Circuit City vs Best Buy

The Best Buy over here (a college town) has the most rude employees Ive ever
seen in a store in my life. I tried to order a camera from them today and it
was the biggest mess it could be. I gave up with them and saved money with
newegg.com


"John Horner" wrote in message
...

wrote in message
news:402178D2.21823.53B54EA@localhost...
Which is better?


Check out your local specialists shops before assuming that either of them
has the best prices. Neither has generally knowledgeable sales staff.

In our area I found that Los Gatos Camera in Los Gatos, California is
generally very price competitive with the big box stores and has people
working there who really know their stuff and care about the customers.

None of the Big Box places I've visited consistently meet that standard.

I will say that when I bought a television two years ago the Circuit City
staff was much better than the Best Buy staff, at least in the two stores
I
visited. Of the two I would generally go with Circuit City, but give the
little guy a chance first!

John

John Horner wrote:
wrote in message news:402178D2.21823.53B54EA@localhost...

Which is better?



Check out your local specialists shops before assuming that either of them
has the best prices. Neither has generally knowledgeable sales staff.

In our area I found that Los Gatos Camera in Los Gatos, California is
generally very price competitive with the big box stores and has people
working there who really know their stuff and care about the customers.

The little guy is also more helpful if something goes pop and you get smoke.

None of the Big Box places I've visited consistently meet that standard.

Sometimes though to be fair, the under achieving, wimpy store manager is
beyond his/her abilities. They take the corporate rules and regulatons
book as the operating bible, and everybody must vigorously stick to
those rules. In such situations the employees are so bound, they can't
do anything to assist the customer. Independants often are staffed by
the owner and close associates, and they re-write the rule book as the
situation requires. They may not give you a better price, but will
throw in an extra or two.....

W

"John Horner" wrote in message
...

Check out your local specialists shops before assuming that either of them
has the best prices. Neither has generally knowledgeable sales staff.

In our area I found that Los Gatos Camera in Los Gatos, California is
generally very price competitive with the big box stores and has people
working there who really know their stuff and care about the customers.

None of the Big Box places I've visited consistently meet that standard.

I will say that when I bought a television two years ago the Circuit City
staff was much better than the Best Buy staff, at least in the two stores
I
visited. Of the two I would generally go with Circuit City, but give the
little guy a chance first!

John

Would you pay more for the exact same factory sealed item at Circuit City
that cost less at BestBuy? That is silly.

I usually purchase on-line with store pick-up (at either store) so I don't
care what kind of idiot sales people the stores have.

Check out your local specialists shops before assuming that either of
them
has the best prices. Neither has generally knowledgeable sales staff.

In our area I found that Los Gatos Camera in Los Gatos, California is
generally very price competitive with the big box stores and has people
working there who really know their stuff and care about the customers.

The little guy is also more helpful if something goes pop and you get
smoke.

None of the Big Box places I've visited consistently meet that standard.

Sometimes though to be fair, the under achieving, wimpy store manager is
beyond his/her abilities. They take the corporate rules and regulatons
book as the operating bible, and everybody must vigorously stick to
those rules. In such situations the employees are so bound, they can't
do anything to assist the customer. Independants often are staffed by
the owner and close associates, and they re-write the rule book as the
situation requires. They may not give you a better price, but will
throw in an extra or two.....

W

I am not sure what "rules" need to rewritten. BestBuy and Circuit City have
excellent return policies if you are not satisfied or the product is
defective. However, make sure you don't remove any proof of purchase
(barcode, etc) items, do submit any rebates, and do not discard any packing
materials before you completely check out the product to determine if it is
defective or meets your needs.

Many smaller stores cannot afford to accept returned items that are not
defective.

"Mark A" wrote in message
...
"John Horner" wrote in message
...

Check out your local specialists shops before assuming that either of
them
has the best prices. Neither has generally knowledgeable sales staff.

In our area I found that Los Gatos Camera in Los Gatos, California is
generally very price competitive with the big box stores and has people
working there who really know their stuff and care about the customers.

