Is newegg going down hill?

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roaf85

2[H]4U
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Jan 8, 2005
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Do not get my wrong this is not a personal stab at newegg. I love the site and order parts from there, but I really miss the newegg of the past. The newegg of the past had these things:

1. 3 day fedex shipping was standard and it there in 3 days flat. Now the UPS shipping can take up to 5 days. You have to pay extra for fedex.

2. Free shipping on a majority of the parts. Hardly anything ships for free now.

3. Hardly any Mail in Rebates. Now Newegg is becoming the online CompUSA for Mail in Rebates.

4. You have to pay shipping back to newegg.com for DOA products. Since it is a policy of newegg now it is tougher to try to get the fee waved. Back in the old days they used to wave just about any fee.
 
Definitely not as good as they used to be, and REALLY messed up by switching to UPS. And that free FedEx saver was GREAT, and the low prices they used to have were great. Now when they have a sale, it's usally the same price and they "bump up" the original price to make it look like it's on sale.........
 
roaf85 said:
Do not get my wrong this is not a personal stab at newegg. I love the site and order parts from there, but I really miss the newegg of the past. The newegg of the past had these things:

1. 3 day fedex shipping was standard and it there in 3 days flat. Now the UPS shipping can take up to 5 days. You have to pay extra for fedex.
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Bad information. They do not use UPS "ground" (3-5 day shipping) its UPS three day shipping. The boxes are different and I can say since they have changed, all my orders have been to my rural VA town within three days. For contrast, I get my stuff from SVC.com and since I'm cheap, I go with UPS ground. Thats 3-5 day service.
roaf85 said:
2. Free shipping on a majority of the parts. Hardly anything ships for free now.
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Have you seen gas prices in the past 6+ months? :) UPS/FedEx are feeling the burn (as well as my day-to-day commute) and I'm sure their contract prices for 'egg and the rest have increased. Unfortunately, the "savings are getting past on to you, the customer." Lets take Zipzoomfly.com. Most their stuff is shipping inclusive, but their prices are a couple bucks higher than 'egg. Free shipping is only a gimmick. The consumer is paying shipping one way or another. I'll be honest, I like "free shipping" since the price I see is the price I pay. I like the illusion I'm getting free shipping. :)
roaf85 said:
3. Hardly any Mail in Rebates. Now Newegg is becoming the online CompUSA for Mail in Rebates.
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I dont get this one. I see MIR's on stuff like linksys stuff, memory, vid-cards, etc. I do not see them on Retail Boxed HDD kits, but I buy OEM parts.
roaf85 said:
4. You have to pay shipping back to newegg.com for DOA products. Since it is a policy of newegg now it is tougher to try to get the fee waved. Back in the old days they used to wave just about any fee.
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I'll give you that. If its truly DOA and not PEBKAC issue, return shipping should be covered. Knock on wood, I havent had an issue I needed a product return.
 
roaf85 said:
Do not get my wrong this is not a personal stab at newegg. I love the site and order parts from there, but I really miss the newegg of the past. The newegg of the past had these things:

1. 3 day fedex shipping was standard and it there in 3 days flat. Now the UPS shipping can take up to 5 days. You have to pay extra for fedex.
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I think that making UPS an option was a good move. Fedex is a bitch if you happen to work when they deliver and don't have a neighbor you can trust to sign. I can leave my back door open and UPS will drop the packages inside the door..

2. Free shipping on a majority of the parts. Hardly anything ships for free now.
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I still see a lot of parts shipping for free.

3. Hardly any Mail in Rebates. Now Newegg is becoming the online CompUSA for Mail in Rebates.
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I agree with this.

