Shopping online is nothing new and millions of people do it daily. But, for someone like me with a significant mobility disability, online shopping and home delivery is one of the biggest personal benefits to me of the Internet. It is even more of a boon to me during the holiday shopping season when the weather in the Midwest is generally not friendly to someone using a scooter to get around. Scooters, Cerebral Palsy, cold weather, ice and snow are not a fun mixture nor conducive to going from store to store shopping for gifts. Home delivery of whatever I purchase is another benefit because if, I shop at brick-and-mortar stores, I am limited to carrying only what I can fit in my scooter’s basket or bags I can strategically hook on my scooter’s various bits and protrusions. I can’t buy large items or high number of items, at least not without running back to my car to unload and go back in to shop more. (This is also why I prefer a close hotel at Gen Con so when my scooter basket gets full of con swag/games, I can run and unload in the hotel room.)
So, with Thanksgiving only a matter of days away I start to go into “Holiday Bargain Hunter Mode.” I consult Amazon Wish Lists, what I know about my friends and family, and anything I recall hearing a gift recipient say they wanted and put together a sort of “mental shopping list.” Then, I go to what I call my “Deal Feeds.” These are a collection of RSS feeds from various deal and shopping websites that I scroll through multiple times per day watching for deals on items my gift recipients might want. Here are my favorites:
- Woot! (http://www.woot.com/) is a sort of collection of daily deals. They have sections for electronics, computers, shirts, accessories, home, kids, tools, sport, and even wine. Most of the deals change daily and they have large selections in every category. The site and its daily newsletter have a quirky sense of humor and the community forum is great for finding out information about items you might be interested in.
- 1 Sale A Day (http://www.1sale.com/) is similar to Woot! but is even more focused on one-day sales. Their deals are all over the board including clothes, electronics, jewelry, home decor, tools and hardware, and much more. But, most of the items really are only on sale for one day. So, you have to hurry to do your research on items to make those buying decisions.
- Techbargains (http://www.techbargains.com/) is one of many deal aggregators and it focuses on technology items. This is where I go when I need computer parts or peripherals, A/V equipments, video games and consoles, DVDs, cell phone related items, and storage media. Other aggregators have similar listings, but Techbargains is one of the most well maintained with fewer expired deals not marked as such in its listings.
- AntiRebate (http://www.antirebate.com/) is a deal aggregator but they espouse the opinion that “Mail-in rebates are a thing of the past.” The site’s goal is to find deals on just about every type of product but with the hassle of filling out rebate forms and hoping you actually get the money someday.
Honorable Mentions
- Ben’s Bargains (http://bensbargains.net/)
- Deal Catcher (http://www.dealcatcher.com/)
- Fatwallet (http://www.fatwallet.com/)
Use these sites for your deal hunting and you’ll find about everything you’re looking for. Oh, and if I get hungry while I’m shopping, Grub Hub can hook me up with all sorts of delivered food options. E-commerce can be a wonderful thing for a Gimpy Geek!