None of the Big Box places I've visited consistently meet that standard.

I will say that when I bought a television two years ago the Circuit
City
staff was much better than the Best Buy staff, at least in the two
stores
I
visited. Of the two I would generally go with Circuit City, but give
the
little guy a chance first!

John

Would you pay more for the exact same factory sealed item at Circuit City
that cost less at BestBuy? That is silly.

I might, since BB charges a 15% fee for returned digital cameras and CC
doesn't charge anything.

I am not overwhelmed with either, and both have presented their share of
problems, but all other things being equal, I would prefer Circuit City.


wrote in message news:402178D2.21823.53B54EA@localhost...
Which is better?

"George Preddy" wrote in message
...
Would you pay more for the exact same factory sealed item at Circuit
City
that cost less at BestBuy? That is silly.

I might, since BB charges a 15% fee for returned digital cameras and CC
doesn't charge anything.

I just checked the BB and CC website for their return policies. You are
right about the BB 15% restocking fee for the following NON-DEFECTIVE items
which have been opened:

notebook computer,
camcorder,
digital camera,
or radar detector

I suspect that this is because BB has burned because of their past for their
easy return reputation. There tend to be a lot students who buy products and
return them after a few weeks. In many cities, there are enough BB's and
different products to get through an entire semester buying and returning
products without every paying for them.

Of course, both companies have special (more restrictive) return policies
regarding TV's bought just before the super bowl.

I guess it would depend how much the price difference was, since I don't
think I have ever returned a product that was not defective in some way.

Note that the BB and CC return policy for the above items are only 14 days
anyway unless they are defective.

"Mark A" wrote in message
...
"George Preddy" wrote in message
...
Would you pay more for the exact same factory sealed item at Circuit
City
that cost less at BestBuy? That is silly.

I might, since BB charges a 15% fee for returned digital cameras and CC
doesn't charge anything.

I just checked the BB and CC website for their return policies. You are
right about the BB 15% restocking fee for the following NON-DEFECTIVE
items
which have been opened:

notebook computer,
camcorder,
digital camera,
or radar detector

I suspect that this is because BB has burned because of their past for
their
easy return reputation. There tend to be a lot students who buy products
and
return them after a few weeks. In many cities, there are enough BB's and
different products to get through an entire semester buying and returning
products without every paying for them.

Of course, both companies have special (more restrictive) return policies
regarding TV's bought just before the super bowl.

I guess it would depend how much the price difference was, since I don't
think I have ever returned a product that was not defective in some way.

Note that the BB and CC return policy for the above items are only 14 days
anyway unless they are defective.

Digital cameras are different though, there really is no way to test them
properly in the store. The LCD doesn't cut it. I wouldn't touch one
without a 100% return policy.

"George Preddy" wrote in message
...

Digital cameras are different though, there really is no way to test them
properly in the store. The LCD doesn't cut it. I wouldn't touch one
without a 100% return policy.

I don't know what you mean by "The LCD doesn't cut it."

Before I bought my digital camera, I read reviews at:

http://www.steves-digicams.com/
http://www.dpreview.com/

I actually prefer purchasing at a store with a very limited return policy.
Otherwise, you are more likely to get a product that was purchased and
returned by someone else. That happened to me with a clothes dryer purchased
from CC.

"Mark A" wrote in message
...
"George Preddy" wrote in message
...

Digital cameras are different though, there really is no way to test
them
properly in the store. The LCD doesn't cut it. I wouldn't touch one
without a 100% return policy.

I don't know what you mean by "The LCD doesn't cut it."

Before I bought my digital camera, I read reviews at:

http://www.steves-digicams.com/
http://www.dpreview.com/

I actually prefer purchasing at a store with a very limited return policy.
Otherwise, you are more likely to get a product that was purchased and
returned by someone else. That happened to me with a clothes dryer
purchased
from CC.

Then again, if that happens at BB, they'll charge you $150 on a $1000
camera.