[ALUmnus]

Not really, I shop there all the time. But they are lying bastages.

http://www.courant.com/business/hcu-ap- ... lines-home

Blumenthal began his investigation after a February Watchdog column in The Courant disclosed that Best Buy stores had a secret in-store intranet site -- one that looked identical to the public BestBuy.com Internet site, but had different pricing.

Best Buy employees in Connecticut and across the country used the private site -- intentionally and unintentionally -- to charge customers higher prices than advertised on the public site.

[ALUmnus]

Also:

Best Buy employees and former employees also wrote to the Watchdog complaining about being pressured to sell merchandise and warranties not needed by consumers. Best Buy advertises that its salesmen are not paid on commission, but the employees point out that the number of hours they get to work depends on the sales and profits they make for the chain.

I did not know that.

[LUconn]

what a bunch of baby employees. All extended waranties are garbage

[RubberMallet]

best buys are ranked accross the country, these rankings are based on 3 different criteria. they are listed in importance

1. extended warranties
2. accessories (believe it or not, this is a HUGE industry, we actually get a industry mag that is devoted to accessories)
3. Total sales

total sales is the least important factor in determining the best buy rank.

i rarely shop there are their people are unknowledgeable and push to sell those stupid things...

and yes, they don't get commission but the # of EWC's they sell determine their hours as well as give them special times where they can buy inventory dirt cheap.

less than 10% of service contracts are ever actually used.

the last time i went there i went ot buy a remote....i spend 35 bucks on a remote and 3 different people tried to sell me a ewc for 15 bucks...after the cashier didn't take my first no i left it on the counter and walked out....

[HenryGale]

what a bunch of baby employees. All extended waranties are garbage

Not true...had a camera from BB that broke 3 different times...sent it back to be repaired each time, then used their lemon law policy and significantly upgraded my camera at no additional cost.

Sent my DVD player back 2 times for repair...

XM radio antenna split 2 times...replaced free each time

Ipod...replaced 3 times so far....

[JDUB]

note to self.. never let henrygale buy me anything. it will break multiple times

[El Scorcho]

If you like reading about businesses acting shady towards consumers, you'd love The Consumerist: http://www.consumerist.com/

That's where the Best Buy Intranet/Internet websites story originated.

[HenryGale]

note to self.. never let henrygale buy me anything. it will break multiple times

It is the electromagnetic force of the island that is screwing everything up

[LUconn]

from clarkhoward.com

Nov 16, 2006 -- Why extended warranties are a rip
Clark has tried to convince people that extended warranties are trash for many years. He felt like the lone wolf in the wilderness for a long time. But now, Consumer Reports is backing him up. The magazine’s latest edition is all about what a waste of money extended warranties are. Every dollar you pay for an extended warranty, you’re really only getting about 15 or 20 cents on it. Why is that? First of all, the quality of the electronics and appliances is so good these days that the chance of them breaking is miniscule. Secondly, if something does happen it will probably be after the warranty runs out. In addition, although the products are high quality, they will lose value with each year you own them. And you never want to insure a rapidly decreasing product. Also keep in mind that when you buy an item on a major credit card, you usually extend the manufacturer’s warranty by one year. So, extended warranties and service contracts simply aren’t worth it.

[RubberMallet]

what a bunch of baby employees. All extended waranties are garbage

Not true...had a camera from BB that broke 3 different times...sent it back to be repaired each time, then used their lemon law policy and significantly upgraded my camera at no additional cost.

Sent my DVD player back 2 times for repair...

XM radio antenna split 2 times...replaced free each time

Ipod...replaced 3 times so far....

what on earth?

most of the time all they are doing is using the manufacturer's warranty. especially if they are not making you buy and extended warranty....if its within the manuf. warranty period, the extended warranty only allows you to take it to best buy and they will call the company and either repair/replace.

the warranty they sell means the product actually comes out of their pockets if you bring it in. however, best buy policy is that once you use the warranty once its done and a new one is needed if you want the new product warrantied as well....this is all, of course, after the manuf, warranty has expired.

every time an electric product i've bought has broken after the manuf warranty period, never have i had a hard time at least getting help if not total replacement by the manufacturer. Sony is the best i've ever dealt with int he realm of warranty....whether it was my receiver "that i accidentally fried" or my ps2 that went bad....they've always took care of me.

technics/whirlpool/yamaha/sharp were all great to work with...

