Top 5 things Best Buy doesn't want you to know

[Stryf3]

As far as those special warranties go, I tell the salesman I know their reason for pushing them is the bonus they get for selling them. I also add "if you keep pushing that on me I will take my business elsewhere". I have nixed a purchase at the register because of their pushing those warranties.

This I don't understand. Is it such a big deal to say no? It's their job to ask a couple of times and try to convince you. It always cracks me up when I deal with people like this. It's as though I have magic words that will MAKE you invest in an extended warranty (or whatever) unless you get very angry and threaten to leave the store.

 

[JoeE SP9]

The problem is the way the warranty is pushed at you. If saying no thank you once was enough I wouldn't have written. Having a salesman who knows less than you implying you are an idiot because you won't purchase something you neither want nor need is enough to get under your skin. When they follow you to the register when you have said no multiple times is to much to take.

 

[vividere]

I have an interesting story regarding extended warranties. I have only bought a few in my life and vowed to never do it again.

Almost five years ago I bought a Sony receiver from Audio King. Recently the amplifier has been resetting itself...the sound to the "A" speakers would go out and come back at will...somtimes good for most of a day and then it might go out five times in ten minutes.

I was going through my paperwork and found that by some fluke I had bought a 5 year extended warranty for $50. I can guarantee you that $50 is far less than the repair would be to get my receiver fixed. It is just a fluke I found the paperwork otherwise I wouldn't have thought to look for an extended warranty never the less a five year one.

I am in a quandry as I am going to buy another receiver and that 5-year warranty might be more intriguing that it was before

Lew

 

[threewheel42]

We have Frys, Best Buy, CC and independents.... I have found one CC locally who gave me useful info and low pressure... but basically they are useful for price comparison...then I purchase from ABT Electronics. Great service, many many knowledgeable floor sales people and great service. They will beat any of the box store prices, plus you get a better feeling they will back up the product. They ask once if you want a service plan, but do not push it.

It is a huge operation, with multiple HT displays, video and kitchen displays...

For example, we purchased kitchen appliances, among them a double oven with probe...it appeared that the probe might be not registering correctly... I called tech support. He suggested a service call just to make sure it was working correctly...and they apologized for only being able to get someone out in two days. I know of others with similar experiences.

 

[djoxygen]

I am in a quandry as I am going to buy another receiver and that 5-year warranty might be more intriguing that it was before

I have always gone back and forth on the XT warr. But they should never be pushed the way they often are. With computers, my rule of thumb is, if there's an LCD panel, spring for the warranty. So I guess that would apply to TVs as well.

But many states allow you to cash in XT warr for partial or full value at the end of the term if you have made no claim against it, so if you live in one of those lucky places, you're not risking as much.

 

[warnerwh]

I will not go into a Circuit City store. They are the biggest morons of the three main electronics chains in the area. Best Buy isn't far behind and Good Guys actually have people that have a clue. My brother won't go into Circuit city anymore either. The people there are incredible in their ignorance. I do pity the average consumer. It's the blind leading the blind.

 

[Steve1000]

I had a really nice experience at the Best Buy in Gaitherburg, MD, my last purchase there. I didn't have a clue about DVD recorders but needed one to archive old analog and newer digital family videos. The guy who was helping me pointed me to the Sony RDR-GX7, which was $300 that day (after rebates), and it's worked out pretty well, it seems to be a very nice product. It makes a nice digital DVD recorder in the old-style VCR way too.

I had a really good experience at Guitar Center several months ago, as I got a full tour of the Behringer DEQ2496. I had read good things about it, but upon seeing it and talking about it I was very surprised at its range of capabilities and have been very happy with that purchase too.

I've been going to Circuit City obsessively since it was a little hole in the wall in Bethesda in the late 1970s! Things have sure changed!

I do always say no to extended warranties. If someone asks me if I want to buy cables I probably usually say no so fast I don't even think about it. It's just part of the terrain. Same with the extended warranties. Usually I don't even give them my phone number, unless, as at Circuit City, there is something in it for me, such as the future option of a no-receipt return. My default auto-pilot answer is no, and they understand pretty fast it's nothing personal and it's not for discussion.

It is a shame the pressures that these people are put under. From reading this thread, I am getting the impression that the snake-oil cable industry is subsidizing my electronics habit. If the people getting ripped off are the same mean-spirited people who used to like to bust my chops on some other forums when I said that expensive cables are snake-oil, that's fine with me. But when I run into an otherwise fine person who has unwittingly bought expensive cables for his hifi, my heart does sink a little, but I keep my mouth shut, as it's water under the bridge at that point.

