November 29, 2010

Help Santa Save $$ on Photoshop Elements!

It’s time to start dropping hints for holiday gifts! Give Santa a break by passing along the best prices for Adobe Photoshop Elements—a program that is a guaranteed investment in your family’s memorykeeping. Should help a lot with that New Year’s Resolution to do something with your cherished digital photos!

A major development in Elements is that Version 9 was released in September. I haven’t upgraded yet, mostly because the older versions do everything I need for the simple way I scrapbook. I will be upgrading after the first of the year, however, to check out their new features and how they impact digital scrapbooking.

It’s worth noting that the rebates that have been in place for at least a year have finally expired, unfortunately. The mainstream price for Elements 9.0 now hovers between 79.99 and 99.00. You can still purchase 8.0 for as low as 59.99, however.

And don’t forget that you can download a FREE 30-day TRIAL of Adobe Photoshop Elements 9.0. Still the best way to get your feet wet and try out digital scrapbooking!

BEST PRICE, Version 9.0: $69.99 (Mac and PC) at Frys.com

This by far the best price, available by box only (no downloads). Price shows a $20 rebate; I didn’t see a rebate at Adobe or at any other retailer. Shipping is $2.99, or you can check for in-store availability. I checked my local store and it was in stock.

BEST PRICE, Version 8.0: 59.99 (Mac and PC) at EBay.com

This is boxed, with free shipping. Remember, Version 8.0 does everything you need to digital scrapbook with ease. If you want to save a few dollars … this might be a good place to start. There are dozens of digital scrapbooking tutorials (including mine) that work great with 8.0.

NEXT BEST, Version 9.0: $79.99 (Mac and PC) at Costco.com and Adobe.com

Boxed, with free shipping. I haven’t checked the prices in-store for a while, but will do it soon and post an update.

NECK IN NECK, Version 9.0: around $89.00 (Mac and PC) at Amazon.com, and Buy.com

Both sell the boxed version, with free shipping.

FULL RETAIL PRICING, Version 90: $99.99 (PC and Mac) at Staples.com and OfficeDepot.com

This is the highest pricing for each of these retailers in the last year. One advantage to Adobe.com, of course, is the immediate download. Both Office Depot and Staples have an extra charge for shipping, but you can have it delivered to your local store free of charge.

What is OEM Pricing? If you Google “best prices” for Photoshop Elements, you’ll come up with some crazy-good prices for OEM versions in various online retailers. OEM means Original Equipment Manufacturer and indicates that this software is not in retailer packaging, and was intended to be bundled with other products. 

Reading the information on two of these websites, I couldn’t tell whether this is a version with limited functions, or limited uses. Questions about its use and whether it comes with a manual went unanswered. If you intend to buy it, I would advise you track down those answers first. 

I'll keep my eye on the market and update pricing at least monthly. Let me know if you see a screamin' deal anywhere!

*NOTE: I research these prices and do my best to verify them, but I make no guarantees about product availability or pricing. Buyers will be responsible for verifying product pricing befor