X

The Cheapskate FAQ

Everything you ever wanted to know about how this blog works -- and then some. Read it, then bookmark it!

Rick Broida Senior Editor
Rick Broida is the author of numerous books and thousands of reviews, features and blog posts. He writes CNET's popular Cheapskate blog and co-hosts Protocol 1: A Travelers Podcast (about the TV show Travelers). He lives in Michigan, where he previously owned two escape rooms (chronicled in the ebook "I Was a Middle-Aged Zombie").
Rick Broida
7 min read
23-2021-cash-money-stimulus-bill-600-dollars-check-americans-congress-signed-law-direct-deposit-mail

Come with me if you want to save.

Sarah Tew/CNET

After more than 13 years writing the Cheapskate blog, I've been asked the same questions more often than I can count. Alas, time doesn't always permit me to answer each reader's inquiry, so I've put together this FAQ page.

The primary goal of the Cheapskate is to spotlight sweet deals every day of the week. I love cheap stuff, and I love sharing it even more.

So think of me as your buddy who walks into the office every morning and says, "Hey, did you see this? Buy More is selling the Whatsit Pro for only 36 bucks. It's usually $80! Are there any donuts left?"

Beyond that, well, I hope I've answered all your questions here.

Where do I find the Cheapskate?

There are lots of different ways to access this content:

  • On the CNET site: You can visit the Cheapskate page directly. Bookmark it, then visit as you're able.
  • Daily newsletter: When you sign up for the Cheapskate newsletter, (which requires a CNET account), it should hit your inbox every weekday and on Saturdays.
  • Social media: You can also follow me on Facebook and Twitter. Deal posts are automatically delivered to those networks, and I occasionally share bonus deals (along with polls, TV and movie recommendations and hilarious musings) as well. Prefer to consume deals in a magazine-style format? Subscribe to the Cheapskate on Flipboard.
  • Podcast: Along with Dave Johnson, I co-host The Cheapskate Show, a podcast devoted to deals, tips and product comparisons. It's available on just about every podcast platform there is.
  • RSS: There's even a Cheapskate RSS feed if you're into that.
  • Text alerts: Get extra deals, plus tips and money-saving advice, via text message right to your phone. Just one message per day, and you can opt out anytime.

I live in Canada, the UK, Australia or somewhere else outside the US. Can I still get these deals?

Short answer: probably not. Longer answer: There's really no way for me to tell if a particular product is available outside the US for the same price as it is here. If it ships from another country, then you may be able to get the deal. But unfortunately most Cheapskate deals are US-only.

Do you test or review every product you write about? If not, why?

I've been a technology writer for about 30 years, so I know my stuff pretty well. I don't need to test every single laptop to know if one particular model is a good deal. If it's selling for, say, 65% less than usual, that's a good deal -- even if the product has some mixed reviews.

Speaking of which, I always seek out and consider both professional and user ratings before recommending a product. If everyone says it's junk, I don't cover it, no matter how low the price.

Also, I think most people take it as read that when something's really cheap, a few compromises are to be expected. You're not going to get a thousand bucks' worth of performance and features from a laptop priced at $300.

Ultimately, it's your responsibility to gauge whether something is good enough for you to buy. I'll provide specific pros and cons where I can, but I believe it's the buyer's responsibility to do the research.

I had a problem with the product I ordered. Can you help?

Your first stop should be the seller. Not all companies are great at customer service, but I firmly believe all companies want satisfied customers. So always give them a chance to make it right. And be patient! Sometimes it can take a few days to get a response.

If that doesn't pan out -- as in, your calls or emails to customer service go unanswered -- your credit-card provider should be able to help. Pretty much every card offers some level of purchase protection.

Beyond that, I've established good working relationships with certain vendors, so if you feel like you've gotten a raw deal and can't get satisfaction through the usual channels, let me know; I'll do my best to help. Just please remember: I'm not customer service, and I don't represent these companies in any way. I'm just the guy who said, "Hey, check out this deal!" 

