What the BlackBerry Digital Pen Could Be: All-Knowing Digital Pen Dream Wish List

New Blackberry: A Sneak Preview...

"The pen basically sees everything that you see using its forward-facing HD video camera, and hears everything that you hear using its integrated microphone.  It records and analyzes the video and audio so that you can search for anything you have ever seen or heard."

Blackberry Cell Phone
Image courtesy of Zuzu CC-BY-SA via WikimediaCommons

It is the eve of the release of the BlackBerry Digital Pen.   I don’t know what the BlackBerry Digital Pen will turn out to be, but I immediately thought of about 20 cool functions for a digital pen that will change the world.  Today, I will write about what the BlackBerry Digital Pen could be.  Tomorrow, we’ll find out what the BlackBerry Pen actually turns out to be…

Security Features

Since it’s a BlackBerry, business users will expect serious security features.  The first is biometric access control.  The pen knows its owner’s fingerprint and has in integrated sensor.   Only the owner or those authorized by the owner can access data on the pen at all.  The data on the pen in encrypted as well to ensure privacy for both business and personal information that may end up on the phone.  You’ll see later why security features are so important.

The owner can send commands to the pen from a web page (via a computer or cell phone).   If the BlackBerry pen does get lost, the owner can send a command to clear the data on the pen remotely.  Naturally, the owner can also command an upload of all data from the pen to secure storage in the cloud before clearing it.

Ink Pen
Image courtesy of kangshutters at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Interfaces

The surface of the pen is a touch-screen LCD wrapped around the pen.  It can display a few lines of text or some graphics to support a user interface.   You can send and receive text messages.  Text-to-speech voice recognition is the main input method for entering your outgoing text message.  The phone can also display relevant information such as time, temperature, and stock quotes on its display.  There would be an interface for at least entering digits- to dial the phone.  Perhaps some sort of keyboard scheme could be accomplished by showing part of the keyboard at one time and scrolling to access the rest of the keys.  There just isn't much real estate to work with on the surface of a pen.

Connectivity

The pen supports Wi-Fi to upload its data to secure storage in the cloud.  For convenience, the pen also has an integrated cell phone transceiver.  Yes, you can also make cell phone voice calls and send/receive text messages with the BlackBerry pen.  Bluetooth is also integrated to allow the pen to share its files conveniently with computers.  For example you can use the pen like a memory stick to haul around large files like PowerPoint presentations or videos and then share selected files with a computer to share with others.  The pen can also send a video stream to TVs via Bluetooth, or you can stream live video to the Internet via Wi-Fi or cellular link.

The pen also has built-in infrared (IR) to allow it to function as a universal TV remote control.  Of course it also has GPS so that it knows its location (and thus your location) at all times.   This is also handy if it gets lost, it can let you know its location.

Pen Features

That’s right, it’s also a pen.  It can write on normal paper.  A good feature for a pen!  It has integrated sensors so that it can 1) reproduce anything you write in a graphical format file and 2) use its on-board OCR to generate a text file of all text that you write.  The sensor is likely a combination of digital video to obtain images of the written page, and motion sensors such as accelerometers built into the pen to determine its writing motion.  Not only does it record what you write- it records what you write on as well.  For example, if you fill out a form, the pen stores both the form and all of the information that you write on the form.  It will also record the date, time, and location where you filled out the form.  You can also retrieve the audio recording from the time when you were filling out the form.

The  pen also has a digital voice recorder with integrated text-to-speech.  Also included are many of the features from Personal Digital Assistants (PDA’s) of the past, such as storing business contact information and keeping your schedule.  The pen’s high resolution camera can be used to scan business cards and business documents.  The pen uses its connectivity to automatically synch with the rest of your life and move its data to secure storage on the cloud as needed.

Sensors

The pen has a forward facing high definition (HD) video camera.  When you place the pen in your shirt pocket, its HD video camera faces forward.  This means you can use the pen as a sort of dashboard video recorder for your life.  The pen can record a video of any meeting you are in.  It can record the scene while you are driving or snowboarding, etc.  Why would you want to record all of the events in your life?  So you can search it later.  The pen uses MIT’s new state-of-the-art FFT algorithm to compress the video files to the point where it can all be stored in the cloud.  Face recognition algorithms and voice-to-speech algorithms automatically create a transcript of events that can be searched.  Who was at the party?  Where was I driving when I saw that cool recumbent bike for sale along the road?

Not only that, but the camera records documents that you view.  When you are looking at your computer screen , the pen is looking at your computer screen.  It uses OCR so that any document you view can be found later.  This works for paper documents as well if you have your pen on so that it can record them.  The pen basically sees everything that you see in HD, and hears everything that you hear.  It records and analyzes the video and audio so that you can search for anything you have ever seen or heard.

If you wish, the pen can automatically Tweet or update your facebook status:   the pen "knows" where you are (GPS) and who you are with (calendar & face recognition).

