You’re wrapping up a successful trip to the electronics store: You escaped the television section without submitting to the “need” for a 76″ LCD with no interest financing until 2144, you convinced yourself that if you bought Rock Band 2, you would officially be dead to the outside world for at least 2 weeks, and you made sure to stay away from the computer peripheral aisle after you reminded yourself that it took seven months to pay off the credit card debt amassed the last time you walked through to “browse.” You’re a pillar of self control as you wait in line to check out with an 8-pack of Double-A batteries and the two-disc special edition Iron Man DVD.
Then it happens.
A flash of red immediately draws your eye away from the queue of four customers in front of you. Instinctively, your head turns to see your nemesis … the bargain bin. Relatively unassuming in stature, the chaotically-piled merchandise strikes a deep chord in your soul. You know the checkout line isn’t going anywhere, so you nonchalantly meander over to the bin. All 8 seasons of Full House on 40 convenient VHS tapes, Richard Simmons: 80’s Blast Off on limited-edition DVD, a keyboard with Russian characters, a circa-1997 Giga Pet … could you get any luckier?!
Your sub-$30 mission may have hit your wallet a little harder than anticipated, and you’re not sure how long it’ll take to recover the pride you lost as you sheepishly dragged the entire bin into the checkout line, but you are victorious: When you compare the price you paid with the retail cost of all of your goods, you averaged an 86% savings!
While I can’t say that scenario was entirely fictitious, I can explain its significance to the world of hosting and hope no one questions me further about which aspects I’ve experienced personally. 
Today, Planet Alpha announces our own Bargain Bin!
The Planet Alpha Bargain Bin is our new real-time searchable repository that features overstocked and clearance dedicated servers in a variety of configurations. The servers are available on a revolving basis, with prices starting at $45 per month.
Bargain Bin servers are selected from the Planet Alpha dedicated server fleet, and they continuously rotate based on availability, demand and data center space. When you visit the Bargain Bin, you can search for servers by processor and drive-controller type, hard disk space, memory capacity and price. The servers come with The Planet’s full range of software options, including operating system and control panel choices, though the server’s hardware must be purchased as it is configured and displayed. New servers are constantly added and others run out of stock. Think of it like Woot! for your server needs.
Bargain Bin servers are backed by The Planet’s Service Level Agreement, 24/7 support, and world-class network and data centers … the only distinction from our normal product catalog is that changes cannot be made to existing hardware for the life of the server.
The key purpose of the bargain bin is to provide you with super-affordable servers while extending the server life of hardware. The primary difference between changes cannot be made to existing hardware for the life of the server.
Buying from the Bargain Bin is a great way to add to your server portfolio at The Planet, and with the money you save, you’ll still be able to afford that pink silicone first-generation iPod case when you go back to the electronics store.
- Kevin
