What is Digg?238 Comments
- JPhilipson, on 10/12/2007, -9/+59I agree. I have so many laptops replaced with upgraded models thanks to extended warranties. Thanks to the No Lemon Laws in my state if I get, for instance, my laptop repaired 3 times or more They are required to replace it with a new one. Usually that model is no longer in existance so they upgrade me.
What it should read is, Don't buy extended warranties from the store but from the actual manufacturer of the product. All the store does is pack it up and ship it to the manufacturer anyways and they just pay for the warranty, put their mark-up on it, then sell it to you.
As for everything else. Don't buy crappy cell phone accessories. If a little plastic sticker that looks like a comptuer chip can increase my cell phone reception, then why aren't the manufacturers making them standard? And cables? When I worked at best buy we sold 10ft USB printer cables for 39.99. Best Buy's employee discount is 5% above company cost. Do you know how much those USB cables would have cost me if I wanted to puchase them? $1.97. Those same cables on Ebay are cheaper. Heck, I even went to my local thrift store and found cables for pennies. Shop smart, not impulsively. - rotten777, on 10/12/2007, -3/+49>Also, I think expensive cables can be worth it, especially video cables. I switched from a generic DVI to Monster Cable DVI and it definitely looked cleaner and sharper.
Oh really? so those zeros and ones are even clearer now?
I think someone was taken. - Saint3k, on 10/12/2007, -38/+72Great, now everyone will go out and buy their $2000 laptops without the extended warranties. What happens when their laptops break after the standard 90 day warranty is over? They're screwed.
Extended Warranties on expensive hardware is a MUST BUY. - Glissy, on 10/12/2007, -3/+31Actually, a $2000 laptop should have better than a 90 day warranty. If not, then it should be on the "do not buy" list. My own laptop, a $2300 IBM ThinkPad, came with a three year warranty. BTW, I have not had even one quality or reliability issue with it in the two years that I have had it.
- strictnein, on 10/12/2007, -5/+28Thanks Best Buy drone.
Worked at Circuit City for two years. The computer service plans there are a RIP OFF. If you bought one, you got ripped off. Sorry. - adml_shake, on 10/12/2007, -2/+19You know that companies like HP, Toshiba, and Sony all offer better and cheaper coverage plans if you buy straight from them.....
When I worked at BB we had department meetings about them, and how to get people to think that it wasn't really that great of a deal.... - MaLaCoiD, on 10/12/2007, -4/+20My Info Sys professor explained to us how most electronics follow the bathtub model of failure. If it's going to fail, it will within 90 days or whatever that short amount of time is. Then the failure rate drops (during the time your extended warranty is useful) and it rises again at the end of the warranty.
So don't get an extended warranty- that's where they make most of their money. If you don't want one on your expensive new toy, they freak out. Try it. - radu79, on 10/12/2007, -0/+15Buying a refurbished desktop can be a poor choice, but I bought many refurbished things (external sound card, laptop, PDA) and I saved a lot of money, and I never had a problem with them.
Factory refurbished stuff is not bad at all. - dongiaconia, on 10/12/2007, -4/+17Just something to keep in mind, there *is* a difference between a service plan and an extended warranty. An extended warranty just covers the same limited stuff for longer. A service plan generally gives you extra things. In the case of Best Buy, any product that comes with rechargeable batteries means you get a new battery when you need one. Generally once every year. So you need to weigh the cost of the service plan against the cost of 3 batteries over the next three years...
- kimos, on 10/12/2007, -0/+11Man-o-man... I did electronics sales for a few years, and these are the things I told people all the time.
1. Failure rate on refurb electronics sold at low prices was unbelievable. It's ok if you want something super inexpensive and expect it to break, but it's not a smart way to save money.
2. Stores like Future Shop (Canadian Best Buy I guess) base their entire profit model on extended warranties. Salesmen make 15% of every one they sell. If warranties aren't at least 10% of all the sales you make, as in total dollars, you are considered a bad salesman and your job is in trouble. The companies benefit from warranties, not the customer. Never buy. It hurts to replace the one expensive thing, but just remember all the other expensive things you didn't warranty and didn't replace!
3. The cost on most cell phone accessories is about 5% of the sale price. It's similar but to a lesser extent with most other electronics, portable audio, car sound systems, home theater, PC accessories. Sales people can usually make more money off the little things than off the actual thing you're selling. Don't buy it unless you know you need it. Think, can you buy the same thing somewhere less impulsive that will cost way less? Usually the answer is yes.