You can see now why I listed Security Features first…

Recommended reading:
Cell Phone Plans for Existing Cell Phones

How to Sell your Old Cell Phone and Get Cash

Penny Pincher Journal

Copyright © 2013 Dr. Penny Pincher.  All Rights Reserved.  Privacy Policy

How to Get Better Gas Mileage Without Getting a New Car or Truck

How to Get Better Gas Mileage with Your Car or Truck

The easiest way to get better mpg is to get a more fuel efficient car.  When I switched from driving a Ford F-150 pickup truck to a Honda Civic, I doubled my fuel economy overnight!

Keep your gauge on full longer!
Image courtesy of supakitmod at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

But if you want (or need) to keep driving your current vehicle, there are some simple things you can do to get significantly better gas mileage.  By working to improve both the vehicle and the driver, you could see 5 mpg or more improvement.  You can see how much money a 5 mpg improvement in fuel economy would save you each month in fuel savings using the tables at:

How Much Would I Save on Gas with a More Fuel Efficient Car?

Improve the Vehicle to Get Better Gas Milage

Tip 1.  Keep tires properly inflated
Fuel Savings: 3 mpg

Valve stem tire pressure monitors cost under $10
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

On the inside of the driver's door is a sticker that will show the recommended tire inflation for your vehicle.  When tires are under inflated, they have more rolling resistance and you will get lower gas mileage.  The air pressure in tires changes as seasonal temperatures change and sometimes due to slow leaks.

I installed valve stem pressure monitors on my tires.  These cost less than $10 at an auto parts shop and are much easier to check than using an air pressure gauge.  A colored indicator shows green when the tire is properly inflated- easy to check when you refuel.
Tip 2. Replace air filter when dirty
Fuel Savings: 3 mpg
A dirty air filter prevents your engine from getting optimal mpg.  Air is routed to the engine for combustion through a path that includes the air filter.  Its job is to make sure dust and debris do not get into the engine, but when it gets dirty, the flow of air to the engine is reduced which reduces your fuel economy.  You can easily check and replace this filter yourself for about $10, or have this done at the shop with your oil change.


Tip 3.  Remove extra weight
Fuel Savings: 2 mpg
I can tell when I have driven with passengers in my car- my mpg drops!  This is due to the extra weight onboard.  You can't do much about driving with passengers sometimes, but there may be extra weight in your car that you don't need.  Do you keep lawn chairs in the trunk year round?  Do you haul library books around for weeks until you remember to return them?  Remove extra weight to boost your mpg.  Avoid using your vehicle as storage space- you are paying to haul that extra stuff around.

Improve the Driver to Get Better Gas Mileage

Idling wastes fuel
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Tip 4. Don't Idle the Vehicle
Fuel Savings: 2 mpg
This adds wear and tear to your engine and doesn't get you anywhere.  Turn your ignition off if you are stopped more than 1 minute or so.  Avoid running your heater or A/C while parked- instead go inside a building and wait.  This is one of the tricks that hybrid cars use to get good gas mileage- they turn off rather than idle.

Tip 5. Slow Down
Fuel Savings: 1 mpg
Driving above 60 mph cuts your mpg significantly.  Speeding doesn't save you that much time: if you drive 10 miles at 70 miles per hour vs. 55 miles per hour, you would save only about 2 minutes.  Choose a reasonable driving speed and set the cruise control to avoid having your speed creep up.  Simply driving at or below the speed limit saves fuel.

Tip 6. Avoid rapid acceleration and deceleration
Fuel Savings: 1 mpg
Accelerate slowly and steadily.  Try to time lights so you don't need to brake rapidly  Keep your car's momentum going, accelerating takes a lot of fuel.  Think of rapid acceleration as guzzling, slow acceleration as sipping.


Tip 7. Use a GPS navigation system
Fuel Savings: A lot if you get lost frequently!
Avoid getting lost- this wastes gas and time.  Also a GPS unit can help you find more efficient routes with less traffic.  City driving results in much lower fuel efficiency than highway driving due to the starts and stops. Most GPS systems have route selection modes where you can avoid traffic- this can help your mileage approach highway driving levels.  You can find GPS systems for your vehicle starting around $100.


Tip 8. Climate Control
Fuel Savings: 1 mpg
Keep windows up at highway speed, use the A/C if needed.  At slower speeds, or if you're stopped, you're better off to put the windows down.  The engine has to work to turn the compressor belt on the A/C.  At slower speeds, it is less work for your engine to deal with the increased drag from having the windows down than with running the compressor.


Recommended reading:
How to check your gas mileage: Step-by-step instructions to calculate miles per gallon (mpg)

How Much Would I Save on Gas with a More Fuel Efficient Car or Truck?

Penny Pincher Journal

Copyright © 2013 Dr. Penny Pincher.  All Rights Reserved.  Privacy Policy

DirecTV vs Dish Network vs Cable: What is the best value?

Cable TV Distribution Box
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

TV Service Options

The main options for receiving television programming are satellite TV and cable TV.  The main players in satellite TV are Dish Network and DirecTV.  Local cable companies provide programming in most areas, providing a third option.  Which of these provides the best value?

