Bought a magazine lately?

[38Chevy454]

I used to get like 8-10 car related magazines per month. Now down to only one: Hot Rod magazine. Many previous were just stopped by the publisher, as in no longer even printed or even digital version. I never bought single issues, I would just subscribe for cheap for 1-3 years at a time.

The whole print industry is way down as a whole. Newspapers are almost an obsolete item, same with magazines. They are all struggling to be relevant in a digital world.

Subscriptions, whether print or digital, are critical to have a base for selling advertising.

 

[Al18]

Yes, WeirdNJ magazine. For the past few years, they’ve only released two issues per year. Cost $6 each at B&N

 

[disneysteve]

My only paid subscription is Kiplinger. I switched to that when Money stopped publishing. If Kiplinger ends I don’t think there’s anything else I’d replace it with. I used to get a couple of medical magazines but they stopped a few years ago. I get a local magazine that I enjoy. That’s free. And I get the AARP newsletter and magazine and enjoy reading those. It’s really the main reason I join so I guess that counts as a paid subscription also.

 

[Badger]

No subscriptions anymore for years and if I want a single copy there is always the library.
Although, if I could find a few years of Popular Science and Popular Mechanics from the 50s and 60s I would be tempted to buy them for a trip down memory lane.

Cheers!

 

[Mr._Graybeard]

Was an avid reader of Scientific American through the 80s and 90s, then somewhere in the early 2000s, realized it had more politics than science and I canceled. I don't recall buying so much as a single issue of anything since.

"reality has a well known liberal bias."

 

[Aerides]

I know we "can" we politicize every thread, but can we not politicize every thread?

 

[Gotadimple]

The digital version on my iPad of my local paper is an exact copy of the print version, ads and all. The pages advance like a print copy. I can enlarge sections as I please. No ink on my fingers. Not sure what’s “jacked” about that.

Perhaps the OP assumes because it is electronic and there is no cost to print, a subscription for e-delivery should be less. As it turns out paper and ink are cheap - people are not. They still need to pay people to write and edit stories, and to service subscriptions.

 

[Major Tom]

I used to enjoy browsing the magazine section of Barnes and Noble, and purchasing the occasional copy on my specific interests at the time (usually ham radio or photography). Nowadays, I get a higher standard of information (in both breadth and depth, as well as timeliness) online.

The only exception is a fun little publication called SPRAT, which is a British publication for fans of low power ham radio communication. In fact, this is really the only type of magazine I would consider subscribing to nowadays - something very niche-oriented that supports a group or club whose mission I identify with. The magazines on the shelves of newsagents are far too general to be of any interest to me any more.

I know we "can" politicize every thread, but can we not politicize every thread?

A big +1. Please allow this forum to continue to be a sanctuary from that sort of hooey, everyone.

 

[Chuckanut]

I subscribe to Consumer Reports. With every penny.

 

[Midpack]

Yes, they are expensive!
The only time DH or I buy a book or magazine is on vacation, so I can just leave it or recycle when done. It is almost to the point of being a line item expense in our vacation budget

We actually check out library books to take on vacation, I guess we're REALLY cheap.

In fact if we're going someplace new on vacation, we will also check out several guide books to the area and take them along. Why buy them when you can have them for free and return them?

Aside from vacation, we VERY rarely buy hard copy books anymore, eRead or library hard copies only.

 

[disneysteve]

Kiplingers delivered by mail will soon end.

Where did you hear that? They just got a new editor and did a total redesign of the magazine. Seems odd they would have bothered if they were ceasing publication soon.

 

[disneysteve]

I used to enjoy browsing the magazine section of Barnes and Noble, and purchasing the occasional copy on my specific interests at the time (usually ham radio or photography). Nowadays, I get a higher standard of information (in both breadth and depth, as well as timeliness) online.

Great point. For niche interests, magazines used to be about the only regular and reliable source of information. The internet has replaced that dramatically. For example, when my wife used to knit, she would subscribe to and buy single issues of various knitting magazines to get the patterns they published. Now she crochets and anytime she needs a pattern, she just goes online and can almost always find what she wants for free. If not free, she spends $2 or $3 and buys the pattern - cheaper than even a single issue of a magazine.


For virtually any craft or hobby or travel topic or mechanical or automotive or electronic thing you can think of, there is a wealth of free info available at our fingertips 24/7.

