Have you looked in the sale papers for a PS3? If you do see them on sale it’s not much off the regular price. It can sometimes be frustrating if you’re on a tight budget.

I feel your pain! I’ve tried to justify the purchase in so many ways. To start building a PS3 fund I thought I would begin by selling my old PS2 games. I’ve given serious thought to cleaning out my closet, trying to find some of those old jeans that now seem to be in fashion and see if I could sell them on eBay. I dug through the basement in the junk room looking for old board games and stuffed animals to auction off online. I even once had a garage sale to sell all my old junk so I could fund the purchase of the PS3. After doing the math I had made about $5 an hour or a measly $50. I don’t recommend garage sales as you’ll end up getting less money for your stuff! You’ll make much more money selling your stuff on eBay.

I’ve been there before. The PS3 has so much to offer in compared to other gaming consoles. A primary selling point for me is that it is Blu-Ray. Not only are all the games HD but now my movies are too. Try selling that angle to the wife! Honestly, once we got HD and my wife watched it a few times we really only watch HD shows or movies. At the end of the day it turned out to be easy to persuade her to get the PS3 on every front except the price.

I’ve done my homework in this area and I simply haven’t been able to find a better value for the money than the PS3. Even when it’s not on sale! The average Blu-Ray player will cost you $200-$250 but it doesn’t play games. The new XBOX does play games in HD and movies as well but it uses the not-chosen HD DVD format. The challenge remains in getting the PS3 at a discount.

I searched on eBay and some other traditional auction sites and found that there really aren’t any PS3 Sale Prices out there. You have to spend more than you normally would and get a “bundle” to really get the value. It just doesn’t add up when I’m trying to save money, not spend more.

In the end I had to get outside the box. I started investigating unique bid auction sites. For my money there is simply no comparison to www.auctions4acause.com. They have much more selection among everyday items than most of the other sites including the PS3. You’ll find cars, boats and vacations on the other sites. That’s fine and dandy but I just want the console!

After I found that site I know it was exactly what I needed. They had the item I wanted and it was possible for me to get it very cheap. I visited the site and setup an account. I made 3 entries and hoped I had outsmarted the other bidders. Alas, I didn’t win the first time around. A few days later another was being auctioned. I bid 3 or 4 more times, said my prayers and waited. Bingo! The second time around I won. About 6 days later I was unpacking the new PS3. All told I had bid less than $59.64. Not bad, huh?

It can take a few minutes of reading to truly grasp the concept of the lowest unique bid auction style. Once you get a handle on the concept you may not want to stop. Since that time that I won the PS3 I’ve bid on and won 3 other items including an iPod Nano (they have the best iPod Prices) and $400 gas card. I’ve won over $1,200 worth of stuff for about $350 in bid fees.

If you’re looking for the best prices don’t bother with the Best Buys or Walmarts. Create an account at Auctions4aCause and see what kind of deal you can get.

Steaks