Confusion Factors

DirecTV satellite dish
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

There are so many different packages and discounts that it is difficult to compare offerings between Dish Network, DirecTV, and cable companies.  For example, cable companies offer bundling of services- if you subscribe to phone service, your TV bill is discounted.  If you subscribe to both Internet and phone service, your TV bill is discounted even more.  The satellite companies offer introductory rates for 1 year or some other limited amount of time.  After the introductory rate, the prices go up and the “ every day “rate applies.

Dish Network HD satellite dish
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

In order to compare prices that you would pay in the long run, I tried to identify the “every day” price.  This is the price that you would expect to pay after the introductory rate.  This is the price with no bundling, the price you can get with only TV service.

Another issue that makes comparison difficult is that the channels included vary.  The value of a channel package depends on how much you value the channels in the package.  A 140 channel package may be more worthwhile to you than a 290 channel package- it depends on which channels are included and which ones you would watch.

How to compare?

I decided to set a budget and number of receivers, then compare what Dish Network, DirecTV, and the local cable company could offer to meet the budget.  The price points I picked out were :

• $50 per month for one TV set, standard definition
• $75 per month for 2 HD TV sets
• $100 per month for 3 HD TV sets

So how much TV can you get for $50, $75, and $100 per month?

Price Comparison without Bundling or Introductory Rates

Table of TV programming packages available for $50, $75, and $100  per month
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Note that this comparison chart represents my best attempt to sort through the many offers and packages to find the “every day” price with the charges for the receivers included.

These prices get higher if you want to upgrade your receiver to a DVR so that you can record shows.  This may cost an additional $10 for an “advanced receiver service” or similar fee per month FOR EACH DVR.  Also, you may need to pay for the DVR equipment, which costs about $200 per receiver.  This may be an upfront fee, or may be rolled into your monthly bill at some point.   Also note TV service typically requires a 18 to 24 month service contract- if you want to leave early you'll have to pay a cancellation fee which can be substantial.

I was disappointed that $50 per month doesn't get you much.  All I was looking for in this price range was service for 1 standard definition TV set.  Only the cable company delivers in this price range.

At the $75 price point, DirecTV and Dish Network provide options that meets the budget and provides 2 HD receivers.  The local cable company did not have any offerings with 2 HD receivers in this price range.  Moving up to the $100 budget for 3 HD receivers, DirecTV, Dish Network, and the local cable company all have options.

Which to choose?

It is a good thing that there are several choices available.  If you are looking for the lowest cost option, cable TV is the way to go.  The satellite companies do not offer packages in the under $50 price range.  If you have $75 per month to spend and want multiple HD receivers, the satellite companies have the only offerings.

If you have around $100 per month to spend, DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable all have packages with lots of channels for multiple TV sets.  Since the price is similar, I think the decision comes down to which packages have the channels you want the most.  You can find the list of channels on the provider's website.  I would suggest printing out the channel listing, passing it around to your family and having everyone circle the channels you think you would actually watch.  This exercise will help you see which is the best value in terms of channels that you would actually watch.

TV Augmentation Options

If you don’t have $100 per month to spend on TV, or even $50, there are some ways to get some movies and television at a low cost.

Low Cost TV Augmentation Options
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Penny Pinching Tips:

• When selecting TV service, find out the cost after the introductory period.  This is the price you will likely pay for years and provides the best basis for comparison
• Look beyond the number of channels, check for channels in the programming package that you would actually watch
• Watch out for additional equipment and service fees if you add a receiver with DVR
• Cable has the best option for simple, low-cost service
• Cable and Satellite have lots of options, especially at $100 per month and up
• Consider low-cost TV augmentation options, you may be able to cut back on TV service if you use these options

If you don't really want all of the channels that cable or satellite TV offers, you can get free HD TV over the air using an indoor HD TV antenna that costs $50.


Recommended Reading:
Cell Phone Plans for Existing Cell Phones

Penny Pincher Journal

Copyright © 2013 Dr. Penny Pincher.  All Rights Reserved.  Privacy Policy

How to check your gas mileage: Step-by-step instructions to calculate miles per gallon (mpg)

Check you Gas Mileage and Save Money

Gas mileage is measured in mpg:  miles per gallon.  The calculation of miles per gallon is the miles driven divided by the gallons of fuel used to drive those miles.  This article provides step-by-step instructions with pictures to measure miles driven, measure gallons of gas consumed, and calculate gas mileage in miles per gallon.

Checking your miles per gallon is useful to figure out how much it costs to operate your car- this can be an important factor in deciding whether to get a different car.  Also, the mpg performance of your vehicle provides an indicator when maintenance may be needed- if your mpg dips this may indicate low tire pressure or a dirty air filter.  By tracking your mpg, you will be able to notice driving habits that lower your fuel efficiency.

