Music & Home Audio

Amazon offers free digital items year-round, including e-books, MP3s and videos, and we recommend checking out their vast selection before you buy elsewhere. Some items require a special (free)...

Amazon offers free digital items year-round, including e-books, MP3s and videos, and we recommend checking out their vast selection before you buy elsewhere. Some items require a special (free) software to download the items, but generally they come with few if any restrictions so you can freely gift them or keep for yourself (or both!).

Shoppers who have The LOZO know to always try to use coupons whenever they make a purchase. Some stores are quite stingy with the coupons they offer, so you're happy to get your hands on any of them....

Shoppers who have The LOZO know to always try to use coupons whenever they make a purchase. Some stores are quite stingy with the coupons they offer, so you're happy to get your hands on any of them. But some stores are known for frequently issuing coupons with various discounts and minimum spend thresholds, so you might have several available at your fingertips. So the question then becomes, "how do you maximize your coupons to save as much as possible?" LOZO has the answer!

Most stores have a policy that you can only use one coupon per transaction, so to get the best discount you'll have to split up your purchases. If a store is not busy they are usually happy to ring up the transactions separately at the register, one after another. In other cases you might need to take separate trips or go back in line. Once you figure out what the extra savings will be worth, you can decide whether to go through any extra hassle.

The first thing you need to do is assess the value of each coupon to figure out which is worth the most. That's easy to do when you are comparing coupons like $5 off $25 vs. $10 off $25, but harder when the coupons are in different "flavors".

LOZO recommends first adjusting everything to the equivalent "percentage discount" so you can compare apples to apples.

Then you start by trying to use up the best coupon first. There are a couple of cases when this approach might not be the best strategy for you, so we recommend double-checking before you checkout!

Click on this tip to read more details and see some real examples in action.

While the merger of Sirius and XM reduced some satellite radio competition, there's still a good chance of scoring a lower subscription rate just by asking (or threatening to cancel).

As...

While the merger of Sirius and XM reduced some satellite radio competition, there's still a good chance of scoring a lower subscription rate just by asking (or threatening to cancel).

As an example, the XM Everything package is listed at $12.95/month (as of May 2010) which works out to $155 for the year. Anyone can sign up for their yearly rate of $143, or multi-year rate of $116. But if you threaten to cancel your service, you might be offered a rate of $88/year, which is almost 50% off the regular rate, and 25% off their lowest published offer.

Here's the LOZO: always ask, "is there an even lower rate?". You might just find out there is. In fact, XM was also willing to offer 5 months for $23, equivalent to $55 for the year!

If you are not sure how to compare the rates, just divide the rate by the number of months for a monthly rate. The lower the monthly rate, the better. It's a bit of a gamble as to whether to commit to a longer term or grab the lower rate. With new (and often better) offers coming all the time, you'll probably end up better in the long run by grabbing the cheapest rates when they are there, and then trying again when your subscription is up.

These days it's probably no surprise to anyone, but there are tons of ways to listen to free music online. However, you may not know all of the options that are out there, so we're here to give you a...

These days it's probably no surprise to anyone, but there are tons of ways to listen to free music online. However, you may not know all of the options that are out there, so we're here to give you a quick rundown.

FREE ONLINE RADIO
Some sites such as Shoutcast.com, The Hype Machine and iTunes radio offer an experience that's similar to traditional radio where you select a channel you like and listen to it. Others, such as Pandora, Jango, Slacker or Last.fm allow you to customize the music selection even more. Either way, you'll get a nearly endless supply of music that you can listen to for free. A similar service is the Bloson music search engine where you can find your favorite songs, artists and music videos. You can play them instantly for your own listening pleasure as well as share them with friends on Facebook.

If you have particular radio stations that you like, see if they offer streaming versions of their radio broadcasts for free from their websites.  Search Google for the call sign of your station (e.g., WXYZ 101.1) to find their website.

For songs on demand for free, Youtube is often your best bet. Search by title to pull up music videos. Look for ones that are called "official release" or "official music video", or try ones with high number of views to get the right song version.

FREE MP3s
Looking for free music you can play on the go with your MP3 player? Amazon offers thousands of free MP3s! With a selection that large, you're bound to find at least a few (or a few hundred) songs you like. Another option is Walmart: they have a free MP3 download of the week. You can also try free trials of music subscription services like Emusic and Napster and keep the songs you download.

