AARP Bulletin - July/August 2010

T-Mobile subscribers. If you’re not sure of the provider, try this order: 1, then *, then #. When you hear a beep, you’ve got the right one.

28 Trade in electronics like old cellphones and computers at wireflytradeins .com or tigerdirect.cexchange .com and get a charity write-off, cash or gift cards. Costco, Best Buy and Sears also have electronics trade-in programs.

29 To save on groceries, check out mygrocerydeals .com, where you can compare prices in supermarkets in your area by product, category or store. Another site is grocery guide.com. You must register to use the sites, but both are free.

30 Buy gift cards for up to 30 percent off their face value at plasticjungle.com, giftcard rescue.com and giftcards again.com, where the cards are sold by gift-getters who don’t want them.

31 Group-coupon websites prove there’s power in numbers. Provide your e-mail and city and you’ll get a daily local offer. If a set number of people sign up, you get the deal. Sites include groupon.com, social buy.com, scoopst.com and angieslist.com.

32 See plays for free by volunteering as an usher. Many theaters will let you see the show if you help with the paying patrons. Check with your local theater, and wear comfortable shoes—you may end up standing for the performance.

33 Yard sales in your area can be found at yardsaletreas uremap.com. The site tracks sales that have been posted on craigslist.com, then gives you the when, where and driving directions.

Only wear pantyhose when absolutely necessary. It’s one less thing to spend money on.” —Madeleine Albright, former secretary of state

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34 Owner’s manuals are often missing when you buy bargain electronic devices or appliances at online auctions or garage sales. Manufacturers may charge for the manuals, but you can get many for free at retrevo.com, manuals online.com or usersmanual guide.com.

35 Get rewards for online shopping from ebates.com. You register and then click to visit any of about 1,000 partner retailers. You can collect a reward of from 1 to (very occasionally) 40 percent of your purchase amount. The money arrives as a check or a credit to your PayPal account.

36 Promotional codes
can get you discounts of up to
50 percent when you check
out at online shopping sites.
Though some codes are for
returning loyal customers,
others are up for grabs—you
just have to know where to
find them. Try these websites:
also get you through the doors
at a lower price.

TRAVEL

You
thought
your Uncle
Ralph was
cheap!
Industrialist
J. Paul Getty
(1892-1976)
put dial locks
on his tele-
phones and
installed a
pay phone in
his Manhat-
tan home so
visitors and
house guests
wouldn’t run
up his phone
bill.

CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT: BOB DAEMMRICH/CORBIS; CSA IMAGES/GETTY IMAGES; BETTMANN/CORBIS
retailmenot.com, coupon
chief.com, currentcodes.com
and freeshipping.org.

42 Find free Wi-Fi hot spots, particularly useful when you travel, at jiwire .com. The searchable site lists almost 300,000 hot spots, both free ones and those that charge, in 144 countries.

43 Kids eat for free—or at a discount—at dozens of chain restaurants. But check ahead, because often kids must be under a certain age, or you must order from special menus at specified times. Find spots at familyfriendly america.com and coupondivas .com—whether you’re on the road or at home.