Computer Shopping

I went shopping for a new desktop computer at the big box stores today. It was an interesting trip, to say the least. Well, maybe interesting isn't the right word. To tell the truth, I can't boil the experience down to just one word. But looking back over time (as I'm prone to do), it's simply amazing how much computer you can get for the money these days.

Today's PC shopping trip was easy on the stress. I was shopping for a friend, not for myself. While I had an investment of good will in finding the right computer, it wasn't a personal investment of cash. I simply wanted my buddy to walk out with the best computer he could afford.

We accomplished that task. He got a cool PC for just five big ones.

But what didn't he get? Sales support.

None. Nada. Zilch.

We spent fifteen minutes in the first big box computer store. I won't name names, but there wasn't a computer salesperson in sight. Helpful or otherwise. Maybe they were all on break. Or something.

We looked at the various brands, which seem to have shriveled to Gateway (now being sold in the big boxes, having closed their own stores), eMachines (now owned by Gateway), HP, Compaq (owned by HP), Sony, and one or two neverheardadatones. With my friend's budget, eMachines loomed large. But trying to figure out the pricing on each machine proved to be a mystery; the computers were not clearly tagged.

Without getting a wisp of sales assistance, we took down some notes with regard to RAM, HDs, processors, and DVD/CD drives. Then we bolted for the next big box store ... which happened to be even bigger and boxier.

The second store offered a better shopping experience than the first. There were more choices and the prices were more clearly marked. But there was a similar lack of sales help. We wandered the big ticket aisles for close to half an hour, comparing one entry-level PC to the next. As the choice narrowed between a Compaq and an eMachine with similar specs, no one offered any assistance. My friend finally dragged a sales rep over to explain the pricing on one machine that was confusingly marked.

He ended up, happy as a clam, choosing the Compaq. (Decent processor. Half a gig of RAM. Substantial hard drive. DVD and CDR drives. Oodles of ports on the front panel. Ten thousand times the computer he's ever owned.)

Before you zap me an email asking why I let him get a Compaq rather than a) Brand X, b) buying a computer form a local shop, c) buying a computer online from Dell, or d) building a computer from scratch ... you gotta know, none of those were real possibilities in this case.

Now I've bought bought a good number of Brand Xs over the years. I've bought computers from local shops. I've leased a Dell and a Gateway . And my next computer (a Quiet PC, mind you) will likely be scratch-built. But my friend? He didn't want to have any of that. He wanted to walk out of a big box store with a big box. And that he did.

I left the big box store, with a certain nostalgia for the old Gateway country stores. The Gateway crew did their best to put on a quality experience, but in the end, I suppose it was the overhead that nailed the coffin.

Of course, Apple stores thrive today, selling high margin products with certain unique qualities. I have to say that I always look forward to spending time (and yes, even a bit of money) in an Apple store. There's a different feel there, when compared to the big box stores.

But once again, my friend wasn't buying, as Apple had nothing in his price range (except iPods, of course).

All-in-all, it's good to know that if cash is tight, you can get a nice little PC for five hundred bucks ...