The Smart Way To Buy Apple Stuff

As a public service and as an amateur cupertinologist, I thought I would give you my easy to follow tips to buying Apple stuff in anticipation of tomorrow's Apple event.

Every time you turn around, it seems like there's good ol' Steve Jobs talking about his latest, greatest thing on CNBC right after the markets close. Once again, the 2GB iPod Mini that you bought now seems hopelessly outdated--and you fruitlessly curse the heavens wondering how this came to pass.

After spending a little bit of time (OK, a lot of time) looking at this over the years, I thought I could pass along a few helpful tips. These are not (mostly) set in stone, but they've proven to be pretty accurate.

1. There is ALWAYS really cool new Apple stuff announced every year in the first week of January...less than two weeks after you've opened your Christmas presents.

   This one you can take the to the bank, because it happens every single year. This is when Apple announced the iPod Shuffle, the MacBook Air and most famously last year, the iPhone.

2. Whatever gets announced in January, there will be a newer, bigger (memory, not physical size) version of it for cheaper by Christmas. Usually the memory will about be about double, and the cost will be about 25% less.
3. There are (almost always) updated MacBooks and MacBook Pros in the summer--just in time for back-to-school shopping.
4. There are almost always brand new iPods, and bigger/cheaper versions of old iPods announced right after Labor Day. (see #2 above.)
5. There is usually one final price cut before Thanksgiving, just in time for the Christmas shopping season.

All of this can be summarized as follows:

1. The time to buy the cheapest Apple stuff is generally between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
2. The time to buy the newest, coolest Apple stuff is usually in January & February, or right around Labor Day. (Conveniently, just in time for my birthday, in fact...)

With these rules in mind, shop away, and please keep making my Apple stock rise higher and higher.

(But before you make your purchase, make one last check here.)