10 things you definitely shouldn't do to save money

Posted on 3 Sep 2008 at 11:54

1. Steal neighbour's Wi-Fi
Aside from the petty theft and numerous security issues, relying on a naïve neighbour to leave their connection unprotected is hardly a long-term solution.

2. Download cracked software
BitTorrent might seem like a free treasure trove, but a criminal conviction for software piracy won't help your career, and cracked software is often riddled with malware.

3. Share DRM-free music
Those iTunes+ songs may be freely copied, but they're also embedded with ID tags. Pass copies of music to a friend and it might come back to haunt you.

4. Install multiple copies of the same licence
Software often has an online registration system to prevent excessive installations. Using a friend's discs may lock them out.

5. Neglect backups
It might be tempting to skimp on external hard disks or DVD-RWs, but they're less expensive than a critical data loss.

6. Buy cheap media
No-brand, cheap CDs/DVDs are almost always a false economy, with higher failure rates and shorter life spans.

7. Refill ink cartridges
Undoubtedly cheaper, they work in some scenarios - but they often lead to a drop in print quality or damage hardware.

8. Tighten your data cap too far
Downgrading to a broadband package with a reduced speed/ data cap is cheaper, but charges for exceeding your cap are high.

9. Stop paying the TV licence
Watching programmes on your PC to save the TV licence fee? Computers are receiving equipment and must be paid for.

10. "Free" laptops offers
You often end up paying more for so-called "free" laptops and broadband deals than you would by buying them separately. Trust us, we've tried.

Defy the credit crunch