How retailers are ripping you off

I have just spent the last half day with my girlfriend. We had lunch and afterwards she dragged me to go shopping because it is the day after Boxing Day and therefore there were still many products with huge discounts, e.g. 50% off. I am wary of these percentage discounts because a product that is $200 with a 50% discount is still a rip off if the market value of the product is, say, only $10.

To prove my point, I walked around and found a Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini selling for about $400. It has had 40% off to bring the price down to $400. This is supposedly good because normally the price is higher. However, I whipped out my smartphone, did a Google search, and found the exact phone for sale from Kogan for only $350. Even with the 40% discount, the product was overpriced.

The lesson here is that a percentage discount means nothing. You should do a Google search of anything before you buy it.

Google Retail Store is a Good Idea

I was at Myer today buying wedding gifts. While there, I walked by an Apple Store and looked at all the iSheep inside playing on iPhones, iPads, and iPad minis. I then remembered news that Google will one day had retail stores just like Apple. I think this is a great idea. The reality is that Google products like the Nexus 4, 7, and 10 are great products but because most people don't buy things online and like to touch and feel things in their hands, there needs to be a physical presence. Once people touch and feel the Nexus smartphones and tablets, realize that these are excellent products that are a fraction of the cost of the equivalent iPhone or iPad, there is a good chance they will buy. Why get the $350 iPad mini with dual-core CPU, 0.5 GB RAM, and low-resolution screen when you can get the Google Asus Nexus 7 with Tegra 3 quad-core CPU, 1 GB RAM, and high-resolution screen for only $200?

Some people say Google starting its own store is just a copycat move by Google to get in on Apple's turf. But Apple did not invent the store. They have existed since ancient times. Selling things in a shop is not new.

Update 15 March 2013: Google have confirmed that they will not have retail stores, which is disappointing.