Online Retailers to use or stay away from

Trooper · 06-16-2006, 08:25 AM

This thread is to list all those retailers that we use to order PC or AV (audio visual) parts. Please list those you like and dislike, and give reasons for both. I think this will help alot of people when looking for a good place to order and cut down on so many bad experiences.

Please look thru the thread before you post to make sure you duplicate retailers. And do comment on other stores you do see listed. I will get this started

Tigerdirect.com - Okay yes it has its faults and bad CS, its good when you cant find it any place else

Newegg.com - cheap prices and great selection

Chiefvalue.com - A TON of stuff at cheaper prices then Newegg most the time. Really able to refine your searches and find what you are looking for.

Steel_Penguin · 06-16-2006, 12:18 PM

zipzoomfly.com - Customer service and prices just as good or better than Newegg and most items come with free 2-day Fedex.

**Apophis** · 06-16-2006, 12:28 PM

Companies to DEFINITELY STAY AWAY from:

Wawa Digital / Starlight Camera / AccessoriesLand - http://www.wawadigital.com/
[Research] [Research] [Research]

Technically, Both of these are the same company. They go under multiple names but are all located in the same facility. I would definitely recommend reading the second "research" article even if you're not planning on buying from them. It's certainly interesting reading! There's a lot of good stuff out there on the net regarding Wawa Digital if you Google it. I spent quite a lot of time shuffling through sites like epinions reading all the horrorstories. Then you come across sets of highly POSITIVE reviews that all have the same "formatting" including the method in which the usernames were chosen, and the same spelling errors throughout. I'm not sure if they've given up the practice of trying to forge positive reviews, but they certainly spent a lot of time doing it previously!

I *ALMOST* bought my Canon XT Digital from them a few months ago because the price was just phenominal. But then I did some reading up on WHY the price was so phenominal.

I'll sell you a $1,000 camera for $200, but you need to buy $500 worth of accessories (which come with the camera normally) for an extra $800.

Magnum50 · 06-16-2006, 12:42 PM

www.gogamer.com

I know one of the guys that works there (Jason) he hangs out at SimHQ, and gives us discounts...

Great service, fast, and usually rare games... like The Regiment that was a England export... and not bad prices.

Easy return policy if not happy.

Rare hardware type stuff, where I learned and bought my new Fang device...

Has racing seats and stuff like that for a specific pit.

Trooper · 06-16-2006, 12:45 PM

Im reading over their policies and such. Really interesting..

Quote:

You may return an item, excluding any shipping and Handling charges, within a period of ten (7) days according tothe following guidelines:

Then later on down the line....

Quote:

9. Customer is responsible for shipping charges on returns.
14. Shipping and handling expenses are non-refundable (includingall refused and unaccepted packages).

yes thats how its numbered.

Quote:

3. Returns of non-defective opened merchandise are subject to a15% restocking fee.
4. All returns will not have a restocking fee if providedmerchandise is returned in unopened condition (brand new) within 14days! If the package is opened there is a minimum 20% restocking fee.

Quote:

There is a restocking fee of 20% on all returns for refund, unlesswaived by our Customer Support Agent. WAWA Digital is notresponsible for manufacturer defects. wawadigital is not amanufacturer, but we are willing to replace a defective item. If arefund is requested instead of a replacement, a 20% restocking feewill apply. Wondering why? Claiming "defective" is theeasy way out of a restocking fee just because you simply don'twant the item. For this reason all defective items will bethoroughly inspected. And if found defective, will be replaced (RMAtype repair).

then this is listed in their contacts page

Quote:

A normal purchase at WAWA Digital can save our customers up to 50% from the retail prices which they see in their local stores. With all the savings we provide, with our 30 day satisfaction guarantee return policy, as well as having an excellent customer service department. Why would anyone shop anywhere else?

Quote:

WAWA Digital has millions of satisfied customers.

Im guessing not!
Good post apophis

**Apophis** · 06-16-2006, 12:54 PM

Yeah, Wawa Digital is a really shady company. Research Link #2 shows some pictures of the place and I believe might have references to pictures of some Wawa goons coming outside when they realized people were taking pictures of their decrepit building, err, I mean business location.