One thing I have found is that there is usually a deeper and better layer to the salespeople, and many of them do enjoy audio as a hobby, so if you can engage them in a conversation where both people are learning, or where they see that they can be genuinely helpful to you, they can turn from self-interested to very helpful.

I bought both a Sony RDR-GX7 DVD player/recorder and a Sony RCD-W500C CD player/recorder at big blue.

 

[miklorsmith]

I'm not mean-spirited and have never given anyone a hard time over the point, but in my system, cables make a difference. I've been active in the hobby for over 20 years and this is my belief based on my experience. I also believe there is snakeoilery in the cable and audio business. Just want to point out there is a legitimate distinction between good, quality cables, and those which advertise dubious physical qualities to justify exorbitant prices.

I went into Radio Shack last week to buy some 10-gauge wire to build some speaker cables. The Manager told me they didn't have any suitable 10-gauge wire but that the M cables they had spools of, already terminated, are "just the best", as a proud father would say of his child. He went on to say that even though they are 16-gauge wire that they would have an equivalent carrying capacity as a normal (read cheaper_ 10-gauge wire because of the special winding techniques they use. I bit my tongue and bought some 10-gauge battery cable. Hey, two 35-foot spools, one red and one black for $30!

 

[sgtbyls]

You folks make me laugh... What did you expect? Businesses, in case you hadn't figured this out, exist to make money (duh)... So why are you so suprised that they would try to do this? Yes, things like extended or replacement warranties and high end accessories like monster cables, etc., are profitable for stores - if they weren't then why even bother to be in business? You people seem to think that these stores exist to please you, as though the whole reason they get up and go to work everyday is so you can eventually get around to using them to get something you want - cheap. Hey, there's an old adage that goes "you get what you pay for"... In retail today the only significant profit made is on cables, warranties, etc. - there's a lot less profit to be made on the primary item itself, very often no profit is made or the retailer even takes a loss with every sale. You guys need to understand this: it is NOT immoral to offer a product that you make a profit on, in fact it is necessary and good. Ask yourselves this before you open your mouths and while like a 3 year old that doesn't want to share it's toys, "what if the stores actually did what I suggest?" Here's the answer: with consumers unable or unwilling to pay a decent profit margin on all products and retailers unable to sell any products at a high profit, those products which consumers won't or can't pay a decent profit on will become a waste of time and effort for retailers and they will stop selling them....


Wow, I feel so guilty now about wanting to save money and not get screwed. I think I'm gonna head over to a few of these stores and just give them some money just so they can continue to have the opertunity to sell something to me.

 

[Peppy]

Yep, you’re right. They are there to make money and this is why they are in the business. Nothing wrong there, But home theatre business(or any other electronic business for that matter) really push very hard to play on uneducated buyer. It always surprise me that, it is still one of the only area that buyer actually trust and believe whatever many sale man feed them with there "Bull#@&%". And that happen mostly of the big surface, like Best Buy, Future shop etc...Me personally I tries to fight this, my way...by educating friends and family before they purchase something audio or video related; and show them what are their difference and choice they have. I never tell them buys this product or don't buy this product, but what are the difference between product technologies or option they looking at and if I found anything in one of my magazine or the inter-net, I gladly make them read about it....By the way,

Happy new year every one !

 

[Fife]

Worst Buy

I purchased a TV from BB a month ago. In the bright showroom, it had an indistinguishable picture from the other models. There were two of us and we both concurred on this point. Upon getting it home I realized that there were many poor aspects to the picture. When I took it back to upgrade to a different model, I was practically attacked by the store manager. He proceeded to treat me like a criminal. He accused me of trying to pull a "scam". I was also told that I had no idea what a good picture is. He also told me he would flag my name for any future returns. It was the worst experience I ever had in retail. Quite obviously, I was not trying to pull a scam. before. There was no benefit for me to buy and then return a TV. I was upgrading and going to spend more money gladly. The manager was so aggressive that I actually told another manager that I would punch him if he ever walked up to me again. The store eventually allowed the return, but what a trial by fire.

 

[BMXTRIX]

I don't have a problem with any of the major electronics retail chains and am happy to purchase items from them.

I always purchase extended warranties when I KNOW that the item I am buying will likely be under heavy or abusive use.