4. You have to pay shipping back to newegg.com for DOA products. Since it is a policy of newegg now it is tougher to try to get the fee waved. Back in the old days they used to wave just about any fee.
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I haven't had an experience with this, but I'm certain that if you told them to either pay for the shipping or deal with the CC company when you do a chargeback, they'd cave. Policy or not, if a company ships you a product that is defective you don't have to pay for it.
 
solved my getting UPS from new egg problems by OMFG paying for the FedEX. few dollars more but well worth it.
reminds me when Homegrocer dot com brought me food in 2000-2001 fer no delivery fee and I wondered where the heck did they go in 2002 . ;)
 
flynlr said:
solved my getting UPS from new egg problems by OMFG paying for the FedEX. few dollars more but well worth it.
reminds me when Homegrocer dot com brought me food in 2000-2001 fer no delivery fee and I wondered where the heck did they go in 2002 . ;)
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that is the point that i am at these days. Fedex is SO much better than UPS, and i have had so many problems since the egg switched over that i just have it shipped Fedex now and avoid the problems. Plus when ever the Fedex guy is in my neighborhood he always stops by and asks why im not getting all the packages i use to get.... and i told him thats because Newegg made Fedex more expensive....lol.....
 
Zipzoomfly used to offer 2-day shipping on nearly all of its products. Now, it offers free ground shipping (5-7 days). I can still live with that, and their prices tend to be lower than Newegg's.
 
Bona Fide said:
Zipzoomfly used to offer 2-day shipping on nearly all of its products. Now, it offers free ground shipping (5-7 days). I can still live with that, and their prices tend to be lower than Newegg's.
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you know that is what everyone is sayind that ZZF is cheaper than the egg, but i did a little comparitive study on 3 products from the egg and ZZF over 6 months, i would check the price on each about 3-6 times a week and record the shipping price. While the egg was usually lower there shipping was more and hte products were almost always in stock. ZZF was usually more expensive but with cheaper shipping, so its like a catch 22. But ZZF the things seemed to be out of stock for the majority of hte time. Hell i have been waiting for somthing to come back into stock at ZZF for 5 months now..... nada!
 
The only thing about newegg I don't like, is the fact that they give me my shipping confirmation like the day that it's going to be at my house. In previous years, they gave me the shipping confirmation the day it was shipped out. This is a minor flaw, because I always get my newegg stuff the 3rd day. I will probably always order my stuff from newegg as long as they continue their fast service.
 
A lot of the rebates come from the product manufacturers. The industry as a whole has gotten much worse about using mail in rebates as a tactic to make people think they are saving money.
 
I recently have moved most of my ordering over to ZZF from the Egg, I am looking at buying a new case and am looking at 6 different options (3 antec, 3 coolermaster) and all ranged from $3 to $21 cheaper at ZZF. $3 dollars is $3 dollars.

And btw I Hate :mad: mail in rebates. They almost turn me away from shopping. If you are going to offer it at that price offer it, not 6-8 weeks later when AND IF the check arrives. Still waiting on that $74 visioneer scanner rebate check (that was about 4 years ago now) :(.
 
I don't think they've gone downhill at all. some things have changed, but you just have to learn to play the different retailers games.
 
UPS has always been good to me. FedEx, however, has been a pain in the ass for me. They've lost a few of my packages or rarely deliver on the day specified.

MIR, solely in my opinion, are retarded. You think you'd get your rebate back soon but you may have to wait months, years or even not get one at all. Been two years now and I have yet to see the MIR for my 512MB ram.
 
I have always liked newegg. They still have some major advantage over their competitors in terms of site performance and navigation. ZZF makes it really hard to find what I am looking for.

Anyway, I like ZZF better recently, since their shipping is just great. Overnight shipping on a HDD and 7900GT was ~$12, which would have been ~$20+ at the 'Egg. Additionally, the prices at ZZF were better, I saved ~$30 on the Video card alone, add ~$10 or so for the HDD and it was a much better deal.

Yes, I will check the newegg prices + shipping on most items that I want, but I am such a cheap-bastard that I will go with the better deal. It used to be that I did not have to look elsewhere besides Newegg.com for the best prices, but times have surely changed. It you look at the order I made, there was a difference of ~$48 between the two places. With the amount that I paid, that is a 10% discount for going with ZZF over Newegg.
 
Yeah, I think I'm in the same boat as many. I used to buy almost everything from the egg. Now, ZZF has earned my continual business
 
I do however almost always start out my buying procedure by going to newegg, to get basic product info and to look at the pics. Then I switch to ZZF for the actual purchse.
 
