Shopping Place Blog Feed

How to reduce your Home and Car Insurance

Shopping Place — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 16:16:00 GMT

Is your wallet feeling lighter than usual? Run out of cash to buy that 400" plasma? Worried about the future of your finances? Whilst there's not a lot we can do about the credit crunch gripping the country, and fixed priced necessities such as food and petrol, there are some simple steps you can take to help avoid financial meltdown. One of these is lowering your monthly outgoings on services and recurring payments - such as broadband, insurance, and energy.

There's goldmines of money to be saved on financial services such as home and car insurance. A saving of just a tenner a month equates to a saving across the year of �120, which isn't to be sniffed at, and could be used for a weekend away or 12,000 penny sweets. A great place to start lowering your insurance is with one of the many comparison websites on the web. One such comparion site is GoCompare.com, where you can compare car insurance or For more information, read the full article at Shopping Place

Saving energy is elementary with Wattson

Shopping Place — Wed, 4 Jun 2008 19:48:00 GMT

Even though it looks like a plastic bridge over a purple river of light, the Wattson does a lot more than just look pretty. Wattson allows you to monitor how much energy your home is using, presents it to you in fancy charts and graphs on your computer, and suggests ways to cut your usage. So whether you're a hardcore environmentalist looking to save the planet or simply a savvy consumer looking to save some money on your electricity bills, the Wattson could be the invention you've been looking for.

Developed by the clever people at DIY Kyoto, the Wattson comes in two parts. The first is the main box which looks pretty, and wouldn't look out of place in the most stylish of homes. The second is the sensor clip and transmitter. Even though Wattson allows you to measure the energy usage of your whole house, you won't have to rewire the mains system to be able to use it. The sensor clip simply clips like a peg around one of the cables running into your electricity meter, and the transmitter wirelessly sends this information about the electricity you're using to the main box, whi...

For more information and to find the best prices for a brand new Wattson Energy Monitor, read the full article at Shopping Place

Beat the High Street this Christmas

Shopping Place — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 17:27:00 GMT

If you�ve had enough of the high street already this Christmas then why not think about shopping online? Not only do you get to enjoy the comfort of shopping from your own home, but by using a shopping comparison website, or shopbot, such as Shopping.com, you also know that you�ve got the best deal.

Understandably, some people have concerns when purchasing goods over the internet. We've been speaking to Shannon Clouston - chief shopper at Shopping.com - who's offered us some practical advice on how to shop safely online, and what to watch out for when you do your last minute Christmas shopping.

1. Do your homework - Use the internet to search for information. Manufacturers websites often provide detailed product info whereas shopbots such as Shopping.com should be used to help you find the best deal.

2. Read consumer reviews - High quality consumer reviews can uncover the important advantages and disadvantages of simil...

For more information, read the full article at Shopping Place

Christmas Last Delivery Dates 2007

Shopping Place — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 17:4:00 GMT

Still stuck for those last minute Christmas presents? Wondering what exactly to put under the tree for Auntie Mabel? Think it's too late to order those cut price flashing musical socks from the web? Well fear not, because there's still just about enough time to order online, and Last Delivery is here to help you place those last minute orders.

Last Delivery is Shopping Place's sister website, dedicated to providing you with all the last order and last delivery dates for Christmas 2007. Many of the online stores are still accepting orders, and will still guarantee delivery by Christmas. Jessops for example are taking orders right up until the 21st of December, and if you'd like to have your Christmas dinner delivered to your door, Tesco are accepting groceries orders up until two days before Christmas - 23rd December.

Last Delivery is like Ronseal, it does exactly what it says on the tin. It's the only place to find the last order dates for deliver...

For more information, read the full article at Shopping Place

Win �50,000 playing Pro Evolution Soccer 2008

Shopping Place — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 13:49:00 GMT

Always wanted to live the footballer's lifestyle, but find yourself more of an armchair supporter? Ever wished to sign for Manchester United, but stuck with two left feet? Well your prayers may well have been answered. Thanks to Play.com and Konami, you could win �50,000, simply by playing the latest game in the hit series Pro Evolution Soccer.

There's one thing better than playing the latest footie game, and that's winning prizes whilst you do it. In conjunction with the nice people at Play.com, Konami is offering �50,000 to the best Pro Evo 2008 player in the UK. Have you got the flicks, tricks and kicks to beat thousands of other players and walk away with the �50,000 prize money? Whoever said that you'd get nowhere in life playing computer games was obviously telling a lie.

OK, so maybe �50,000 won't allow you to live quite the footballer's lifestyle we'd all like to have. It'd barely cover David Beckham's hairdressing costs, let alone t...

For more information, read the full article at Shopping Place

Ashamed of your outdated old mobile? SWAP.it!

