Author: Mike Flacy

    Editor-in-Chief for The CheckOut. During my free time, I love to write about pop culture, home theater, digital photography, social media, mobile technology and cool gadgets!

    If you are interested in having The CheckOut crew review one of your products, send me an email to reviews at bensbargains dot net. (Of course, replace at for @ and dot for .)


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    Check out my most recent posts:

  • amazon-delivery-porch
    10 Ways to Deter Thieves from Stealing your Amazon Packages

    With more consumers relying on online shopping rather than making numerous trips to retail stores, the number of people scouring neighborhoods looking to steal packages has increased as well. To help you safeguard your packages, we’ve complied...

    • Posted 5 years ago
    • 3
  • Florida residents will be paying more taxes on online shopping purchases soon

    Going into effect on July 1, online shoppers located in Florida will be paying sales tax on purchases made with companies that don’t have a physical presence in the state. For instance, a purchase on Walmart.com would...

    • Posted 5 years ago
    • 0
  • Here’s five cheaper alternatives to everything Apple announced today

    Apple held a Spring 2021 event today to roll out several new products including refreshes on the iPad Pro, iMac and Apple TV as well as Bluetooth trackers called AirTags. (And the greatest announcement of all: Season...

    • Posted 5 years ago
    • 0
  • best-buy
    30 Ways to Save Money at Best Buy, online and in-store

    If you are spending money at Best Buy, there are plenty of ways to save your money (and time) when shopping. We’ve put together a list of thirty Best Buy-specific shopping tips to take advantage of when online at BestBuy.com...

    • Posted 5 years ago
    • 2
  • Best Buy launches $200-a-year subscription service in 60 stores

    Looking for a way to rival Amazon’s popular Prime subscription model, Best Buy is launching a new membership service called Best Buy Beta. This service is going to provide access to exclusive sale pricing, zero shipping costs,...

    • Posted 5 years ago
    • 0
  • owning-home
    Real Estate: How to remove PMI early from your mortgage & save money

    If you purchased a house using a conventional loan & put up less than 20% for your down payment, you are paying PMI (Private Mortgage Insurance) on top of your mortgage payment each month.  That insurance isn’t for...

    • Posted 5 years ago
    • 0
  • 30 Times when Delivery Drivers Failed at Hiding Packages

    We have all come home at least once to find an online shopping purchase hidden poorly around our home, if at all. Some delivery drivers are expert ninjas at hiding your packages from would-be thieves, but there are...

    • Posted 5 years ago
    • 3
  • cable-tv
    Cutting the cord in 2021? Here’s the cheapest cable replacement options

    Is this the year you are ditching all the ridiculous fees that your cable company charges? Are you tired of subscribing to channels you don’t watch and paying ridiculous DVR service fees. If you are looking into...

    • Posted 5 years ago
    • 0
  • easter-eggs-1
    200+ Superbly Decorated, Pop Culture Easter Eggs

    Preparing for an awesome Easter egg hunt with the kids? Want to stand out from the crowd with cool decorations? Check out more than 200 wonderfully decorated Easter eggs with characters from movies like Star Wars and...

    • Posted 5 years ago
    • 1
  • credit-card
    Here’s the Top 5 Credit Card Rewards for Q2 2021

    While plenty of retailers have their own credit cards to earn a percentage back on a purchase or 0% interest for 6 to 12 months (along with astronomical interest rates if you don’t pay it off each...

    • Posted 5 years ago
    • 0
  • tax-day-wall
    IRS extends 2021 tax filing deadline to May 17

    If you are still working on filing your taxes this year, you will have another month to file this year. The IRS announced that they will be moving the tax filing deadline from April 15 to May...

    • Posted 5 years ago
    • 0
  • the-oregon-trail
    Shut Up And Take My Money: Handheld Oregon Trail Game

    Playing off the nostalgia of growing up in the late Eighties / early Nineties, Target is selling an exclusive electronic gizmo that puts an old, familiar game in the palm of your hand. The handheld Oregon Trail...

    • Posted 5 years ago
    • 0