MPG Monitor Mischief- Conspiracy Theory

Some newer cars automatically calculate and display gas mileage instantaneously as you drive on a fuel consumption display.  So if you have a built-in mpg monitor, you never need to check gas mileage yourself- right?  I would check it myself the old fashioned way, using my own measurements of miles driven and gallons of fuel consumed.  Why?  There has been at least one instance of a hybrid vehicle with inflated mpg ratings placed on the window sticker.  A high miles per gallon rating sells a lot of cars.  Carmakers have a huge incentive to display the highest mpg number on the indicator while you’re driving too.  If you test drive a car that displays a high mpg, you’re more likely to buy it.  After you buy it, if you think you’re getting great gas mileage, you’ll probably have higher satisfaction with the vehicle- and be more likely to recommend the vehicle and even buy another one.

Wouldn’t people notice if the mpg number  on the display is a little high all the time?  Unlikely.  How many people with an automatic mpg monitor ever manually check the mileage and compare?   Even if you have an automatic mpg monitor, check it yourself with these steps.

Step-by-step Instructions to Check your Gas Mileage

1. Reset trip counter at your next fill-up.  Fill the gas tank all the way full.
Most odometers have a trip counter.  This is an odometer that can be reset to zero by pushing a button.
Resetting the trip counter will start tracking miles driven on this tank of gas.

What if I don't have a trip counter?  You'll need to record the odometer reading now to use later.

Fill gas tank full and reset the trip counter
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

2. At your next fill-up, note how many gallons it takes to fill the tank all the way full.
You can get the gallons from reading the display on the pump, or from your receipt.

Record the gallons needed to fill the tank.  This is available on the pump display, or on your gas receipt.  The reading is 8.949 gallons.
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

3. Note how many miles are on your trip counter

The trip counter with miles driven : 330.7 miles
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Tip: write mileage from trip counter on the receipt so you can do the math later

The gas receipt shows gallons used to fill the tank.  You'll also need the miles driven from your trip counter.
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

What  if I don't have a trip counter?  Take the current odometer reading and subtract the reading you wrote down in step 1.  This is the number of miles driven on the current tank of gas.


4. Divide miles from trip counter by gallons from receipt or gas pump display.
Most people will want to use a calculator for this step.
For example, if your trip counter reads 330.7 miles and you used 8.949 gallons of gas, the calculation is:
330.7 miles   / 8.949 gallons  = 36.95 miles per gallon (mpg)

Tip: I keep a $1 calculator that my kids gave me in the car.  The calculator on a cell phone or computer will work as well.
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Example calculation:
How to calculate miles per gallon using a calculator:

1. enter 330.7
2. press division key
3. enter 8.949
4. press equals key

The answer shows your gas mileage in miles per gallon, 36.95 in this example.

5.  Important- reset trip counter after you note the miles to start tracking miles for the next tank

You will need to reset the trip counter while you're still at the gas station to record the miles driven on you next tank.

Recommended reading:
How to Buy a Used Pickup Truck
How Much Would I Save on Gas with a More Fuel Efficient Car?

Penny Pincher Journal

Copyright © 2013 Dr. Penny Pincher.  All Rights Reserved.  Privacy Policy

Pet Food: Why is dog food and cat food so expensive? Would it be cheaper to feed my pet meat?

Why is Pet Food so Expensive?

Why does pet food cost so much?  Would it be less expensive to just feed pets meat and vegetables?  Is dog food and cat food a good deal, or could you make your own pet food for less?  We'll check the cost of popular pet food brands per pound vs. the cost of meat and other pet food ingredients per pound.

Pet Food Catastrophe

There was a minor catastrophe last night.  The cats ran out of food.  Cats get annoying when they are really hungry, so a late night trip to the grocery store was in order.  I brought home a bag of Purina One Beyond for the cats and filled their bowls.  However, they seemed unimpressed with my efforts.

The next day, I went to Walmart to see if I could find a larger bag of cat food for a better price.  (Target did not have this brand.)  The bag from the grocery store was $8.48 for 3.5 pounds  I even brought the bag with me so I could match the correct chicken flavor.  The picture below shows the bag from the late night run to the grocery store on the left, and the larger bag on the right.  Can you spot the problem?

Two bags of cat food- can you spot the problem?
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Both bags are Purina One Beyond.  Both are chicken flavor.  Look closely at the picture of the animal in the circle.  The one on the left is DOG food!  No wonder my cats wouldn't eat it...  My dogs seem to like it, even though it's not their usual brand, so no harm done.

At least the larger bag was cheaper- "only" $14.88 for 6 pounds.

Why is Pet Food so Expensive?

Did I really pay $14.88 for 6 pounds of cat food?  Good grief, couldn't I just feed the cats real fish and chicken for this price?

Of course there is a range of pet food quality and price, and Purina One Beyond must be near the top.  The higher quality pet foods use meat and meat products as the main ingredients, the lower quality ones use corn and other grains as the main ingredients.  I decided to see how much more the higher quality foods cost than the cheap stuff.  Since I have both cats and dogs, I checked out cat food and dog food.  I selected various sized bags of pet food of various quality.  The tables below show the price per pound for popular dog food and cat food brands.  The column with Weight indicates the size of the bag.