4. You can buy cables for home sound systems that cost $300 each. They look like garden hoses. Difference? Nothing, unless you're powering a stadium. Unless your gear is high end, your cables won't make a difference. As above, salesmen and businesses probably make double on cables over the actual product. Hell, the even try to sell super high end electro magnetically shielded optical cables. OPTICAL CABLES! How does EM interfere with light? Don't buy them. (note, not to be confused with the type of connection. S Video is better than composite, but the $200 S Video cable isn't better compared to the $15 one)
5. You think floor models are a good deal, until you see how used and abused floor models become in a store all day. Most components will get more use, and be left on for longer periods of time (if ever shut off), in a month in the store than it likely would a year in your house. Yeah, combining floor models with warranty to cost the same can make sense, but is it worth the extra headache of sending it away, hooking it up and unhooking it, when you could just buy the new one?
Beware retail electronics... It's like the used car lot of our generation... - CosmicJustice, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9No. Extended warranties are for suckers. I know this will get Dugg down into the bowels of the earth but it's still true. An extended warranty is a type of insurance. The stroe makes money on it because most people pay in without getting anything back. Every time you think you need an extended warranty put the money in a special bank account. Unless you are buying junk you'll soon have more than enough money to self insure.
- thefirelane, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7>I don't agree with the logic of not buying something simply because the seller will make a lot of profit off of it.
But it does make sense for warantees... because if they are making extensive profit, it means the failures aren't frequent. So if you just pocket the money you'll come out ahead in the long run. Insurance should be reserved from things that you couldn't possibly recover from if it happens (home loss, sickness, etc) - WiseWeasel, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8I would definitely buy the extended warranty for a laptop, or any other expensive item that gets carried around/banged up a lot. If it's a stationary product, or an inexpensive one, then extended warranties rarely pay for themselves.
- adml_shake, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8Didn't comsumer reports do a study on this a few years ago? That there was almost no difference between a standard cable and the 90 buck gold plated monster cables? It wasn't untill you started getting up in the really really highend stuff that you might notice a bit of a difference...
- Nyghtewynd, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8Homer Simpson said it best: "Extended warranty...how can I lose?"
- cmallinson, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Refurb from Apple is almost always a good idea, and I'd recommend it to anyone. My powerbook came from apple as a refurb - over 30% off, and this was before the MacBook Pro came out. When it arrived, I swear the thing had never been breathed on, not a hairline scratch or fingerprint anywhere - it was immaculate in every way, with new cables, and everything. You can even get new Intel stuff refurbished from Apple now.
- ekimneems, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Refurbishehd systems aren't always out-of-date as the author says. A good majority never actually had anything wrong with them, but were returned because the consumer had no idea how to use the computer or had software issues. If your refurb comes with the same 1-year mfr warranty as the new one and the specs are up-to-date enough, I'm all about it.
In particular, Dell's outlet stores offer some great deals. They even already have the dual-core Inspirons up there (clearly not obsolete quite yet =P) at a pretty good discount. You can use that discount to get the warranty and you kill two birds with one stone. - enzomedici, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Let's look at that list...since the digg effect has taken that site down.
1. Refurbished computers - by the same logic as this article computers in general will be out of date anyway in 6 months once the next zillion core chip comes out and your old computer is back in the stone age. Most people just IM, write a few docs, post photos and surf the web so what they buy today will last for a good 3 years. My old P550 w/ 384 mb RAM will suffice for most all home users. Don't buy any new computer until your old one is dragging ass.
2. Extended warranties - this is a roll of the dice. If the item is over a grand, I'll buy it. Otherwise, I'll roll the dice. Whatever you buy under a grand will probably work for a year at least and after that time you can buy something twice as good for the same price.
3. Dubious cell phone accessories - well, those little antenna stick on thingies don't work at all. But I disagree with the comment that if it was good and did work that the manufacturer would have included it. Manufactures separate everything they can like car chargers, cases, etc. in order to make money. Accessories are a multi-billion dollar business why would they be stupid enough to throw in a car charger ? The fact that they won't even standardize on a single charger should tell you that.
4. Overpriced cables - this all depends on the quality you want, buy the best you can afford. There are plenty of systems in homes across the world that are suffering due to ***** cables.
