iOS 101: Manage Your Family’s iTunes Store Spending

on October 15, 2010

Even if your kids understand the value of a dollar, do they appreciate how quickly they add up when using an iOS device? Unprotected iDevices can lead to big accidental iTunes charges. Here’s how to stop that from happening to you and your family.

Teens Love iPod and Don’t Have or Are Just Ashamed of Zune

on April 13, 2009

ipodclassicAs if you couldn’t already tell by the sheer number of white earbuds you see slouching youths with backpacks and baby mustaches wearing, iPods are popular with the teen crowd. Very popular, according to a recent survey of teen consumer spending by investment banking firm Piper Jaffray. The survey, the results of which were reported by AppleInsider, found that Apple (s aapl) was actually nearing the saturation point with its survey respondent sample, which, if true, is both good and bad news for Cupertino.
Of the students surveyed, 92 percent reported that they did in fact own a portable media player, and of those, 86 percent own some variety of iPod. Contrast that with Zune owners, who represent a whopping 4 percent of those who took part in the survey. Or at least, 4 percent admitted to owning Zunes. I’m willing to bet some of that 86 percent have had Zunes foisted upon them by misguided parents, so they just say they have an iPod to avoid the social stigma. Read More about Teens Love iPod and Don’t Have or Are Just Ashamed of Zune

Are You Buying on Black Friday?

on November 26, 2008

Thanksgiving is great for celebrating family and gluttony, but it’s also the last impediment between you and Black Friday, the day stores reel you in with low low LOW prices! But with the economy in the dumps, seems like everyone is making a prediction as to how much you’ll spend and what you’ll buy. Here’s just a sampling:

  • comScore forecasts flat holiday online spending at $29.2 billion and total holiday spending at $131.3 billion
  • eMarketer predicts $30.3 billion in online spending and a total of $136.8 billion
  • Six in 10 U.S. shoppers plan on cutting back in at least one category of communications and media entertainment, according to a new survey by Oliver Wyman, a unit of Marsh & McLennan Companies, but the company sees HDTV sales growing 3 percent
  • Nielsen forecasts holiday sales of $98 billion, but its survey found that 35 percent of respondents plan to spend less this year
  • The NPD Group found that many people who were planning to buy 40-inch or bigger flat panel TVs have changed their mind because of the bad economy
  • An ABI Research survey found that 18 percent of respondents were planning on purchasing an HDTV this holiday season

But those are just projections. We want to know how the economy is impacting your holiday shopping.
The Wall Street Journal writes that Black Friday discounts on HDTVs will extend through the end of the year — will you be picking up a new television? And would the arrival of a $150 Blu-ray player get you to switch to the high-definition format? Or are you ditching DVDs altogether to buy a set-top box from the likes of Apple, Netflix or Blockbuster? Tell us what you’re buying and give us your tips on how to find the best bargains for video products this holiday season.