need recommendation for an onlne computer store

[techidave]

Looking for some recommendations for a quality place to purchase computers, parts, etc., here in the United States.  I am familiar with Newegg and Tiger Direct, but was looking for other places that have quality products, good sales dept.

I was just thinking about expanding my horizons as a school tech to the public sector and was looking for a good place to get hooked up with.  I realize that on price alone, i probably cannot compete with Walmart but alot of people are telling me they want service more than price.  Sooooo, maybe its time that I jumped on the band wagon!   

[app103]

My dad has shopped at Zip Zoom Fly in the past, for some of his parts to build PCs.

You can also check Geeks.com for some good deals, especially for complete systems that can be upgraded (might be cheaper than starting a system from scratch). My dad got a few "unbranded" HP machines from them really cheap.

[MilesAhead]

For bare drives I've had good luck with ExcaliberPC

http://www.excaliberpc.com/

With the prices they charge you can afford the FedEx shipping to avoid UPS "head slap" I've heard about.  Another thing I like is they don't try to hype you with "only 2 left in stock" stuff.  The WD drives I buy, last time I looked it said there were like 20,000 on hand.

[techidave]

thanks guys for the recommendations.  I have used both zip zoom fly and geeks in the past.  kind of forget about them.

haven't hear of excaliberpc though.

a guy can spend alot of time looking at the different sites trying to get the best deal.  i have also used pricewatch.com but am kind of leary about alot of those companies.  I don't do much on ebay either

[Kamel]

svc.com is another, amazon is another, overstock and buy.com aren't too bad either really.

It would be difficult to get me to go anywhere but newegg though, as newegg has the absolute best customer service and the prices and selection are good too.

[wraith808]

Looking for some recommendations for a quality place to purchase computers, parts, etc., here in the United States.  I am familiar with Newegg and Tiger Direct, but was looking for other places that have quality products, good sales dept.

-techidave (May 13, 2011, 05:34 PM)

Another vote for Amazon, and I also use Newegg.  The reason for those two is the shipping, which might help you out.  Especially if you get Amazon Prime.  You can get free two day shipping, and upgrade to 1 day for $3.99 a part.  And they pay return shipping if it's their fault (missed shipping date, or defective item), which most other places (including newegg) don't.  Not something to be overlooked when doing this.

I was just thinking about expanding my horizons as a school tech to the public sector and was looking for a good place to get hooked up with.  I realize that on price alone, i probably cannot compete with Walmart but alot of people are telling me they want service more than price.  Sooooo, maybe its time that I jumped on the band wagon!

-techidave (May 13, 2011, 05:34 PM)

Not to discourage you- but to give you an idea of something to watch out for.  I tried something similar to supplement my income at one time, and the two biggest problems I had were:
1. People only meaning "they want service more than price" until they got the invoice, and
2. People expecting way more than anyone would give them for 10x the price
3. People view any additions to the cost of doing business as you trying to jack up the price

My worst case...
I built a computer for a family member who needed something to get on the net and do basic word processing.  Priced a couple of options, laying out the advantages/disadvantages of each- and they picked the lowest cost options- just wanted a computer to get on the net.  First complaint- it won't play my son's games!  Second complaint was that it was getting slower and slower.  So I went over to check it out, and they had a pretty bad virus infection- multiple viruses, botted, you name it it was there.  I checked the AV, and it wasn't running... I thought a virus might have disabled it, but I asked anyway, and they said they had to turn it off to install a game, and had forgotten to re-enable it.  I told them it was a virus, and it would take a lot of time to clean up- or I could re-install, but either one was going to have a cost associated with it. but they didn't want to pay, and were quite mad that I'd sold them a computer, but now they had no computer to use.

[40hz]

+1 w/Wraith on doing business w/family.

When it comes to family, keep in mind that golden saying:

It's better to give than lend - and it usually ends up costing the same.  

[40hz]

I'm more "enterprise" than "desktop." So for most user-level things, I stick with the suppliers everybody knows about: TigerDirect, NewEgg, and Frye Electronics.

If you're going to be supporting business customers (or plan on getting involved in network stuff) I use, and can recommend, any of the following companies.

