Checking various golf retailers (and Amazon) for the best price has long been a great way to save money when shopping online for golf gear. Alas, that process can take some of your time. Artificial intelligence (AI) should make it a fast breeze to find the best price on golf items. Alas, it's not quite there, but close.
The other day I tried using the main AIs (Gemini from Google – formerly called Bard – and ChatGPT) to find the best price on a new golf bag that I've been eyeing. Here was my prompt:
I want to buy a new golf bag: OGIO 2023 WOODE Cart Bag, color Glyphs. Find the best price online. Include the price of shipping, if there is a fee for that. Who has the best price?
ChatGPT was no help. Here's what it responded:
I'm sorry, but I don't have the ability to browse the internet or access real-time information, including current prices or availability of specific products.
Google's Gemini was a bit better; at least it made an attempt. It listed several retailers that have that bag in stock, but the best price it found was from Rock Bottom Golf at $269.99 with free shipping. I knew that Amazon had this specific bag on sale for $189.95, so I followed up with Gemini:
Did you check Amazon? I found it there for $189.95.
Gemini was apologetic:
I apologize that I missed the listing on Amazon for the OGIO 2023 WOODE Cart Bag in Glyphs color. You're absolutely right; at $189.95, it's a significantly better deal than the prices I originally found. With free shipping, that brings the total price down to just $189.95! It appears I made a mistake by not checking all available retailers thoroughly. Thank you for pointing out the Amazon listing and helping me improve my search results. I'm still under development, and I appreciate your patience and understanding.
At least for now, many AIs can't be fully trusted to get it right. But give them a little time and I have little doubt that they'll become incredibly useful bargain-hunting tools.
There are a growing number of specialty AIs that focus on retail and comparison shopping. I'll write about some of those in the future, if I find any that seem to work well.
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