Comments on: Why things get cheaper but you spend more

By: Alex

Alex — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 03:12:24 +0000

People who think a-la-carte cable will save them money are deluded. The only thing that will really lower cable prices is true competition (e.g. I can pick from 2 different cable companies)

Without that competition, I am 100% sure that the average cable subscriber who pays $80 per month today (for some channels they do want, but mostly channels they don’t want), will find that after switching to a-la-carte cable, they will STILL be paying $80 per month – but now they’ll only be getting the channels the DO want.

By: JT

JT — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 05:29:48 +0000

Hi, first of all Ramit…greal blog. I’m probably a little older than your target audience but I visit your blog regularly. Its well written, the topics are interesting…and we all need reminders to pay ourselves first, and to spend conciously on things we value as opposed to mindless consumerism.

I think you’re right, in the sense that costs for some things go down but there’s just more options out there to tempt us. When I was growing up we didn’t even have cable in our house, just free TV over the air. And my childhood was quite happy without the gazillion packages already available.

Personally, I just subscribe to the expanded basic cable package. I don’t get premium channels, no Tivo or any recording device whatsoever in fact. I had a VCR about 7 years ago that broke that i never bothered replacing with anything. You know what…I never really missed it., never order Tivo or anything. I watch stuff if I’m home, if not I just try and catch it on a rerun. I think the important thing is to realize what YOU value as opposed to what Madison Avenue tries to sell to you. They will always try and sell you on the idea that you NEED the most advanced gadget or service if you want to be productive, successful, cool, and happy. The reality is you can be productive, successful, cool and very happy without most of what they’re trying to sell.

By: jason

jason — Sun, 18 Nov 2007 18:05:27 +0000

i cant believe ANYONE pays for television viewing. plain and simply, its a waste of money. INTERNET service i will defend.

but until you can select exactly the cable networks you want, its stupid. i think the industry is heading that way, actually.

By: Meg

Meg — Sun, 18 Nov 2007 03:07:16 +0000

I recently saw that flat screen TVs are supposed to drop another 30% in 2008, and all I could think was that people will probably not spend less on televisions. They’ll either buy more of them or buy bigger screens. Either way they’ll probably spend more, not less.

Also, I think people like to stick to certain internal guidelines, like “spend 30% of your income on housing” and then they stick to it even if prices go down. So if my income goes up, I’ll go buy a bigger house.

By: Kiwi

Kiwi — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 17:21:54 +0000

Prices are generally declining, provided you aren’t buying the latest and greatest. Older model MP3 players are dirt cheap (no, not used, just not the latest item out there). Models that were $99 2 years ago are only $20 today.
For food, hit the Dollar Store, Big Lots, and other such places. 7 oz bag of dried tropical fruit for $1, big bag of pretzels for $1, name brand cereal for $1.50, 130-count aloe-infused Kleenex for $1. Cheeeeaaaap!

By: evie

evie — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 02:03:17 +0000

Could it be that cost of living expenses increase (inflation), while consumer goods – recreational or optional items – become cheaper?

By: Navi

Navi — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 20:35:04 +0000

Dimes,
I understand where you are coming from but you are trying to look at the costs in isolation. You can NEVER do that,in that case nothing will make sense.
When Ramit says the prices have come down he means gone down relatively, relative to how much more you earn, the price of a house or general inflation, your income being the most important number here.
You probably make more than you did in the 50 dollar cable days.

By: dimes

dimes — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 02:44:41 +0000

What crazy world do you live in where things are getting cheaper? Gasoline and food are crazy expensive, and the worst culprits in food are inelastic items, like milk or breakfast cereal. Fancy crap like chocolates seem to be a little more affordable, relatively speaking.
I suppose the single thing that has gotten cheaper between VA and CA has been cable, interestingly enough, as well as a basic landline. We were paying $50/month in VA for the same thing we are getting for $30 around here.

By: Xias

Xias — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 15:45:59 +0000

Hmm, that is a valid point. I always strive to keep my monthly expenses to a minimum, but the more options there are, the more people are likely to spend. That being said, if you focus on eliminating excess subscription costs, you may be able to finagle a lower rate.

By: payday loans uk

payday loans uk — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 14:33:12 +0000

I am fully agree with you, Every time we buy the latest electronics from the market we think now we have everything latest and no need to buy anything in next year, But after one month you say a new must buy thing in the market.
I know I am little out of topic, But it comes in my mind after reading the article. Nice pick man.