Top 6 Cyber Monday Shopping Sites

NEW YORK (WCBS 880)  -- As official "web guru" at WCBS, I'm often looked to for online shopping advice. It must be all the great deals that I find! We've decided to share some of the best sites, tools, tips, and tricks to get you the absolute best deal when it comes to shopping online...especially for "Cyber Monday." This is by no means a complete list. Instead, it contains the sites we find ourselves using most to save money in these tough economic times.

The beauty of online shopping is comparison shopping. There are dozens (if not hundreds) of sites selling the product you are looking for, and the retailers know it. Consequently, price competition is fierce. There are sites that let you do a side-by-side comparison of product prices all at once. Then you can decide where to buy it.

For example, if you're looking for an 80GB Pink iPod, there's a dozen or so sites that will offer it. The iPod is the same regardless of the retailer, so look to the price. In the case of iPods, prices are pretty tightly controlled. However, things like tax and shipping are not. You might find that 3 of the retailers will give you free shipping, and 2 will offer you a 50% discount on accessories. All you have to do is choose the one that saves you the most.

Here's the list:

1. CNET.com Reviews: CNET is a leading authority on all things tech. If you're looking for the best electronics gifts, CNET is a must for you. Don't know the difference between an iPod and a PS3 ? No problem. CNET puts together lists of its Top Editor's Picks for just about every consumer electronic category. You no longer have to worry if you are getting your kid the best iPod headphones. On the most popular products, CNET has video reviews where you can watch the CNET editors review the pluses and minuses of top products. (See the HDTV video review on the right)  Where's the savings? Once you've picked out what you want to buy, CNET will give you a list of online retailers including the price of that item on each site. The list allows you to see side-by-side pricing of the item so you can get the best deal.
    
2. PriceGrabber.com: A pricing search engine. Head over to PriceGrabber if you already know what you want to buy. The pricing search engine will then search all of the major online retailers and present you with a list of prices for that item. You can search by item name, description, model number, SKU, etc. You can even search by product category. PriceGrabber also allows you to put in your shipping zip code so that tax and shipping can be calculated.
    
3. NexTag.com: Another pricing search engine. NexTag is very similar to PriceGrabber in its functionality. It too allows you to search for a specific item, and then see pricing across the web. NexTag even searches travel deals including flights. If you're traveling this holiday season, you may want to check out NexTag's flight fare search to get the best deal. Ultimately, NexTag will pick up anything that PriceGrabber may have missed. The prices will be the same on both sites for the same retailer. However, NexTag may find additional retailers that were not found by PriceGrabber. Using the two in conjunction will give you the piece of mind that you are finding the best deals.
    
4. Epinions.com: This site may not be the place to look for a good deal, but it is a great place to find out if your item is the best quality. It doesn't matter how good of a deal you get if you find out that what you bought wasn't quite what you were expecting. The major downside of shopping online is the loss of "touch and feel." You don't get to see the item in person like you would in a traditional store. When shopping online, you're stuck with a product description and a few photos of the item. In addition, you'll never know if the product is going to perform as well as it is supposed to regardless of where you buy it. So what do you do? Check out Epinions.com where real users rate and review products. Before you spend your hard earned money, see what other owners of the item have said about it. Did it turn out to be a real lemon? Did people wish they had spent the extra $10 for the better model? Did it turn out to be the best deal on Earth? Here's where you can find out. Epinions lets you read product reviews written by regular people just like you. You may find out that the TV you are buying really has some major issues that aren't in the manufacturer's description. Or, it may just reassure you that you are getting the best quality item for the money. Either way, you'll be glad you read Epinions.
    
5. Google Shopping: Did you know Google had a shopping search engine? It isn't the same as the regular Google you know and love. Google Shopping lets you search for items and see their online prices at a variety of retailers. You can also see what items are being searched for most which gives you a pretty good idea about the item's popularity. At worst, it will give you some ideas if you're stuck on what to give the person that has everything. Once you find the item you are looking for and the online retailer you want to purchase it from, you can order it right there using your Google Checkout account. Since you on Google, you can also find all the retailer's regular store locations, get driving directions, and more. It's also great for the web users that feel comfortable with the Google layout and user experience. Everything looks and functions like a regular Google web search.To find Google Shopping, just go to Google.com and look in the upper-left of the Google homepage. You'll see a link for Shopping. Go forth and save!
    
6. Walmart.com: Yeah I know, Walmart? Always low prices! This is the only individual retailer to make our list. That does not mean that BestBuy, B&H Photo, NewEgg, Amazon, Buy.com, and others are not worth checking out...they are. However, Walmart.com is one that often gets overlooked. Believe it or not, you can get some excellent deals on high end products through Walmart.com. Many people automatically associate Walmart with mid to low quality products at huge discount prices. For the most part, that's true...for the retail stores. However, online you can find many items that Walmart does not carry in their regular stores. They have huge discounts on HDTV's, BluRay players, and BluRay disks. If it saves you a few hundred bucks, do you really care if it came from Walmart?