I Made a Stupid Financial Decision

I think they should write a book about people that have buyer’s remorse, or at least sort of have buyer’s remorse.  I walked in to an Apple store a couple days ago and bought a 32GB Iphone 5.  For those of you that don’t follow Apple products as if they were a cult object, that means I spent $299 on the phone.  I also decided to purchase Applecare that will replace my device if I drop it etc, which cost me another $99 (I normally NEVER buy any sort of extended warranty or service plan on electronics but for some reason I do on my phones).  And since Apple decided to change the connector on the Iphone 5, I also bought a ridiculously priced extra USB cable for another $19.  Yes, I spent around $450 (including tax) on a phone.

So, I sort of feel like an idiot, but at the same time I’m a happy idiot.  I’m inseparable from my phone.  I was actually inseparable from my previous Iphone as well.  I suppose that was part of the reason that I so willingly threw my money at Apple.  I’ve found that this device has actually improved my productivity and mostly improved my day to day experience.  Some of the applications I’ve installed on it have saved me money (price comparison tools like Google Shopper etc), and I’ve used other applications heavily on a daily basis.  (This is the justification paragraph in case you didn’t pick up on it).

When I step back and look at what I did, I do feel a bit of remorse.  Why on earth did I so willingly give away $450? The reality is that my old phone was working fine and I was happy with it.  It’s kind of pathetic that I bought this phone when I didn’t need it.  I bought it because it was the “new thing”. (For the record I didn’t wait in any lines.  I have my perceived dignity. heh).

Anyway, I felt like I should come clean on the blog here.  My wife thinks I’m crazy because I’m so frugal in so many aspects of my life but when it comes to gadgets and other non-necessity items, I tend to throw caution to the wind.  I guess this is one of those things that I have to recognize as a “want” that I prioritize in my budget.  Of course, this kind of splurging is okay since we’re debt free and meeting all of our long term goals.  I’m basically prioritizing these purchases over getting a pathetic interest rate in a savings account.  I guess the real question is what could I have done with this money to give myself a higher satisfaction level.  At this point, I can’t think of anything.