All-Star Tech Stores
Who's got the best prices, selection, sales help, and return policies among online and brick-and-mortar stores? We surveyed more than 5000 readers to find the best places to buy tech gear.
By Christopher Null, PCW Print
Brick-and-Mortar Survey Results: No Store Excels in All Areas
Office Depot and Staples stand out for overall satisfaction in this uneven group, and Staples gets further praise for its store design and its product return experience. Product selection and store design proved to be problem areas for many rated stores.
| BRICK-AND-MORTAR STORE |
Overall satisfaction |
Product selection |
Best prices |
Product information, buying advice |
Return experience |
Store design |
Customer willingness to recommend |
| Office Depot |
Above average |
Average |
Average |
Average |
Average |
Above average |
Average |
| Staples |
Above average |
Below average |
Average |
Average |
Above average |
Above average |
Above average |
| Fry's |
Average |
Above average |
Above average |
Average |
Below average |
Average |
Above average |
| OfficeMax |
Average |
Average |
Average |
Average |
Average |
Above average |
Average |
| Circuit City |
Average |
Above average |
Below average |
Average |
Average |
Average |
Below average |
| Costco |
Average |
Below average |
Above average |
n/a |
Above average |
Below average |
Above average |
| Sam's Club |
Average |
Below average |
Above average |
n/a |
n/a |
Below average |
Above average |
| Best Buy |
Average |
Average |
Below average |
Average |
Below average |
Below average |
Average |
| CompUSA/Good Guys |
Below average |
Above average |
Below average |
Average |
Below average |
Average |
Below average |
| Wal-Mart |
Below average |
Below average |
Above average |
Below average |
Average |
Below average |
Below average |
| n/a = Not applicable; the store did not receive enough responses to be rated. CHART NOTES: Stores are ranked by the overall satisfaction rating, and then by the total number of positive and negative ratings. Source: Survey of 5923 PC World readers and PCWorld.com site visitors from March 2 through March 15, 2006. |
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