Where should you buy your electronics? Yesterday, we reviewed Fry’s Electronics, Best Buy, and Circuit City in hope of answering that question. Today, we’ll review three more electronics retailers to help you find the best product for the right prices. Next week we’ll begin reviewing some of the popular online electronics stores.
● Wal-Mart – Wal-Mart is second in yearly electronics sales only to Best Buy, though it lags a distant second. Wal-Mart specializes in comparably inexpensive products, though you won’t find the selection that electronics specialty stores like Best Buy or Circuit City will provide you.
Typically, Wal-Mart sale’s staff are not very knowledgeable about the technical details of their electronics products. You’ll do yourself a favor by reading up online about the details and features of the products you are browsing for.
Prices at Wal-Mart can be rock bottom, but the products sold are not always top quality. You’ll find a few name brand products at Wal-mart, but a majority of their electronics are from lesser known manufacturers with shorter-term warranties. You may be able to find deals on floor models or discontinued products so check the end-caps and clearance aisles regularly.
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● RadioShack – RadioShack is often located in malls or strip shopping centers. Compared to the top electronics retailers, RadioShack’s yearly sales are small, but they lead the smaller chain electronics stores in yearly sales.
One of the main advantages of RadioShack is the personalized customer service you will receive. Since most stores are very small in size, sale’s staff easily notice when customers walk in the door. Customers are greeted and offered help finding products they are looking for. Sale’s staff are quite knowledgeable about their products and can answer most technical questions you may have. Also, RadioShack carries specialty replacement parts for computers and electronics similar to Fry’s Electronics (reviewed yesterday).
Some of the main disadvantages of RadioShack are the selection and prices. If you are looking to compare a wide range of televisions, for example, you probably won’t be too impressed with RadioShack. One exception is cell phone plans, cell phones, and cell phone accessories, for which RadioShack is quite competitive with its selection. RadioShack tends to be on the more expensive side when compared to the other stores in reviewed here. The tradeoff for better customer service, however, may be worth it for you.
● Wholesale clubs (Costco & Sam’s Club) – Wholesale club such as Costco and Sam’s Club aren’t really big players in the electronics sales market, but they can offer some great prices on specific products.
Wholesale clubs began offering electronics products years ago when large profit margins made it difficult to stay out of the market. Today, large screen televisions dominate wholesale club electronics offerings (except for computer printer ink and toner replacement cartridges). The prices are very competitive with other electronics retailers, such that you can usually find lower prices on specific products at wholesale clubs.
The main drawback of purchasing electronics at wholesale clubs is their limited selection. Only a few specific models are offered and you may not be able to find these models at other electronics stores. You’ll have to compare products based on base features and online user reviews to see if the wholesale clubs offer a better product. Sales staff are sometimes knowledgeable, but often difficult to locate in the store.
Next Week
Next week we’ll review some online electronics retailers to go with this week’s reviews of storefront electronics retailers.