how to pay less around 40 dollars less for the sony ereader

[NatCh]

I guess 'cause they don't have enough of the money you earned after all that.

[nordikgod]

You can get the Sony reader at a Borders store for about $35 off list price. To do this you need to have a Borders frequent buyer's card (free). Then buy more then $50 of merchandise in one month. You will then get a "personnel" shopping day good for 10% off everything that you buy on a day of your choosing in the following month. This includes the eBook reader (that's how I got mine). All purchases must be made at a store (not on line). This purchase should also get you another 10% off personnel shopping day the following month. By the way the discount coupons you get when you make a purchase usually exclude the eBook reader.

[DougFNJ]

In NJ we have sin taxes, fuel taxes, the highest property taxes in the nation, they just raised our sales tax, and all that to pay for continuous screwups and corruption galore. Oh, and if that's not enough, in NJ, if a development company pays enough to our fine state and local governments, they can exercise Eminent Domain and give you appraised value for your land instead of market value so they can kick you out of your home to build better homes (see Long Branch NJ) Oops, talk about going off topic?

BUT, at least if I buy an item online from a company out of state, I won't get taxed for it as of now, apparently NJ is working on that too.

In most states to my understanding, if the company you are purchasing from has a location in the state you reside in, they have to charge you sales tax. If that company has no locations in your state, no sales tax is charged. So if we purchase something from Best Buy or Office Max which has locations all over te place, we get taxed. if Mom and Pop .com is in TX and I live in NJ, Sales Tax is not charged. If Mom and Pop .com is located in NJ they have to charge ME sales tax because I reside in the same state, but they don't have to charge it to those that reside in any other state BUT my State.

I hope that explains things better.

Nordi, that Borders deal you stated....are you sure it dosen't exclude Electronic Equipment? Thats the big thing I've read in the forums lately......if not, great deal

[NatCh]

Well, more specifically, DougFNJ (and more nit-pickingly ), the vendor is only required by law to collect the sales taxes for the state he operates in. The state is what charges the tax.

In your example, NJ requires Mom&Pop.com to collect the sales taxes it charges you (as one of its residents), but TX has no authority to require that Mom&Pop.com collect the sales taxes it charges me (as one of its residents).

In that scenario, TX does have authority to directly charge the sales taxes on me, but lacks the seller as an agent for collecting them from me. In fact, TX does still consider itself owed those taxes, and if they ever figure out a way to document and track them, I expect they'll send me a bill and probably a nasty note.

[Azayzel]

Originally Posted by nordikgod

You can get the Sony reader at a Borders store for about $35 off list price. To do this you need to have a Borders frequent buyer's card (free). Then buy more then $50 of merchandise in one month. You will then get a "personnel" shopping day good for 10% off everything that you buy on a day of your choosing in the following month. This includes the eBook reader (that's how I got mine). All purchases must be made at a store (not on line). This purchase should also get you another 10% off personnel shopping day the following month. By the way the discount coupons you get when you make a purchase usually exclude the eBook reader.

Following this line of thought... You can then use the Sony Card CC and get an additional $150 off your first purchase. This method would then wittle the cost down to $350 - $35 = $315 + (Sales Tax ~5.0% (varies by state)) $15.75 = $330.75 - $150 = $180.75 Still a bit cheaper than full cover, but isn't Sony still offering $50 off the purchase through their website? I think I had to pay sales tax of only 2.9% ($10.15)and shipping was free, so the final cost would be lower ordering direct from Sony.

Now if there was some way you could convince the sales associate at Borders to discount what Sony is providing through their website; e.g., $50 off, ... that would be a good deal at ~$133.50 after all the bonuses!

Edit: Thanks for the catch NatCH, I had assumed the $50 I had been hearing about was a direct discount; sucks to hear it's simply a $50 marketing scheme to draw ppl to make more purchase through their, $ony's, store.

[NatCh]

They weren't ever offering $50 off through the website, not that I ever heard of, anyway (the site says $349, presently).

They were offering $50 credit at the ConnStore, but that's another animal entirely, and you pretty much had to register your Reader with the ConnStore by 12/31/06 to get it, so it's no longer available.

[NormB]

SonyStyle still offers $100 credit for openning a Sony Credit Card through thier site. I did this and used the Sony card number for the purchase of the reader (They were offering $150 for a while; Plus I qualified for the $50 book credit on Connect. Made a total of $200 discount). The credit is issued on your first statement for the card. Then you could cancel the card if you wanted to. I have not cancelled mine yet but I need to either cancel the Sony VISA card or one of my other VISA cards.

