The Buying Game: Best and Worst Places to Shop for a PC

Almost moment by moment, computers get cheaper, faster, more feature-rich. So why don't they get any easier to buy? Alas, figuring out where to purchase a PC remains a tricky proposition. That's true even if you happen to know exactly what system you want--and only more so if you require some assistance zeroing in on the perfect PC.

Actually, deciding how and where to buy a PC is tougher than ever, since the distinctions between different varieties of computer seller are rapidly blurring. Already, mail-order titan Gateway--which operates 240 Gateway Country retail stores nationwide--is getting ready to take over the PC departments in all 1000 OfficeMax locations.

At the same time, companies like Hewlett-Packard and IBM, long synonymous with store-bought PCs, are now selling custom-configured models by Web and phone. And CompUSA, the nation's only computer superstore chain, is looking less like a computer superstore these days--it's added movies, MP3 players, and camcorders. (It also changed its Web store name to Cozone.com, then back to CompUSA.com, in less than six months.)

In short, the times they are a-changin'. But the fundamental questions about shopping for a PC remain: Where can you find the facts and advice that you need to make the right choice? Should you schlep to a variety of retail stores, launch your Web browser, or pick up the phone to compare prices? How do the major players compare for selection, service, and price? Where should you spend your cash the next time you need a PC?

Survey Says

To find out, we asked some experts--namely, more than 3000 PC World subscribers who have purchased one or more computers in the last year. The majority of our survey respondents described themselves as either intermediate or advanced PC users. Using an online survey, we asked these battle-hardened consumers to rate their shopping experiences. And they reported back to us on important criteria like selection, salesperson knowledge and courtesy, and postpurchase service and support. Then we went shopping ourselves--at retail stores, on the Internet, and over the phone--to get a firsthand feeling for the state of the market. (Our experiences mostly jibed with what readers had to say.)

On one level, our survey showed that most PC shoppers are content: Approximately nine out of ten would buy again from the same seller. Even at CompUSA, the retail store with the lowest percentage of customers who would return, 79 percent would buy again.

Retail, Web, or Phone?

That's not to suggest that every seller pleases everyone equally. Far from it. Customers had strikingly different things to say about the companies they bought from. Those who shopped by Web or phone reported better results in every major category than those who shopped at retail. And on average, the most satisfied buyers turned out to be phone shoppers.

Consider the evidence we report in "Happiness Is ..." and elsewhere throughout this article. Readers gave mail-order vendors Dell, Gateway, Micron, and Quantex above-average reviews for overall satisfaction. And the only retailer that rated as high is really a mail-order vendor in disguise: Gateway Country, which custom-builds PCs for later delivery. At the same time, Best Buy and CompUSA, two of the biggest retail chains, trailed the pack both in overall satisfaction and in critical categories such as salesperson knowledge and postsales support.

What about price? We found that costs often don't vary much from venue to venue. That's true whether you're shopping for a sleek home system packed with multimedia extras or an office workhorse that you configure yourself. (See "Price Patrol: How PC Costs Compare.") Nonetheless, you can still uncover a good deal if you do some research, a job that's much easier since the advent of shopping bots such as MySimon.com.

The bottom line: Shopping for a PC can be a grueling, time-consuming experience--or a surprisingly pleasant one. Read on, and we'll help make sure you emerge from the process unscathed.