I too still like NewEgg, but some recent things are also making me shop around more, which I never used to do that much.

1. The PC magazine thing. That's just slimy in my book.

2. Packaging. It's really bad. Things are protected, particulary Hard Drives. I do like that they do NOT use peanuts though. I hate those GD things. Amazon is the model for packaging.

3. Used to get great prices without rebates. Now rebates are cropping up all over. I do NOT do rebates. Tired of getting cheated. If you want to do rebates, make them instant rebates.

4. UPS. The UPS station in my area does not allow for night-pickups. You miss the drop off at your house, and you can NOT go to the UPS station and pick it up. You have to arrange for that a day in advance. I'll take Fedex any day.

5. Did I mention the PC magazine thing?

-Larry
 
Their adapting to an ever changing market.
Im sure if gas was a little cheaper they would offer more free shipping, but gas keeps going and going and going...../pinkbunny

ZZF is usally where I shop when looking for PC parts but they still don't carry as much as Newegg.
 
Yeah, you can't blame anyone right now for shipping prices. It took ZZF a little longer to make changes, but they did too, just like the egg. I work in a service field with a fleet of vehicles, and we have had to raise prices to account for our 30% increase in fuel costs. It's just a current fact of life.

I hate rebates. I can't particularly blame Newegg for them most of the time though as it is generally the manufacturer. It's a crappy trend in the industry. I will say, however, Newegg at least goes out of their way to make sending in the rebate as easy as possible.

Newegg still gets the bulk of my business because I have always had a great epxerience purchasing from them, their website is top notch, customer support is decent, and when/if I have to RMA something it is generally speedy enough. The website is the real kicker though, I will pay a buck or two above the other guys in appreciation for it.

I guess I don't really see thme going down hill, I just see them adapting to the industry, as everyone else has/will have to do.
 
I won't comment on shipping since it's obvious the recent fuel prices is driving the shipping prices up and they need to cut the increase somewhere or pass along to the consumers.

About the MIR, I try to avoid the most possible and each time i'm face to a choice between a product priced lower with MIR and another a bit higher but without MIR, i'll pick the latter one. No rebate won't compensate the hassle to fill the needed forms, paying postage and waiting weeks/months/years to get a check if it ever come. Also, there is issues with the UPC codes required with the MIR and the potential warranty issues with the lack of the UPC codes.
 
They ticked me off for an RMA recently that in the past never would have happened.

I purchased 6 NEC DVD burners for a replication tower. About a month later, one died. RMA'd it back, having to pay to ship it of course. Turns out that NEC burner has been discontinued and they couldn't find a comparable replacement, so all they would do is issue a refund. First off, that was 100% BS. They had an NEC burner that was the replacement model for the one I purchased for the exact same price as the one I purchased but apparently a 99.9% match isn't good enough for them. So now not only did I have to pay to ship the bad drive back, now I had to pay to ship the new drive to me again.
 
Bullitt said:
Bad information. They do not use UPS "ground" (3-5 day shipping) its UPS three day shipping. The boxes are different and I can say since they have changed, all my orders have been to my rural VA town within three days. For contrast, I get my stuff from SVC.com and since I'm cheap, I go with UPS ground. Thats 3-5 day service.

Have you seen gas prices in the past 6+ months? :) UPS/FedEx are feeling the burn (as well as my day-to-day commute) and I'm sure their contract prices for 'egg and the rest have increased. Unfortunately, the "savings are getting past on to you, the customer." Lets take Zipzoomfly.com. Most their stuff is shipping inclusive, but their prices are a couple bucks higher than 'egg. Free shipping is only a gimmick. The consumer is paying shipping one way or another. I'll be honest, I like "free shipping" since the price I see is the price I pay. I like the illusion I'm getting free shipping. :)

I dont get this one. I see MIR's on stuff like linksys stuff, memory, vid-cards, etc. I do not see them on Retail Boxed HDD kits, but I buy OEM parts.