5. Floor models - author says don't buy floor models. Nonsense. As long as it still looks ok and works, what's the downside to a TV or especially something like a dvd player that's just sitting there? None at all as most come with the same warranty. Just make sure you got all the controls and manuals. Sure if it's all jacked up, don't buy it unless it's going to get jacked up anyway.
6. ***** web hosting - if your site cannot handle the digg effect, don't post ***** to digg. - alevel27mage, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7"Cables: Yes, you could get cheaper computer cables elsewhere, but its a good idea to spend money on quality A/V cables."
I hope you don't mean Monster Cable or anything else like that, because that's the only "quality cable" that Best Buy and the like sells. - kimos, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Exactly. Most places that offer extended warranties have a hard time selling you high end products if you don't buy it. That's one of the main reasons they can offer you a good price on whatever you're looking at, is cause they make all that money back on their service plan.
I sold it for years. Felt guilty every time, especially on things that I knew they would never use it on. They also told us to explain the bathtub model to customers to sell the warranty, except show the manufacturer's warranty ending at where the curve starts to rise up again, and the expensive extended warranty covering the "huge spike" in product failures after that.
But yeah, keep in mind, the salesman probably makes 15% of the warranties he sells. And why would the store even offer it if they didn't make money off it?
This is the way I always think about it when I don't buy warranties: Most things I have don't break. Some do. It is less expensive to replace/repair the few that brake than it is to buy warranties on everything. - Marku$, on 10/12/2007, -2/+81.) refurb systems: i agree. they are a waste of money.
2.) extended warranties: i disagree, service plans, yes. depending on the price of the product. when i go buy a $10 mouse, they offer me a 7 dollar warrnty, thats dumb, but expensive stuff, yea it a must.
3.) cell phone reception extender: i fell for this one a while ago. does nothing, but someone somewhere is laughing at us.
4.) Overpriced calbes: buy them. im guessing that this guy has never looked at 2 tv's side by side, one with good cables and one with the shiat wires they give you for free.
5.) Floor models.: buy them. this guy is an idiot. just buy anything you can for as cheap as you can, then get a warranty (see #3) - indiefan, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6Statistically speaking they are set up to make money on whatever "plan" they are offering you (service or warranty), something to keep in mind. Bottom line, if they're making money, somebody is losing it.
- JasonPrini, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5I sold at a Best Buy-like chain in Canada years ago. I can tell you I made more commission selling a component cable than I did selling a cordless phone, printer, microwave, and lots of other stuff. I sometimes made $4-$7 selling a single $30-$50 cable. I would often hang out by the cables and give VIP rapid cashier service to anyone buying a cable {no, i didn't try to up sell anyone to more expensive cables}. I hated selling extended warranties and there was just as much push to sell accessories as extended warranties, so it made my job a lot more enjoyable. I made $300 or more some Saturdays... not bad for a part-time job.
- kernelhappy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5It depends on the definition of refurbished and you have to take into account the authors intent of his assertation not to buy refurbished.
For example, newegg sells open box stuff (returns where the original buyer paid the 15% restocking fee) as "refurbished". The big problem with newegg's refurbished stuff is that hey have that big disclaimer to the effect that parts may be missing which is why I haven't bought refurbished from them. I was in a pinch a while back and needed a notebook computer immediately and I ended up getting an open box from BestBuy, apparently someone didn't like it and returned it, the machine itself was fine (and still is fine 18 months later).
I think the authors point was more to the fact that just because it's heavily discounted, older equipment may not be the most cost effective for the average pesons needs. Maybe they should have illustrated to joe public a rough example of TCO on a refurbished computer like they were referring to.
Since I'm too lazy to make a seperate post; as far as the extended warranties go, I only purchase them on items that I know will still be very expensive to replace and have a higher than expected chance of failure; for example my RPTV from a few years ago, paid $150 for a warranty that included annual maintenance. For my DSLR I paid $99 for a extended warranty. I do however say no to the $29 service plan on a $70 linksys router, not quite sure who the hell thinks those sound like a good idea.
Neither warranty has been envoked for repair, but my D70 was just about out of the nikon warranty, I did end up with the blinking green light of death which was repaired under warranty (and a service bulletin even if out of warranty) but it did reinforce why I bought the warranty in the first place. - JangoFett, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5So what about volcano insurance? Is it still okay to buy that?
- merreborn, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4I can't argue that bad coax will severely degrade analog video signals, but there's a point after which you're not getting anything more. As long as you get something a step or two up from walmart's cheapest coax, you should be fine.
