Disappeared News

It's not CompUSA anymore. They won't even take CompUSA credit cards. The liquidators bought it, and they will do their thing to make the most money at customer expense.  They are experts and have ways to part customers from their money, so buyer beware.

I went over there Thursday evening. Some shelves were already bare. I had my eye on a HP laptop which has been advertised each week for $999.99. The laptop was indeed on sale, but for $130 more, after discount ($1129). There were USB memory sticks on sale for more than you can get them elsewhere.

I was interested in a webcam I wouldn't have bought unless it was cheap, but it had no marked price. So I went over to one of the computers on display, visited the manufacturer's website, and looked it up. List price was $79. You can take items over to what used to be the business center desk and they will scan the barcode and tell you the price. So I did that, and it was, after discount, $79.  So no deal, since it's easy to find it cheaper on the web.

Liquidators know that many people will go for the discounts they are offering without checking the street price. Some buyers see "20% off" and figure they are getting a deal. If the base price was kited up, then it isn't a deal, is it?

Liquidators also move stock around. It's reasonable to expect that crap they have on hand can be moved to the stores they are currently closing. Perhaps there will be less of that in Hawaii simply because of the higher shipping cost, but it's still something to watch out for.

Also, be sure you know what each item should cost and make sure that the register price is what you thought it should be. They make that difficult by ringing up the full price, then when all items have been checked in, they apply the discounts. It is all supposed to work out, and the receipt shows the reduced price. But it's confusing if you're standing there wondering if the discount is what you thought it would be.

If the manufacturer has any rebates, you'll have to find out about them elsewhere. I didn't see any rebate action at all.

Typically, the discount will increase as time goes on. Also typically, the good stuff will be gone.

So I suggest knowing what an item should cost before you buy, and make sure you get the discount you expect. You mean nothing to them as a future customer, they just want your money now, and as much of it as they can get.