Cyber Monday is just around the corner (28th Nov to be exact) so lots of bargains to be had ahead of Christmas. For those that are not aware Cyber Monday is a bit like Black Friday but for online purchases/retailers – Its typically associated with online purchases of tech (think laptops/smartphones/tablets/appliances etc)
Its easy to get lost in the swarm of adverts and pop ups so use our handy hints to not only get a great deal but also to stay safe
Tip 1 – Before you even consider putting in payment details on a website check its a secure website
Cyber Monday is all about online shopping so a really quick way of checking the validity of a website is to see if it has a SSL certificate. A website SSL certificate confirms that the data sent from your computer to that website is secure and encrypted. Its a way of confirming that you are working within a trusted environment on the website. Any website that does not have a SSL is a huge RED FLAG and should be avoided at all costs.
Simplest way to tell if a website is a secure website is to look at the address bar. You are looking for the website address to start with https rather than http. For example our website is https://redpenguin.it
The other giveaway is to look for a padlock next to the address bar
Finally if you are still unsure you can check a website via this checking tool – Click here
Tip 2 – Use a deal checker and setup alerts
Its Cyber Monday and you have set your eyes on a new gadget, lets say you fancy the latest Apple Watch, rather than just going to your favoured website try using some online deal checkers to see what price you can get.
We tend to like the built in ‘shopping’ feature on the Google search engine. Simply type Apple Watch into a Google Search and hit ‘shopping’ underneath the search bar. You will now see a whole list of products that you can then filter down with links to the retailers selling them!
If you want to be more pro-active then using deal checkers can also keep track of your chosen product and alert you when the price drops or hits your target price
Sites such as https://hotukdeals.com will allow you to enter the product you are looking for and then will allow you to setup alerts sent to your email/phone when the price drops or hits a target price you set. Let the site do the work for you!
Tip 3 – ALWAYS pay with Credit Card
So this is just generally good advice when purchasing anything not just online tech during Cyber Monday. With the recent announcement of made.com going bust and customers being left out of pocket its brought into sharp relief how important it is to get some protection when making purchases.
If you pay for something with a credit card instead of a debit card then the card issuer/company are jointly reliable for recompense if something goes wrong. As long as the purchase is more than £100 and less than £30’000 then you have additional protection under Section 75 – For more info check this link
Tip 4 – Don’t skip out on the refurbs / New old stock!
Many retailers during Cyber Monday offer brand new un-used models to make space for the incoming model or offer refurbished items at a heavily discounted price. If we take laptops as a case in point a Lenovo Yoga touchscreen laptop with a Core i7 CPU and 16GB of RAM is currently available as a OEM refurbished item for under £480! Bear in mind when new just 2 years ago this was a £1500 laptop.
Not only is it essentially brand new as its a manufacturer refurbished item but it actually comes with a longer warranty than when it was sold ‘as new’ (2 year warranty vs 1 warranty)
Because its a manufacturer refurb from a trusted retailer you are getting all the protection and peace of mind you would get from buying ‘new’ but for 1/3 the price!
We hope that our simple tips can help you bag the bargain you wanted in time for Christmas and as always if you need advice or support on anything tech just give us a shout.