Uncle Vic’s Tips For a Healthy and Productive Black Friday

*****Get Plenty of Rest The Night Before*****
This may sounds obvious but let’s face it, Thanksgiving is for many people a day of incredible caloric over-indulgence. Don’t get us wrong, it’s one of our favorite holidays on the calendar here at Uncle Vic but we’ve been known to go back for seconds on that pumpkin pie and load it up with vanilla ice cream. Black Friday is all about being the early bird who catches the widescreen TV so plan ahead and wind down the party at a decent hour. Best lay off that third glass of wine as well. A clear mind and a well rested body will help you score the deals you’re seeking.

*****Have a distinct shopping plan*****
They say never to troll through the supermarket on an empty stomach. You just make bad decisions without a plan. This same rationale applies to Black Friday. Go with a plan in hand! Consult (subtly if needed with friends and family that are on your holiday gift list) and come up with a solid product list that’s going to let you maximize those precious shopping minutes. If you go like a glutton you may find you’ve not saved where you needed to and worst still, you jumped on items that weren’t ideal. As far as safety is concerned a plan ensures you’re going with the shopping traffic flow and you’ve staked out the areas you know you need to hit to make sure you get the goods in your cart and don’t get trampled by your fellow shoppers.

*****Be Kind to Your Fellow Shopper*****
Black Friday is, admittedly, a blessing and a curse for many shoppers. Great deals abound but unruly and uncaring shoppers will think nothing of treating you as their personal doormat as they launch themselves across the store. Be motivated to get your deals but treat others as you would want to be treated yourself. It’s easy to get caught up in the frenzy of grabbing those deals and losing sight of your own behavior. The herd mentality can take over quickly but stay above the fray when behavior goes south. You’ll feel that much better once you’ve landed your electronic gaming catch with the piece of mind that you were a good citizen.

*****Closing notes*****

(Save time, effort and precious dollar$ by taking your shopping online):

These thoughts have been sincerely imparted from your friends at Uncle Vic and in closing we’d like to mention that Black Friday can be best enjoyed (we believe) from the comfort of your own home. Uncle Vic makes it easy as we’re an online electronics store and we offer a site that’s wonderfully easy to navigate, it’s stocked well with smoking deals this year (we’re feverishly adding more items in anticipation of fabulous Black Friday) and best of all it allows you to effortlessly buy your desired items with no chance of the bodily harm and headaches that are associated with Black Friday shopping. Our focus is re-certified/refurbished electronics and we leverage daily our close relationships with key players so we can pass the savings on to you. Check us out here for the latest updates: http://www.unclevic.com/blackfriday

By Dana Flink
danaflink@hotmail.com

Earth Day marked its 39th birthday this year and it’s no surprise that with each passing year the attention paid and respect given on this day grows seemingly at an exponential pace from the year just previous. This is because companies and their customers are making a conscious and continual effort to adopt a more socially responsible stance towards green initiatives. This is certainly the case in the electronics space.

Reduce, Recycle and REFURBISH

REDUCE:
Companies are making a deliberate effort to offer increasingly more efficient electronics for a demanding public. You’ve likely seen but perhaps not paid full attention to the ‘Energy Star’ Logo, but perhaps you’ve already reaped its benefits. This logo, adopted by the EPA in the U.S. in 1992 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_star) and expanded shortly thereafter has been a tremendous energy saving boon for consumers. As of 2006, over 40,000 products, many of them electronics, have earned this distinction and provide the consumer anywhere from 20% to over 40% savings on energy bills. The sometimes slightly higher cost for certain energy efficient products is more than offset by the significant savings in the longer term. A true win-win-win deal (seller-customer-environment).

And when you think savvy and timely electronics, Apple immediately comes to mind. Always at the forefront of innovation and deciphering what consumers want just ahead of the curve, they’ve come up with a line of ‘Green Notebooks’ (http://www.apple.com/mac/green-notebooks/)  with a mind to reducing excess materials and maximizing efficiency. 