I'll give you that. If its truly DOA and not PEBKAC issue, return shipping should be covered. Knock on wood, I havent had an issue I needed a product return.
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Gasoline has gone up. But everything has gone up. Economy is shifting. I could get into the inelastics and elastics of it all (what I know at least), but really dont want too. I agree though gasoline has gone up. This is a complexed issue though, so for the mean time I will give you that.

MIR are pretty much on more and more stuff each day. MIR would be fine if most of them got paid, but they do not. MIR are the devil too, because it is easy to outsource rebates to a 3rd party and then it is not your issue.

Their policy includes not paying return shipping. If you claim that they work with people and cover the shipping on most bases why dont they change their policy?
 
roaf85 said:
Gasoline has gone up. But everything has gone up. Economy is shifting. I could get into the inelastics and elastics of it all (what I know at least), but really dont want too. I agree though gasoline has gone up. This is a complexed issue though, so for the mean time I will give you that.
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It is complex, but shipping companies who's business it is to burn up the gas so you and I can get our mail-order items have to increase their costs. I don't fault 'Egg for changing to UPS because they use a different class of service than "ground", they use "Three day." Its a minor thing, but I have had no complaints from 'egg since the switch. YMMV of course.
roaf85 said:
MIR are pretty much on more and more stuff each day. MIR would be fine if most of them got paid, but they do not. MIR are the devil too, because it is easy to outsource rebates to a 3rd party and then it is not your issue.
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I don't quite "get" the lack of MIR = going downhill, especially given your statements here. Yes, I'll carefully shop using MIR, but the only company I have had truly stellar luck with, is the Staples Easy Rebates. Again, I cannot fault 'Egg for their seeming lack of rebates.
roaf85 said:
Their policy includes not paying return shipping. If you claim that they work with people and cover the shipping on most bases why dont they change their policy?
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No-sir, :) I will not claim that they pay for return shipping on defective items. My "wish" was that if the thing is truly fubar'd (obviously broke, smoked, or generally a little box full of confetti) they should return it post paid. I think that a lot of returns (not just from the 'egg) are due to RTFM or PEBKAC issues with the consumer, not neccessarily the fault of the retailer. Many stores (B&M stores and online e-tailers) are claiming this as the issue for returns, so I can sympathize with newegg, they are doing what everyone is doing. But for certain things, I would like them (and other retailers) to do the same and work with the customer. Now, I have not exactly ordered ten's of thousands of dollars of merchandise from 'egg, I believe its only 3-5k worth over the past few years, but (knock on wood) I've never had a DOA part from them.

I do not think that 'egg has gone downhill, but they are the model that others are trying to emulate. Lots of products, good prices and fast shipping. Look at the e-tail market three years ago, it was... newegg and thats it (if you wanted what you wanted, in-stock at a good deal with fair shipping). Now there are at least 4 other e-tailers on my short list who I will not hesitate to order from because they followed the Newegg model.
 
I just placed an order for an entire system. I was comparing prices between newegg and ZZF and ended up getting everything from newegg. ZZF doesnt offer free 2nd day anymore and i couldnt wait for 7 days to get my stuff (it takes 7 business days from ZZF to my door steps in NYC). Prices were the same, may be like 50 cents difference. Also ZZF usually takes like 2 days just to ship out ur stuff, newegg is next day.
 
Well I had a newegg order that didn't ship the same day but they made good on that ;)

Most people I know who have had a product be DOA or die within a month or two and they covered the shipping. With the low profit margins in computers I think its only fair and it cuts down on people who buy and return along with buy a processor just to see if its a good overclocker.
 
benamaster said:
Well I had a newegg order that didn't ship the same day but they made good on that ;)

Most people I know who have had a product be DOA or die within a month or two and they covered the shipping. With the low profit margins in computers I think its only fair and it cuts down on people who buy and return along with buy a processor just to see if its a good overclocker.
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Thats true and I suspect that's 90% of the reason behind their new policy. Serves those cheap ass defrauding sons of bitches right. I still say if it's truely DOA just threaten a chargeback and they'll waive the fee. If not, charge it back. Screw having to pay for DOA merchandise and shipping it back and forth.

