PC world rants - post yours?

neveroddoreven

Ok following on from what I've heard and what people said on my other thread can anyone put into words what is exactly wrong with PC world?

I've heard in computer world they are the scrapings from the barrell...is it that they overcharge you, that your stuff breaks quickly? Thanks!

TerrorFirmer

It's not the products themselves, it's the staff - mostly.

Where to begin? Probably with the fact that the majority of them haven't a clue about computer hardware and operate solely on 'Sell the most expensive thing possible'. I've asked a question in there, deliberately to gauge their knowledge, to be answered first with a blank look, then a hastily thrown together shambles of an answer that was completely false. I didn't care much, but what about people who actually go in there fully relying on these staff members? If they think they've got a sale, they will lie, or make up rubbish. It must be an official policy, because I've gotten into arguments with Managers in there over things that even a complete novice would know. Things like 'that machine definitely does not have a pci-e slot' even though I could see it through the grill in the case, and 'Integrated graphics can not play ANY games whatsoever'.....

Then there's the issues of prices, to be fair a lot of their lower end stuff is reasonably priced but the machines advertised as high end gaming/performance machines etc often come with low end parts and cheap (like crappy 8500GT in machines that cost 1,300 and are advertised as ultimate gaming pc blah blah etc, nasty LCDs, crap power supplies, etc.

But really my main gripe is with their staff, maybe they are better in other parts of the country and Galway just has the worst, but somehow I doubt it. Maplins is right across the road too, but the comedy there lies in the staff being infinitely more knowledgeable but their prices are even worse bar the odd special offer.

To their credit though they have some rare great clear outs, I have gotten 6600GTs, Hiper PSU's, Cases, X-Fi etc for about 50-60% of the Komplett price in the past. But these are special offers mind - not everyday prices, which are not as bad as they used to be, but not remotely as good as online.
Etc.

Lucutus

This weekend gone, I went into PC World in Naas, looking for Logitech Z-5500 speakers, they had a single set priced at €469. When I asked about the price, claiming it was way too expensive, the salesman pointed me towards the manager, who, when he saw me coming to speak with him, lifted a phone beside him which didn't ring and then pretended to talk to a dial tone until I walked away 30 seconds later.

Went next door to Harvey Norman, where a salesman from their sound dept. told me he'd sold their last set recently for a little over €300

Ended up ordering from Pixmania for €286.

Also, www.pcworld.ie has been down for quite a while, someone didn't pay their hosting bill!

Gauge

Lucutus wrote: »

Ended up ordering from Pixmania for €286

That's funny... Pixmania is owned by DSG Group, aka PC World, Dixons et al. A €200 difference is pretty steep.

Mint Sauce

pc world, where do i start, firstly most expensvie single purchase i have made with them is for about e170, for below reasons

when first bought first laptop, told the guy what i wanted it for, got pointed in the direction of a laptop costing e1000 more than what i eventually paid,

when made first step into checking out broadband, didn't know much about routers or the reciver to plug into my laptop (didn't have a wirelesss one at the time), so basically went to them for advice, was first told might need to buy a new laptop when was discussing weather or not using a 1.1 usb might slow down a conection using a device requiring 2.0 usb, was then suggested to me to go away and read up on it my self, when asked one to many questions

now only usally go when i know exactly what product or device i want to buy,

majiktripp

Honestly this is a great idea for a thread, theres nothing more heart warming than knowing I'm not alone in my general dispise for all things DSG owned, but PC World especially.
I was told by a HP rep who was doing a demonstatrion in there that they don't care about broken old HP's only really about selling the new ones, which I thought was a real nice way to think of your customs, F*^% 'em as long as we get their money morealess.
Suprising though on a minor plus point they do have the occasional cheapish (well for bricks and mortar) piece of hardware (as pointed out by Havok!) but thats their only minor saving grace.

LadyMayBelle

Everyone really does hate PC World, don't they. I went down to get anothre webcam as the one I had bought was faulty. I eventually found a member of staff as I wanted to ask a question (usually they disappear or are 'just going on break'). The girl hadnt a clue, and just said "I dunno" and walked off. That's service alright. I got another webcam which the guy suggested was better (but was actually worse) Boo pcworld...and this is only one complaint I have..

dulpit

I've had 2 experiences with them.. The first was when i was buying my laptop (i ended up going with Dell) I called into PC World just to see what they have, price them and stuff...