When it comes to digital, or audio signals... (1) Digital: Either the bits get there, or they don't. It's not really possible to have a 'degraded' digital signal -- if the cable sucks, it just won't work at all. (2) Audio: most people can't tell the difference. And monster cables are just *****. A review in 1983 compared monster cables and _lamp cord_. No difference.
http://www.roger-russell.com/wire/wire.htm#reviewdares
Again -- decent analog video cables are worth paying a little extra for -- the human sense of sight is much more sensitive than hearing, so it's much easier to detect slight degredation of quality. - Kodiak41226, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4You are correct. Most of the Compaq / HP Notebooks refurbs you see are actually brand new units. Compaq / HP sticker the boxes refurb and sell them below market if they are having a hard time getting rid of inventory. They mark the boxes refurb and lower the warranty to 90 days to protect the "new" units that are sitting on the shelf at Best Buy.
- groogs, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4For cables, what they do is sell (or give for free) EXTREMELY cheap cables .. these things probably cost them a few pennies each. They sell them for $10-$20 or whatever. They're poorly made, with cheap connectors and thin low-grade cabling. They do this on purpose, so when you compare them to the $90 "monster" cable, the $90 one looks better. In both cases, they're making a huge markup (probably 1200% on the cheapies, and 50% on monster), but selling the cheap ones as "mid-grade" cables lets them sell more monster cables.
If you go to another non-box-electronics store and buy the $10 cables they have, they'll be only slightly lower quality than the monster cables (don't get me wrong, monster cables are good, they're just not THAT good), but MUCH better quality than the $10 best buy cables.
Just understand, it is quite possible you'll see/hear that monster cables are better than the "cheap" cables, because they make sure it's that way on purpose .. otherwise, who would pay hundreds of dollars for cables? The only time you'll really notice a difference between decent quality cables and the high-end monster cables is when you're using very high-end everything -- not stuff you're likely to find at best buy anyways -- and you have a well-trained eye/ear. The sales people are trained to do things to make you think it sounds better: from telling you it sounds better, making you think you'll look dumb if you disagree, turning the volume up louder with better cables or otherwise adjusting settings..
And if you don't believe me, then perhaps you can explain to me why gold-plated fiber optic cables are better than the regular ones? - rutherford, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4I have to disagree with you on refurb systems. I got my Dell Laptop off of Ebay from Dell financial Services. it was an old business lease that had been refurbed. It was only $600 and still had six months of next day service warranty on it. I have also bought quite a few Dell precision desktops from Dell that were refurb and had no problems with them. They were quite a bit cheaper (at the time) than buying them new.
- stickyfingers, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4In regards to your 4th point, I think I was watching a podcast of diggnation, not sure I just remember that Kevin Rose was in it, where they made their own cables, and the guy working on the cables stated that many of the gold tipped cables use Tin solder, since the connection is only as good as the weakest point in the chain, there was no real benefit to the gold tipped cables from what I remember...
- vypergts, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Don't forget: music from RIAA labels, dvds, anything with DRM, cameras from priceritephoto, and Internet from AOL.
Nobody should ever buy any of that crap :P - kernelhappy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4adml shake,
I think most people realize that home audio/video is a extreme case of diminishing returns, your point that there was "almost no difference" actually validates most audio/videophiles purchases. At least they know that they are pay much more for VERY LITTLE return.
The lesson is more for mom and pop when thye go into best buy. No, they probably won't notice any difference between the $90 cable and the decent $15 cable, and there are a host of other ways they can improve the experience for little or no money (as the author stated spending time tweaking and positioning, etc).
What really dissapoints me is that when higher quality cables went mainstream, the consumer didn't see any discount due to economies of scale. When I purchase cables the only things that matter to me is that they are well built and will withstand the physical world to a reasonable degree (aka pushing the receiver into the cabinet and putting a little stress on the connectors) and making sure that they are well shielded. Super cheap cables can cause far more damage to the quality than super expensive cables can improve it. - kc7gr, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4I can't let this one go without putting my own slant on it, said slant being based on decades worth of buying and selling experience in the used/surplus electronics arena.
(1) Refurbished computers: I cannot agree entirely. My own laptop is an off-lease refurb (a 1.6 gig P3, Latitude C640 to be exact), purchased from an authorized Dell reseller on Ebay. It had over eight months of Dell's Gold warranty left.
