The Great "Staying Behind The Joneses" Hunt

Reaper

When new PC games come out they cost a fortune. Wait a year and they will be a fraction of the price. Wait another year and they'll be bundled together with other games in a compilation. They might even be free eventually. For example one of the greatest ever strategy games on the PC, Civilisation 2, is now available to download for free. Don't expect cutting edge graphics but do expect a great game.

spud17

I know of single parent on tight income who found cheap 2nd hand TVs at a dealer/hire shop (some do still exist).
Current TV is 30inch Toshiba cost £40 with 3 month warranty. This is the 3rd or 4th bought this way, generally last couple of years.
Not had a dud yet.
Repeat customer so generally gets £10 off ticket price.

wakandem

If you want a crt monitor or tv then http://www.freecycle.org/ is the place to go. All types and sizes offerd everyday. Got 28" toshiba crt with remote - text 2x scart, stereo speakers, looks new & fantastic picture. All I had to was pick it up.

IMO don't touch 2nd hand laptops they are seriously overpriced & unlikely to be reliable for any length of time. Worn out hard drive - worn out battery - worn out optical drives, etc.

sylviesinc

Hi Reaper,

I followed your link but cannot find a free download of Civilization 2.

superscaper

sylviesinc wrote: »

Hi Reaper,

I followed your link but cannot find a free download of Civilization 2.

Doesn't look like there's meant to be one:

"This game is under protection of ESA (entertainment software association) and it CAN NOT BE DOWNLOADED! "

BillScarab

If you want to play Civilization II for nothing, you could try this

http://www.freeciv.org/index.php/Freeciv

It's an open source game 'inpsired' by Civ II but with online multiplayer added.

Mercenary

Reaper wrote: »

When new PC games come out they cost a fortune. Wait a year and they will be a fraction of the price....

My tactics exactly .
I have recently picked up 'Hitman:Blood Money' (2006) for £4.99, 'Splinter Cell: Double Agent' (2006) for £4.89.... and have now ordered 'Sniper Elite' (2005) for £7.95. :cool:

For my OH I've just ordered 'Microsoft Flight Sim 2004 -Century of Flight' for £12.99 on GAME, which is approx the price it is going for on Ebay second-hand, and is half the priceasked by the remaining shops that still have it.

http://uk.gamestracker.com/ is your friend

Reaper

Many appologies about the Civ 2 link. I'd heard a rumour it was downloadable and when I saw it on Abandonia (a site that offers old games as free downloads) I assumed it was true. I'm not sure why it is even listed on the site if it's not available.

I hadn't actually tried downloading it myself as I already owned it.

Kernow_Kid

Don't be fooled by the new signs on TVs now, a lot of them aren't worth the money and many are already obselete!:eek:

A quick guide:
There are 3 types of screen: 720p, 1080i and 1080p.
1080p is the best, but unless your screen is huge (42"+), you probably couldn't tell the difference.

Unless you have Sky, Virgin or Cable TV, you won't be able to get Hi-Def anyway, so don't spend out unless you're getting that as well.

Many TVs say Hi-Def Compatible. This is rubbish, as you would need to buy another box to convert pics to HD. You should only go for HD Ready. A clever one by the sellers.

It doesn't really matter which you get in the end, as you're unlikely to get another to compare it to in the same house (if you can afford to, then you don't really need to be on this site!).

If you are thinking about buying a Plasma or LCD, spend a LOT of time researching which one, as by the time you go to buy it, it should have come down in price!

I know this should be on the Techie pages, but it seems relevant to previous comments.;)
Hope it helps:beer:

Kernow_Kid

Oh, and by the way, for all those Jones' who did pick up a HD TV, Philips and IBM are launching 3D TV in 2009!:beer: