计划购买新电脑、新数码单反相机(DSLR camera)、新电动工具(power tool)、新电器或新家具？如果是这样，您应该在进行大笔购买之前花点时间。我总是告诉朋友和家人等一下，然后再出去做一些研究，然后从他们习惯去的当地商店买东西。
这也不总是只是为了省钱，您可能会买错商品或买正确的东西，但两周后才发现有新型号问世，而您现在被困住了。每当我购买任何东西，甚至是电脑扬声器等较小的物品时，我都会进行大量的在线研究，以确保我能物有所值。
在线(Online)购买指南已经变得非常流行，尽管它们中的大多数都不是那么有用，但还是有一些质量上乘的。当然，您始终可以订阅诸如Consumer Reports之类的内容，但您必须为此付费。我将坚持使用免费的在线购买(online buying)指南。如果您使用此处未提及的其他内容，请随时发表评论。
Mac 采购指南
我是Apple 的忠实(Guide)粉丝(Apple fan)，因此Mac 购买(Buy)指南非常简单。在查看MacRumors.com(MacRumors.com)的购买指南之前，您绝不应该购买Mac、iPhone、iPod 或任何其他Apple 设备(Apple device)。在顶部，它会根据产品更新的平均时间以及自上次更新或刷新(update or refresh)后的天数为您提供红色、黄色或绿色图标，以反映不购买(Buy)、中性和购买建议(Neutral and Buy recommendation)。
如果向下滚动，您将获得每个Apple 产品(Apple product)的单独列表以及其他信息，例如推荐(Recommendation)、上次发布(Release)、更新后的(Update)天数(Days)、最近的(Recent)谣言(Rumors)以及该产品所有发布的历史记录。这是购买Apple 产品(Apple product)的最佳指南。
数码相机购买指南
说到数码相机和摄像机，实际上有数以百万计的网站提供指导和建议(guidance and advice)。我个人喜欢那些不仅写深入评论，而且有很多真实用户评论的网站。对我来说，数百名已经购买相机的人的意见比一两个人写的评论更重要。
数码摄影学校
在您购买数码相机之前，您应该阅读数码摄影学校的(Digital Photography School)如何购买数码相机(How to Buy a Digital Camera)指南。这是一个很棒的网站，包含从相机设备(camera equipment)到摄影技巧和后期制作处理的(post-production processing)各种信息。该网站还有一个出色的页面，该页面会不断更新该网站拥有的庞大社区从亚马逊(Amazon)购买的最受欢迎的数码相机：
http://digital-photography-school.com/popular-digital-cameras-and-gear
CNET 购买指南
我喜欢的另一个非常好的购买指南来自(buying guide)CNET。我并不总是CNET(CNET)的忠实粉丝，但我确实喜欢他们的数码相机购买指南(digital camera buying guide)。好的是它按类别将其细分，从Budget、Ultracompact一直到Pro dSLR。之后，它会详细介绍要寻找的关键规格以及相机具有的其他功能，如WiFi、GPS等。
我最喜欢的另外两个数码相机是数码相机资源购买指南(Digital Camera Resource Buying Guide)和DPReview 的购买指南工具(DPReview’s Buying Guide tools)。DPReview为那些更高级并正在寻找某些特定功能的人提供了一些其他很酷的工具。例如，他们有相机功能搜索(camera feature search)、相机并排比较工具(comparison tool)、镜头功能搜索、镜头并排工具等。
家居用品购买指南
我不得不承认，我不是家里的杂工。我太糟糕了，我什至不把自己的照片挂在墙上。这就是为什么家得宝购买指南(Home Depot buying guide)对像我这样的人如此有用的原因。今年夏天我很想买一个新的烤架，但我不知道烤架和它们是如何工作的。我唯一用过的一个是小时候，它基本上是一个装满木炭的金属碗。(metal bowl)
他们有从电器到油漆到电动工具到园艺的所有指南。如果您是房主(home owner)，那么对您的房子一无所知并不是一件好事。我从这个网站学到了很多东西，并且一直对我最终购买的物品感到满意（不一定来自家得宝(Home Depot)！）。
说到家居用品，宜家(IKEA)是另一个很棒的网站。我想很多人都喜欢宜家(IKEA)，这不仅仅是因为它们更便宜。他们所有的东西都是非常模块化的，因此可以安装到几乎任何大小或形状的家庭或公寓(home or apartment)中。他们有一堆关于卧室、浴室、厨房、客厅等的购买指南。(buying guides)
其他购买指南
还有很多其他的购买指南，我将提到我用于汽车、电视等其他物品的那些。同样(Again)，这些是我的最爱，如果您使用不同的东西，请发表评论！
汽车购买指南 – Edmunds
电视购买指南 – CNET
笔记本电脑购买指南 – Engadget
国家地理绿色购买指南(National Geographic Green Buying Guide)
最重要的是，最好知道何时实际购买某些产品。例如，如果您要购买一艘船，最好在Jan/Feb/March购买一艘，因为它是淡季，并且在那段时间举行了很多船展。Lifehacker有一篇很棒的文章，介绍了一年中购买东西的最佳时间(best time to buy stuff during the year)。享受！
Best Online Buying Guides to Consult Before Making a Purchase
Planning on buying a new computer, a new DSLR camera, a new power tool, a nеw appliance, or a new piece of furniture? If so, you should always take your timе before making a big purchasе. I’ve always tоld friends and family to wait a bit and do a little research before going out and just buying something from a loсal ѕtore they are used to gоing too.
