Get a Free Gadget
One
type of rewards program is promoted with the following slogan: "Get a [insert name of a popular hundred-dollar
gadget here] FREE!" The popular hundred dollar gadgets may include:
- Free iPhone
- Free Plasma Screen
TV
- Free iPod
- Free Nintendo Wii
- Free Macbook
- Free
Camera
- Etc.
Here is how works:
There
are 3 groups or parties involved: You, The Freebie site, and the
advertising website(s).
The Freebie site attracts you
with an ad that says "Get a free gadget".
You go to that
site and select "offers" to complete in order to get the gadget.
Sometimes the offers involve free trials, buying a service or product, and/or
referring your friends to complete offers.
The
offers are made by the advertising websites, and they are paying the
freebie site for customer referrals. When the freebie site earns enough
from the advertisers to make what they want and pay for your "Free"
gadget, then they send you the gadget.
The person getting
the freebie must complete all the requirements in order to
get the freebie. The freebie site and advertising sites still make
money off of people who don't complete all the requirements.
(This is essentially the same way Free After
Rebate sales make revenue since not all consumers request the
rebate)
It is quite possible to get your free gadget
without paying anything. Some freebie sites will give you the gadget
just for signing up for free trials. You sign up for the required amount
of free trials, mark your calendar for when the trial is over, get your
gadget from the free site, and then cancel each of the free trials
at the end of the trial periods. This takes careful planning, but
it can be done. Sometimes canceling the order at
the end of the trial period will involve sending a product back to the
company (just an FYI).
For sites that require that you
complete offers and refer friends, there are referral exchange
websites where you can find people to exchange referrals with. This will
mean completing more offers, but then you'll have the referrals you
need.
If you find a paid offer that you decide to
complete, be very cautious. Many of the websites that make the offers
have a whole line of products; and when you sign up to buy one of them
for a bargain price, you might also be signing up to buy the entire line
of products at regular price (or an inflated price).
Video
Professor is an example of this. The company offers some kind of free
CD-Rom all the time. But then after you get the free CD-Rom, the next
month your credit card will be billed the regular price for the next CD-Rom
in their line of products. And they'll bill you and keep sending the CDs
in their line of products every month until you've purchased them all.
So you have to cancel the contract you didn't know you were getting
into.
For another example, you sign up with Colombia
House to get 7 DVD's at 49 cents each to complete one of your offers for
your free gadget. But then somewhere in the fine print you find out
that you have buy 5 more DVDs at "club" prices in the next 2 years
before you can cancel your membership without getting fined. Do the
math: 7 DVDs at 50 cents each is $3.50. The 8th movie is $15, the 9th
movie is $10. Plus 3 DVDs at $20 each is $60. So by getting 7 DVDs at 50
cents each, you're committing to actually spend $88.50. You can get 12
DVDs for much less on eBay, or even free through bartering.
After
doing the math with the Colombia House offer and imagining hundreds and
thousands of people doing this a week (due to the freebie site
referrals) its easy to see how Colombia House and other advertising websites can collectively pay the
freebie site enough so that the freebie site makes the money they want
and still have enough left over to send you a "free" gadget.
Tips:
- Do
a background check on the website giving away the free gadget before
you give them any of your personal information. Third-party
websites are a good place to start.
- Use a separate
email address. There are plenty of places to get a free email. You can
create one just for this purpose.
- Read all the fine print
and plan according to their rules.
- Mark your calendar for the
end of the free trial and cancel the service before your credit card
gets charged. Also send back any required merchandise.
- When you
decide to buy something, make sure you're not committing to buy the
company's entire line of products or committing to spend more than what
you have to pay up front.
Josh
Clark is an example of someone who was able to get some gadgets
completely free. On his website he logs complete details and time lines
of everything he does to get the freebies. He got the idea from here.
Websites that offer "Get a
Free Gadget" programs.
The better-known sites are owned by
Gratis Internet (gratisinternet.com). Click here for their BBB report.
- FreeDVDs.com
- FreeGiftPlanet.com
- FreeIpod.com
- FreeiPods.com
- Freepay
(ipods.freepay.com, cited by businessweek.com)
- FreeVideoGames.com
- FreeFlatScreens.com
(These
sites have
not been tested
by ActuallyFree.info.)
Other sites:
- trainn.org -
Transcendent Innovations
- rewards1.com
- freebundles.com
- prizerebel.com
- gaminglagoon.com/index.php
(These sites have not been tested by ActuallyFree.info.)
Legitimate news sources report on experiences with "Get a free gadget" programs:
- An editor from CNET.com tried to get an iPod. Read
about his experience here.
- An article at Businessweek.com also describes another
rewards program called TrialPay.
- An article at Wired.com explains experience with
FreeiPods.com.
- ForeverGeek.com confirms they received a flatscreen from
FreeFlatScreens.com.
submit a
site
Referral exchange websites:
(Where
you can trade referrals with other people so you can help each other
get your freebies.)
getref.com (not tested)
thefreebieexchange.com (not tested)
submit a
site