Table of Cat Food Prices
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Table of Dog Food Prices
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Generic is the price winner for both dog food and cat food.  The more expensive brands are about 3x more expensive than generic per pound in the same size bag.  The size of the bag makes a big difference, the same food costs quite a bit less if you simply buy it in larger bags.    Many of the lower cost "Name Brands" are not much more expensive than generic.  I would bet that the ingredient list is similar as well.

Why Don't I Just Feed My Pets Fish, Chicken, and Beef?

Animal nutrition is a complex topic, I'll look at this from the cost angle here.  I walked around the grocery store looking for food that I could conceivably use in pet food, especially cheaper meats.  Dogs like peanut butter, so I thought peanuts would be a good ingredient.  I hear rice mentioned as a pet food ingredient, so I'll use that as well.  I wanted meat without bones- I wouldn't be willing to put too much work into making pet food.  I wanted ingredients that don't require a lot of work.  My question is: is it cheaper to buy pet food or would it be cheaper to feed them groceries.

My grocery selections for pet food are in the table below, along with cost per pound.  The bottom line of the table is the average for all of the items above.

Table of Pet Food Ingredient Prices
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

If you think pet food is expensive, buying groceries for your pets is much more expensive.  Even the most inexpensive meat, like generic bologna, is more expensive than dog food or cat food if you buy larger bags.  The average cost for my pet food formula: $3.85 per pound.  High quality pet food sells for about $1.50 per pound.

Pet Food is a Good Value

High quality pet food is a good deal for the money.  You couldn't make something comparable without spending more than even the most expensive pet food.  Pet food includes vitamins and minerals as well as the basic ingredients.  Seeing that pet food is actually less than buying groceries for the pets makes me feel a little better.

I think of dry pet food as "meat cereal".  Pet food contains most of the things that cereal contains- grains, vitamins  minerals, etc.  If you consider the price of cereal, and then think of adding expensive ingredients like meat, it makes sense to me why pet food costs so much.

You might ask why a penny pincher like me buys the most expensive brand of cat food at the store.  Because my wife makes me.  She thinks it's good for the cats, and she's probably right.  I don't let my kids eat a lot of junk food, so I don't want to feed my pets junk food.  They will be healthier and happier with a quality diet.

Penny Pinching Tips:

• Buy pet food in large bags to save money.  The same food costs much more in smaller bags.
• Rather than buying cheap pet food to save money, feed your pet the right amount of higher quality food.  Many pets are overweight, so save money and improve their health by feeding them less until they reach ideal weight.
• Pet Food is a good deal compared with grocery prices

Recommended Reading:
Dog Sunglasses Buying Guide
Cat Claw Caps: Are Cat Nail Caps a Good Alternative to Declawing?
Malshi: Cross of Maltese and Shih-Tzu Dog Breeds

Amazon offer: Raw Dog Food: Make It Easy for You and Your Dog

Penny Pincher Journal

Copyright © 2013 Dr. Penny Pincher.  All Rights Reserved.  Privacy Policy

How to Buy a Used Pickup Truck

How to Buy a Used Pickup Truck

Should you buy a pickup truck or rent one?  Which features do you need in a pickup truck?  How do you find out the price range for a truck with the features you want?  And what are the best places to buy a used pickup truck?

Step 1.  Consider how you will use the truck.  Do you really need to buy one?

Wouldn’t it be nice to have a pickup truck?  You could buy whatever you want at Lowes or Home Depot and haul it home yourself.  No more boards and pipes sticking out of your trunk.  You can buy drywall, plywood, lawn tractors, anything at all and haul it home.  Think of the projects you could take on…

Dr. Pincher's F-150 Pickup Truck, purchased in 2004 for $10,000.  This is an example of an extended cab pickup truck.
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Did you know that the big home improvement stores will rent you a truck for about $20 for 4 hours?  They will also deliver loads for about the same price.  You can also rent a larger truck at places like U-Haul and Penske for about $30 per day.  So the question is, how often would you use a pickup truck if you owned one?  If you’re thinking of hauling bulky items from home improvement stores once every few months, renting a truck occasionally would save you a lot of money.

Owning your own truck is much more convenient than renting one- it’s always available and you don’t have to take the time to return it after each use.  Some situations where buying a truck might make a lot of sense:

• Frequent projects that require hauling large items
• Hauling of purchases home from garage sales and auctions
• Moving from one house to the next over an extended period of time
• Need to haul lots of junk to the landfill over a long period of time.  Been there, done that!
• Hauling livestock
• Towing a travel trailer or camper
• Snow removal (if you outfit a 4x4 truck with a snow plow)

If you think you would use a truck more often than it would be convenient for you to rent or borrow one, decide what features you need in a truck.

