Currys PC World experience rant

lulu_92

Went to Currys PC World today because I saw the offer where you can get a Chromebook and a Nexus 7 for £299. My laptop is awful and I now only need a computer for leisure as opposed to my old one which I needed for uni.

I went into the shop after seeing the deal online, making a note of which Chromebook was included in the offer. It wasn't on their display although there was a space for it with the spec label there. The staff were standing around just talking, and there were quite a few customers who weren't being seen to so it felt like we were being ignored.

I finally managed to grab the attention of one girl and asked her if they had the computer included in the deal in stock (an ASUS 13.3"). She then pointed at a HP 11.6" and said that was the laptop in question, which I told her it wasn't. She pointed at the Google logo and told me that was the ASUS logo!

She invited me to sit down whilst she typed the product code on the website and smugly told me I was wrong, even though the laptop in the picture was completely different, which I pointed out to her.

On the labels on the edge of the shelf it said that all Chromebooks come with an anti-virus built in, so I was really confused when she was trying to sell me some. I said that Chromebooks come with it built in and she said "No, this just comes with a warranty" - even though it says on the website, the box and the label in the shop that it does!

Now, I wouldn't say I'm a technology expert but I do know enough to get by. However I do not expect to know more about offers and laptops than an employee of a computer shop!

Johnnytwostep

You are expecting too much from the people who work in shops to know any more than the average person about their product.
In fact, i would say that my child knows more about computers than your average PC world worker.

geerex

Johnnytwostep wrote: »

You are expecting too much from the people who work in shops to know any more than the average person about their product.
In fact, i would say that my child knows more about computers than your average PC world worker.

This. Would you ask about open heart surgery when purchasing paracetamol at Asda?

daytona0

the two posts above me aside,

that is why god invented Managers

System

I went into my local PCWorld last month to look at a What HIFI 'best buy' LED TV. The sample on display did not match the label or price. A helpful young man checked the model and price online so that problem was quickly resolved. When I asked for a demo there was no aerial lead so he went away and got a low res demo DVD disk. The picture was appalling. When I queried this, the response was ' I am home cinema trained. What you need is our £60 HDMI lead which if bought with the TV would be discounted'. When I pointed out that I was very happy with my existing HDMI lead (as provided with my Sky HD box) he realised that he wasn't going to get a sale. I can only assume that they get more commission on a lead than on a TV.

Johnnytwostep

Hengus wrote: »

I went into my local PCWorld last month to look at a What HIFI 'best buy' LED TV. The sample on display did not match the label or price. A helpful young man checked the model and price online so that problem was quickly resolved. When I asked for a demo there was no aerial lead so he went away and got a low res demo DVD disk. The picture was appalling. When I queried this, the response was ' I am home cinema trained. What you need is our £60 HDMI lead which if bought with the TV would be discounted'. When I pointed out that I was very happy with my existing HDMI lead (as provided with my Sky HD box) he realised that he wasn't going to get a sale. I can only assume that they get more commission on a lead than on a TV.

5 minute training consisting of,
'have you heard of home cinema'
'yes'
'training over, you can be our home cinema manager'

and hopefully discounted to £5 which is the costs of them in some supermarkets which do exactly the same job for the home user.

lulu_92

geerex wrote: »

This. Would you ask about open heart surgery when purchasing paracetamol at Asda?

No of course not, but I would expect her to know 1) that a laptop with a HP logo is not an ASUS laptop 2) that the Google logo is just that 3) how to read labels.

She was insisting that the 11.9" laptop was the same size as the 13.3" next to it, even though the label on them said they were different sizes and one was way smaller. Her attitude was rubbish too, she just kept playing on her phone.

lulu_92

Johnnytwostep wrote: »

You are expecting too much from the people who work in shops to know any more than the average person about their product.
In fact, i would say that my child knows more about computers than your average PC world worker.

Fair point.

My sister used to work at Best Buy (yes, I know they flopped over here) but she was given loads of stuff to help her understand the products they were selling which gave her at least a basic knowledge of stuff.

Bantex_2

Hengus wrote: »

I went into my local PCWorld last month to look at a What HIFI 'best buy' LED TV. The sample on display did not match the label or price. A helpful young man checked the model and price online so that problem was quickly resolved. When I asked for a demo there was no aerial lead so he went away and got a low res demo DVD disk. The picture was appalling. When I queried this, the response was ' I am home cinema trained. What you need is our £60 HDMI lead which if bought with the TV would be discounted'. When I pointed out that I was very happy with my existing HDMI lead (as provided with my Sky HD box) he realised that he wasn't going to get a sale. I can only assume that they get more commission on a lead than on a TV.

The margins on computers are so low that the need to sell the extras to make it worthwhile.

KatieDee

I once went into a PC World store and asked where the MacBooks were. The assistant told me, with a completely straight face, that they only had a couple of books and they were all about computers.

I don't blame them though...a basic knowledge is required but they're not going to be experts in every type of electronic equipment. I would have expected him to know what a MacBook was though!

It's more frustrating when they're advising you on something and just making it up to try and push a sale.

Redvee

KatieDee wrote: »

I once went into a PC World store and asked where the MacBooks were. The assistant told me, with a completely straight face, that they only had a couple of books and they were all about computers.

A friend used to work in Asda and myself and another friend popped in when afternoon and asked where the notebooks were, in the stationary aisle was his reply :rotfl: