at Ikea (pronounced icky-ah in our house) just because of the budget constraints. The shelves and bookcases aren’t that bad actually.

    I am going to recommend the items-for-sale section of the back of the paper. Ok, so there is often stuff that is not to your taste, but SOMETIMES there is some good gear for sale and if the price is right . . . you can spend more money on a good telly, sound system and computer.

  2. This is the reason I’ve bought Macs for the past twenty-odd years. Cuts the choice right down.

    Otherwise, I ask a friend who does research options and buy what they’ve bought – or avoid it like the plague. Oh, and for furniture and stuff, I buy second-hand or antique. So the choice is, like it or not and afford it or not.

  3. I’m exactly the same as you, I’ve been buying a 1Tb external drive for my 27″ iMac (that one was a no brainer) for the past 3 months and still not settled on any one product.
    I have always been Mac so when it came time to replace my trusty G4 the 27″ was exactly what I thought I wanted. The experience of it goes way beyond my expectations and is probably the best piece of equipment I have ever owned.

    I don’t work for Apple BTW

Comments are closed.