Do you think pre-ordering items is a waste of money?

I have pre-ordered and item and had the price go down close to the time of my purchase, but that's why my pre-orders are through Amazon.com -- they refund the difference in that instance.

I think pre-ordering is bad and risky. You could be pre-ordering a game that could be crap.

I don't think it's a waste of money, as long as you enjoy a product. Now, if your ordering the iPhone 4, then it was a waste of time if it took you 15 hours to order the thing :/

I pre-order games like the upcoming Halo Reach. I know that the local game store will have enough copies on hand to satisfy first-day purchase demand but I get to avoid the slow line on purchase day. Also, I have the cash now and I'm definitely not losing interest in the bank with the $70. Popular games are the only thing I pre-order.

on amazon, if you pre order, you usually get a lower price, and if the price rises or falls fromt he date of purcahse to the date of release, you will pay the lowest price, thats for UK, not sure how it works for US.

i've cut down on my games buying now, i wait untill they are at a lower price, or on sale. seems lately though, PC games dont seem to drop that much, even games that are a year or 2 old, some are still quite expensive.

Do you want it the day it's out? Do you expect it to sell out? If the answer is no to either of those, preordering is a waste of time and money. Otherwise it's a smart move. Any time I want a collector's edition of a game or movie I preorder for instance, or a hot new gadget. Otherwise you expect to wait a month or so. If I don't want it bad enough to preorder, I typically wait several months and buy used or discounted.

i think that pre-ordering is a good idea because by pre-ordering an item you actually know that you now own that item and that when they eventually release it you will get it and not have to worry about not being able to get your hands on it due to the product being sold out.

i think that pre-ordering is a good idea because by pre-ordering an item you actually know that you now own that item and that when they eventually release it you will get it and not have to worry about not being able to get your hands on it due to the product being sold out.

The problem with a preorder is your are gambling.

You are buying an item in which you know nothing about. sure theres a description. but think about this. every company says their product is the best and products rarely ever meet any of their advertised points. Preorder means you are trusting an advertisement.

Even if something is reviewed product reviews are short term (meaning even if a piece of hardware gets a review, they may post their likes and dislikes but they wont post about the product failing after 2 months)