For example: Got a refurb. video camera at Sears (Sony) - Camera broke a couple of times and then went out for over a month. Sears replaced with brand new model after over three years of me using it. That was five years ago and I still have the replacement.

My plasma came from Best Buy - via eBay (long story) - The plasma is a Sampo, and the price was excellent (phenomenal actually). So, the warranty cost less money for 5 years and we usually have the set on about 6 hours every day. If it survives past 5 years, I feel I got my moneys worth - if not, then I am covered on a major purchase.

I never have felt high pressured or anything else at Circuit City or Best Buy and while sales associates are sometimes quite inept, I also find them quite inept at 'higher end' stores like Tweeter and (locally) Myer-Emco.

Lots of Maryland, DC, NorVA people commenting here, so if you are local, check out some of the people at the A/V boutique stores and think about whether they really compare either. Snake oil remains the same no matter which company sells it - I really don't think Best Buy comes anywhere near holding the patent on it and do think it is a little unfair to single them out when so many others are as blatent - if not more so about it.

Snake oil is all over this world... it's finding your way through it to the oil you actually might put to some use that is difficult. That's why people ask for NON BIASED opinions on the Internet before making major purchases so they aren't as likely to buy into crap.

 

[Dan]

I don't have a problem with any of the major electronics retail chains and am happy to purchase items from them.

I always purchase extended warranties when I KNOW that the item I am buying will likely be under heavy or abusive use.

For example: Got a refurb. video camera at Sears (Sony) - Camera broke a couple of times and then went out for over a month. Sears replaced with brand new model after over three years of me using it. That was five years ago and I still have the replacement.

My plasma came from Best Buy - via eBay (long story) - The plasma is a Sampo, and the price was excellent (phenomenal actually). So, the warranty cost less money for 5 years and we usually have the set on about 6 hours every day. If it survives past 5 years, I feel I got my moneys worth - if not, then I am covered on a major purchase.

I never have felt high pressured or anything else at Circuit City or Best Buy and while sales associates are sometimes quite inept, I also find them quite inept at 'higher end' stores like Tweeter and (locally) Myer-Emco.

Lots of Maryland, DC, NorVA people commenting here, so if you are local, check out some of the people at the A/V boutique stores and think about whether they really compare either. Snake oil remains the same no matter which company sells it - I really don't think Best Buy comes anywhere near holding the patent on it and do think it is a little unfair to single them out when so many others are as blatent - if not more so about it.

Snake oil is all over this world... it's finding your way through it to the oil you actually might put to some use that is difficult. That's why people ask for NON BIASED opinions on the Internet before making major purchases so they aren't as likely to buy into crap.

As another DC area native I feel inclined to comment. I agree that Circuit City and Tweeter in particular are no better. They ALL charge list price for TVs. I did much better (3K on a 50" plasma) online new. I'm glad you found something good used through e bay but it definitly is buyer beware.

Ther ARE several independently owned brick and mortar dealers who are excellent. Two in particular are The Gifted Audio Listener in Centreville and Soundworks in Kensington. The Speaker Factory is now sadly gone. There are others. The sell inexpensive stuff to the very high end and don't act condescending. Going to the stores are a pleasant experience which is something the Best Buys and their ilk never offer. One can take one's time and have a wider variey of choice than BB/CC by hitting two or three of these local stores. There are many smaller manufacturer's with fine products you will never see in BB/CC worth looking at.

We are lucky in this area to have such choices. I feel sorry for those who have no alternative. I left Myer-Emco out because I have had both good and obnoxious experiences there. They have some good stuff to sell but I preferrred other equipment elsewhere.

 

[BMXTRIX]

I have been by the Gifted Listner to check out the Magnapans and spent half an hour talking to the owner. I am a Crestron programmer and am working on becoming independant so am hoping that they will offer my services to any clients that may show an interest. Their expertise is very much audio, and mine is not... so I appreciated their help, though what I want to get from them is still (sadly) out of my financial means.

I may need to check out Soundworks...

The plasma I got on eBay was sold through Best Buy and was brand new in the box - I picked it up at their Baltimore warehouse myself and unboxed it. eBay is something that takes a little pratice to get a decent understanding of - but mostly it is a good experience if you know EXACTLY what you want and what you should be paying.

Picked up a Velodyne HGS-10 for 700 bucks a month ago... That's a steal as well.

 

[ebarker9]

Reviving this from the dead...

The single biggest issue that I have with Best Buy is their internet pricing policy. Their in-store prices should, theoretically match their online prices. The problem is that they don't have internet access in the stores except at customer service. The salespeople only have access to a cached BB webpage which may not have the most current prices.

