Best Equipment in SA?

[black_hacker]

Re: Best Equipment in SA?

Thanks for the comments, folks! Yes, I did see the other forums, but if you remember the C-64 days, it did no good to hear about XYZ computer company selling great products, but only on the EAST coast or something like that. I wanted to hear comments about San Antonio specifically. On general comptuer products, Amenity Computer Services seems to have a good selection at a decent price with better track records than PC Wholesale. That's my 2 cents. Any Syntax, if you want to send me an email with more info about the meeting, that would be great. Thanks folks!

[Thorn]

Re: Best Equipment in SA?

i'm coming to believe this is true everywhere now. in fact, i find myself telling friends and relatives over and over and over to stop shopping at places like Best Buy when it comes to getting consumer electronics. Not only will you never find a product on mainstream retail store shelves that has all the features consumers deserve today (ever ask for a region-free DVD player or non-DRM mp3 player in a Best Buy or Circuit City?) but the prices don't hold a candle to what you can find on the internet.

Not only that, in places like Best Buy you will never get a straight answer on what machine will fill your needs.

Sheep: "I want a PC to do [some stuff]."
Salesman: (Turning toward the machine they were told to push this week) "This PC was designed from the ground up to do [some stuff]. In fact, not only will it do [some stuff] better than any machine out there, it will do [other stuff/outrageous half-baked lie] better than any other machine on the market! It's a real sweet deal, we're selling this at only [50% more than on the Internet] this week! After that, it will be [extraordinarily overpriced or we'll never stock them again because this model is such a dog.]

[[Syntax]]

Re: Best Equipment in SA?

I own a business, and I shop wholesale here in San Antonio. Aside from being able to get cable supplies at a good price, we dont have good prices on much else.

My wholesale prices are way more than what it can be purchased for online. Companies know this, but they also know theres no decent competition here, so they can just shaft the buyer. Im actually boycotting CompUSA at the moment because they refused to honor the warranty they sold me, and instead damaged my laptop after several repair attempts. The manager told me that the company and store are not responsible for what the sales people tell the customer. If they mis-represent a product, or lie to the customer to get them to make a purchase thats the sales persons problem. In my case the sales person was no longer employed by the company, and I was just out of luck.

I attempted to make contact with the District and Regional managers of the company. They only attempted to return my call once, on a phone number I didnt supply them.

Soon to change though, while some may not consider FRY's to be a great source for electronics, they do bring a new selection, larger than most places, and the everyday prices and especially sales will force the competition to adjust.

San Antonio is soon to have a FRY's. Finally.. We were promised one about 3 years ago.

[Deviant Ollam]

Re: Best Equipment in SA?

As for in San Antonio, theres no good places to buy electronics really.

i'm coming to believe this is true everywhere now. in fact, i find myself telling friends and relatives over and over and over to stop shopping at places like Best Buy when it comes to getting consumer electronics. Not only will you never find a product on mainstream retail store shelves that has all the features consumers deserve today (ever ask for a region-free DVD player or non-DRM mp3 player in a Best Buy or Circuit City?) but the prices don't hold a candle to what you can find on the internet.

There was a time when you'd find stuff on the 'net for maybe $10 to $20 cheaper and it would work out in a wash when you factored in shipping. Now those days, i feel, are over. The best prices are found by dealing with SuperGoodElectronics123.com or what have you... places with huge warehouses of inventory someplace who sell a few things at a discount in the hopes that you'll become a loyal customer afterwards. Of course that never happens, i never deal with the same people ever again, and i just opt for goods that are made by reputable enough manufacturers and come with factory warranties.

[[Syntax]]

Re: Best Equipment in SA?

Deviant Ollam is right, a search of the forum for "Laptop" would have produced several results including a current discussion..

As for in San Antonio, theres no good places to buy electronics really. Any used stuff is overpriced at the places we do have, your better off just buying new.
Try looking on craigslist, thats going to be your best bet for a good deal.

[Deviant Ollam]

Re: Best Equipment in SA?

Wow. What an incredibly insightful and relevant question. I think i'm most astounded by its uniqueness and fresh perspective. Because there certainly has never, ever, ever, ever been any other thread here on the DefCon forums where people have discussed what laptops are good, which ones are bad, how to find the best deals, and why certain models may suit one person but not another.

Heh, in all seriousness... good luck with your search for advice and any purchase you may eventually make. You'll find a lot of knowledgeable advice here on the forums... some of it comes from asking questions, but most of it comes from using the "Search" feature.

[black_hacker]

So what is the best equipment (laptop's, PC's, etc.) that everyone uses, and where do you buy it at? Other forums point to the best Laptop's as IBM Thinkpads. I agree.
Comments everyone!