Best Buy

[calliopes_pen]

Okay, Dad managed to find a new computer at Best Buy. However, due to the fact that they are (according to one salesperson) going out of business in January, we would not be able to get any sort of guarantee or warranty.

So Dad opted to go elsewhere. Because of a brochure they gave him, he knows what to get. I don't know the brand name, but it's got three processors in it. Ours? Has just the one. We would still be able to use the same monitor. Not sure about the keyboard, but we might have to end up with a new one. And apparently, the only ones they sell these days are black ones.

Currently, I'm saving any last things to the external hard drive, while he goes to Connecting Point (local computer place) and Office Depot. One of the only other places he could think of around here was Office Max, but they went out of business.

The brand of computer that's dying lasted 6 years--it was Compaq Presario. Apparently, Compaq was taken over by Hewlett-Packard somewhere along the way, because they don't sell Compaq anymore.

Edit: Okay, as of 12:30, Dad bought a new computer! It's Hewlett-Packard, and the people at Connecting Point say that's just as good as Compaq, and is actually the same thing, rather than just being bought out by them. I can still use my old keyboard and monitor. The mouse should be good. It has 3 GB of RAM. It uses Windows XP. Which is good, because the lady there said that Vista causes problems with a lot of the programs that we would probably use.

The one he saw in the brochure was a brand called Acers, I think he said.

He'll save all of his stuff either tonight, or tomorrow morning, and then start on setting it up probably later tomorrow. I've got almost everything of mine in the external hard drive now.

Comments

[frenchroast.livejournal.com]

When you say Best Buy is going out of business, do you mean your local one, or the chain as a whole?

Don't get an Acers anything. They are not good quality at all. HP, though, has always lasted pretty well in our family. The first computer we got was an HP, back in 1995, and while we don't use it any more, I'm sure that if we plugged it back up, it would work just fine.

(If you're going for a laptop, Toshiba is totally the way to go, assuming you're not getting a Mac of some sort.)

[calliopes_pen]

The Best Buy chain as a whole, according to CNN--along with Circuit City. They mentioned it yesterday.

Thanks for the warning about Acers. Nobody in my family had heard of them before, and we weren't sure about them. Oh, and when Dad got the HP computer today, it was supposed to be 1 GB of RAM--they threw in 2 extra GB for free. It can hold more, though. There are also more security features, apparently.

No, I don't use the laptops, but Dad does. He doesn't use it very often, though.

[sherlock2040.livejournal.com]

Here in the UK it's the other way round, Compaq were seen as a pile of poo (prone to overheating and using poor quality components... rather like Dell) and Acer as excellent quality (or at least their laptops).

[joyeuxnoel.livejournal.com]

*headtilt* Did he get Vista Ultimate Bonus with the free downgrade to Windows XP or did he just get Windows XP?

Inquiring minds. :D

(I second the Acer hate too. And your mouse/keyboard/monitor should all work since your tower should have all the old school standard ports for them. If not, there's always adapters but I doubt you'll need those.)

[calliopes_pen]

Yes, definitely got that free downgrade. Dad mentioned getting it about two seconds before I read your comment, too.

[joyeuxnoel.livejournal.com]

Very kick ass. Hopefully in a few years or so when Vista gets better (unless Windows 7 has a remarkably fast street date) you can upgrade for free. If not, XP'll keep chugging away. ^_^

[kiramowett.livejournal.com]

Hmmm, my dad has an Acer laptop and he says it's great.

Best Buy is going out of business too? Holy crap. What's left, Staples? :( I guess now is the time to get my new laptop, too...

[calliopes_pen]

I'm not sure if we even have a Staples in this city. I know we have Connecting Point and Office Depot--but Office Max went out of business. Since Circuit City and Best Buy are, too, the options are limited if you want to shop for computers these days.

[ilyena_sylph]

I had fine luck with my Acer until I dropped it and broke the screen.

Filly's worked fine, too.

[angelspike69.livejournal.com]

Haven't heard about Best Buy. Where did he hear about this? I just called my dad about it, but no one was home.

I'm in the market for a new monitor, and I found what I wanted at Circuit City online, and them my dad told me this morning that CC was filing for bankruptcy and going out of business.

I hope BB isn't as that is now the only electronics store (besides Radio Shack) in the town I live in. Guess I'll be getting my monitor sooner rather than later. I don't want to buy it online and have it shipped.

[calliopes_pen]

They mentioned it on CNN yesterday afternoon. Until then, I hadn't heard about it either. It would explain why they were putting everything in the store on sale, though.

Apparently, it's both Best Buy and Circuit City that have gone under.

[evilawyer-fic.livejournal.com]

Acer makes good screens (or they did before the advent of flat screens). Their computers can be ehh. I've found that the "local computer place" usually beats the large retailers every time when it comes to buying a computer that works for you --- and taking it back when it doesn't.

Best Buy out of business? I have to get down to my local one and see if they have any sales on DVDs. Maybe that's why we picked up House Season and Monk Season 4 for $20 each not too long ago.

[tomalak301.livejournal.com]

I just did a google news search, and there is nothing about Best Buy going out of business. There is a lot of Circuit City filing for Bankruptcy protection which did happen today. Are you sure you heard correctly?

[calliopes_pen]

Positive. They mentioned it twice. Of course, they haven't mentioned it anywhere else, as you said. I have no idea why.

[kallie-kat.livejournal.com]

Congrats on the new computer! From what I've heard, HP's are good computers. I've also had very good luck with the Toshiba Satellites.

It's pretty crazy that Best Buy is (apparently) going out of business, and Circuit City has declared bankruptcy. Those are pretty much the only choices around here for computers, so I wonder what will happen.

[sherlock2040.livejournal.com]

The problem with going with XP is that it's no longer an actively updated OS so it's been left very open to attacks. With Windows 7 due out next year they're planning to stop supporting XP (which they were going to do this year but because the hardware companies were so useless about joining in with the beta for Vista and it got so much bad press over it they were forced to continue supporting it) next year which will leave a lot of desktops open to massive security attacks.

I love Vista, not had a single problem with it and loving the new Direct X10 support :) I've also not had any problem running older programmes on it, my version of Office is the 1997 one and the rest of my programmes are open source alternatives (for the most part, stupid iTunes).