Buying Brick and Mortar

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Enduring_Warrior

[H]ard|Gawd
Joined
Sep 22, 2004
Messages
1,973
Hello Guys:
I was wondering which Brick and Mortar Store you recommend for purchasing Video Cards. I was looking at CompUSA/Tiger Direct but there's also a Best Buy nearby.
I want to get a 4850.

thanks in advance for any tips you have.
 
what a minute..... you mean there is a CompUSA store still in business?

they all closed down in Austin months ago......
 
Best buy had a really good deal on a visiontek 4850 a couple months back. That's when I picked mine up.
 
Unless you're getting an employee discount or they have a really good sale (uncommon at B&M) you're going to get hosed relative to what you could get a video card for online. Is it really worth the premium to not have to wait a few days?
 
RustedAngel said:
Unless you're getting an employee discount or they have a really good sale (uncommon at B&M) you're going to get hosed relative to what you could get a video card for online. Is it really worth the premium to not have to wait a few days?
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Some people prefer to pay cash, and not everyone has a credit card. There are plenty of reasons why you wouldn't buy online.
 
turb0 said:
what a minute..... you mean there is a CompUSA store still in business?

they all closed down in Austin months ago......
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Tiger owns them now. They kept some stores with the CompUSA name and changed others to Tiger Direct. The one near me is still CompUSA.
 
Wait, that's what B&M stands for? I was wondering what the hell new store had popped up that'd become so popular... durr
 
Brick and Mortar... aka a local store you can physically walk into... :)

the ones around me are within 10-20% of online stores, only difference is tax vs shipping so it's not that bad of a deal if you need something right away.

4670 was $150 at Bestbuy though... but 1.5TB drives were $150 at another place a few weeks ago (When they were $140-150 at newegg.com)
 
Keep an eye out next week for Black Friday sales at them. You might actually get a decent deal.
 
RussianHAXOR said:
I usually go to Fry's for almost all of my Brick and Mortar computer purchases.
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Me too, but the hour's drive to Sacramento kind of steers me in the direction of Newegg and Amazon. Still a treat to go there when I can.
 
Jeffredo said:
Me too, but the hour's drive to Sacramento kind of steers me in the direction of Newegg and Amazon. Still a treat to go there when I can.
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yeah, i really think San Jose and Southern California have it good. Ive got 2 Frys within 15 minutes of my house. I never go to one of them because of the terrible customer service.
 
Well I still have to check that CompUSA but its listed in google Maps. I'm new around here and I don't have a car yet. BTW I live in L.A. near UCLA.

Thanks for that Fry advice.
 
One advantage of a B&M store is that it's a lot easier to return or exchange a defective item. This is particularly true for monitors. But B&M stores have a lot less choices than the online stores - if you're looking for a very specific part, it may be impossible to find locally.

At a B&M store, you'll have to pay sales tax instead of shipping. If the item is cheap (say, a fan for your case) then the tax may well be much less than the shipping. But if it's expensive (like a 4870X2), then the tax will be far more than the shipping. Assuming shipping on a small electronic item is $8 (seems common on retail websites), and tax rate is 6 percent (varies from state to state, this seems about average), the break-even point is $133, so if the item is less than $133, you might as well get it B&M - unless you can get a free shipping deal online.

I have noticed that B&M stores tend to have some extremely high prices - they can do that because it's difficult for a customer in the store to compare their prices to other stores, and the customer will likely not bother going to other stores to look. I've seen video cards selling in B&M stores for $100 more than on newegg.
 
Proxy said:
Tiger owns them now. They kept some stores with the CompUSA name and changed others to Tiger Direct. The one near me is still CompUSA.
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Exactly, if you look at both Tiger Direct and CompUSA sites they're basically the same, only the colours and some links are different.
wink.gif
eeek.gif
 
Ok, I want to say Thank you for all the advice.I really appreciate it.
I found the VisionTek 4850 at 199 in BestBuy which includes Mass Effect.

So, how do you do that money order you were talking about?
I could consider going to New Egg to purchase my own card if that's doable.
 
evilsofa said:
One advantage of a B&M store is that it's a lot easier to return or exchange a defective item. This is particularly true for monitors. But B&M stores have a lot less choices than the online stores - if you're looking for a very specific part, it may be impossible to find locally.

At a B&M store, you'll have to pay sales tax instead of shipping. If the item is cheap (say, a fan for your case) then the tax may well be much less than the shipping. But if it's expensive (like a 4870X2), then the tax will be far more than the shipping. Assuming shipping on a small electronic item is $8 (seems common on retail websites), and tax rate is 6 percent (varies from state to state, this seems about average), the break-even point is $133, so if the item is less than $133, you might as well get it B&M - unless you can get a free shipping deal online.

I have noticed that B&M stores tend to have some extremely high prices - they can do that because it's difficult for a customer in the store to compare their prices to other stores, and the customer will likely not bother going to other stores to look. I've seen video cards selling in B&M stores for $100 more than on newegg.
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Really great. Thank You. You've helped me a Lot.
The only problem is that If you checked my other post before yours it says I live in California so Sales Taxes also apply.
 
evilsofa said:
I have noticed that B&M stores tend to have some extremely high prices - they can do that because it's difficult for a customer in the store to compare their prices to other stores, and the customer will likely not bother going to other stores to look. I've seen video cards selling in B&M stores for $100 more than on newegg.
Click to expand...

Many customers don't bother to check prices, which is something retailers take advantage of. These are mostly impulse buyers or people who don't shop around. That's why most retailers have price match policies so they don't lose the customers who do.
 
