If you're at a crossroad and not sure whether you should purchase your computer online or walk into a "brick and mortar" and test drive what they have, then let me tell you, don't stress yourself over it because you could win or lose either way. Trust me. There is no shortage "lemons" in the electronics industry. So, go with what ever inspires you.
I've talked to a few of my co-workers who have purchased their computers online and I've talked to a few people (including co-workers) who have purchased their computers from places like Wal-Mart, hhgregg, and Best Buy, and most of the people I've talked to have had good experiences online and offline.
But...
Some people have also had nightmares online and offline.
Believe it or not, most of the issues people have had (and are having) are with "brick and mortars", which is surprising because you'd think you'd get a lot better service by dealing with an actual store and customer service reps face-to-face. But, this is not the case.
My first new computer purchase was an Acer Aspire One Netbook with an 11 inch screen. But, it wasn't my first choice.
What happened was... I needed a computer with more memory since my Dell only held 40 GBs. And 20-something gigs were being used just to make the computer run. So, really, I had less than 20 GBs to store my music, photos, offline pages, and documents on. Well, one day, I saw a few ads in the paper for these netbooks priced around $200 - $240 with 240 to 320 GBs of memory and thought I'd better hurry and get down to Best Buy before they ran out.
I chose Best Buy because I shopped there before for computer accessories and other knick-knacks like flash drives, software, and cables. Plus, they had the lowest price. And, because they had more to choose from.
Well, when I got there, they didn't have the computer that was advertised. And, the computers that were "in my price range" were no longer in my price range because the damn Geek Squad had done something to the computers and whatever they did bumped the price of these Netbooks up another 80 bucks!
I was like: "what the hell? well, can you take whatever the Geek Squad did OFF of the computer?"
The saleslady was like: "No. They removed all the ads, pop-ups, and unnecessary software for you. That's why it costs more. They can't put it back on there." She was cold-hearted as hell. "Buy it or move out of the way."
I said to myself, "these Assholes."
Now, who told them to do that shit for $80?
I could've removed that crap myself. And, if I couldn't, the hell with it. As long as I didn't have to look at those ugly icons on my desktop I would've been satisfied. I could've just deleted them. And, I would've eventually taken care of those pesky pop-ups and ads anyway - eventually.
Why in the hell does Best Buy think most people want the Geek Squad to remove that stuff and charge an extra 80 bucks??? If most customers wanted that crap done, all of those "Geek Squad computers" would've been the first ones sold. Instead, all of the "virgin" computers were gone and shelves were full of that Geek Squad crap.
They didn't even have a refurbished netbook or anything in the overheads. Everything was gone.
Anyway, I got so pissed at this "bait and switch tactic" that I stormed out of the store and went across the street to Target. Hell, Target is just as clean and friendly as Best Buy. And, I remembered they had an ad for a netbook so I went to give them a try.
Target did me right. The saleslady there was just as knowledgeable as the saleslady at Best Buy and she enlightened me about the benefits and disadvantages of having the Netbook over a tablet or a full-size laptop. I even found myself becoming more interested in purchasing a tablet but stuck with the netbook due to her recommendations.
Anyway, the netbook was around 229 or 249 dollars and I bought a new bag and some flash drives with it. The total came to over $300 but I can say that she thoroughly alleviated all of my pains.
I felt so good, I wanted to go back into Best Buy and flaunt my new gear, but I said the hell with them... The Internet highway was calling my name.
I've talked to a few of my co-workers who have purchased their computers online and I've talked to a few people (including co-workers) who have purchased their computers from places like Wal-Mart, hhgregg, and Best Buy, and most of the people I've talked to have had good experiences online and offline.
But...
Some people have also had nightmares online and offline.
Believe it or not, most of the issues people have had (and are having) are with "brick and mortars", which is surprising because you'd think you'd get a lot better service by dealing with an actual store and customer service reps face-to-face. But, this is not the case.
My first new computer purchase was an Acer Aspire One Netbook with an 11 inch screen. But, it wasn't my first choice.
What happened was... I needed a computer with more memory since my Dell only held 40 GBs. And 20-something gigs were being used just to make the computer run. So, really, I had less than 20 GBs to store my music, photos, offline pages, and documents on. Well, one day, I saw a few ads in the paper for these netbooks priced around $200 - $240 with 240 to 320 GBs of memory and thought I'd better hurry and get down to Best Buy before they ran out.
I chose Best Buy because I shopped there before for computer accessories and other knick-knacks like flash drives, software, and cables. Plus, they had the lowest price. And, because they had more to choose from.
Well, when I got there, they didn't have the computer that was advertised. And, the computers that were "in my price range" were no longer in my price range because the damn Geek Squad had done something to the computers and whatever they did bumped the price of these Netbooks up another 80 bucks!
I was like: "what the hell? well, can you take whatever the Geek Squad did OFF of the computer?"
The saleslady was like: "No. They removed all the ads, pop-ups, and unnecessary software for you. That's why it costs more. They can't put it back on there." She was cold-hearted as hell. "Buy it or move out of the way."
I said to myself, "these Assholes."
Now, who told them to do that shit for $80?
I could've removed that crap myself. And, if I couldn't, the hell with it. As long as I didn't have to look at those ugly icons on my desktop I would've been satisfied. I could've just deleted them. And, I would've eventually taken care of those pesky pop-ups and ads anyway - eventually.
Why in the hell does Best Buy think most people want the Geek Squad to remove that stuff and charge an extra 80 bucks??? If most customers wanted that crap done, all of those "Geek Squad computers" would've been the first ones sold. Instead, all of the "virgin" computers were gone and shelves were full of that Geek Squad crap.
They didn't even have a refurbished netbook or anything in the overheads. Everything was gone.
Anyway, I got so pissed at this "bait and switch tactic" that I stormed out of the store and went across the street to Target. Hell, Target is just as clean and friendly as Best Buy. And, I remembered they had an ad for a netbook so I went to give them a try.
Target did me right. The saleslady there was just as knowledgeable as the saleslady at Best Buy and she enlightened me about the benefits and disadvantages of having the Netbook over a tablet or a full-size laptop. I even found myself becoming more interested in purchasing a tablet but stuck with the netbook due to her recommendations.
Anyway, the netbook was around 229 or 249 dollars and I bought a new bag and some flash drives with it. The total came to over $300 but I can say that she thoroughly alleviated all of my pains.
I felt so good, I wanted to go back into Best Buy and flaunt my new gear, but I said the hell with them... The Internet highway was calling my name.
