Investing!

I decided to do a little experiment. I set aside some money and opened up a brokerage account with TD Ameritrade (Supposedly one of the better online brokers). I don't really have any investing experience, but I do have some fairly general background knowledge of how the stock market works. I also read a lot of analysis of the technology industry.

Now, in general I know it's not the greatest idea to buy individual stocks if you're a long-term investor and you're not an expert. I do have some money in a Roth IRA, as well as a 401(k) that is fed by my modest college-student earnings. Buying these stocks isn't an investment strategy, it's just for fun. I could spend the money going to Vegas, but all in all I think I'll enjoy myself more (and probably retain my money longer) investing it in companies that I have some knowledge of.

SO! Here's what I bought:

1 share of Amazon @ $203
Amazon was one of the few survivors of the first dot com bubble. Now they're the biggest and best online retailer, and they're also offering first rate cloud computing services now, as well as being being the second company in history to launch a tablet that people are falling over themselves to buy. Amazon was by far my most expensive buy, but I think it's a relatively safe bet.

2 shares of Netflix for $159 total
Netflix is the biggest name in streaming media. They've made some PR gaffes in the last few months and raised prices which caused them to lose about 4% of their customers, but I think their ultimate intention (which is to focus more on streaming and less on mailed DVDs) is forward-looking and intelligent. Analysts are making snide remarks about their plummet in share price, which was near $300 in mid summer, and now it's down below $80. Temporary setback and good buying opportunity, in my opinion. Streaming is the future, and I think Netflix shares will recover.

7 shares of Nokia for $46 total
This one is my biggest gamble. Nokia makes the kind of simple, cheap, functional cell phone that is slowly being replaced by much cooler smartphones. They're betting heavily on Microsoft's new Windows Phone 7. WP7 is an excellent product, but it's late to market. They're the underdog. Being the underdog is why Nokia shares are under $7 each. Cheap enough for me to take a gamble on.