Well it looks like the egg its taking its time.
I sent my first order for them last monday through USPS. They received it on November Wednesday 26th
I also acquired a new PSU on Black Friday and sent the Money order this monday, December 1st. They received that one the next day, tuesday. As you say, check cashing time.
After getting no response to an email I sent yesterday I chatted with one of their online support representatives today and she submitted all the info including both NewEGG orders and the USPS Money Orders tracking numbers to their accounting department.
They say that if the order becomes Void (which it hasn't despite that I created the first one seven days ago, and that's the deadline) their accounting department will contact me to see if I still want that order.
In your experience, what might happen? And how should I tackle this.
 
Best Buy has them for like $149 last time I checked. They only carry visiontek which is definitely the best brand to go with because they have a iron clad lifetime warranty.
 
If I needed samething urgently, I always went to Microcenter (I lived in MN). Otherwise, I buy 90% of my stuff through Newegg (and some Tiger Direct).
 
Enduring_Warrior said:
Ok, I want to say Thank you for all the advice.I really appreciate it.
I found the VisionTek 4850 at 199 in BestBuy which includes Mass Effect.

So, how do you do that money order you were talking about?
I could consider going to New Egg to purchase my own card if that's doable.
Click to expand...
thats regular retail price and they are normally on sale about every week or two for $149.99. also unless something has changed, it doesnt come with Mass Effect and thats just a picture of the game on the box.
 
cannondale06 said:
thats regular retail price and they are normally on sale about every week or two for $149.99. also unless something has changed, it doesnt come with Mass Effect and thats just a picture of the game on the box.
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No:
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...ATI+Radeon+4850&type=product&id=1212192380309

CaptainSoble said:
Best Buy has them for like $149 last time I checked. They only carry visiontek which is definitely the best brand to go with because they have a iron clad lifetime warranty.
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And No:
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...ATI+Radeon+4850&type=product&id=1212192380309
I've checked several times with my B&M Best Buy and they always have the price tag on 199.
Besides I've already bought the ASUS overclocked at 680 MHZ through the Egg on a Combo. What I'm worried about now is that my Money Order isn't processed on time and the NewEgg ORder becomes Void, which would bring a little more hassle. The order already arrived but the system keeps saying the order is in the Submitted stage only.

Again thx.
 
Enduring_Warrior said:
No:
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...ATI+Radeon+4850&type=product&id=1212192380309



And No:
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...ATI+Radeon+4850&type=product&id=1212192380309
I've checked several times with my B&M Best Buy and they always have the price tag on 199.
Besides I've already bought the ASUS overclocked at 680 MHZ through the Egg on a Combo. What I'm worried about now is that my Money Order isn't processed on time and the NewEgg ORder becomes Void, which would bring a little more hassle. The order already arrived but the system keeps saying the order is in the Submitted stage only.

Again thx.
Click to expand...
so where do you see that Mass Effect is included if thats what you are referring too? its just a picture on the box like I said. almost everyone on this forum that looks in the hot deals subforum knows the 4850 has been on sale at Best Buy NUMEROUS times for $149.99. I was tempted many times myself...
 
cannondale06 said:
so where do you see that Mass Effect is included if thats what you are referring too? its just a picture on the box like I said. almost everyone on this forum that looks in the hot deals subforum knows the 4850 has been on sale at Best Buy NUMEROUS times for $149.99. I was tempted many times myself...
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Look you might be right, I don't know any of these things and that's why I'm asking here. I don't care if you're right I just state what I see. And NO, I don't want to discuss if it includes the game or if it doesn't. If you're not willing to help then, let me be and save us both time. You can save that wiser than thou attitude for someone else.
 
Enduring_Warrior said:
Look you might be right, I don't know any of these things and that's why I'm asking here. I don't care if you're right I just state what I see. And NO, I don't want to discuss if it includes the game or if it doesn't. If you're not willing to help then, let me be and save us both time. You can save that wiser than thou attitude for someone else.
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Im not giving you an attitude. YOU said it comes with the Mass Effect game which is not true. YOU said its always $199 at Best Buy which is not true. why you keep arguing these facts is beyond me. :confused:

that is helping you because its letting you know that the card does go sale there quite often and also not to expect a game which I still cant figure out why you think its included in the first place. ;)
 
I said what I said because of what you did. And you did it, because you failed to read the facts. Facts that I already posted in this forum. Regarding the Mass Effect, i made a Mistake, you were right. The reason you're not helping because at this point, that information is futile. The card has already been purchased.
Thank You.
 
Enduring_Warrior said:
I said what I said because of what you did. And you did it, because you failed to read the facts. Facts that I already posted in this forum. Regarding the Mass Effect, i made a Mistake, it doesn't matter. You're not helping because at this point, that information is futile. The card has already been purchased.
Thank You.
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good to hear that you have a card on the way and I did see that you already mentioned that. I just thought your other two comments from earlier about Mass Effect and the Best Buy needed to be addressed again. that was not just for you but for those that might be just skimming through the thread too. any way good luck and sorry if I came across the wrong way. :cool:
 
I am not sure about other cities but here in Toronto Canada, there are many B&M stores that are not the big stores like bestBuy.

I know that the OP has already got his answer (and card?), but I want to make sure folks that are looking, to search these smaller stores that cater to gamers with great deals.
 
Done!!! The order has changed its status to Charged. That means they''ve cashed the check all I have to do is wait for packing and shipping.
Hope the same happens witht the PSU.

There are a few stores here too. But they are repairing stores.
 
If your in La near UCLA-- then why didn't you just go into the BestBuy in Westwood?.. That is right around the corner..

Westwood CA (Store 367)
10861 Weyburn Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90024
Phone: 310-443-9912

Also another way to go is to get a prepaid visa.. You can get them at pharmacy's and grocery stores etc.. You pay the money right where you get them--- call and activate teh card and away you go .. I think there is a one time activation fee of 9bucks or something like that.. But then after that you can recharge it anytime you want to use it..
 
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