With that said, keep in mind that I'm not a gamer, and that "latest" to me rarely means "greatest." Heck, some of my applications still call for (and work perfectly well on) an MS-DOS based IBM PS/2 system. Critical points for me on any laptop is "how rugged is it?" (I love the Toughbooks and the Dolch portables for that, but hard to find an affordable one that meets my needs), whether it has at least one standard serial port (USB-to-serial converters just don't work for what I need to do), and that it have at least 2.5 hours battery life.
In any case: Buying refurb is not always an electronic deathtrap for your wallet. The most important thing to consider when buying any computer is matching the application to the system. If you're planning on doing high-end gaming, video editing, or other memory/CPU-hungry apps, then a refurb is probably not your best bet.
If, on the other wing, you're looking for an 'on-the-road' laptop that you're just going to use for E-mail, web browsing and word processing, a refurb could save you mucho dinero. If you do go after such, seek out a reputable reseller, as I did, and DO YOUR RESEARCH BEFORE YOU BUY!
(2) Extended warranties: In most cases, they are indeed a ripoff. However, there are some cases where they can be helpful. My favorite examples are LCD flat-panel monitors, especially if you happen to be using one at trade shows.
When considering an extended warranty, I ask myself two questions. First, what's the manufacturer's normal warranty? Second, how am I planning to use the device?
If the normal warranty is two years or more, as was the case with my recent purchase of a Harman Kardon receiver, I will flat-out refuse any extensions. If it's one year, and the device I'm buying is one that I consider 'vulnerable' in a mobile or portable environment, I will at least consider an extension if it's not priced into the stratosphere.
If the normal warranty is less than a year, I usually won't buy the device. Period.
(3) Funny-looking cellphone accessories: No argument at all. The makers and sellers of those alleged "shields" and "boosters" all need to implode. Quickly. Without disturbing the rest of us.
(4) Overpriced cables: I could go on for pages about this one. The ultimate winner of "utterly ridiculous" in this category goes to Monster Cable, a company that I won't buy ANYthing from due to their snake-oil sales tactics. Take a look at this link for the big winner in that category.
OK... In all fairness, I know, as an engineering tech, that utter crap cable vs. decent cable will make a difference in your system's sound and video quality. However, you're going to have a really hard time convincing me that human perceptions will be able to detect ANY difference between a decent component-video or audio cable, priced around $20 or so, and a set of Monster's "Sigma Retro" cables costing over four GRAND!
(5) This is a tough one. I would say it depends on what you're buying, and how desperate you are for a specific model. Floor models are not always abused, and buying one can have the advantage that the unit in question, if it has been there for more than six or so months, has been thoroughly broken in and is unlikely to fail. Add to that the fact that a floor model will still have the full manufacturer's warranty when you buy it, and it's not necessarily as bad a bet as the author makes it out to be.
Example: I purchased an older laserdisc/DVD combo player from Sears some years ago. It was a Pioneer, and was being discontinued with no replacement in sight (the sales rep was very honest about that). Since I still have a large number of laserdiscs, buying such a device made sense for me.
It was indeed the last one they had, and it had been their floor model. I got it at a steep discount (at least a hundred or so off the original price), and it still works just fine to this day (seven or so years later).
Once again, it all comes down to how much you really know about the electronics you're buying, and the principles on which they operate. As has been said before, "Knowledge is Power," and it never ceases to amaze me how accurate that statement is across so many situations.
Keep the peace(es). - jabelar, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6The companies make lots of money on these extended warranties and service plans -- that's why they push them on you so hard at the end of the sale.
- guavo, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3First off, you should never buy anything at best buy unless it is black friday... their stuff is rediculously overpriced even at sale prices. Compusa and Circuit City approach newegg prices with their sales (Even though you have the rebates).
1. I do not agree with this one... you can usually save a lot of money going with a refurb. If I can save 20% due to a cosmetic blemish, I'll do it anytime. Factory refurbs are the best... bought a 20" Sony Trinitron TV around 9 years ago for 2/3 of retail price and it is still working great.
2. Yes, unless it's unreasonable - on a $2000 laptop, i'd expect the protection @ $300 to be 3 years full coverage including accidental damage coverage. Extended protection on a $100 printer? ummm yeah... not worth the hassle to return it if it does break....
3. Yeah those are a waste
4. Overpriced cables are like expensive wine - sometimes they are worth the price, most times not and unlike wine, the differences between the cables is somewhat infinitesimal.