The ideal situation would be if Newegg had a way to test DOA merchandise and just refund the cost of shipping it back if the item is truly DOA. That would cut down on a lot of the fraud. Unfortunately its not too far fetched to forsee those same fraudulent people shorting pins on processors just to save a couple bucks on shipping. :(
 
UPS is great. I don't believe those who say otherwise. FedEx is just as good too, but I don't get this favouritism. They are reliable IMHO.
 
nigerian_businessman said:
Thats true and I suspect that's 90% of the reason behind their new policy. Serves those cheap ass defrauding sons of bitches right. I still say if it's truely DOA just threaten a chargeback and they'll waive the fee. If not, charge it back. Screw having to pay for DOA merchandise and shipping it back and forth.

The ideal situation would be if Newegg had a way to test DOA merchandise and just refund the cost of shipping it back if the item is truly DOA. That would cut down on a lot of the fraud. Unfortunately its not too far fetched to forsee those same fraudulent people shorting pins on processors just to save a couple bucks on shipping. :(
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First off the user should not have to threaten a chargeback at all. They should not have to go through that much trouble. Most companies do not have to adjust the master budget to include returns. If anything it is slightly and is not a huge factor that is going to make them lower revenue projections. Should the fact that returning a product is not going to a big difference. At my previous companies I was employed when we shipped video games back to the supplies we received some sort of sipend.

The reason do they no pay return shipping is because it costs a lot of money to ship something back. Think about this you have to ship a label and usually a box and then pay to ship it back. Most companies can not adjust for the shipping cost. For instance Well Fargo tries to encourage online banking? Why? Is it more conveient? For some, but mainly it saves them thousands not to send out statements.
 
Newegg has been fine to me lately. Just bought a NEC 3550A last night and I got it this afternoon.... this is the first time in a while I've received anything in 1 day...although it was shipped from a neighboring state :D
 
I love new egg and bought my first computer their and I still have it today 3 years later. I do hate the fact about the shipping. My friend ordered his computer of their and the 3 day shipping turned out to be 10 and would have been stored at a warehouse for another 5 if we hadn't called in. But in the in the story had a happy ending, my friend loves his new computer and it has no defects.
 
TechLarry said:
I too still like NewEgg, but some recent things are also making me shop around more, which I never used to do that much.

1. The PC magazine thing. That's just slimy in my book.

2. Packaging. It's really bad. Things are protected, particulary Hard Drives. I do like that they do NOT use peanuts though. I hate those GD things. Amazon is the model for packaging.

3. Used to get great prices without rebates. Now rebates are cropping up all over. I do NOT do rebates. Tired of getting cheated. If you want to do rebates, make them instant rebates.

4. UPS. The UPS station in my area does not allow for night-pickups. You miss the drop off at your house, and you can NOT go to the UPS station and pick it up. You have to arrange for that a day in advance. I'll take Fedex any day.

5. Did I mention the PC magazine thing?

-Larry
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what pc magazine thing? you arent very direct :confused:
 
roaf85 said:
Do not get my wrong this is not a personal stab at newegg. I love the site and order parts from there, but I really miss the newegg of the past. The newegg of the past had these things:

1. 3 day fedex shipping was standard and it there in 3 days flat. Now the UPS shipping can take up to 5 days. You have to pay extra for fedex.

2. Free shipping on a majority of the parts. Hardly anything ships for free now.

3. Hardly any Mail in Rebates. Now Newegg is becoming the online CompUSA for Mail in Rebates.

4. You have to pay shipping back to newegg.com for DOA products. Since it is a policy of newegg now it is tougher to try to get the fee waved. Back in the old days they used to wave just about any fee.
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Stop being cheap and pay the rush order fee and better shipping. I coughed up the rush order fee and overnight shipping and the items i ordered yesterday will be here today.
 
Psycho said:
Stop being cheap and pay the rush order fee and better shipping. I coughed up the rush order fee and overnight shipping and the items i ordered yesterday will be here today.
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Good for you. Now stop being cheap and just order a Voodoo PC.
 
Hey HardForum members,


Thanks everyone for the positive and constructive criticism. Any and all feedback is more than welcome; which, in turn will help us better serve our customers.