Compared to paid services, which might run $5-$10 per month, these free options can save you up to $120 per year. (And if you compare it to the cost of regularly buying new MP3s and CDs...well, the sky's the limit!)

If you have any other free services to suggest, please post a comment below to share with other LOZO users!

These three tips will put you ahead of the virtual pack for your online shopping!

Tip #1: Fill your cart (or list) in advance! With doorbusters online you need to buy fast to get in before...

These three tips will put you ahead of the virtual pack for your online shopping!

Tip #1: Fill your cart (or list) in advance!

With doorbusters online you need to buy fast to get in before the inventory runs out. Save time by filling your online shopping cart in advance of the sale, and setting up an account with your address & payment info. If you can't add the item to your cart, trying creating a shopping list instead. Check back in once the sale goes live, and the prices should update automatically. Now you can checkout in the virtual express lane!

Filling your cart is also a great way to find sales you might not have even known about. Add any items you have your eye on, then see if the price changes in your favor!

Tip #2: Don't forget cash back & coupons!

In the mad rush to visit each online stores, you might leave some easy cash on the table. Before you visit the site, use one of these links to access your stores. You'll still get all of the same deals, plus a bonus cash back rebate automatically posted to your Ebates account after you purchase.

Here are quick cash back links to three popular stores: Walmart, Best Buy, Sears.
Find all cash back offers here.

And not to sound like a broken record, but ALWAYS USE A COUPON!

Find all the latest coupons here.

Tip #3: Sign up for alerts!

One great way to find out when your treasured item is online and ready for purchase is to setup an email alert (you can find a link on individual product pages of many online stores). Sign up for alerts for all of the doorbuster and other hot deals you're after and get notified when it's available. It's not a perfect system - sometimes the alerts can be delayed by crucial minutes - but a nice alternative if you'd rather not spend hours refreshing the pages by hand!

Happy Thanksgiving, and Happy Shopping!

Holiday discounts have been around for weeks, and the terms “Black Friday” and “Cyber Monday” have been more than a little overused this year. We expect this to continue with promotions like...

Holiday discounts have been around for weeks, and the terms “Black Friday” and “Cyber Monday” have been more than a little overused this year. We expect this to continue with promotions like “the return of BF/CM” deals, right through the Christmas holiday.

All that said, you can still expect to find some new deals on the upcoming “real” Cyber Monday—the Monday following Thanksgiving—when online stores offer deals to e-shoppers who still have some things left on their list.

This is our complete guide to getting the best Cyber Monday deals, including classic tips that'll save you money year-round and some tips specifically for Cyber Monday.

Part two of our guide to Black Friday, covering everything you need to know to get the best deals with the least possible hassle. Whether you're planning to hit the stores or shop online from the...

Part two of our guide to Black Friday, covering everything you need to know to get the best deals with the least possible hassle. Whether you're planning to hit the stores or shop online from the comfort of your home, we've got the tips that'll help you save time and money.

Part one of our collection of Black Friday tips will give you all you need to know to prepare for the biggest shopping day of the year, including access to tons of pre-Black Friday deals that you can...

Part one of our collection of Black Friday tips will give you all you need to know to prepare for the biggest shopping day of the year, including access to tons of pre-Black Friday deals that you can start taking advantage of even weeks before the big day!

We'll give you the LOZO so you can get the best possible value with the least possible hassle.

From Buxr.com on 05/14/13 Apple iPod Touch 16GB White (Current 4th Generation) iMessage, Facetime, HD Recording Available in black and white, iPod touch includes iOS 5 with over 200 new features,...

From Buxr.com on 05/14/13

Apple iPod Touch 16GB White (Current 4th Generation)
iMessage, Facetime, HD Recording

Available in black and white, iPod touch includes iOS 5 with over 200 new features, like iMessage, Notification Center, and Twitter integration. Send free, unlimited text messages over Wi-Fi with iMessage. Record HD video and make FaceTime calls.

From Buxr.com on 05/14/13 Apple iPod Touch 16GB White (Current 4th Generation) iMessage, Facetime, HD Recording Available in black and white, iPod touch includes iOS 5 with over 200 new features,...

From Buxr.com on 05/14/13

Apple iPod Touch 16GB White (Current 4th Generation)
iMessage, Facetime, HD Recording

Available in black and white, iPod touch includes iOS 5 with over 200 new features, like iMessage, Notification Center, and Twitter integration. Send free, unlimited text messages over Wi-Fi with iMessage. Record HD video and make FaceTime calls.