Buying new electronics can be exhilarating and exciting. Finding the best price and best product at the store, however, can be frustrating. Today, I’ll review a number of retailers where you can buy different types of electronic products from computers and computer accessories to televisions and digital cameras. Be sure to check out tomorrow’s blog covering online electronics retailers.
● Fry’s Electronics – Fry’s isn’t located in every state or city, but if it is you’ll know the store when you see it. Fry’s stores are usually housed in very large warehouse style buildings and are often decorated with large-scale objects such as pianos or cattle (I told you that you’ll know them when you see them). One of Fry’s biggest strengths is the weekly sales that usually start on Friday and are advertised in local newspapers. Some of the sales will knock 30-40% off a product, though often you have to use mail-in rebates to get the low prices. You’ll have to act quickly because low prices always attract a lot of potential buyers and the products on sale sometimes are gone before the weekend is over. Fry’s everyday prices are usually competitive, but sometimes higher than the everyday prices of other electronics retailers.
Fry’s has a large selection of electronic and computer equipment, though sometimes the aisles seem a bit disorganized with price tags not next to their products so on. Finding a Fry’s associate (sale’s staff) to answer questions is often difficult at best, so I suggest doing your homework before showing up at the store. Fry’s also carries a lot of small component and replacement parts, something the stores reviewed here don’t always offer. So, if you need a specific replacement part for your computer or a cell phone battery, you should try Fry’s.
● Best Buy – Best Buy is by far the largest electronics retailer in terms of sale dollars per year in the United States. Best Buy’s closest competitor, Wal-mart, only has about half the yearly sales of Best Buy. Does that mean you should buy from Best Buy because it seems that everybody else is doing it? Not necessarily, but you can find a pretty large selection and often competitive prices at Best Buy.
Best Buy tends to have medium to large stores that are located in most urban cities in the United States. Best Buy has better customer service than most of the other stores reviewed here, except RadioShack. The sale’s staff are somewhat knowledgeable and are more accessible and available that at other electronics stores.
Best Buy’s prices are mostly competitive and they offer one of the traditional “we’ll beat any price” guarantees with most products your purchase. Weekly and holiday sales are great times to find deals and discounts on popular electronics. You can also shop for your products online and pick them up at the store if you don’t want to pay shipping (which can sometimes even be free).
● Circuit City – Circuit City is often seen as Best Buy’s main competitor due to their similar store layouts. While prices are often similar between the stores, Circuit City’s yearly sales total is not even half that of Best Buy’s. That said, don’t exclude Circuit City based solely on its sales rates. You can find some great deals on popular and highly rated electronic products at Circuit City.
Circuit City stores are usually smaller to medium in size, though they have built a few large, superstore-size buildings. The sale’s staff is often difficult to find and their cash register layout is not very intuitive. You may have to look for signs hanging from the ceiling to locate a check-out register or just go to the customer service desk to have someone check you out. Newer Circuit City stores have remedied this problem by at least putting some checkout counters near the exit/entrance of the store.
Circuit City’s prices are similar to Best Buy and Fry’s Electronics, though their selection of products is sometimes different that the other two. A majority of Circuit City stores are set up to draw you towards their large television display section, as you can both hear and see the TV section right as you enter the store. As with Best Buy, Circuit City’s weekly and holiday sales are excellent times to find great prices on the products you want.
Tomorrow
Check out, Purchasing electronics – Storefronts part 2 for a review of Wal-Mart, RadioShack, and wholesale clubs (Costco & Sam’s Club).