I went with a friend of mine to help him buy a TV. We looked up the price online, which I believe was $900. We even called to confirm the price, at which point they told us that we were mistaken and that the actual web price was $975-even as we had the web browser open. We didn't have a printer so we figured we'd be ok dealing with it at the store. Sure enough, they showed us the $975 on their computer system so we figured that we must have been looking at a cached copy of the webpage before we left. We got back and checked again, refreshed, and still found the $900 price. Going back to customer service, the person there was VERY familiar with this issue and confirmed that the salespeople do not have access to the internet.

This is a corporate-wide policy and I think it's incredibly dishonest. It's one thing if it's widely known by the salespeople who can then refer people to customer service but I'm guessing that most don't know. It seems fairly clear to me that BB is well aware of this and keeps the system because most people aren't diligent enough to check online, print out the webpage, and then argue with the salesperson over it. I think it borders on fraud.

 

[JimSt]

The trick at Best Buy is to actually buy the item online and then choose in-store pickup. This doesn't always work...for instance if you're using a gift card. However, most of the time it eliminates all of the hassles.

 

[hifiman]

I love this thread. I've spent many, many thousands of dollars at CC and BB over the years. I remember one time many years ago I went to BB to buy a computer that was advertised at a great price. I showed up and purchased it, but not before a seemingly endless hassle from no less than 3 people to purchase the extended warranty. I didn't want it and came close to cancelling the sale, but didn't. At CC I did wind up purchasing warranties for a laptop and an LCD TV. The laptop burnt out a motherboard after 1 1/2 years. Wow what a hassle dealing with the company that carried the warranty. At the time I was under the impression that CC did all the warranty work. Since then I am much more careful about warranty purchases.

Today I find there are much less hassles. I live in Southern California and have never seen a BB that did not have a CC a block away. Here in Riverside we also have a Tweeter 1/4 mile down the road (though it's going out of business soon). In fact, in a 10 mile radius of my home I have 3 BB and 3 CC stores to choose from. In my mind the stores don't give customers nearly the hassle they once did because of the close proximity of not only their competitors, but their own stores as well. And of course I think the internet has played a very large role as well. Anyone taking the time to browse the internet to investigate a purchase has empowered themselves as a consumer and has essentially made salespeople irrelevant to the purchase (though I admit I love to ask them questions just to see how ignorant they are of their own products, which is often very ignorant). The internet has forced other companies to adjust their pricing and customer service. Take Crutchfield for example. It wasn't all that long ago the Crutchfield charged a premium for the products they sell. Now I find them to have fairly competive pricing.

But getting back to CC and BB. I love purchasing products at CC over the internet for in-store pickup. I make the purchase, drive down to the store, finish the transaction at the customer service window and come back home. For those who are subceptable to sales pressure, or just don't want the hassle this offers a great alternative. Also, they can have it mailed, often with no shipping charges. One thing I will caution people about CC is that very often the prices will differ between stores. I can't count the number of times one of the 3 stores in my area will offer an item at a discount over the others. The same for internet pricing of CC's products. Before I pickup my purchase made over the internet I will quickly find the product in the store to compare. Sometimes it's cheaper purchasing over the internet, sometimes its cheaper in the store.

 

[kiran_sham]

There is a Magnolia Home Theater systems showroom inside Bestbuy in Costa Mesa, CA. They have some superb home theater systems on display. They insist on NOT buying Monster cables

 

[kiran_sham]

Another thing I heard about BestBuy:
Some of the guys bought items from BestBuy stores, used it for a week and returned it as an open box item. Later the same folks went and picked the exact same items that they returned ofcourse for the price of an openbox item. So now BestBuy either puts those open box items online or transfers them to other stores randomly

 

[arevee]

circuit city is way better!

guys,

i have shopped at CC for the past 5 years and have always had good service.

I was worried when CC dropped the sales-commissions for their sales people. I thought it might stop the salesman from being too friendly since they were not making money anymore on how much they can sell. It turned out to be a false alarm. Those guys still are friendly and still take the time to help u out.

This could also be because unlike each one of BB's guys, they are not helping out 15 customers at the same time!

of course, I always try to help the non-worldly-wise customers who r being sold products they do not know anything about. For e.g. senior citizens want to buy a simple point and shoot and the sales guy tries to sell them a $700 classy one. what a mess!

just my 2c.