CDs – A good way to save for a big purchase?

A friend of mine wants to buy a new computer.  She’s got about 75% of the money saved, knows exactly how she’s going to save the rest, but she wants to wait til the fall to purchase.  She’s done her research and knows exactly what she wants, but she’s afraid of making such a big purchase too quickly.  She wants to be sure that she doesn’t have buyer’s remorse.

To ensure she doesn’t spend any of the 75% that she has saved, she opened up a 6 month CD with that savings.  This way, she has a fixed date when she can finally buy the computer (provided she has saved the other 25%) and she won’t blow the money elsewhere.

I know some people put money into CDs for Christmas spending, but I’ve never really put much thought into doing it for a big planned purchase.  As part of a bigger savings account, like a vacation fund or a car fund, sure, and a computer is not exactly a small expense, but I thought it was an interesting way to save.

I’m not sure it’s something I would do, but it definitely makes sense for her.  Interest rates aren’t great, so she won’t make a whole lot on her savings, but it will be safe from her, and she’ll get to watch it grow.  Who knows, maybe it will help her work on her savings and convince her to open some more CDs in order to continue to build her nest egg.

What do you think?  Good way to save for a big purchase or overkill?