It’s not always about just saving money either, you could potentially buy the wrong item or buy the right thing only to find out that two weeks later a newer model came out and you’re now stuck. Whenever I buy anything, even smaller items like computer speakers, etc, I do a fair amount of online research to make sure I’m getting the best bang for my buck.
Online buying guides have become really popular and even though most of them are not all that useful, there are some of exceptional quality. Of course, you can always subscribe to something like Consumer Reports, but you have to pay for it. I’m going to stick with free online buying guides. If you use something else not mentioned here, feel free to leave a comment.
Mac Buyer’s Guide
I’m a huge Apple fan, so the Mac Buyer’s Guide is simple awesome. You should never buy a Mac, iPhone, iPod or any other Apple device until you look at the buying guide from MacRumors.com. At the top, it gives you a red, yellow or green icon to reflect a Don’t Buy, Neutral and Buy recommendation based on the average time for an update to the product and how many days have passed since the last update or refresh.
If you scroll down, you’ll get an individual listing for each Apple product along with other information like the Recommendation, Last Release, Days Since Update, Recent Rumors, and a history of all the releases for that product. It’s the best guide out there for buying an Apple product.
Digital Camera Buying Guides
When it comes to digital cameras and camcorders, there are literally millions of sites that provide guidance and advice. I personally like the sites that not only write in-depth reviews, but also have lots of reviews by real-world users. To me, the opinion of hundreds of people who have already bought the camera is more important than the review written by one or two people.
Digital Photography School
Before you ever buy a digital camera, you should read the How to Buy a Digital Camera guide on Digital Photography School. It’s an awesome site with tons and tons of information on everything from camera equipment to photography tips and post-production processing. The site also has an excellent page that is constantly updated with the most popular digital cameras purchased off Amazon by the huge community the site has:
http://digital-photography-school.com/popular-digital-cameras-and-gear
CNET Buying Guide
Another really good buying guide that I like is from CNET. I’m not always a big fan of CNET, but I do like their digital camera buying guide. What’s nice is that it breaks it down by categories ranging from Budget, Ultracompact all the way up to Pro dSLR. After that, it goes into a lot of details about key specs to look for and other features that cameras have like WiFi, GPS, etc.
My other two favorites for digital cameras are Digital Camera Resource Buying Guide and DPReview’s Buying Guide tools. DPReview has some other cool tools for those of you who are more advanced and are looking for certain specific features. For example, they have a camera feature search, a camera side-by-side comparison tool, lens feature search, lens side-by-side tool, and more.
Buying Guide for Household Items
I have to admit that I am not a handyman around the house. I’m so bad that I don’t even hang my own pictures on a wall. That’s why the Home Depot buying guide is so useful to someone like me. I would love to buy a new grill for this summer, but I have no idea about grills and how they work. The only one I ever used was when I was a kid and it was basically a metal bowl that you filled with charcoal.
They have guides for everything from appliances to paints to power tools to gardening. If you’re a home owner, being clueless about your house is not a good thing. I’ve learned a ton from this site and have always been happy with the item I finally purchased (not necessarily from Home Depot!).
When it comes to home stuff, another great site is IKEA. I think a lot of people love IKEA and it’s not just because they are cheaper. All of their stuff is very modular and therefore can be fitted into just about any size or shaped home or apartment. They have a bunch of buying guides for bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchens, living rooms and more.
Other Buying Guides
There are lots of other buying guides and I’m going to mention the ones I use for other stuff like cars, TVs and more. Again, these are my favorites and if you use something different, post a comment!
Auto Buying Guide – Edmunds
TV Buying Guide – CNET
Laptop Buying Guide – Engadget
National Geographic Green Buying Guide
On top of all of this, it’s good to know when to actually buy certain products. For example, if you’re buying a boat, it’s better to buy one during Jan/Feb/March as it’s off-season and there are a lot of boat shows held around that time. Lifehacker has an awesome article on the best time to buy stuff during the year. Enjoy!
