Frugality Forever

Whoopee, people are finally saving again and they may - just may - keep saving even when the recession ends. Frugality may become the new fad, in particular among people who haven’t been hit hard by the recession, report Jeannine Aversa and Bernard Condon.

In an Associated Press survey, 44 leading economists were asked whether the recession created a “new frugality” and if that mindset will continue after the recession. A majority said saving is here to stay. At the height of the savings boom last year, people saved 6.4 percent of their disposable income compared with less than 1 percent before the recession hit.

“Consumers will not run up multiple credit cards to their limits, and when buying a house the objective will not be to get the maximum square footage for which they can afford the payment,” said Sean Snaith, an economics professor at the University of Central Florida. “A higher savings rate will be in place for several years.”

3-D Dollars

I enjoyed watching the movie “How To Train Your Dragon.” My kids liked the movie too. And we didn’t see it in 3-D. Nope, we saved the money and put it toward popcorn. (Yes, people as frugal as I am I do splurge on the movie popcorn, but I bring baggies so we take advantage of the free refills for the super tub.)

From HD to Blu-Ray, there’s a constant evolution of new technology that is supposed to provide a more lively and personal cinematic experience. But is that experience really worth the extra dollars?

Roger Ebert, a film critic for the Chicago Sun Times, doesn’t think so. In a Newsweek column, Why I Hate 3-D (And You Should Too), Ebert says, “It adds nothing essential to the moviegoing experience.”

I especially agree because of the added cost seeing movies in 3D. Ebert explains that the 3D craze is “driven largely to sell expensive projection equipment and add a $5 to $7.50 surcharge on already expensive movie tickets,” Ebert writes.

Online shopping fee

A new bill is looking to lay claim to the millions of dollars in online sales taxes, reports Ylan Q. Mui in Cash-strapped states go online, hoping to tax sales.

How to Save With Cutting-Edge Tech

Believe it or not, new gadgets can actually slash your spending over time

David LaGesse

An economy in the dumps has taught many consumers to live without the extras. And that would seem to include the latest in gadgets: New HDTVs, MP3 players, and game consoles can cost a bundle. But some of the best in fresh tech not only comes cheap; it can even save cash over time. Here’s how savvy buyers can cut their budget and still brag that they’re on the cutting edge:

TRIM THE CABLE.

One of the best ways to save on tech is to trim your monthly cable subscription, which often exceeds $100. Simply cutting out extra movie channels can save consumers as much as $600 a year. A cheaper alternative is to purchase a Netflixsubscription for $9 a month and get as many DVDs as you can watch, one at a time. There’s typically a two-day delay between shipping a disk back and receiving another.

Netflix also offers instant Web streaming of more than 17,000 TV shows and movies. Watching those streams on the living room TV is easy with a Roku box, which starts at $80. Roku owners can also pay a few dollars to stream a movie from an even larger selection at Amazon, and Roku recently added about a dozen “channels” that offer video from other Internet sites.

A variety of Blu-ray players, flat-panel TVs, and other boxes such as Apple TV also can stream Web video to the living room, “but Roku is the simplest out there right now,” says Chicago resident C. J. Chilvers. “It also offers the most diversity.”

Cut the cable completely.

Chilvers lives in a condo that doesn’t have good over-the-air reception. Otherwise, he says, he would have taken the next step of cutting out cable altogether. Digital broadcasts now offer crystal-clear video and audio with an old-fashioned antenna, including what videophiles claim is an HDTV signal that’s sharper than cable or satellite. Cutting the digital tier, or basic cable, altogether can mean the loss of live news and sports that aren’t yet available online. But it can also save consumers another $600 a year.