Buying cables for your HDTV can be expensive, but they shouldn’t be. Right now, I’m shopping for a DVI to HDMI cable so I can hook my MacBook up to my HDTV. The first thing I bought was a mini DVI to DVI converter at the Apple store for $20. Fair enough price. The next thing I need to buy is a DVI to HDMI cord, the longer the better.

But here is where the price gouging starts. The infamous Monster Cables will cost me around $100-$150 for the privilege of owning their product. However, if I shop online, I can get less known brands of cable for around $15. And, experts will tell you, the cheap cords are just as good as the expensive kind. The word is getting out about this scam; however, you will still see the overpriced cords conveniently place next to the HDTVs in the big box stores. Why not, there’s profit to be made.

Ars Technica has a great article on this subject along with some suggestions on where to buy. Gizmodo has some actual test data, another must read. If you’re getting ready to purchase any kind of cables for your HDTV, give it a read. On episode 173 of DL.tv (a tech video podcast), they discuss the HDMI issue starting at 55 seconds into the podcast (you can watch it from their website, just skip ahead), and then follow up on episode 174 at approx. 30 min in. Both Ars Technica and Robert Heron from DL.tv suggest monoprice.com as a place to get incredible deals on cables.