Is it a complete rip-off to buy a computer from a store like Best Buy?

Question

or just a little bit of a rip off from stores like best buy, circuit city, and compusa.

Answer 1

I don't think its a complete rip off... Its hard to beat a good sale and rebate offer on close out models. I bough my laptop from CompUSA with a $200 rebate and $100 sale price for a total of $600.

Desktops are another matter... I have built every single one of my desktops. If you are capable you can put one together for less than $200. Even cheaper if you upgrade an existing PC you own and reuse the case and drives.

Building your own does allow you to customize and get exactly what you want and need BUT if price is your only concern ... Then its hard to beat a sale price at a retailer like Wal-mart


What is a rip are some add ons the speciality stores sell like the warranty or recovery services... You can get a better warranty extension from teh manufacturer like Toshiba which has better incident coverage. The recovery service sounding like a good idea when I bough the laptop but after reading all of the fine print in several PDF files I determined that it was a waste of money and got a refund the next day. (for example the recovery of your laptop top doen't really mean you may actually get back physically, the police can hold it as evidence and its considered recovered. Reimbursment on a stolen unrecovered laptop is prorated for just two years. )

Also have you looked at the price of Geek Squad!!! Tune your PC and install antivirus software $150

Answer 2

I would say yes. You should order directly from the company so that if anything goes wrong you can send it right back. It will take longer for you to get it but in the long run it will be worth it.