More companies are looking at eco-friendly materials in their products. Bamboo is the greenest of green—nothing on earth grows faster than bamboo. It is arguably the most sustainable resource anywhere. Asus, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of motherboards, continues to differentiate itself in a crowded marketplace with its U6V line of laptops that are encased in bamboo.

RECYCLE:
Companies of all sizes are aware of the benefits of becoming a steward of our finite resources. No small player, HP shows their commitment to the cause: (http://www.hp.com/hpinfo/globalcitizenship/environment/commitment/). According to their site, HP became the first computer manufacturer to operate its own recycling facility in 1997. Through their internal recycling and reuse programs, HP has recycled over 1 billion pounds of products and materials.

So you know you’re doing your fair share of recycling but you’ve got some questions about recycling electronic products? Check out this useful and informative link about  ‘E-waste’ and solutions: http://www.epa.gov/waste/conserve/materials/ecycling/faq.htm

REFURBISH:
Reusing products and materials is key to good environmental policy. And refurbishing products for resell is a positive growing trend towards increased sustainability. Savvy consumers know in these trying times, with every dollar more dear than ever, that the refurbished market offers some incredible values. More than this, purchasing refurbished items can keep scrap waste from entering streams & landfills. Buying these items is then not only beneficial to the environment, it makes smart financial sense.

Many people associate ‘refurbished’ with a potential negative quality (the old ‘used car’ conundrum). This is not in most instances the case when it comes to electronics. Customer returns represent a huge part of the electronics market. Ever see the customer service line at Fry*s? Many times an open box does not look good on the shelf so they’ll send it back to the manufacturer as part of any retailer’s RMA process. (Return Merchandise Authorizations). While the percentages may differ, many manufacturers agree that most returned items from retailers don’t actually have defects. It follows that this leaves behind a treasure trove of perfectly workable and essentially new electronics for the motivated consumer. Additionally, sometimes items classified as refurbished are overstock (actually new products), cancelled orders, demo and trial units, floor models, or product with very minor surface imperfections. The deals are out there.

Electronics manufacturers generally have categories of their refurbished products based upon condition: A/B being best and F worst. So depending on the brand A/B grade refurbs are usually considered in “Like-New” condition. Some companies like Vizio then take refurbs to a higher level where they recertify the products through stringent testing and put the items in a new box. Unless you’re buying from a reputable reseller, be wary of buying refurbs on auction sites and classifieds. Caveat Emptor. This is where C/D/F grade products typically end up. Most reputable refurb resellers will offer limited warranties. Look for products that have direct warranties from the manufacturer. Many strong refurb resellers will offer extended warranties as well. You can find a better deal at a better price if you shop smart, though product moves fast so vigilance is key.

Needle in the Haystack:  Finding quality refurbished electronics can be tricky. Many major resellers dabble in refurbs but doing so is like stealing from Peter to pay Paul which tends to cannibalize their new product sales. Companies like http://www.UncleVic.com, a relatively new online reseller of electronics, offers hundreds of refurbished electronics. They are sort of positioning themselves as the Marshalls or ROSS for digital products.

“Aggressive sourcing and relationship building is key to this business,” says Jim Wendt, marketing manager at UncleVic.com. “Products like flatscreen TV’s and gaming consoles are really hard to keep in stock as customers are getting smarter. High quality refurbished and recertified products offer outstanding value especially in a tough economy.”

If there’s a downside to getting great products at up to 60% off, it certainly is variety and selection. Refurbished electronics resellers won’t have the selection of a Best Buy but if you check back frequently you can find exceptional buys. On the day of writing this article UncleVic.com shows a refurbished Xbox 360 Elite gaming system for $229.99.  Considering this author just paid close to $500 for this product I could have bought several Xbox games –and a caramel macchiato with extra whip, with soy.

So the deals are out there. By embracing refurbs you’re being good to Mother Earth. You can have your cake and eat it too. Buying refurbished electronics supports a commitment to a clean environment and at the same time keeps more green in the pockets of the consumer.