Best Buy: Overall Rating (***)
Best Buy Midtown: Customer Service (***)
Best Buy Midtown: Customer Appreciation/ Return of Defects (*)
I must be a glutton for punishment or have a "love-hate relationship" with the Best Buy located in uptown Charlotte, North Carolina, because every time I go in there to purchase a computer, I run into some type of drama.
Recently, I went online to find some deals because I was in the market for a full-size computer with more RAM and storage than my Acer netbook because I'm planning to make videos and I want to copy some old VHS home movies to DVD. And, of course, Best Buy advertised a good selection and good prices. But, when I got there, they had none of the computers advertised in stock. Not a single one. That was my fault because I should've checked the availability online. But, it worked out well because those computers didn't have the power I needed anyway - according to the saleslady.
I told her what I planned to use the computer for and she told me I needed something with more RAM power and a better processor (4 Gigs of Ram; Dual Core; etc.) or I'd be wasting a lot of time watching the computer instead of using it. And, she enlightened me to benefits of having a computer that could handle multitasking better so that I could still enjoy listening to my music, surfing the Web, and using a few other programs while the videos and pictures loaded. She also told me about upgrading and improving the performance of the computer later on if I decided I needed more power without having to buy a whole new computer. Her presentation was really good and convinced me to spend almost $200 more than I planned. I couldn't afford the extended warranties or service plans after that though.
So, anyway, I bought a Hewlett Packard Pavilion g7 with an A6 Quad Core processor, Radeon graphics, 4 Gigabytes of RAM, and 500 gigs of memory. She tried to sell me a Samsung that was on display with similar qualities except it had i3 Intel processor, but I'd have to return 3 or 4 days later to get it. I didn't want to travel back and forth up the road for a computer so I went with the HP. It cost a little more but, it was a nice looking computer and it could do the job.
Well, I got the thing home and the DVD player didn't work. I could hear it trying to read every disk put int there but none of them would play. It would spin for a while then stop completely.
Plus, I turned the volume up to the max and the speakers sounded like crap - popping and crackling. It didn't sound like that in the store. I was disappointed as hell, but I couldn't return the piece of junk right away because I don't have a car and it would have taken me an hour or so to get back to the store. That was a chore in itself. Plus, I had other obligations and errands to take care of so I'd have to wait a week to get back down to Best Buy anyway.
I still had hopes of saving the poor HP Pavilion and went online to see if there was a way to correct the problem with the DVD but no type of tricks or troubleshooting worked, so finally, I said the hell with it and started re-packaging everything.
Later on, as I looked over the material in the box that the Pavilion g7 came in, I noticed that there was a pink tag taped to the plastic bag that the computer came in. It was a "defect / repair" ticket. I don't know what the issue was because the notes were written in Chinese. So, there was something wrong with the computer straight from the manufacturer - before they even put it in the box! This ticked me off a little bit but just as I was about to power the computer completely off, it started installing updates. I waited and hoped the updates would fix the DVD drive issue. The speakers sucked but I could live with it. But, it still didn't matter. The updates had no effect on the DVD drive. It was still struggling to read the "Dear John" movie I put in it.
After several days, being stuck in the same house with that "lemon" started to get to me and I had to do something. I couldn't wait a week to take it back, so I paid a taxi $20 to take me to Best Buy for a replacement. And, I'd have to pay $20 to get back. So, now the computer cost me $40 extra.
When I got there, a lady (customer service rep or cashier) took my receipt and took the computer in the back to test it. Then she came back and began the process to give me a refund but I told her "I didn't want a refund", I needed a computer and would shop around for a replacement. She didn't even ask me if I wanted to exchange it or anything. Just started ringing up the refund.
Anyway, while I was looking around, another sales associate came to assist me. The lady that sold me the HP Pavilion was busy with another customer. This guy was fairly knowledgeable, but I already made up my mind to get the same kind of computer anyway. That HP Pavilion had terrible speakers but it was fast and it looked sharped. Plus, it fit inside my computer bag almost perfectly. I must admit, I was proud to own it.
But, I was disappointed again...
They didn't have another in stock. Not even a display model. But, they had a "comparable" Toshiba Satellite L775 on the shelf. Only ONE... And, it had that "Geek Squad" crap on it. They deleted all of the ads and pop-ups and made a restore disk and it was gonna cost me $99.00 extra. There was NO OTHER computer in the whole damn store - in my price range or with the same qualities as the HP - except this ONE lonely-ass Toshiba with this Geek Squad crap on it and that same damn Samsung that was sitting on the shelf from a few days ago. And, it was Memorial Weekend!
I know we're supposed to honor the Vets and men and women in uniform, but these corporations thrive on these "holidays". Hell, they can't wait to advertise the goodies they have in their stores so they can suck out those last remaining dollars you have in your pockets. But, not this store! They didn't have jack-shit on the shelves and when I asked why since I knew they advertised a Memorial Day Sale, the salesguy replied, "Well, we only have one thing on sale anyway."
lol... What the hell???