Shopping Place — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 20:1:00 GMT

"Your phone's only got Bluetooth and a dozen polyphonic ringtones? Well look at this, mine's got 3G, wi-fi, pie-in-the-sky, fifty megapixel camera, and fully enabled toast capabilities. And I only needed to remortgage the flat to buy it." Sound all too familiar? We sympathise. It's ridiculously hard and expensive to keep up with the latest mobile trends these days - that contract phone that looked so appealing nine months ago is probably already outdated by a newer, faster, more glorious model. So if you haven't got the latest Golden Fallace 3000, the Carphone Warehouse is here to help, with their new SWAP.it service.

Does the offer of a new phone halfway through your mobile contract sound appealing? Thought so, and that's exactly what the Carphone Warehouse is offering. You no longer need to be ashamed of your technologically inferior phone, the brick that stays tucked away in your back pocket when around friends. Basically you sign up for a mobile contract which includes a free ...

For more information, read the full article at Shopping Place

The $2,000,000 Board Game

Shopping Place — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 13:53:00 GMT

It's common consensus that board games are exactly that - boring. However, what about a board game that could win you money? We've always dreamt about the Deal or No Deal game you were given for Christmas being real, or the Who Wants to be a Millionaire playstation game feeding the one million pounds you just won out of a slot in the side. Well let's think bigger than that, what about a board game that could win you millions - two million dollars to be exact? Well it's a dream no longer, because Eternity II is here to boggle your mind and fill your wallet, courtesy of gadget store Firebox and famous online retailer Amazon.

It's the one maths equation you never learnt back at school - 256 square puzzle pieces + one clever person = two million dollars. It sounds easy, but as the name Eternity II suggests, the board game may require a bit more skill than picking random boxes or moving your piece down a snake. The vexing geometric puzzle took ages for the designers at Tomy to create, and the last board game they made - no prizes for gu...

For more information and to find the best prices for a brand new Eternity II , read the full article at Shopping Place

See some Sky this Summer

Shopping Place — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 20:23:00 GMT

If you're fed up of staring at dank, grey cloud this summer, we here at Shopping Place can help. No, we haven't got some super neutron machine we borrowed from James Bond that can melt away the clouds (that's for later), but we can at least help you to see some sky. Unfortunately we're not talking about the blue, natural stuff, but something just as good all the same. Sky is here to entertain you this summer, with their excellent mix of TV, broadband, and phone. And it's not as expensive as you might think.

Sky TV used to be reserved for the upper class in society, the people who could spare a bit of money aside each month for the luxury of multi-channel TV. However in recent years, Sky has become more and more accessible to the masses. You can now get all three products - TV, broadband, and phone - for an amazing �26 a month. That's the equivalent of a packet of cigarettes a week, and Sky hasn't yet been scientifically proven to kill you (as far as we know)....

For more information, read the full article at Shopping Place

Stand Under my Umbrella

Shopping Place — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 20:33:00 GMT

You couldn't make it up. Another British summer, another torrential downpour of rain. Mother nature seems to have taken a sudden vicious turn, throwing hail and violent lightning storms at us too. Apart from leaving the country the bad weather seems unavoidable, tomorrow is supposed to be our 'only' day of Summer. But you don't have to leave yourself exposed to the elements, John Lewis and Harrods have some great offers on the businessman's essential tool - the humble umbrella.

Widespread flooding, caravans floating downstream, the only people who seem to be benefitting from this recent spell of appauling weather seems to be the boat owners, who now have a brand new playground consisting of the most part of central and northern England. The bad weather's coming to get you, but is your old battered umbrella up to the job?

The idea of an umbrella is simple yet brilliant. A piece of coloured canvas stretched over a metal frame, a contraption that is able to be extended and contracted whilst painfully getting your finger caught in the catch. The umbrella stands above you as you go about your daily business, keeping you dry and retaining your hair-doo. It's an essential accessory for everyone, an...

For more information, read the full article at Shopping Place

Remote Control Indoor Helicopter for under �25

Shopping Place — Sun, 22 Jul 2007 20:11:00 GMT

Remote control planes and helicopters used to be restricted to those who had the time to build one and a back garden big enough to accomodate one. However thanks to Firebox, you can get your hands on a PicoZ Micro Remote Control Helicopter that you can use from the comfort of your own couch. And best of all, it won't cause your bank account to crash land.

At only 17cm long and weighing in at a measly 10g, the PicoZ Micro Helicopter is ready to fly straight out of the box. No faffing around with fiddly screws or a never-ending sea of bolts, only to find you're missing half the pieces. Despite its size the PicoZ won't fall apart, as it's made from the finest polypropylene foam. You don't even have to leave the comfort of your cosy chair to fly it, as the PicoZ works both inside and out, so is an ideal distraction whilst the unseasonal rain continues to pour through this typically British summer.

The PicoZ is controlled by a wide-beam IR transmitter (the same technology that's in your TV remote) which also doubles up as a charger once your helicopter has run out of juice. Because it's so light, you can have up to 10 minutes flying fun from only a half hour charge. The controller has a massive range of 30 fe...

For more information and to find the best prices for a brand new PicoZ Micro Helicopter, read the full article at Shopping Place