r/SmartBuying

What's something you've abused or used heavily that still works perfectly?

Feels like social media blurred the line between actual needs and “I saw everyone else buying it so now I want one too."

can someone tell me in simple terms if its smart buying a new car after my current one is almost paid off??

I’m 27, credit score of 798, FT job for 8 years and I am one year off from paying off my car (2018 toyota camry SE) its currently sitting value is $10k…
I really been looking at a 2026 Camry XSE (msrp $38k~) or 2026 Lexus IS350 F Sport (msrp $55k~)
I currently pay $336 a month and what are chances of me getting one of these with little to no money down?? or do i just enjoy life with no car payment for a few years?

I dont need a new car, I deserve something new and nice.

NEVER MISSED A PAYMENT OR BEEN LATE.. dont know if that matters.

Needed headphones for editing + gaming.

Originally planned to spend around $120 but Reddit and YouTube reviews convinced me to “just spend more once” so I bought a pair that cost almost $430 after taxes.

And yeah they sound good… but not 3x better good.

Now I’m babying them constantly because I’m scared they’ll break, replacement pads are overpriced, and the Bluetooth randomly cuts out during long editing sessions.

What annoys me most is my cheaper old pair honestly felt more comfortable for daily use.

I’m starting to think a lot of premium tech purchases mainly exist so enthusiasts can justify their own spending to each other.

Does anyone else feel like mid-range products are the sweet spot most of the time?

Not necessarily bad immediately… just something that slowly made you realize you probably didn’t need it at all.

I keep seeing people debate whether buying TikTok followers, buy TikTok likes, or buy Instagram followers actually helps accounts grow long term or just destroys engagement.

What confuses me is that some pages clearly look botted but still somehow keep growing anyway.

A friend of mine bought Instagram likes for a few reels last year and said it temporarily helped social proof, but after a while his engagement ratio became completely weird. Another guy I know claims buying TikTok followers helped him land small brand deals because companies only looked at follower count.

At the same time, I’ve also seen creators say fake engagement completely ruined their reach and messed up the algorithm recommendations.

Honestly hard to tell what’s real because every YouTube video about this sounds sponsored by follower-selling websites.

Do platforms like TikTok and Instagram actually detect this stuff better now, or do people still get away with it pretty easily?

Curious about real experiences from people who actually tested it instead of generic “never do it” advice.

There are so many apps, platforms, AI tools, schedulers, analytics subscriptions, etc. now that it feels impossible to tell what’s actually useful and what’s just marketed well.

What’s one thing you personally think isn’t worth the money?

A lot of people still assume “Made in China” automatically means cheap quality, but some categories seem to have improved massively over the last few years.

Could be phones, EVs, appliances, fashion, accessories, tools, anything honestly.

Something you bought to save money at first… but ended up breaking fast, needing replacement, causing problems, or making you buy the expensive version anyway.

Not judging, just genuinely curious.

Could be a product, subscription, gadget, trend, service, whatever.

What’s something that became super normal to buy… but still doesn’t make sense to you?