Step 2.  Make a list of must-have and nice-to-have features

How many people will ride in the truck?  Just you, or will you ever want to take family and friends as well?  Pickup trucks have 3 cab configurations:

• Standard Cab- 2 doors, usually bench seat.  Seats 3 adults.  Front seat only.
• Extended Cab.  Front seat and small back seat.  2 doors, the front seats fold forward to access the back seat, like in a 2-door car.  May have small “suicide” doors that swing backward to help access the back seat.  Seats 3 adults in front, probably up to 3 kids in back.
• Crew Cab- 4 full doors. Seats 5 or 6 adults.

This crew cab pickup truck has 4 full-sized doors.
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Do you need 4 wheel drive?
If you live in a cold climate, you’ll probably want 4 wheel drive, or also know as 4x4.  Trucks have poor traction when not loaded since there is little weight on the drive wheels in back.  Four wheel drive will help keep you moving in slippery conditions like snow or mud.

Do you plan to tow?
If so, you’ll likely want a V8 engine.  Investigate the trailer you plan to tow, so you’ll know the required towing capacity.  You may be able to find a used truck that already has a trailer brake controller installed, which will save a couple hundred dollars.

What size truck bed do you need?
If you plan to haul 4x8 sheets of drywall or plywood, a full-sized bed would be more convenient so you can lay sheets of material flat.  Smaller compact trucks, with smaller beds, get better gas mileage but have less room for large items.  If you're getting a truck, make sure it will be able to haul what you need to haul...

How important is reliability to you?
If you are planning to mainly use the truck for local trips, reliability may not be that important to you.  You may be willing to drive an older truck with higher mileage since it is not that inconvenient if it breaks down.  If you are planning to tow a trailer on summer vacation, you wouldn't be happy if it broke down in the middle of nowhere.

Dr. Pincher purchased this 1983 Dodge Ram  for $450 a number of years ago for local hauling   This is an example of a standard cab pickup truck.
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Step 3.  Set a price range

Now that you know the features you want, start checking out prices.  I  use Kelly Blue Book to get an idea of private party and dealer prices for trucks that meet my criteria.  As with cars, the prices go down rapidly with the age of the vehicle and the mileage.  Other places to check out available makes, models and prices are autotrader.com and cars.com.  Another good source of market prices: used Pickup Truck prices on eBay.

It is important to go through this step of identifying trucks that would work for you and what market prices are like before you go shopping, so you’ll know a good deal when you see it.  If you plan to finance your truck purchase, this is the time to talk with your bank set up vehicle financing.  If you plan to buy from a dealer, the dealer can also help arrange a line of credit at the time of purchase.

Step 4.  The Purchase

Some places to shop for trucks:

Vehicle Auctions

I have tried truck shopping at vehicle auctions, but was the prices on trucks were bid up too high for me.  The kind of people who go to auctions are the kind who buy pickup trucks.  They need to haul the stuff they buy at auctions!  Also, an auction is a high pressure way to buy, you need to make quick decisions about how high to bid.

Private Party

Buying from a private party is probably the way to get the lowest price.  You can find private party vehicles for sale on craigslist.org, or in classified ads in your newspaper.  Some drawbacks of buying from a private party seller:

• It is harder to set up a time to see vehicles
• You might be dealing with someone who has never sold a vehicle before
• You won't get a warranty
• A private party seller will not be able to offer financing

Car Dealer

This is likely the most expensive, but easiest and most convenient way to buy a vehicle.  You may get a warranty on a used vehicle, for example 30 days against major defects.  Shopping at car dealers gives you a chance to see a lot of trucks quickly.

Penny Pinching Tips:

Negotiating the Price

It is always worth a try to negotiate the price.  Even with a private party ad that says “price firm”.  It’s hard for anyone to say no to cash and someone who is ready to buy.  Let’s say the asking price is $14,000.  There are different strategies you can use to justify your lower-than-asking-price offer.  You can simply say that your budget right now is $10,000 and see what happens.  Usually what happens is that the seller will say, “Can you do a little better?”  It’s good to think this sequence through so you can end up with the price you want.  If the seller says “No thanks" to your offer, you can always say, “Well, you drive a hard bargain...” and make a higher offer.  Just remember there are lots of other trucks for sale, you can find one in your price range if you keep looking.

Check out Used Pickup Truck deals on eBay to get an idea of reasonable prices.

Buyer Beware

One issue with buying a used vehicle is that it could have major mechanical issues you don't notice before you buy it.  Good advice is to take the used vehicle you are interested in buying to a mechanic and have it checked out.  I agree that this is good advice, but I have never done this myself.  I like to ask questions about how often maintenance was done and specifically ask the seller if there is anything wrong with the vehicle.  Also, I try to go with a make and model with high reliability ratings from places like Consumer Reports.

Recommended reading:
Best RV: Motorhome or Travel Trailer?