[HenryGale]

The biggest issue I had was with my camera. Various things kept happening to the lens, motor etc. And it was all after the Manufacurers warranty had expired. It would have cost me $300 to replace my camera.

The Ipod just kept having glitches. The best part about that is they just replaced it on the spot each time. The last time, they "refunded" my old ipod, and I "bought" a new one, with a new extened warranty. Since the Ipod was cheaper now (1 year later) I actually got money back, a new Ipod, and a new 2 year warranty.

[RubberMallet]

you must have a good best buy....i've heard of these but i thought they were a mythical creature....

[Fumblerooskies]

Yes...two sites...in store site has in-store pricing. I found this out as I was looking at a tripod of all things. On-line at home price was $15 cheaper...compared to in-store. Problem was, the internet said they had NONE in stock, when 3 were on the shelf. I finally saved the page on my laptop with the cheaper price and took my laptop to Best Buy to show them the internet pricing...and they matched it.

For the store in Lynchburg, I have had nothing but positive experiences...just as the one above. IF they are "of the devil," I'm buying!

[LUconn]

yeah, Lynchburg is a pretty good one. I had a guy hounding me about the extended waranty on the camera that I bought there, but I just had to keep telling him to go suck an egg. I think he must have listed every single possible thing on my camera that could break with a few different scenarios of breaking each peice.

[RubberMallet]

yeah, Lynchburg is a pretty good one. I had a guy hounding me about the extended waranty on the camera that I bought there, but I just had to keep telling him to go suck an egg. I think he must have listed every single possible thing on my camera that could break with a few different scenarios of breaking each peice.

thats what the guy did when i was going to buy my printer there....he described how it was going to break to me...so i handed him back the box and said "maybe you should stop selling such sh---y products then" and walked out.

i've only walked out of bestbuy like that twice...i think

[Fumblerooskies]

From my experiences...the extended warranties are golden.

[Libertine]

Never! Ever buy the extended warrany on electronics! Also -- and here's the biggie -- don't buy crap!

Best Buy may not be strictly of the devil but I'm sure he spends a lot of quality time there. Anyone who's ever tried to return a BB online purchase can attest to that.

[El Scorcho]

I do not shop at Best Buy unless it is some kind of dire cable or blank media emergency. Their prices are never the best and their customer service has a horrible track record. I've never found not shopping with them to be a problem.

[JDUB]

i like looking around there website to find stuff i like... but then i buy it on ebay

[Libertine]

I do not shop at Best Buy unless it is some kind of dire cable or blank media emergency. Their prices are never the best and their customer service has a horrible track record. I've never found not shopping with them to be a problem.

Hear, hear!

[LUconn]

I do not shop at Best Buy unless it is some kind of dire cable or blank media emergency. Their prices are never the best and their customer service has a horrible track record. I've never found not shopping with them to be a problem.

I really only try to buy things off of ebay, but when special occasions come along, I normally get flooded with BB gift cards.

[ATrain]

Note to self: never lend HenryGale any piece of expensive technological equipment in my possession...ever!!!!

The only reason I shop at BestBuy is to see if they have any DVDs or PC games that I may want to purchase. Thats very rare, and if they do, I tend to go to Wal-Mart or somewhere afterwards to see their prices.

Finally, BestBuy says "Happy Holidays" and not "Merry Christmas"

[Fumblerooskies]

Note to self: never lend HenryGale any piece of expensive technological equipment in my possession...ever!!!!

But ALWAYS...I mean ALWAYS...
...make sure to serve him the perfectly poured brew at his seat at a ball game...

[HenryGale]

Note to self: never lend HenryGale any piece of expensive technological equipment in my possession...ever!!!!

But ALWAYS...I mean ALWAYS...
...make sure to serve him the perfectly poured brew at his seat at a ball game...

...the Dali Lama himself. The twelfth son of the Lama. The flowing robes; the grace; bald; striking...So, we finish the 18, and he's going to stiff me. And I say, 'Hey. Lama, hey. How about a little something for, you know, the effort, you know?' And he says, 'Oh, uh, there won't be any money. But when you die, on your deathbed, you will receive total consciousness.' So I've got that going for me...which is nice."

[mrmacphisto]

Extended warranties are not exactly a scam; just almost. The fact that the majority never use them doesn't mean jack if you're in the minority that wished he'd paid for one. I don't need my seatbelt most of the time, but I still put it on... most of the time.

I'm not trying to sell anyone on the idea of extended warranties; I'm just giving you the perspective of a Mac user who was nearly screwed over.