We hope that you find our site a useful resource for finding the best deals when buying a pink laptop or netbook or just for finding out what’s available. Of course, we don’t just do this for fun; like most sites, we actually make money – although not so much as you might think?
This is just a simple explanation of what we do and why we list some retailers and not others.
How We Make Money
Like many websites offering a price comparison service for computers and laptops we are paid commission by the retailers concerned. However, this doesn’t mean that we only list retailers because they pay us – in some cases, quite the reverse.
Although we try to find the best prices for each product featured there will be cases where the same model is available for a lower price elsewhere. Regrettably there are reasons why we can not list these websites or retailers.
There are countless small scale retailers who sell laptops and netbooks on-line and it’s simply not possible to list them all. People generally prefer to buy from businesses they have heard of and this is something we try to focus upon.
In other instances there are retailers who we have listed in the past but who have a poor record for customer service. It would be irresponsible of us to refer you to a retailer where we know there is a high likelihood that you will experience a problem. Aside from the ethical issues, it’s simply not in our interests to be receiving daily complaints on behalf of a retailer who rips you off or will not deal with your complaints.
The Best Retailers
We’ve been around for some time now and have a pretty good idea of who the best retailers are. We have never heard of a single complaint against Amazon, John Lewis or Tesco Direct and would urge you consider these above all others. M & S are a recent entrant to the computer retailing market and, again, they are a retailer with a great record we are happy to be associated with.
A couple of other things you might want to bear in mind when buying a computer on-line are:
Consumer Protection – Contrary to common opinion your consumer rights are better when buying on-line as opposed to buying on the High Street. Principally, the Distance Selling Regulations provide a 7 day period where you can change your mind without having to give a reason. All on-line purchases are covered by this and (in most cases) a retailer must also refund your postage costs where this happens.
You do not enjoy this automatic right if you buy from a traditional store.
- For more information about your Consumer Rights visit: Consumer Direct
Convenience - some retailers offer a ‘collect in-store option’ which is ideal if you are not normally at home during the day. John Lewis, M & S and Tesco all offer this service. Because you are still technically buying the computer on-line your usual rights are unaffected.
However, the ‘collect@store’ or ‘reserve and collect’ service offered by computer retailers such as Currys, PC World and Comet are similar but please note that because the transaction will take place when you visit the store you will lose some rights. Notably the 7 day cooling off period provided by distance selling regulations. You’ll also be pressured into taking out unnecessary warranties and insurances which offer very poor value for money.
Warranties – on the subject of extended warranties it is worth noting that modern laptop computers and netbooks are very well made and reliable. All electronic products must be guaranteed for 12 months anyway – so any rare problems will usually be covered by this.
John Lewis and M & S also offer an extended 2 year guarantee on most laptops for no extra cost, which sets them apart from most other retailers. It is highly unlikely that a computer will develop a fault in the first year but in the second year the likelihood is much greater.
Examples of Bad Practice
There are some retailers who we have stopped working with for reasons of bad practice and poor customer service.
Examples of bad practice include displaying laptops and netbooks as being in stock when they are not. Often they’ll offer a great price but it isn’t until they have your cash that they tell you the product has sold out. This is particularly distasteful at busy times such as Christmas as you often have a problem getting your money back in time to buy elsewhere.
Another bad practice is selling computers which have been previously returned as faulty. Again, this soften happens at Christmas with models which have sold out elsewhere.
As we are sure you’d agree, we wouldn’t develop much of a reputation by working with companies like this?
Any Problems?
We are proud to say that we only list retailers from where we would be happy to buy personally and are sure that you will not have any problems.
Of course all of this doesn’t mean we don’t want to hear about any problems you may have had. No retailer will ever be perfect and we want to know what people’s experiences are – whether good or bad?
So if you’ve received poor service from a retailer listed on this site – or maybe you want to praise a store that has gone above and beyond the call of duty – let us know about it.
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