How to Get Better Gas Mileage Without Getting a New Car

Penny Pincher Journal

Copyright © 2013 Dr. Penny Pincher.  All Rights Reserved.  Privacy Policy

How to Make One Million Dollars by Driving a Used Car and Investing the Car Payments

You can make $1 Million by driving a used car instead of making car payments

The concept is that you can accumulate $1 million with the following process:

1. Drive a used car (or no car).  Therefore, you are not making car payments each month.
2. Instead of making car payments, invest the amount of the car payment each month
3. The investment grows over time and you continue to invest the amount of a car payment each month until the value of your investment reaches $1 million

Sounds simple enough.  But would it work?  How long would it take to reach $1 million by investing money rather than making car payments?

Part 1.  The Car Payment

We need to pick out a car in order to determine the amount of the car payment to use for the analysis.  Why not the new Lincoln MKZ with retractable roof?

Lincoln MKZ
Image courtesy of Mariordo - Mario Roberto Durán Ortiz CC-BY-SA via Wikimedia Commons 

Let’s use Lincoln’s build and price tool to figure out the sale price and then the car payments.  Here are the options we'll include:

• Hybrid (same price as conventional motor)
• Add Nav system package for $3000
• Retractable roof option for $3000

Net Price: $42,965

Car payment: $811 per month.  

This is the car payment for the MKZ with 60 month financing at 5% APR.

Part 2. Invest the Car Payment

But rather than buying a new Lincoln MKZ and making car payments of $811 per month, we'll invest the money instead.  

Further assume that we will not make car payments in the future either and continue to invest this amount of money.  This would be like someone buying a new car every 5 years and getting a new car loan each time rather than using any of the residual value of the 5 year old vehicle toward purchasing the next new vehicle.  Not an unreasonable assumption- the person may keep driving the 5 year old vehicle and not trade it in, or could sell the 5 year old vehicle and pay off higher interest bills instead of putting that value toward the purchase of the next new car.  So we'll assume these $811 per month payments go on indefinitely

.

How much return will we get on our investment?  No one can answer this with certainty, so let's use the long-term historical return of the stock market since 1929, including the crash, to present.  Using a large set of data that represents the modern economy seems like the best we can do to estimate long-term future rate of return.  The stock market return over this period was 8.8% (4.6%, price appreciation  plus 4.2% dividends).  So we'll assume we'll get 8.8% return on investment over the long haul.

Part 3. Reach $1 Million Over Time

Since we know how much money we are investing and the rate of return, we have all of the information we need to figure out how quickly we can get rich by driving a used car and investing the car payment.  The answer:  27 years.

Investing Car Payments:  Reach $1 Million in 27 Years
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

What about Inflation?

The purchasing power of money generally tends to decrease over time.  For example, when I was a kid you could buy any candy bar in the store for 25 cents.  Now, candy bars typically cost 69 cents of more.  This is an example of how purchasing power of a money has decreased due to inflation.  Inflation doesn’t effect all prices equally, but if you want in the future to be able to purchase $1 million worth of goods, you’ll need an amount of money greater than $1 million in the future.

Note for this analysis, the cost of the car does not change over the years.  We could ratchet up the amount of the car loan every 5 years to include the effect of vehicle prices going up over time, but this detail was not included in the analysis.

The long term inflation rate is about 3% per year.  The effect of inflation accumulates  over time.  Let’s run the same analysis, this time adjusting the future value of your investment for inflation.

Car payment investment reaches $1 Million of buying power after 35 years, adjusted for inflation
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

This answer: in order to accumulate $1 Million of buying power in the future, you would need to invest your car payment for 35 years.

Conclusion

• Driving a used car, or going without a car, is definitely less expensive than making payments on a new car
• Investing car payments is not a get rich quick scheme:   it would take 27 years of investing car payments to reach $1 million, 35 years if you account for the effect of inflation on the value of money
• If you started this scheme at age 18, you’d be a millionaire at age 45

Recommended reading:

How to Get Rich

How to Win the Lottery

Penny Pincher Journal

Copyright © 2013 Dr. Penny Pincher.  All Rights Reserved.  Privacy Policy

Pedometer Buying Guide

Pedometer Buying Guide

I have wanted to try a pedometer for years, but have not been able to pry the money out of my wallet.  There are several promising models in the under $30 price range:

Mio Step 2 Pedometer
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

• MIO Step 2 Pedometer, $17.  Uses "classic" 1 axis pendulum sensor, must be mounted vertically to count steps accurately.  Includes FM radio with ear buds.  Also has stopwatch, clock, and alarm clock.

• MIO Trace ACC-TEK Pedometer, $16.  Three axis sensor, Three axis sensor, claims accurate step count at any angle.  7 day memory.

• Omron HJ-321 Tri-Axis Pedometer, $17.  Three axis sensor, claims accurate step count at any angle.  7 day memory.

• Omron HJ-112 Pocket Pedometer, $23.  Dual axis sensor, can be positioned horizontally or vertically.  7 day memory.  Modes for two walking speeds-regular and brisk.

• Ozeri 4x3razor Digital Pocket 3D Pedometer, $29.  Three axis sensor, claims accurate step count at any angle.  7 day memory.