)))gTo21(( · 06-16-2006, 12:58 PM

Avadirect.com - good prices on custom Desktop, Notebook and barebone systems. They even have pictures and detailed specs on each part that goes into the system.

Evo<^|SiNz|^> · 06-16-2006, 01:04 PM

I'll also endorse www.newegg.com for customer service. I RMA'ed some memory with them and it was an extremely smooth and customer friendly process.

**Apophis** · 06-16-2006, 01:10 PM

I posted a company to stay away from, as far as companies I do use and WOULD RECOMMEND:

NewEgg - http://www.newegg.com
Excellent product selection, prices, and customer service. I buy most of my personal hardware from NewEgg and have never had an issue with them. That includes RMA's for blown motherboards and memory.

Sparco - http://www.sparco.com
Selection includes VERY high end hardware/software, excellent customer service. Their prices are a little higher than NewEgg in some areas, but they carry datacenter and carrier grade hardware, racks, etc.

**CingularDuality** · 06-16-2006, 01:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Apophis

I'll sell you a $1,000 camera for $200, but you need to buy $500 worth of accessories (which come with the camera normally) for an extra $800.

Sounds like any of the ol' NYC camera stores... They've been doing this for decades. Mail order/phone orders were where they started, but the internet has just made it that much easier to find suckers.

Oh, and I, too, would recommend www.newegg.com

And unlike Trooper, I would stay away from TigerDirect. I got burned by them once before, and if you'll go to www.resellerratings.com and look at TigerDirect's low rating, you'll see that they haven't improved much in the past 6 years...

Also, don't forget about the Tactical Market!

Beatnik · 06-16-2006, 02:34 PM

I too use newegg almost exclusively. Here's an interesting look inside of the newegg facility, if you haven't seen it before.

Yeah I'd generalize that Wawa Digital to (like Cing said) most camera stores with a Brooklyn address. Generally you find those listed on pricegrabber or whatnot, and they're typically 'grey market' operations. Manufacturer's warantees are most likely not honored, customer service is almost non-existant, and their bait and switch/"upsell" practices border on illlegal. Not every online camera retailer with a Brooklyn address is shady, but I'd say most of them are.

P8riot · 06-16-2006, 04:38 PM

I've really been lucky with my online retailer choices.

www.newegg.com - we've spent tons of money there and always been pleased.
www.buycheapsoftware.com - has always treated us well
www.bhphotovideo.com
www.frozencpu.com - for top shelf stuff when you need it

**Sawviper** · 06-16-2006, 05:57 PM

I would recommend Newegg.com after lots of transactions with them. I have had to RMA a couple items and they are very quick and communicative.

I have not done a lot of business with them but these companies were decent prices and had in stock what they claimed...

pagecomputers.com
sharkacomputers.com

On the other hand, I do not recomment monarchcomputers.com. My first and last transaction with they they claimed to have a product in stock and in fact either had very few or none and then due to very high demand and low supply the product was unavailable for over a month.

Their CS is terrible, I had to do all the contacting to get anything accomplished and in the end they gave me nothing for all my hassle just a equal or lesser product for the same price. Basically if you like to get lied to and jump through hoops give them your business.

wildcat2000 · 06-16-2006, 07:37 PM

www.newegg.com and www.gogamer.com are the best. The 48 hour madness deals from gogamer you can really get some cheap games. Shipping is awesome one time shipping fee $6.99 two day fedex for up to 3 games. Newegg is fast and cheap, my wife got the Canon Elura 100 for $60 less than what you can get in a Best buy or Circuit City.

**UnDeaD77** · 06-16-2006, 08:11 PM

I'd say newegg is godly, everyone has posted the reasons why, and why most people love newegg.

I'd also suggest www.svc.com its not a big company like newegg, but they've got some good prices sometimes. I've ordered mutiple times and never had a problem. Also of course www.outpost.com which is Fry's electronics website, I goto the store myself, but alot of people don't have a fry's in their area.