Lowest online price for electronics beats offline average price by 44%

Most consumers know that they can find lower prices online than they can offline. Now a study from Vendio Services Inc., which operates the comparison shopping site Dealio.com as well as provides e-commerce services to online retailers, has quantified the spread. A survey by Vendio of consumer electronics prices shows a 44.2% spread between the average offline price of a product and the lowest online price. Vendio compared the average offline price to the lowest online price because consumers can easily find the lowest price online, whereas finding lower prices offline is a bigger challenge.

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Vendio surveyed five local retailers, including outlets of large, national electronics chains, to reach an average offline price for each product. It then used its Dealio comparison site to find the lowest online price. Offline prices include 8.25% California sales tax. Online prices include tax and shipping costs.

For specific products, here is what Vendio found. The first price is the lowest online price, the second is the average offline price:
• Canon Elura 100 camcorder: $299, $411.34
• Canon DC100 camcorder: $313, $541.24
• Panasonic PVG 5500 camcorder: $613.90, $1,082.49
• Canon PowerShot SD550 digital camera: $248, $324.74
• Canon A530 digital camera: $129.53, $180.05
• HP M425 digital camera: $103.95, $146.13
• Kodak Easyshare C643 digital camera: $140.95, $248.25
• Kodak Easyshare Z650 digital camera: $227, $297.14
• Xbox 360 videogame console: $399, $432.99
• Samsung HD860 DVD player: $89.98, $107.16
• Panasonic TH-42PX60U 42-inch Plasma TV: $1,522.95, $1,984.58
• Samsung LN-S3241D 32-inch LCD TV: $969, $1,457.40
• Pioneer PDP-4270HD 42-inch Plasma TV: $1,974, $2,922.74

"By doing literally 30 seconds of homework on the web, you’re going to find a price on almost any consumer electronics product that is far below the average price you’ll see in a local retail outlet,” says a Vendio spokesman.