I found the MIO Step 2 at a store closing sale marked down from $16.99 to $7.48 and decided to give it a try.

Pedometer Test Drive

How accurate is a pedometer at measuring walking distance?  The sensor in a pedometer is able to count the number of steps that you take.  The pedometer converts this to walking distance using your stride length.  How does it know your stride length?  You input this based on what you think is your average stride length.  The fact that your stride length varies somewhat is the fundamental limitation on the potential accuracy of a pedometer to measure walking distance.

I clipped the Mio Step 2 on my waist after about 10 minutes of reading the direction sheet to figure out how to use it.  One of the steps is to determine your average stride length.  I laid out a tape measure in my garage and took 6 "normal" steps.  I divided the total distance by 6 to get my stride length.  The Mio Step 2 has a stride input mode where you can enter your stride length in inches.  My entry was: 26 inches.

I went on a walking trip and recorded my step count and calculated miles walked.  At home, I used Google Map Pedometer to check my route on a map and figure out the distance.  The results were not impressive.

Pedometer Distance Accuracy Using 26 Inch Stride
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

The distance from Google Map Pedometer is not perfect, but I would expect accuracy on the order of 10's of feet.  The Mio Step 2 had significant error, about 15% or about 600 feet of error on a short walk!  Then I realized that this measurement is very sensitive to stride length.  I took the route distance in miles, converted to inches, and divided by the number of steps to get 30.8 inches.  I decided to try the same walk again using an input value of 31 inch stride length.  I repeated the same route twice to check step count consistency.

Pedometer Distance Accuracy Using Calibrated Stride (31 inch)
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Much better.  I would say as a rule of thumb you could expect the accuracy limit of a step-counting pedometer to be about 3% distance measurement error due to variation in stride length.  On both of the runs in the table above, I followed the same route at the same pace with the pedometer mounted vertically on my waist.  I have pretty good confidence in the step count, so the difference must be due to variation in my stride length.

Is a Pedometer Worth the Money?

If you want to keep track of your calories burned or distance walked, a pedometer could be a useful tool.

However, you can get a pretty good indication of how far you walk and how many calories you burn just by keeping track of the time.  For example, if you walk 4 mph and you go for a 1 hour walk, your distance is 4 miles.  If you burn about 300 calories per hour walking, and walk for 1 hour, then you burned 300 calories.

Also, if you walk the same route frequently, a pedometer will not be useful.  The main benefit of using a pedometer is to help keep track of walking in new places or if you take a variety of different routes.  Also a pedometer could give you a sense of your overall calorie consumption from walking throughout the day.

You can't go too far wrong in this price range.  If it helps motivate you to exercise and reach ideal weight, I say it's worth the money.

Mio Step 2 Pedometer Review

The Mio Step 2 has an FM radio, which is a nice feature.  It uses a CR2032 coin battery to run the radio.  With 225 mAh of power, I would expect it to run the radio for about 16 hours.  The computer/display uses a LR1130 button battery.  One concern was how much it will cost to replace the batteries- if the batteries cost more than $10 to replace, I'll probably never do it.  Good news- according to research at amazon.com, replacing both batteries will cost about $1.50.

Other features include a clock, stopwatch, and alarm clock.  The pedometer calculates calories burned on your walk using your body weight, distance walked, and time.

I did a 3 foot drop test of the Mio Step 2 onto a hard surface.  Accidently.  The Step 2 survived without damage.  The drop test was performed before the test drive.

I like the small size of the Step 2.  The only problem I have is that it is a bit awkward to keep it clipped to my waistband to keep it in the required vertical position.

Pedometer Recommendations

So which one to pick?  All of these pedometers have the fundamental limitation of measuring number of steps to determine distance walked.  Since your stride length varies, the accuracy is somewhat limited.  The models with 3 axis sensors would be much more convenient for most people.  The Mio Step 2 must be mounted vertically to count steps- clipping it to your waist is the only good place to mount it.

I recommend a 3 axis model that can be carried in a pocket, backpack, bag, purse, etc.  A 3 axis pedometer is much more convenient, and you are more likely to use it.

Here are some deals on 3 axis pedometers from amazon.com:

• All step counting pedometers are limited in accuracy since your stride length will vary.  Rule of thumb: expect 3% distance error.
• Calibrate your stride length on a walking trip of a known distance
• Look for a 3 axis sensor- this allows pedometer to work while carried in a pocket, etc.
• A light on the display would be useful for night walking
• A stride calibration feature would be useful- press buttons to indicate start and stop of a walk of a known distance, for example from one mile marker to the next on a walking trail.  The pedometer would automatically calculate your stride length.

Star Rating for Pedometers in General
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Star Rating for Mio Step 2 Pedometer
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

  Recommended Reading:
Walking: How fast can you walk? How long does it take to walk a block?
How Long Does It Take To Walk X Miles or X kilometers?

Penny Pincher Journal
Copyright © 2013 Dr. Penny Pincher.  All Rights Reserved.  Privacy Policy