I couldn't do anything but chuckle at the stupidity of the situation and asked him to turn up the volume on the Toshiba display model. It sounded pretty good. No popping and crackling noises. Then, I asked about the RAM and the Hard Drive Memory. He said it was all the same and that the Toshiba was just as good as the HP Pavilion.
I was disappointed that I couldn't get another HP but I thought I'd give the Toshiba a try. And, I wasn't about to pay $99.00 for that Geek Squad crap either. I asked him who was the manager on duty. He told me her name and where she was then walked off. No "Thank You", no "See you later", no "Hope you enjoy the computer", or anything. Just walked right off. I walked off too - straight towards the manager.
I told her that I was replacing a defective HP Pavilion with the new Toshiba but that I didn't want to pay 99 bucks for the whatever the Geek Squad did to it. She told me there was nothing she could do about it and I had to pay it.
Then, I went into my sob story about how I originally came in for a $299 computer and they didn't have any in stock and how the saleslady convinced me to purchase a computer that cost almost $500 and how I got it home and it didn't work and then I had to pay a taxi 20 bucks just to get back there and how I was losing sleep because I worked 3rd shift and how I was gonna have to pay another taxi 20 bucks to get back home and how they didn't have any more computers in my price range on the shelves (including no more HP Pavilions) and how shocked I was that it was Memorial Weekend and they had nothing in stock and she had the gall to look me in the eye and say... "Well, we don't make the computers." lol.... What the hell???
It was just ridiculous. I was shocked but I couldn't do anything but laugh on the inside.
I said, "So, you mean to tell me that you're okay with selling defective products?"
Then, she started telling me that the Geek Squad had to get paid for the work that they do on the computers and blah, blah, blah... I don't know what she was saying.
Then, some guy - one of those damn geeks - asked me to follow him back over to the area where I picked the HP and the Toshiba. He didn't have on a name tag, but he had on a necktie so I knew he was a geek. I guess he had to see for himself that there was nothing over there. Then, he tried to get me to take the Samsung and come back in a few days to pick it up. I said, "no, I can't do that. It already cost me $20 to get here and I'll have to pay $20 to get back home. I don't want to spend any more time and money on this."
He said, "Okay, that's no problem. We can take the Samsung in the back and prep it and have it ready for you within three hours."
I was starting to get perturbed because I knew he was trying to con me out of the Toshiba and give me the run-around about the $99.00 charge that he probably tacked on himself. Hell, he could've kept the restore disk. I've never used one.
Anyway, I go into my sob story again. He listens. But, again, he's telling me that I'm gonna have to pay the extra fee if I get the Toshiba. Then, he walks away and says he'll get someone to check to see if another store has the Toshiba. Now, after all I've went through and paid 40 extra dollars, he's still trying to send me out the door to another store - just so that he won't lose this "battle".
Fine. He doesn't make the ultimate decisions anyway, so he's no longer a factor in negotiations.
I went back to the manager on duty and looked her dead in the eye and said, "Okay. I'll pay the $99.00 extra, and I need the name and phone number of your District Manager."
Now, I don't like dealing with district managers because they don't know all the crap the managers and sales associates have to put up with in an under-staffed store. And, some of them don't care. They make one lap around the store in 15 or 20 minutes, give the manager a bunch of chores and tasks to complete with little help and time, make silly changes, and then, they ride off into the sunset. So, I don't like to complain too much because I know what some of these people are going through. And, she looked stressed out enough with a customer that was standing in front of her.
But, I wasn't about to let her or that damn geek screw me over that day.
She said, "Give it to him at the regular price."
It was fair and the right thing to do and I thanked her.
And, that damn geek STILL tried to put that $99.00 charge on me!
He started ringing me up and told me hated the fact that I'd have to pay the $99 but that it was worth it for what they'd done.
She said, "Oh, NO HE'S NOT!"
He was so shocked his eyeballs almost jumped out of his damn head when he turned to her - like: "WHAT???"
You heard the lady. Take that charge off of there, Asshole...
All of that only took about 30 minutes but the worst part of the story is: I went through all of that drama and the Toshiba Satellite L775 s7112 sucks like hell. That Best Buy sales guy didn't know what the hell he was talking about.
Yeah, I'm getting 4 gigs of RAM and 500 gigs of Memory, but the Toshiba has an A4 Dual Core processor with the lowest clock speed available versus the A6 Quad Core processor that the HP Pavilion had. In fact, the processor in this Toshiba is the "bottom line" processor that comes in this laptop. And, I can definitely tell a difference in the graphics and in the download speed. So, I ended up getting screwed by Best Buy anyway.
I said the hell with it. I give up.
Man, I'll tell you, I can't win for losing.... lol. C'est la vie.
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Recommendations:
1. Before you go to Best Buy, research online to see what kind of reviews the store you plan to visit has.
2. Make sure you know (or have some idea of) what you want BEFORE you go in. Don't completely rely on the salespeople.
3. Check the availability of several products (other options) you might be interested in just in case the online count is wrong and just in case they only have that Geek Squad crap in there and you decide on something else.
4. If you can go somewhere else and get what you want, that might be your best option.