[nordikgod]

Originally Posted by DougFNJ

In NJ we have sin taxes, fuel taxes, the highest property taxes in the nation, they just raised our sales tax, and all that to pay for continuous screwups and corruption galore. Oh, and if that's not enough, in NJ, if a development company pays enough to our fine state and local governments, they can exercise Eminent Domain and give you appraised value for your land instead of market value so they can kick you out of your home to build better homes (see Long Branch NJ) Oops, talk about going off topic?

BUT, at least if I buy an item online from a company out of state, I won't get taxed for it as of now, apparently NJ is working on that too.

In most states to my understanding, if the company you are purchasing from has a location in the state you reside in, they have to charge you sales tax. If that company has no locations in your state, no sales tax is charged. So if we purchase something from Best Buy or Office Max which has locations all over te place, we get taxed. if Mom and Pop .com is in TX and I live in NJ, Sales Tax is not charged. If Mom and Pop .com is located in NJ they have to charge ME sales tax because I reside in the same state, but they don't have to charge it to those that reside in any other state BUT my State.

I hope that explains things better.

Nordi, that Borders deal you stated....are you sure it dosen't exclude Electronic Equipment? Thats the big thing I've read in the forums lately......if not, great deal

Yes the normal Borders coupons and discounts do exclude electronics. Both a cashier at my local store and the fine print on the coupons say they exclude electronics. BUT the personnel shopping day does not currently list any exclusions on electronics and the store I went to applied the 10% discount to the Sony reader that I purchased last Saturday. So give it a try and good luck.

[L1Wulf]

I posted elsewhere in the forums about an additional discount. I got a coupon for 20% off (or 10% off for the Reader or the Zune, specifically stated in the first paragraph in the fine print) just for having my birthday and the Borders Club card. So if you are nearing your birthday, already have a Borders card and haven't bought your reader, you can use the above techniques with the addition of the birthday discount of 10%. I did this and walked out of the store at just under $180 after tax.

Instant gratification is good.

[Azayzel]

Originally Posted by L1Wulf

I posted elsewhere in the forums about an additional discount. I got a coupon for 20% off (or 10% off for the Reader or the Zune, specifically stated in the first paragraph in the fine print) just for having my birthday and the Borders Club card. So if you are nearing your birthday, already have a Borders card and haven't bought your reader, you can use the above techniques with the addition of the birthday discount of 10%. I did this and walked out of the store at just under $180 after tax.

Instant gratification is good.

Just to clarify, is this using the $150 Sony CC discount w/ the birthday discount at Borders, or is there more to keep in mind? I'm not going to buy an additional one, but I've refered quite a few people and if I can save them some C-notes I will. Thanks for the tip!

[Nightwing]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Do they ship internationally?

Please correct me if I'm wrong, but my understanding of the American tax system is that one still has to pay tax even if one buys something in a different state, but one pays later, as a "use tax" in one's own state, rather than as a "sales tax" in the state of purchase. Is this not the case?

Esp in California.

[noxxle]

Originally Posted by NormB

SonyStyle still offers $100 credit for openning a Sony Credit Card through thier site. I did this and used the Sony card number for the purchase of the reader (They were offering $150 for a while; Plus I qualified for the $50 book credit on Connect. Made a total of $200 discount). The credit is issued on your first statement for the card. Then you could cancel the card if you wanted to. I have not cancelled mine yet but I need to either cancel the Sony VISA card or one of my other VISA cards.

I find it hard to believe that sony is going to give you a hundred dollars just for signing up for a credit card. There MUST be some catch. Perhaps you have to keep it active for a certain time? or agree to make a certain amount of purchases?

[NatCh]

You can see the "fine print" here if you like.

It's actually a fairly common marketing lure -- the Amazon card offers $30 on your first credit. The $100 is an unusually large amount, but conceptually, it's not surprising.

Anyway, there are a number of MobileReaders who have already received that $100 credit.

[noxxle]

Originally Posted by NatCh

You can see the "fine print" here if you like.

It's actually a fairly common marketing lure -- the Amazon card offers $30 on your first credit. The $100 is an unusually large amount, but conceptually, it's not surprising.

Anyway, there are a number of MobileReaders who have already received that $100 credit.

Has anyone here on the forums successfully canceled their sony CC?

[noxxle]

The fine print says "Credit card will be applied to your Sony Card account 8-12 weeks after your first purchase." What does that mean? Do i have to purchase something and THEN wait 12 weeks to get the 100 credit? It also says "Account must be open and not in default at the time of fulfillment" Does that mean I cannot cancel this card until at least 12 weeks have past? When you click the "apply now" button there is a note on the bottom of the page that says "Transaction fee for balance transfers: 3% of the amount of each transaction, but not less than $5.00 nor more than $75.00." Can someone explain this balance transfer fee to me? sounds kind of shady..