I currently have a 42 inch Samsung HDTV. It is 720p and about eight years old, but works perfectly fine. The picture is decent HD, but newer 1080p TV's make mine look pretty arcane.
My twin brother, however, is moving into a new apartment and is finally going to buy a new TV. I asked him on a whim if he wanted to buy mine, and he said yes. We agreed to a price of $175 (but if I rescinded, he wouldn't be too upset).
So now I'm in the market for a new TV, and this seems to be tremendous bang for my buck:
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/samsung-48-class-47-6-diag--led-1080p-smart-hdtv-black/8274303.p?id=1219690430613&skuId=8274303It's $528 (after tax). Subtract my brother buying my old TV and it's $353. I'm also going to buy gift cards before and obtain fuel perks, and these perks will be enough to give me a free tank of gas. So subtract $25 and it's $328. I was also going to buy a Chromecast to stream internet video apps to my TV, but because this TV is a "smart TV," I don't need one. So subtract $40 and I'm at $288 for a brand new, bigger, and much higher quality TV.
Full disclosure, just typing that paragraph makes me feel weird. I'm well aware that I'm rationalizing an expensive purchase that I don't currently need. The above paragraph actually reads like something my older brother (I've had a couple threads about him) would say in rationalizing a stupid purchase.
That said, (a) my TV is eight years old, (b) my GF and I use our TV a lot (usually watch an episode of something to unwind at night, and both of us really enjoy sports), and (c) most importantly, I'm disciplined enough with my money that this is not that expensive of a purchase for me.
So, am I rationalizing an unnecessary purchase, or is this something I'm allowed to treat myself to given that I'm being responsible in the remaining 99% of my financial life?