The guy i was talking to was very patronising towards me, treated me like an idiot... They had one on offer (it was a Sony thing) and he recommended it to me.. I told him i needed (wanted) 2gb of RAM (the sony had 1) and he was like "nobody needs 2gb, the only person i know with 2gb is someone doing 4th year programming, but you won't need that"

I told him i was heading into 4th year software development (this was in the summer) so that shut him up, stop tried to explain what RAM & hard drives were...

Then i asked him about graphics cards, I had told him my budget was roughly €1,000, he told me that at that money i could only get a laptop with on board graphics, if i wanted a GFX card i'd be looking at over €2000 min. I went with a Dell Vostro with a great card for less than a grand

Also, this happened twice in 2 weeks (last week & week before) - no staff on tills. Last week i was buying screen wipes for my laptop, the week before i was getting a blank dvd, and i had to wait for ages both times... And the first time there was a girl leaving the till to head to staff room (or something) she saw me coming, and left. And she didn't say it to anyone... And were they apologetic? Nope...


Their (PC World) major problem is their staff, they have NO customer service skills at all...

It's odd, i bought my mp3 player in Dixons (which is same company as PC World) I called into them a couple of times to price it & stuff, and their staff was brilliant... Odd, same company but sooo different...

kaimera

Trying to get my laptop fixed when it was covered under the insurance plan I'd gotten with it;

simply put, a nightmare. It went to them twice and I was *this* close to sending it back a third time only for I actually needed it for college and couldn't afford for it to be gone a further two weeks.

First time it came back, there was a lump in the chassis along with a few other loose bits and pieces.

Second time it came back, it was only reading half my RAM and the screen was dodgy.

Seems if it had gone back a third time I was entitled to a refund/replacement.

Never again.

humbert

I was looking at a wireless mouse as a gift a few days ago and wanted to know what the usb adapter in one of them looked like(big or small) so took it to the service desk. Staff member wanders over to the desk and I put the question to him and he picks up the package like it was some strange alien object he'd never seen before.

After looking at it from every conceivable angle , occasionally stopping to give be the most unctuous smile, he spots a mac sticker on the box and even though the product is made by fucking Microsoft, and has Microsoft written all over it, attempts to convince me on the grounds of this mac sticker that it's a mac product and wont work on windows.

I was more bemused that angry at that stage, that someone with this shocking level of ignorance would have the audacity to offer advice in the manner of an expert, rather than admitting they simply didn't know. So I just gave him a bewildered questioning look, shook my head and walked out.

auggie2k

humbert wrote: »

I was looking at a wireless mouse as a gift a few days ago and wanted to know what the usb adapter in one of them looked like(big or small) so took it to the service desk. Staff member wanders over to the desk and I put the question to him and he picks up the package like it was some strange alien object he'd never seen before.

After looking at it from every conceivable angle , occasionally stopping to give be the most unctuous smile, he spots a mac sticker on the box and even though the product is made by fucking Microsoft, and has Microsoft written all over it, attempts to convince me on the grounds of this mac sticker that it's a mac product and wont work on windows.

I was more bemused that angry at that stage, that someone with this shocking level of ignorance would have the audacity to offer advice in the manner of an expert, rather than admitting they simply didn't know. So I just gave him a bewildered questioning look, shook my head and walked out.

MAC - not Mac, how'd did he not know the difference - esp. since they are completely different? Jasus I'm never going to PC World, I always eBay anyhoo.

BanzaiBk

auggie2k wrote: »

MAC - not Mac, how'd did he not know the difference - esp. since they are completely different? Jasus I'm never going to PC World, I always eBay anyhoo.

Why MAC? It's not an acronym.

auggie2k

I know, it's usually CAPITALISED :-)

goose06

My younger sister managed to break her power supply for her laptop, so I told her that I'd get her a replacement one, was in a bit of a rush so I popped into PC World, Staff member tried to sell me a Trust Universal adaptor and swore to me that it was an official compaq one. what a kn0bend

BanzaiBk

auggie2k wrote: »

I know, it's usually CAPITALISED :-)

Fair enough, it's a little peave of mine is all

My PC World horror story involves hard drives. One of my best friends needed a replacement 3.5 HD in a hurry a few months back. The first one he bought was D.O.A. so he took it back was replaced etc no hassle. The second unit also did not work but when he returned again the staff were totally disinterested, saying they had already given him a replacement. The manager was "busy with clients" and couldn't talk to him so he was told to return the following day. The whole saga dragged on for 3 unneccesary days, resulting in PC World eventually refunding him:rolleyes:

TheDriver

Lady on the tells allowed me buy eircom wireless router for tenner without taking my name and number, glad they were thick!!

projectmayhem

BanzaiBk wrote: »

My PC World horror story involves hard drives. One of my best friends needed a replacement 3.5 HD in a hurry a few months back. The first one he bought was D.O.A. so he took it back was replaced etc no hassle. The second unit also did not work but when he returned again the staff were totally disinterested, saying they had already given him a replacement. The manager was "busy with clients" and couldn't talk to him so he was told to return the following day. The whole saga dragged on for 3 unneccesary days, resulting in PC World eventually refunding him:rolleyes:

having worked in retail (about to get back in sadly) i can tell you if i give a replacement to someone and they come back for the same item replaced i'll just think they're taking the piss and not using the item properly... so instead of being the idiot member of staff who keeps filling out paperwork for the same product returned by the same guy, i'll gladly pass it on to the manager and let him/her deal with it.

my stories' a good one... i buy all my stuff online but a mate of mine wanted to get a pc there so in we went and i told him what pc's are good for what he wanted to do etc. etc. so he eventually picked out a pc but wanted to know if there was pci-e or agp ports for the graphics card he already had at home, to which the sales person replied "no... you're a gamer, you need to overclock the motherboard". so my mate calls me over and i was baffled by the answer because the thing clearly had a pci-e port inside it. had to explain to the sales guy too!

Ghost Train

I hate the way a lot of stuff isn't priced right or isn't labelled right or isn't priced or labelled at all. Not as bad as it used to be in the store i visit, but still find it happens a lot. I asked for the price of a motherboard one day, it took the staff twenty or thirty minutes to look up or work out the price... which was twice or three times what the pcworld.co.uk site listed it as after converting to euro.

Also hate how their bargain corner, with returned or opened items is usually more expensive than than the non bargain stuff :rolleyes:

Oh and I hate how there is 5 or 6 tills for paying for stuff, but you'll be lucky is theres one cashier there so you can pay (not as bad on the weekends), half the time there will be some delay, because heres no cashier around

DonkeyStyle \o/

eolhc wrote: »

I hate the way a lot of stuff isn't priced right or isn't labelled right or isn't priced or labelled at all.

Yep, that písses me off... their components section is terrible for that... especially their gfx cards, more often than not it's impossible to tell what price they are... they have a crappy selection in general as well.
I avoid the staff most of the time and wouldn't dream of asking them any technical questions... I don't need any boxes read aloud to me thanks.

I find the staff in Peats pretty good... they seem to be one of the few places to hire people who have a clue... and at least if they don't know the answer, they'll tell you as much, instead of making up some bullshít... it's just a pity their prices are a tad steep.

Faith

Okay, so if PC World are crap, what stores are good? I mean, are they overpriced or is it fairly competitive for middle of the range stuff? Is there any good chains NOT owned by the same people as PC World?

TerrorFirmer

Faith wrote: »

Okay, so if PC World are crap, what stores are good? I mean, are they overpriced or is it fairly competitive for middle of the range stuff? Is there any good chains NOT owned by the same people as PC World?

PC World is 'good' if you don't know anything about computers. And when I say good, I mean consistently terrible, but to someone who hasn't a clue, they just assume PC World are the experts. It pains me to type that.

Notice how everyone here buys online. Stores like PC World are for the average user who doesn't know anything about computers bar the basics used in everyday life.

BanzaiBk

eolhc wrote: »

Oh and I hate how there is 5 or 6 tills for paying for stuff, but you'll be lucky is theres one cashier there so you can pay (not as bad on the weekends), half the time there will be some delay, because heres no cashier around

Yeah I hate the tills in the Mahon store in Cork. Everytime I've been in there since it opened there has never been any more than 1 person at the till, regardless of how many people are queuing to pay.

cornbb

auggie2k wrote: »

I know, it's usually CAPITALISED :-)

No its not , but a lot of boardsies seem to think it is for some reason

Anyway, on topic: I'd echo the negative sentiments most people here seem to have. Terrible uninformed customer service. Their sole reason for existence seems to be to exploit people who know little or nothing about computers. Their coverplan/insurance policy is a joke. I recently returned a digital camera to Curry's (not PC World but the same company). A switch needed replacing but they decided to ignore that and replace the CCD instead :rolleyes: so I had to send it back a second time.

