Circuit City Returns Under Systemax

animeking503 was one of several readers to send word that after closing its doors earlier this year, CircuitCity.com is alive and kicking once again. Systemax Inc., the company that owns TigerDirect and CompUSA, purchased the Circuit City e-commerce brand name last month, and has now re-launched the website with promises of lower prices and better service. The Consumerist points out that the new site's return policies leave something to be desired.

really

[asdfndsagse]

Why shops at retail stores for electronics anymore?

Re:really

[LoverOfJoy]

Shipping costs, shipping time and return policies. Not to mention the value in being able to see the quality and try out the product before you buy it.

Don't get me wrong. I buy most of my electronics online. I can usually find much better deals there than in brick and mortar stores. That said, there are some times when I am very glad to have a physical store to go to.

Tiget Direct == Better Customer Service?

[lsommerer]

Really? The Tiger Direct people are going to improve someone's customer service? I stopped buying from them nearly a decade ago. Are they any easier to work with now?

Re:really

[Kjella]

Shipping costs: Well maybe but last I checked because I forgot to include a 15m Ethernet cable the online price covered it + shipping for less.
Shipping time: Yes, definately when you need it today but that's rare. I've done it for odd stuff like the missing cable and so on but...
Retrun policies: Around here, no better (Norway). And I very rarely buy stuff I want to refund, YMMV.
Seeing and trying: Yes, for some products Reviews, benchmarks, press quality preview pictures go a long way though and there's always window shopping.

Ok, so the last one is pretty much a cheap shot against the store, but it depends in what order I'm doing it. If I've reviewed the prices up front but I'm uncertain and I go to the store and it's not excessively much more, they'll get a sale. But if it's the other way around that I get interested in the store, I always go home and check online once before making any large purchase. Why? Because brick and mortar stores sometimes have prices that are complete rip-offs. If you look at the top 10 online stores the prices are usually within a few percent because it's so easy to compare. Retail stores sometimes have 50-100% markup on some items, and there's no way I'm paying 200$ for a 100$ online item. In fact, I think they'd get more sales if I got myself a decent browsing phone so I could check out prices while in store.

Re:Tiget Direct == Better Customer Service?

[Psyborgue]

Thanks for the recommendation. I might try them next time I shop online.

Re:Consumer laws

[CodeBuster]

Judging by many laws / regulations etc you'd think they were written BY corporations and handed to the government to act on.

In fact, this is not far from the truth here in the United States. Does anyone actually believe that Congressmen, Senators, and their staffs actually sit down and write out 3,000+ page bills to submit to committee? Many, if not most, of the bills that come before Congress are actually written by professional lobbyists employed by firms located in and around the Washington DC area on behalf of their corporate clients. Even if the bill is written by the Congress, the budget for example, the lobby firms still submit amendments for their Congresmen and Senators to slip into the package.

Stand by your guns

[AnalPerfume]

Usually when I have paid cash for something and told my refund will be in the form of store credit, I ask them to point out where I paid in store credit on the receipt, and where in the statute books it states I can't be refunded in the currency I paid in.

Stay polite but firm, refuse point blank to accept less and keep moving up the command chain when the next chump sent to deal with you repeats the same as the last chump. Make sure you use a loud but calm voice to ensure that other customers hear you. Mind you, I enjoy twisting a sales person inside out with logic until they run out of excuses and agree to what the law states I'm entitled to just to get me out the door. Remember, the longer you tie these people up dealing with you, the more time they lose trying to sell stuff to other customers.

Of course this only works with a real brick and mortar store.

Why would you want the Circuit City brand name?

[LordNimon]

To me, the Circuit City brand represents high prices and bad service. I don't understand why anyone would want the Circuit City name. It's tainted.

Re:really

[AhtirTano]

Depends on what you are buying. Sometimes the design of a product feels more comfortable to you than anther. And preferences like this can vary from person to person. For example, I hate the button layout and display on Nikon DSLRs. I have a good friend who loves them. No review in the world can possibly sort this out-you have to hold the object in your hand to come to a decision.