 

[athena53]

We actually check out library books to take on vacation, I guess we're REALLY cheap.
<snip>

Aside from vacation, we VERY rarely buy hard copy books anymore, eRead or library hard copies only.

Not at all- I've done that for years! I used to load up on paperbacks to check out, but now just download to my Nook. I rarely re-read books except for reference books, commentaries I use for my sermons and a few favorite history books so I don't want to buy them.

Sometimes I buy the Financial Times when I'm in Europe for sentimental reasons (used to be circulated at an early employer that wrote insurance only outside of North America) and I always get the Sunday Times if I'm in London and it's available.

 

[swakyaby]

My only paid subscription is Kiplinger.

I receive the magazine and the e-version of Kiplinger compliments of T.Rowe Price for many years. Whenever I think of closing my account to consolidate to fewer investment firms, I can’t help thinking how much I like receiving that magazine. So my account remains.

 

[disneysteve]

I receive the magazine and the e-version of Kiplinger compliments of T.Rowe Price for many years. Whenever I think of closing my account to consolidate to fewer investment firms, I can’t help thinking how much I like receiving that magazine. So my account remains.

It's nice that they give you that, but you can subscribe for 1 year for $20 or 2 years for $35 and if you search around you may find a better rate. I don't think I'd keep an account I don't otherwise want just to save $17.50/year.

 

[Koolau]

Perhaps the OP assumes because it is electronic and there is no cost to print, a subscription for e-delivery should be less. As it turns out paper and ink are cheap - people are not. They still need to pay people to write and edit stories, and to service subscriptions.

I agree - but you need all those same people for a paper delivered product as well. And the paper and delivery DO cost. So e-delivery has to be cheaper (not free.)

Most print magazines also have the e-delivery as well, so dropping the print version has to save money. In fact, most print type magazines are going to e-only.

 

[aja8888]

There was a time when the airlines had magazines on the planes and the flight attendants would walk up and down the isle offering them to passengers. Remember that?

 

[Koolau]

There was a time when the airlines had magazines on the planes and the flight attendants would walk up and down the isle offering them to passengers. Remember that?

I read that the principal reason they stopped that was the fuel costs of carrying all those magazines. They could calculate to the penny what a magazine cost in fuel. It was quite a bit.

I'm surprised they don't make us all stand on a scale with our luggage and give either a discount (yeah, right!) or charge for overweight. Weight = fuel (big time.)

 

[aja8888]

I read that the principal reason they stopped that was the fuel costs of carrying all those magazines. They could calculate to the penny what a magazine cost in fuel. It was quite a bit.

I'm surprised they don't make us all stand on a scale with our luggage and give either a discount (yeah, right!) or charge for overweight. Weight = fuel (big time.)

I heard it was ended because people were taking them with them when they deboarded. Of course, I never did that!

 

[Koolau]

I heard it was ended because people were taking them with them when they deboarded. Of course, I never did that!

Heh, heh, think of all the weight saving that caused. The ramp guys probably were scratching their heads when they stuck the tanks and found several hundred extra gallons of fuel on board. ("Hey, you guys up there - did you have a big tail wind last trip?" "Nah! The lousy tourists are taking all our magazines.")


By the way, I also heard that those "free flight magazines" from the airline that you are allowed to take, "pay" their weight with the ads they carry and the stuff they sell for the airline as well as being advertising for the air line.

 

[swakyaby]

It's nice that they give you that, but you can subscribe for 1 year for $20 or 2 years for $35 and if you search around you may find a better rate. I don't think I'd keep an account I don't otherwise want just to save $17.50/year.

There is a bit more to it, though. They also give me Morningstar Premium and occasionally Turbotax. They also have my account at Enhanced Personal Service, their highest level of service. And T.Rowe Price was invaluable in compelling an uncooperative bank to finally release and transfer my IRA which the bank had locked me out of for nearly a year. When considering what accounts to close in order to consolidate to fewer investment firms, T.Rowe Price had a few positive check marks in my personal experience.

 

[Trailwalker]

No magazine subscriptions or single magazine purchases.. I can read all of the magazines that I want at the library for free. I do keep 2-3 digital newspaper subscriptions. Around here, I can pick up those for the promoted 99 cents for six months, and then they usually extend me another six months if I ask.