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Pay Too Much for everything

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Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#71

Post by lsc »

matwood wrote: post #64
lsc wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

eh, I think that most of what you are paying for is, well, paying more. I mean, today, the kids are buying $400 jeans that are thick and tough (then they don't wash them, which sounds disgusting, but what do I know?) but, you know, at least they are probably durable. But during the first dot com? the expensive jeans were made of this super thin denim that was then pre-stressed at the factory; So yeah, in '99? if you…

I spend more money on things I use all the time. My computer, bed sheets, jeans, etc... all have higher threshold of diminishing returns to me . I think you make a good point about the build quality of 90s jeans and jeans today. With that stated, while I like my 'designer' jeans I'm still likely paying too much. They do last longer than other cheaper jeans I have owned, but this could be a function of me being picky.…

eh, I guess my problem was more with this idea that expensive stuff usually lasts significantly longer. From what I've seen, it usually doesn't. Expensive stuff usually isn't optimized for use per dollar.

If the expensive stuff is giving you value on another axis? like the higher thread count sheets being more comfortable or what have you? that's great. I buy luxury items too. And I am willing to pay significantly more for tools that are easier or more comfortable to use.

I was just taking issue with the idea that expensive stuff is usually cheaper in the long run.

You should buy luxury items when you think the enjoyment you will get out of them is worth more than the money you spend on them. If someone tries to tell you that the luxury item is actually cheaper in the long run than the 'value' item, (the item actually designed to maximize use per dollar) well, I suppose it's possible, but it's pretty unlikely. You should be very, very suspicious.

Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#72

Post by jamesrcole »

gmac wrote: post #69
ImprovedSilence wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Learn. Just because you don't know now, doesn't excuse you from not knowing when you go to make a purchase. There are a number of ways to acquire knowledge out there. Go get it.

To a point. But there aren't enough hours in the day to become an expert in buying everything one has to buy, and in many cases predicting the durability of something is really difficult. I guess this is in large part why brands are so valuable, as they give consumers a seemingly easy quality heuristic.

I agree. Time is our most valuable resource and it's a cost/benefit matter as to whether it's worth your while looking in-depth at purchasing options for a particular type of product.

Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#73

Post by ryanklee »

gmac wrote: post #69
ImprovedSilence wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Learn. Just because you don't know now, doesn't excuse you from not knowing when you go to make a purchase. There are a number of ways to acquire knowledge out there. Go get it.

To a point. But there aren't enough hours in the day to become an expert in buying everything one has to buy, and in many cases predicting the durability of something is really difficult. I guess this is in large part why brands are so valuable, as they give consumers a seemingly easy quality heuristic.

> enough hours in the day to become an expert in buying everything one has to buy

Provided that it's usually the case that people buy far more than they strictly need to, might not some level of requisite knowledge about a product help determine whether one allows or disallows oneself from a purchasing it?

I know, in my own case, that I've become increasingly wary of purchases (given a price point, say, above $50) if I haven't had enough time to understand just what the hell it is I'm buying. This runs from things like bed comforters to headphones to deck chairs to pants to video games.

Generally speaking, my level of regret over a purchase is inversely proportional to the level of knowledge I had of that product and its ecosystem at the time.

Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#74

Post by latch »

mayneack wrote: post #67
latch wrote: post #14

I don't agree with most of this. The idea that price equals quality has long been used by merchants to extract money from consumers, not extend value. Sure it's true of some products and some companies, but overall I'd argue that at best, more expensive things aren't close to being relatively better - by any meaningful measure. A $300 meal isn't 10x better - in terms of taste (subjective obviously) or nutrition - as…

As a personal anecdote: when I eventually stopped growing taller (~19), I started purchasing clothing and outdoor gear that was a step up from the quality of when I knew that I'd grow out of things. While not universal, I did notice a definite uptick in the durability and comfort of most things. It's obviously possible that this was a placebo effect or maybe I'm nicer to my gear now, but I've certainly been getting m…

The placebo effect appears to be massive, at least where it's been studied (wine, for example). I'm happy to admit that, as a general rule (coughjaguarcough), higher prices indicate better quality, I just don't think it translates into better value (again, as a general rule).

Sure, highly functional things, like shoes and a bed, probably warrant paying more even though the value isn't proportional. Paying 50% more for shoes that you wear 8 hours a day which are 25% better (comfort, health, style) makes sense to me. But jeans, kitchenware, cars, medicine, food, electronics..the list goes on and on where I feel that, again, in general, cheaper is better.

As studies have shown, money should be spent on buying experiences...not things. It's the trip to Spain that'll make you happy, not the $1500 DSLR camera that you use to take pictures while you are there.

Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#75

Post by maciejgryka »

I highly recommend The Paradox of Choice http://www.amazon.com/Paradox-Choice-Why-more-less/dp/006000...

To quote from the article: "People who constantly try to always get that great deal end up spending all their time chasing those deals and never actually get things done. I’ve seen people do this their entire lives, and it is debilitating."

You can say the same about people who spend all their time trying to constantly get "the best" product. Figure out a few things that are important to you and maximise these - whether on quality or price. For the rest, learn to accept "good enough" and get on with your life doing things that matter for you.

Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#76

Post by crazygringo »

A lot of people tend to buy middle-priced things. Marketers rely a lot on this fact, actually, to take advantage of your ignorance.

I've found it's much better to avoid middle-priced things, most of the time. Usually, the cheapest option will meet your needs just as well.

But then you need to identify the things in your life that really contribute to your happiness, and then pay what's necessary for full quality in those.

I spend top dollar on fresh meat and vegetables and on my kitchen pans and chef's knives and olive oils for salads. But I have the cheapest vegetable peeler and spatula and paring knives and toaster and olive oil for frying.

Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#77

Post by berntb »

I got a really good workgroup printer, paid more than twice as much as for a cheap one.

I loved it but had to leave it when I moved -- just too heavy.

(And anyway, the Mac support wasn't good a couple of O/S versions later, but it still worked well with Linux.)

My takeaway from this has more to do with negotiating moving packages (and Samsung support of old customers, grumble) than anything else.

Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#78

Post by bobf »

latch wrote: post #14

I don't agree with most of this. The idea that price equals quality has long been used by merchants to extract money from consumers, not extend value. Sure it's true of some products and some companies, but overall I'd argue that at best, more expensive things aren't close to being relatively better - by any meaningful measure. A $300 meal isn't 10x better - in terms of taste (subjective obviously) or nutrition - as…

A $300 meal can be 10x better than a $30 meal. Most $30 meals are fine, but a $300 meal may be the best meal you have ever had.

Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#79

Post by icebraining »

drostie wrote: post #56

One key way in which the article is right on-the-money, so to speak, is to highlight the ridiculous frenzy that we go into to save disproportionately small amounts of money. Our audience here is mostly programmers. Programmers should all know the golden rule of optimization: profile it first . Don't take it on intuition or faith that "this is what was slowing me down" unless you've measured it. The same principle app…

I agree; I started using ledger[1] for that, and 'though it can be sometimes cumbersome, it's very helpful to understand why I have so little money ;)

[1]: http://ledger-cli.org/

Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#80

Post by cafard »

ImprovedSilence wrote: post #65
megablast wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Paying too much for something works if you have no idea how to actually judge the quality of the item. I know computers and bikes, and will not pay too much for those thing, because I know the quality and I know the cost. I have no idea about cars, or houses, or shoes, so I have not way of judging the quality of these items.

Learn. Just because you don't know now, doesn't excuse you from not knowing when you go to make a purchase. There are a number of ways to acquire knowledge out there. Go get it.

Is it my duty to know where to buy shoes?
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