Faith wrote:

Okay, so if PC World are crap, what stores are good? I mean, are they overpriced or is it fairly competitive for middle of the range stuff? Is there any good chains NOT owned by the same people as PC World?

Thats a great question. They are definitely overpriced on most items IMO, especially complete PCs/laptops. You'd think there'd be a market for a competitively priced bricks-and-mortar computer superstore in Ireland but they seem to have it sewn up for some reason. Maybe there's an evil cartel in operation...

Ghost Train

cornbb wrote: »

Thats a great question. They are definitely overpriced on most items IMO, especially complete PCs/laptops. You'd think there'd be a market for a competitively priced bricks-and-mortar computer superstore in Ireland but they seem to have it sewn up for some reason. Maybe there's an evil cartel in operation...

smallish items and components are overpriced too, most times maplin would be better value

you do find the odd bargain in pcworld

auggie2k

Yeah... on Norton products :eek:

uberpixie

If you have a good idea of what price things should be: PC World do have the odd bargain.

Rare but it does happen.

Used one near me in Limerick when I attended UL.

My mate picked me up a GF2 64mb out of the bargain bucket for 40 quid after my Geforce 4 died a death after 4 months of use. It was in perfect nick, it was only missing an S video cable from the box. Got great use out of it.

It was also handy for the odd cable, cheap part, CD pens, blank disks or adapter if you were really really stuck.

I also speced a SFF rig for a mate, using PC World parts once: he wanted the machine in a day for a LAN on that weekend, so we went in to see what they had.

They actually had an Aopen barebones kit, got the best parts I could out of the place and one of the techies that repaired PCs made sure the cheap geforce 4 card from the bargain bucket for 65 quid (great price for the time)actually fitted in the Aopen case, which was dead sound. The price overall wasn't terrible all things considered.

I also have to thank PC World for a nixer repairing a workmate's PC: PC World did such a ****e job doing it and "lost it" in the store for 2 weeks, he paid me to do it properly :-)

Def would not buy a PC or a laptop from them though.

the_syco

Bought a Archos 504 in Currys last Christmas for €350. Great value at the time, but still the same price now, so meh:rolleyes:

It broke (I plugged it into Vista, and Vista slowly killed it). Got it replaced when I showed them the problem.

=-=

Aside from that, someone was asking about places to buy PC's, and I say: Peats. They usually do some type of PC, but pricey. That or Komplett who do reasonable priced PC's (if you don't want to go the Dell route).

zod

1. Mislabeled / no price products, I couldn't embarass a manager asking him prices of things repeatedly when I tried.
2. Stupidly expensive for some things.
3. rarely have the latest technology ,6/8 months ago I asked for the following
- a wireless skype phone (blank stare)
- a homeplug ( try the hardware! )
- I asked if they were taking preorders of Wiis ( never heard of it )
4. At the PC peripherals counter ,
Q: Do you sell hard disks - yes
Q: Do you sell sata hard disks - eh ... ye (looking at box)
Q: Right do you sell SATA cables to connect the HD's
A: ( after 20 mins ) No .. ( why would we do THAT sort of look )

Ergo I treat them as a last resort and only if the price is somewhat reasonable, otherwise Komplett.

ejmaztec

I think that it's all down to job satisfaction. Someone who started working for them was telling me about all of the commission they were going to get from all of the stuff they were going to sell. Same person, filled with enthusiasm, flogged their guts out, right up to the moment that they got their first pay-slip. The commission was next to nothing, with the manager getting a fair chunk of it. The person who gave me this insight no longer works for them - I can't imagine why.

For years in the UK, where people like Dixons, Currys and PC World, existed, the staff were referred to as box-shifters, the odd one or two actually knowing what they were talking about. It seems that, after all this time, and in another country, nothing has changed.

There are no bargains in these places, unless one of the staff has lost a box, or one of their stock-items is missing something, like a power-cable, or whatever.

WillyFXP

well here's a warning to anyone getting either a hard drive upgrade or repair on their laptop in the Galway PC world, they have "ran out" of 2.5" hard drives and are going across the road and buying them retail from Maplins! Just check your repair bill............:eek:

WillyFXP

the_syco wrote: »

Bought a Archos 504 in Currys last Christmas for €350. Great value at the time, but still the same price now, so meh:rolleyes:

It broke (I plugged it into Vista, and Vista slowly killed it). Got it replaced when I showed them the problem.