I use Stallard Technologies for a lot of my enterprise hardware maintenance requirements following a recommendation by Stoic Joker. High quality, fully tested, mostly used server components. They're great to work with. The quality and reliability are there. And their prices are very good.

Note: if you do get involved in handling businesses, schools, or government customers, be sure to carefully review whatever contracts or purchase orders they issue you. Many government and business entities have strict rules regarding the use of 're-engineered', or 'refurbished' (i.e. used) components in fulfillment of their requirements. It's not automatically a problem going with used - but they usually have a clause where they expect "factory new" everything unless it's otherwise agreed to in advance. Just a little FYI when you're working up a formal quote.

Also good are: Sonnet Technologies and Granite Digital for storage hardware and components.

Also been happy with:

• PartsExpress (general electronics)
    
• Cables for Less (care to guess what they sell?)
    
• Jensen Tools (Now owned by Stanley. Pricey but exceptionally good tools. Shop Sears and other sources first. If you can't find it, then come here.)
  
  Also avoid the 'kits' for the most part. They're nice to own - but you'll usually end up buying and paying for a bunch of things you'll never use. Remember: 95% of all computer repair and service requires nothing other than a #2-Phillips plus a miniature (aka: Jeweler's or Precision) screwdriver set. Add in a T8, T10, and mini-Torx driver set, and it goes up to almost 99%.
  
  Better yet, grab a Kronus 25-piece Mini Tool Set from your local RadioShack (permanently 'on sale' for about $15 last I checked) and be done with it. Great quality tool set that rivals kits going for ten times as much in overall usefulness and quality. There's still plenty in there you'll never use - but the price is right so it doesn't matter. I buy these four or five at a time and stash them at client sites in case I ever need a tool - or give them to exceptionally favored client gearheads as impromptu gifts when I catch them staring longingly at the kit I'm using. (Be sure to check for any rules the organization has about gift giving however! This particular kit is cheap enough that it usually falls below the "no-no" threshold. But not always.)
    
• Black Box (The oldest but still one of the best sources for all things network. These guys go back before the Internet so they've seen it all and already know about whatever you need to know about.  )

There's more, but that's all I can think of right off the top of my head.

[techidave]

yeah, thanks for the links.  Some I have heard of and some I haven't.  I just knew you guys would come through with a lot of good places to shop.

I wholeheartedly understand about doing business with the family.  I also understand some of the concerns that wraith raised. 

Just so everyones knows, i am employed by a K-12 public school here in the good ol' USA.  I am not really looking to get into networking so much.  Since I am the Lone Ranger at school, I do all the admin stuff.  But I have a 3rd party company that helps me with the servers and stuff.  I don't have the time or knowledge to do everything.

Since I live in a small community of 250 people that is about an hour's drive away from any cities of any size (20,000), I thought maybe it is time for me test the waters and see if I couldn't do some more moonlighting on the side.  Time will tell.

But I do not want to be so busy that I don't have time for the family.   

[40hz]

Since I live in a small community of 250 people that is about an hour's drive away from any cities of any size (20,000), I thought maybe it is time for me test the waters and see if I couldn't do some more moonlighting on the side.  Time will tell.

-techidave (May 14, 2011, 02:13 PM)

Sounds like a good potential market provide unemployment doesn't hit the area too hard.

But I do not want to be so busy that I don't have time for the family.   

Can't help you too much with that one. It's entirely up to you to make that part happen.

But I applaud you for feeling that way. I've made "making time for family" a big priority in my business life. I may not be as materially 'well-off' as I would have been had I arranged my priorities differently. But I seriously doubt I'd be half as happy as I am today had I done otherwise.
 

[wraith808]

But I do not want to be so busy that I don't have time for the family.  

-techidave (May 14, 2011, 02:13 PM)

Can't help you too much with that one. It's entirely up to you to make that part happen.

But I applaud you for feeling that way. I've made "making time for family" a big priority in my business life. I may not be as materially 'well-off' as I would have been had I arranged my priorities differently. But I seriously doubt I'd be half as happy as I am today had I done otherwise.
 

-40hz (May 14, 2011, 03:10 PM)

Totally agreed.  I used to make a lot more money, but my life was definitely less fulfilling.  The most valuable things in life can't be measured by dollar signs IMO.  

[kyrathaba]

I usually go with either TigerDirect or Amazon.  No complaints with either.