Discussion Forums > Technology
Just need to understand how Westeners buy things
whiic:
--- Quote from: lapa321 ---Do americans really buy everything online? Coz that may explain how hype machines are so prevalent.
Where i live (Philippines), buying things online is prohibitive (Up to %100 tax in customs). So we're forced to go to the malls to buy our gear. Specialty stores are rare, and most are general computer stores that have everything in stock.
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I buy from the net because it's cheaper that way and because of the availability of NON-HYPED products.
There is high customs fees if I were to buy from another country (i.e not Finland) but all stuff imported are subjected to those custom fees, even if they're sold at the mall. It's just that the importing company pays it, and the final price tag doesn't tell how much are customs and taxes. Ok, they have to tell how much VAT (Value Added Tax) is in the purchase, which is 22% for electronics. The VAT is printed on receipt because corporate customers aren't always required to pay it in certain cases (such as reselling, to prevent VAT from being taxed multiple times).
Anyway, I buy online because it's cheaper. In Finland, general computer stores are pretty much disappearin, being replaced by general convenience stores. This means, there will be preassembled PCs and preassembled laptops and USB HDDs. You need an internal HDD or ODD? Tough luck. Look somewhere else.
Luckily there still exists general computer stores that carry spare parts. They typically carry a very limited variety of each spare part. You can however (unlike from a convenience store) tell the clerk to order a product they don't have at stock, and you can pick it up when they receive it. But this is usually easier over the internet as vast majority of general computer stores also operate online. You can either order them shipped to you by mail (paying the postage) or place a reservation for the product to be picked at the shop, saving postage. So it's often easier to browse through their available-through-order list over the next and place the order over the net or by the phone (latter only if you need to ask some questions or have trouble with the web interface), rather than calling (or visiting) the store without prior skimming through their product list. This is of course, unless you want to give them the power to construct a PC that's adequately powerful for your needs (a valid solution if you have specific needs not catered by stock OEM product and do not have the knowledge to build one from scratch yourself).
I hate buying stuff from the mall because they are expensive.
I cannot buy stuff from the mall because they don't carry the stuff that I want.
I LOVE "window shopping" at the mall because I get to see the products in reality.
Yeah, I'm a sleezebag who would go inspect a product (such as laptop or mobile phone) at a super-generic convenience store, then go home and google for online retailers and computer shops and pick one of the cheaper ones and save a couple hundred bucks in the process. But it's not like they aren't asking for it, trying to sell SIM-locked phones and other AIDS-infected hardware.
One thing I love to do while window-shopping is rate computer TFT monitors by their viewing angle. There's huge differences and even some 900 EUR brand-new models may have ridiculous TFT panels. Fujitsu for example... not only does the luminance change when viewed from above, but only chroma. Picture turning bluish green... seriosly what the fuck? Is this some kind of a joke? A brand now TFT panel on a laptop and it looks like some shit from 5 years back. The products half cheaper had far better viewing angles with only luminance and no chroma distortion. I wouldn't buy a TFT or a laptop without having window-shopped it first at the mall. :p
Sosseres:
--- Quote from: whiic on April 28, 2010, 10:52:56 AM ---One thing I love to do while window-shopping is rate computer TFT monitors by their viewing angle. There's huge differences and even some 900 EUR brand-new models may have ridiculous TFT panels. Fujitsu for example... not only does the luminance change when viewed from above, but only chroma. Picture turning bluish green... seriosly what the fuck? Is this some kind of a joke? A brand now TFT panel on a laptop and it looks like some shit from 5 years back. The products half cheaper had far better viewing angles with only luminance and no chroma distortion. I wouldn't buy a TFT or a laptop without having window-shopped it first at the mall. :p
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I can agree with pretty much everything you said. The most important on-line purchase to actually see off-line is indeed a monitor (to a lesser degree mouse/keyboard). If the demands you have of viewing angles and colours are met or not can't be told from most reviews or facts.
kostya:
--- Quote from: Mcgreag on April 27, 2010, 07:14:25 PM ---Sweden here.
I do almost all my shopping online, not just tech stuff but books, movies, cloths etc. ...
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Books and clothes? With books, especially technical ones, I prefer to go into a store and read the book a bit to see if I like the tone and content. It does not mean that I will not then write down the title, edition, and author and go home to get it off Amazon, but I never buy a book online without either seeing it in person or having someone tell me to buy it (in the case of texts for classes).
Also, I could not imagine buying clothes online. When I am trying clothes on in a store I will often find that even though the clothes are in my size, they do not fit right.
Klocknov:
--- Quote from: kostya on April 28, 2010, 05:34:30 PM ---
--- Quote from: Mcgreag on April 27, 2010, 07:14:25 PM ---Sweden here.
I do almost all my shopping online, not just tech stuff but books, movies, cloths etc. ...
--- End quote ---
Books and clothes? With books, especially technical ones, I prefer to go into a store and read the book a bit to see if I like the tone and content. It does not mean that I will not then write down the title, edition, and author and go home to get it off Amazon, but I never buy a book online without either seeing it in person or having someone tell me to buy it (in the case of texts for classes).
Also, I could not imagine buying clothes online. When I am trying clothes on in a store I will often find that even though the clothes are in my size, they do not fit right.
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I partially agree with that clothes part, though some places have a really good return policy.
Sosseres:
--- Quote from: kostya on April 28, 2010, 05:34:30 PM ---Books and clothes? With books, especially technical ones, I prefer to go into a store and read the book a bit to see if I like the tone and content. It does not mean that I will not then write down the title, edition, and author and go home to get it off Amazon, but I never buy a book online without either seeing it in person or having someone tell me to buy it (in the case of texts for classes).
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Nearest place that has books I would consider reading that I havn't read yet is roughly 1h away (using a car/public transportation). I tend to go by authors, book forums and to a lesser degree the summary of what it is about. Buying a book blind isn't all that bad, worst that can happen is that you dislike it, almost nothing that gets published is unreadable.
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