I missed out on a deal. Is it too late?

I'm afraid it probably is -- for now. Deals often expire without warning, and hot ones tend to sell out fast. In the latter cases, however, it's not uncommon for a vendor to release more inventory later that day or the next. So if something is sold out in the morning, check back later -- you might just get lucky.

Also, keep in mind that there's always another deal just around the corner -- sometimes an even better one. Hence my longstanding motto: Cheap things come to those who wait.

I'm seeing a higher price than the one you advertised. Bait and switch!

Um, no. For one thing, I'm not actually selling anything myself, nor am I in cahoots with anybody. The price was accurate at the time I wrote about it.

If you're seeing a higher price, it's probably because the deal expired (and was set to do so at a particular time). It happens a lot; a laptop is $329 in the morning, but a few hours later the reseller discontinues the sale price -- or it simply sells out from that vendor -- and the price bumps back to $489. Unfortunately, in most cases I have no way of knowing if or when this is going to happen.

I know this can be frustrating, but please believe me when I say no one's trying to trick you.

This coupon code doesn't work!

It worked when I tried it -- and I always try it before writing up a deal. Unfortunately, some coupons expire after a certain number of uses, and usually there's no way for me to tell how many uses or what the current tally is.

Also, some codes expire at a specific time -- and, again, there's usually no way for me to know what that time is.

There's another wrinkle that affects deals sold via Amazon: When I share a coupon code for, say, a Bluetooth speaker sold by XYZ Corp., and then XYZ Corp.'s inventory runs out, that same link may take you to the same product, but from a different seller. Unfortunately, that same coupon code no longer works because the new seller wasn't the one offering it.

How much did that company pay you to write about their garbage product?

Nothing. It just doesn't happen, despite what a few suspicious people seem to think. In all my years at this, I've only occasionally been offered payment to write about a product, and in every case it was from a small, foreign company that didn't understand how the review process works (at CNET, anyway). It was more confusion than nefarious motives.

Yeah, I've picked a few lemon items over the years, but it certainly wasn't because I was paid to do so. It's because I'm occasionally a dummy.

What about those affiliate links? Do you get a cut of the sale?

Sort of. Like the vast majority of modern media outlets, CNET often uses affiliate links that, yes, generate a commission from the retailer if and when you buy a product. But those links aren't story drivers; I don't write about a particular product or deal solely for purposes of affiliate revenue. I write about them because they're awesome, regardless if CNET gets an affiliate credit or not.

Ultimately, the links help CNET keep the lights on, so we can keep finding great deals for you. They don't benefit me personally, and they don't add any cost to you on any given transaction.

A while back you posted a deal about x product. What was it called again?

I can barely remember what I ate for breakfast yesterday, let alone wrote about three months ago. If you're looking for a product I covered in the past, Google is your friend. Use this search parameter: site:cnet.com product name broida. So, for example, if you're looking for the SoundPro Biggie Bluetooth speaker I mentioned, you'd Google this: site:cnet.com soundpro biggie broida. Most of the time that should reveal the post you're looking for.

I subscribed to your newsletter, but I'm not getting it. What gives?

Here's how the newsletter works: After I publish my daily deal on the site proper, I log into our newsletter system and push that sucker out as quickly as possible. The process takes about 10 minutes, and it's usually another 10 to 20 minutes before the newsletter starts hitting inboxes.

The time that all this transpires varies from day to day, but usually it's between 9 and 11 a.m. ET (6 and 8 a.m. PT). On occasion I might not post until noon or even later, so if your newsletter doesn't arrive at the "usual" time, don't panic.

That said, spam filters have been known to block CNET newsletters, even ones that you've whitelisted previously. So that's always a good place to start if you're not getting the Cheapskate on a daily basis. And you can check your subscription status by logging into your CNET profile.

I still need help!

If all this doesn't answer your question or solve your problem, hit up CNET's Customer Help Center and submit a question. They'll get you straightened out.

This post is periodically updated with new information.