Everything's On Sale

Whew, what a week. I was at the doctor's for my ears on Wednesday, and then yesterday I started out on the dentist's chair and ended up in the Emergency Room. (I'm fine. It just wasn't how I planned to spend my day.) That pales against what a close relative went through on Tuesday—surgery for acute diverticulitis—which had me anxious and worried. On the good side, I slept nine hours last night. Kinda wiped out!

Meanwhile, Black Friday has already started (what?); they were playing Christmas music in the bank; and the torrent of "sales" for this year has been pelting down around my head like snow in an avalanche.

I don't quite know what to do about this. It used to be lots of fun when something cool went on sale—people searching for bargains could actually get a great camera at a steal. Or when Amazon's "Deal of the Day" was just for one deal...if it was for a camera or something photo-related, as it used to be fairly often, I could let you know what it was. (Ah, 2013. Those were the days.)

Now—especially with all these distractions lately—I'm kind of at a loss to know what to do. For example, Amazon's "Gold Box Deals of the Day" page yesterday listed 48 items, plus 27 more in special categories...and then I noticed that that was only page one...there were 20 more pages of deals after that. Basic arithmetic of (48 x 21) + 27 = 1,035 deals of yesterday, although that might be off by a few. More work would be required to get an exact count.

It would take hours to scroll through everything, extract the photo-related items, sort out the ones you might actually care about, and research which ones were actually bargains: sometimes the discount is negligible or the "sale" price is very close to some other site's everyday price, and to be conscientious I don't want to trumpet a bargain that actually isn't. Plus, I might have to research where the product is in its lifespan—newly introduced? On closeout? Already replaced?—and whether and how it stands up to other alternatives. That could take days...for deals that might have expired by the time I write about them, on account of it might already be the next day. With, you know, 1,035 new deals, give or take.

A similar blizzard of deals arrives from other vendors, most of which I can't link to generically. I'm not complaining, but you see the administrative problem here. It's important to link to products. But I don't want to do it helter-skelter.

In any event, I don't generally link to products on Fridays or Saturdays anyway, because B&H observes Shabbat. That's Hebrew for Sabbath, which Jews observe on the seventh day of the week. The Sabbath for Christians is the first day of the week, Sunday. Jewish Shabbat begins at sundown on the sixth day. 

Anyway, I'm still trying to puzzle out something that makes sense in terms of highlighting products this season. I'll keep frinking....

Mike

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[robert e]

Another disincentive is that most dedicated cameras these days are pretty good. It's hard to go wrong, even if you end up paying 5% more than you would have elsewhere, so it's a little less exciting to get it right. By the same token, I bet more of us are satisfied with what we have and just aren't looking for anything new.

A suggestion: crowd-source this year's list--let your knowledgeable readers find the good deals, potentially including categories you wouldn't normally cover. You'd still get pretty busy vetting the leads, but it would be less overwhelming.

And to repeat a related suggestion from a short while ago: What about the second-hand gems of today?

[scott kirkpatrick]

It's not just B&H. The whole state of Israel kicks back on Thursday evening, with a weekend opening up. Tel Aviv goes nuts, Jerusalem gets quiet on Friday afternoon, each in its own way. And on Sunday we can get a day ahead of all the Western competition...Or not.

[Alan Berkson]

As a dentist, it gives me pause to consider that you just threw out there a visit to the dentist and then a visit to the emergency room without any valid explanation. Seems like just another conflagration of dentistry with negativity. I really don't appreciate that dentists who are mostly highly regarded as professionals, except in highlighted off putting stories. I love my profession, endeavor every day to help my patients deal with their medical and dental problems, and have been a source of healing, as well as solace for thousands. Please try not to demean the valuable and dedicated work of myself and my peers. This response I have made does not get said often enough, and the dentist is the butt of many one liners, and jokey stories, so even in this limited space I need to express my most heartfelt feeling. I am a dedicated amateur photographer and student of the many aspects of art [as well as science] including my own skills as a periodontist.

[ https://tinyurl.com/wkhhwfh --Mike]

[PS I had a negative reaction to the numbing agent. It was the dentist who suggested the visit to the ER. I just did as I was told.]

[Moose]

Out of GAS

Yes, indeedy, the offers pour in: My inbox overfloweth.

And indeed, many of the Black Friday Specials are nothing but the last special prices, occasionally less a % or two.

My problem is that nothing in that sea of specials, or indeed, in the current offerings of photo gear, is necessary, even useful, to my work.

I've got the itch, I can feel it, I wander about the web, looking at all the new stuff. I almost bought a new lens on a real sale, but was realist enough to know that it would just sit in a drawer after a few test shots.

I can't even buy software! DxO has an upgrade to their PhotoLab software. I don't use it all that much, but it does the occasional thing PS doesn't. (And, I wanna buy something.) But, it requires Win 8 or 10. I'm still on 7, both because I dislike the 10 interface and because of my need for the XP virtual machine in 7 for old application development software.

Out of Gas?

[Jan Steinman]

Of course, you're aware there is an alternative movement who calls Black Friday, "Buy Nothing Day." :-)

[Mike Ferron]

I have worked retail for 13 years now.(late in life job) Black Friday keeps getting pushed further into the future every year it seems. Deals are made between the retailer and the vendor some time in advance. Ill be in at 5 AM for the real black Friday and work 9 hours of non stop hell LOL

Thankfully the day before is a day off.

[Jim Henry]

@ Alan Berkson -

First, I hope you look at the link Mike included in his answer to you, to a 2011 post of his.

And second, I want to add my vote in support of dentists and periodontists. Having recently moved, I am about to leave my current dentist (of over 30 years) with great regret. He has saved teeth, done root canals, and solved any number of tricky issues over the years. Never once has he over promised or failed to deliver. And never hurt. Maybe occasional brief discomfort is all.

You're right that dentists sometimes get little respect, but I think, in fact, that most people really do appreciate your skills and service!

[Oskar Ojala]

I feel this. There are constantly some kinds of specials, cashbacks, sales or whatever going on to the point that I don't check them anymore except when I'm out to buy a very specific item. I needed some basic items and a store I had found good in the past sent me a 11.11. code so I bought. But just browsing is out for me, it would be too much time wasted! And as a general trend, I feel that middle class of higher income people anyway have everything they need, so better focus on other things than hawking offers.