We would like to comment on the return shipping cost issue, which a few of you have expressed your concerns about. Our policy stats the following:

Newegg.comFAQ said:
No, Newegg.com does not pay the return shipping cost for defective merchandise. We are not responsible for product defects, because we do not manufacture the products we carry. However, Newegg.com will split the shipping costs with you. If you pay to send the item back to Newegg.com, Newegg.com will replace the item and ship the item to you at no charge. Newegg.com will employ every resource it has to ensure that your item is replaced promptly, without hassle
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There is of course the situation where it is a "given" that Newegg will cover return shipping cost. For example, you order item# 00-000-001 and we ship you item# 00-000-101. We will be more than happy to assist with the return shipping cost when we ship you an incorrect item.

However, in our strive to provide the best customer service possible we want to help our customers out with the return shipping cost of defective items. Although we cannot guarantee that we will always fully reimburse you for the shipping cost we always want to work with our customers to have a positive solution for both parties.

As always, if anyone has any further questions or concerns please do not hesitate to PM us. If you need assistance with an order recently submitted we are here to help. Thanks all for your time.
 
I've ordered from Newegg 4 times now, and all 4 shipments came two days after purchase.
 
nigerian_businessman said:
I think that making UPS an option was a good move. Fedex is a bitch if you happen to work when they deliver and don't have a neighbor you can trust to sign. I can leave my back door open and UPS will drop the packages inside the door..
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Diddo that. I live a lone and work the hour’s shipments arrive, UPS just leaves it on back my porch.


TechLarry said:
The PC magazine thing. That's just slimy in my book.
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Larry, (or anyone) what is the problem with the PC magazine thing? I recently elected to receive it after placing an order, from newegg. What should I be aware of?

As far as packaging, I just received an order of 2 OEM hard drives, a power supply and a box of blank DVD’s. they were all in the same large box that was only filled about 2 thirds of the way with peanuts, so everything was free to roll around. The OEM hard drives had a rough ride, the bags they were in were dinged up so I can tell they banged around a bit. I’m still waiting for parts (not neweggs fault I haven’t ordered all the parts yet, hehe) before I can build this machine to find out if these drives work. I’m not too impressed with that and called them to tell them about it. Of course they said if there is anything wrong with the drives they will replace them. But I will never order OEM drives with any other items in the future and one drive at a time if I’m ordering 2. I’m guessing one person in a large company screwed up by not putting enough packing in my box with the hard drives but over all I’ve had pretty good service from newegg.

I have to give two thumbs up to newegg for letting me return parts I thought I wanted but changed my mind on. They even said they would credit my account to help cover shipping. I didn’t and don’t really expect them to do that again but thought it was great customer service for a newbie.

...and MIR sucks much.
 
After posting my reply in this thread I did some poking around and found this other thread. I just want to say to Newegg Support that your message about "less than favorable packaging" has not been getting back to the right people. As stated above, my hard drives were (very) poorly packaged. This comes 2 months after your reply in that thread I link to. And I am now very, very nervous about these hard drives. They were not wrapped in bubble wrap, just way-less than enough peanuts. I’m beginning to think its not just one person at fault here.
 
Yeah, recently the egg has been doing much worse with packing, but I am not sure if it is entirely related to the Fed-Ex to UPS change. With either company, I have still recieved boxes that look like someone had attacked them with a bat. Also, I dislike all the rebates that they have been having also. A kid I know from school also *CLAIMS* (he is a big bullshitter though) that he gets paid to comment what they want on their site under products... I am almost sure it is false, but some of the comments on the egg are a little bit wierd sometimes; people comment on the price a lot and many comments talk about how you should buy the product while it is cheaper or w/e. Recently though, I have loved the egg. I ordered an AGP eVGA 5500 from them for $40 after the $15 rebate. It was a really good deal, considering I get better performance from it than my PNY 5700LE that randomly died on me (don't buy PNY. Their warantee is shit). I plan on buying my entire next build, besides a few specialty parts, from the egg.

One thing that I also notice, is that NewEgg really cares. I mean, they have a frickin support guy here for us. I think NewEgg will continue to be a great website, even if they have hit a rough spot recently.
 
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