5. Depends on what it is and how much of a discount they will give you. Most electronics, I would NOT take the floor model unless it was a significant discount... but non-upolstered furniture, speakers, and other stuff where you can tell if it's been abused by customers. - mjar81, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I never buy extended warranties... the exception is expensive jewelry (Like my wife's engagement and wedding rings).
I can't tell you how many times over that that extended warranty has paid for itself! - tackhouse1, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Some info on Cables:
http://www.pcworld.com/reviews/article/0,aid,121777,00.asp
As others have said, yes cables can make a difference, but Monster cables have a Huge markup. Similar quality cables can be purchased for significantly less, with indistinguishable performance.
www.pacificcable.com
(no I don't work for them, but am a satisfied customer) - calebrown, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I love every refurbished computer/laptop I've ever bought. Which is 1 desktop 1 laptop.
- Overdose, on 10/12/2007, -2/+51. Are not a waste of money if you are looking at a different use than your main computer. My friend uses old computers as home servers.
2. worth it still for expensive goods.
3. hahahaha.
4. I do not know too much about cables.
5. floor models are cheaper and you can get a warranty. ( I work retail) - microbreak, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6Most Best Buy Laptops come with a ONE year warranty, parts and labor.
The real trick is.....
http://digg.com/deals/FREE_EXTENDED_WARRANTIES_ - mv10, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3If you haggle with the manager on expensive TVs, refrigerators, etc... He will usually mark the item down by 10%, the exact same price of an extended warranty. Why, would he do this?? Hes not exactly allowed to do it, but managers are graded on how many extended warranties they sell (as well as expensive monster items). I tried this last week with the Sony 60' SXRD
Just an FYI - ThePhilomath, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Do not get extended warranties. No it IS NOT smart to get them on expensive things; at least not any smarter than getting them on cheap things.
Why? You pay more on warranties for expensive things and they do not break nearly as much as, let's say, an mp3 player. The company is always making money off of you - avoid warranties at all costs.
signed, a former warranty salesperson. - Pimpalicious316, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6i find these kinds of comments interesting. just because only 42 members clicked "digg" doesn't mean only 42 people went to the link. could be 100. could be 1000. the "digg" count can be deceiving.
- 4degrees, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6
you sound like homer Simpson... "extended warranty, how could i lose?!"
he he, just kidding. extended warranties are good for reckless people. Those of us who are likely to drop the laptop well after the standard warranty is up. When its new you are careful with it, but as time goes on the care starts to fade. Extended warranty is for those people... you know who you are. (I'm one of em...) - asdfer, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3"...things to avoid buying next time you walk into a Best Buy."
How about avoiding going to "Best" Buy altogether? :-)
http://besbuysux.org/
Then you shouldn't have to avoid buying anything the next time you walk into "Best" Buy. - Cyberdactyl, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Many times "Refurbished" is nothing more than the device, component, etc. did not pass a QA inspection at the end of a manufacturing or assembly line process and was collected with others with different QA "failures" and recycled through the line at the end of a shift or run. I purchased a refurbished Olympus C50 digital Camera that was totally new in every way.
- mandarin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Before I forget: Never use the in-house tech support of these retailers.
My friend brings his hard drive to Fry's to have the data restored because his computer broke down and he needs the data for work. He brings it in during the morning, in the evening, we come back to pick it up, Fry's tech support misplaces the drive. - diggydown, on 10/12/2007, -0/+31. Refurbished computers
Because it's not cutting edge? That certainly doesn't apply to everyone.
Because cutting edge will become that cheap when it gets old? Negates first argument and I never recommend the waiting game.
2. Extended warranties
He's right, depends on percentage of replacement value and likelihood of needing it at all.
3. Dubious cell-phone accessories
No doubt
4. Overpriced cables
He's mostly right: High price != high quality. Although high quality = high price (usually). And quality makes the difference.
5. Floor models
Buyer beware and informed. I bought a dvd player w/ no remote or jog dial for cheap and it's been flawless. I use a universal remote anyway and who the hell walks up to their dvd player to rwd/fwd a scene? Sometimes the flaw has no bearing on a customer's needs.
I agree with supert0ad on the title:
"5 things you shouldn't normally buy, but if you do, think about it first." - ohmar, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I would agree...in some instances. I would never buy a used or refurbished hard drive. Nor would i buy a used battery for my laptop. Anything with a limited lifetime on it will only fail sooner. That said, I would certainly go for the used/refurbished sound card, flash drive, or router.
- Matteos, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Why would you buy a laptop at Best Buy?
-
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