=-=

Aside from that, someone was asking about places to buy PC's, and I say: Peats. They usually do some type of PC, but pricey. That or Komplett who do reasonable priced PC's (if you don't want to go the Dell route).

Komplett can be pricey too, one of the best alternatives to Dell I've found are Mesh in the UK www.meshcomputers.com they deliver here and have some very nice systems at reasonable prices - my very first PC was a Mesh - a Pentium133MMX no less! Good build quality and support.

neveroddoreven

Well thanks for all the replies! I can't say I'm a buff when it comes to laptops or computers hence I'm blind to a lot of what has been mentioned. Funnily enough though I did manage to get a blank stare when I enquired about the Windows 2007 edition. I didn't want Vista but wanted Windows 2007 word, excel etc ( I have XP currently). I was told this wasn't possible?!

Maybe I worded that wrong but my Dad then told me it was indeed possible, I just need to pay 150 for the software and no need to get vista. Hmmm.

AlmightyCushion

neveroddoreven wrote: »

Well thanks for all the replies! I can't say I'm a buff when it comes to laptops or computers hence I'm blind to a lot of what has been mentioned. Funnily enough though I did manage to get a blank stare when I enquired about the Windows 2007 edition. I didn't want Vista but wanted Windows 2007 word, excel etc ( I have XP currently). I was told this wasn't possible?!

Maybe I worded that wrong but my Dad then told me it was indeed possible, I just need to pay 150 for the software and no need to get vista. Hmmm.

You're thinking of office 2007.

sdanseo

AlmightyCushion wrote: »

You're thinking of office 2007.

Yup. €149 is the Student/Teacher edition price.

HavoK wrote: »

PC World is 'good' if you don't know anything about computers. And when I say good, I mean consistently terrible, but to someone who hasn't a clue, they just assume PC World are the experts. It pains me to type that.

Notice how everyone here buys online. Stores like PC World are for the average user who doesn't know anything about computers bar the basics used in everyday life.

I'll use PC world for peripherals (prices for these can be decent enough at times) and if I need something urgently, within reason. Otherwise for hardware online will always be cheaper.

Mint Sauce

humbert wrote: »

After looking at it from every conceivable angle , occasionally stopping to give be the most unctuous smile, he spots a mac sticker on the box and even though the product is made by fucking Microsoft, and has Microsoft written all over it, attempts to convince me on the grounds of this mac sticker that it's a mac product and wont work on windows.

does that mean that the microsoft mouse i have been quite happly using for the last month on my windows laptop will just suddenly stop

:rolleyes:

did venture into PC world bout month ago to buy said mouse, went to a checkout with only one person in front of me, was redirected to the service desk by another member of staff were i was told could pay, only to stand there for a few minutes with no one to take my payment, thinking why the fcuk have i been sent here, and guy on original checkout probably thinking the same thing, ended up going back to him to pay, having a laugh with him, he was actually the most approachable member of staff i had ever encountered in PC world, most are just useless

ejmaztec

irish-stew wrote: »

does that mean that the microsoft mouse i have been quite happly using for the last month on my windows laptop will just suddenly stop

:rolleyes:

Funny you should mention that. After years of buying cheap wirelesss keyboards/mice from the likes of Lidl and Aldi, I assumed that the more expensive Microsoft ones would last the distance. The first mouse lasted eight months. I took the set back to Argos and swapped it for an identical one, thinking that lightning wouldn't strike twice etc... That mouse died two weeks later. I'm now trying out Belkin's effort.

humbert

DonkeyStyle \o/ wrote: »

I find the staff in Peats pretty good... they seem to be one of the few places to hire people who have a clue... and at least if they don't know the answer, they'll tell you as much, instead of making up some bullshít... it's just a pity their prices are a tad steep.

I have to second this, I've bought some stuff(mostly audio) from Peat's on Parnell St. and they were very helpful and seemed to actually know what they were talking about. I also wanted to change something simply because I found out that a slightly different model would be more suitable and there was no problem.

311

I would never buy a machine in Pc world ,BUT.

I've bought a few things in there a while back and brought them back with no problems. Seriously easy to take stuff back ,that doesn't work because of driver issues.
The last time I was there ,I got to try three sound cards until I finally got one that worked. Plus I ended up only paying 49 euro for the Xmod that I got:D

But to be honest ,they don't have a clue . I've often contemplated swapping the price boards at the pc's and asking someone about the machines then.

HungryJoey

PC World !:D

Hj