Lots of returns on Eee PC 701 at retailer

[DavoMrMac]

Well, I will not name the retailer, but it seems many users have been buying an Eee PC 701 because they think it is a proper laptop at a bargain price. This could be construed as mis-selling on the retailers part, or just new users not really knowing that this sort of money and a 7-inch screen is not going to be good for multi-media work, DVD writing, loading multiple apps etc.

The retailer I spoke to said they had been getting at least half of sold stock returned, because it did not do what the purchaser expected.

Thoughts anyone?

[Zealot]

If that is true, then the buyers aren't doing their homework.

The sales people may be misleading them, but once you see the size, and the price, how can you think it is going to give you the experience and options of a full sized, full priced laptop?

If something seems too good to be true...it probably is.

Z

[khelben]

I can't imagine that is the retailers fault. If you see something that is half the price you expect it to be you should have enough sense to look closely to see if it can meet your needs.

If you don't know whether or not it will meet your needs you should ask someone. Customer Service may not always be the best in these retail outlets but I would think someone in the store would be knowledgeable enough to explain that this isn't going to be your gaming machine or whatever it is they may be looking for.

[staker]

To be honest it is proper laptop just a really underpowered one and cheap.

[Composer]

It's probably an average joe type of person that goes into the store... sees the price, sees what it looks like and gets it. THOSE people don't look at the specs and if they do they don't understand what it all means. Maybe they just overlook important things such as an optical drive. Or perhaps they can't pull themselves away from windows and use Linux(or have the knowledge to install windows on it)

[Raggamofyn]

A person is smart. People are dumb. If the retailer, (whose colors I'm assuming are blue and yellow), doesn't want returns, then they need to let people know then and there what they're buying or not offer returns anymore.

[staker]

Bet there are loads of ASUS eee pc lying around.

[Raggamofyn]

Hey, more open box items for us, then. :p

[tyrian]

Not surprising in the least, returns (http://gizmodo.com/5012728/most-returned-gadgets-actually-work-fine-only-about-1-are-broken) of perfectly good electronics happens all the time. Probably not as much as the statistics say but the Eee 701 is such an impulse buy and with Best Buy's return policy it's not unreasonable to take it home and try it.

[jhoff80]

I worked at Best Buy one summer when I was in college...

Lets just say I'm surprised that more stuff isn't returned for being broken the way it gets tossed around when new inventory comes in.

[Composer]

You still have to give props to Asus for starting this whole thing. They need to get their new EEE prices down though.... more competition I say! *shakes fist*

[jhoff80]

You still have to give props to Asus for starting this whole thing. They need to get their new EEE prices down though.... more competition I say! *shakes fist*

Makes you wonder what Palm could achieve with a new Foleo 2 in the future, since they were at the forefront of this as well before they cancelled it for being underpowered and having no apps available :D (I liked the concept of the Foleo myself, but not the execution.)

[DavoMrMac]

The retailer was not blue and red.

The reason I think it is sold in this way is due to commision on sales.

[Composer]

The retailer was not blue and red.

The reason I think it is sold in this way is due to commision on sales.

Good point, employees stretching the truth? Hyping up the device perhaps?

[Zealot]

The Foleo was crippled by being attached to a phone, and the perception that it was a sort of silly device. Why not just use a keyboard and a smart phone, what purpose does it serve?

Put the communication gear right in the Foleo, untether it from a phone, change the name, ramp up the styling a'la the Treos, price it very very low and I agree Palm could have a winner. Their relationship with Enterprise tech buyers could make it a no brainer for corporate customers.

Z

[webbyboy]

701's screen is simply too small.

[jhoff80]

The Foleo was crippled by being attached to a phone, and the perception that it was a sort of silly device. Why not just use a keyboard and a smart phone, what purpose does it serve?

Put the communication gear right in the Foleo, untether it from a phone, change the name, ramp up the styling a'la the Treos, price it very very low and I agree Palm could have a winner. Their relationship with Enterprise tech buyers could make it a no brainer for corporate customers.

Z

I disagree. I'm not sure if this is where Hawkins will eventually go in the future with the idea, but extending the idea further, my vision of it years down the road is a smartphone with an iPod sized amount of storage in it, for ALL files to go on. When you walk into your house and get to your desktop... which would, which would basically just be a thin client monitor/ keyboard&mouse, your documents wirelessly are shown on the larger monitor in the larger applications. Maybe you close that file, and put on a little music in the morning, before you go to work. As you start on your way to work, a similar device in the car headunit realizes that you were just playing music, and continues (again wirelessly) to play the same song from the same exact spot as you walk to your car. Since you're in your car, the navigation app automatically pops up to get you to where you're going, with traffic downloaded over the internet through the phone. Then, you get to work, and as you approach the computer there, again you have access to all your files, ready to open to the exact spot you were at before.

Just a pipe dream of course, but the Foleo was part of the way there (albeit a small part.) Actually, what doomed the Foleo was the eee. I'd be willing to bet Palm had no idea the eee was coming until the last minute, so they had to announce the Foleo much faster than they'd have liked to, before they had come close to finishing software for it, they decided to market it as an email device as they were completing software and working on signing third party developers to work with them.

Then again, it doesn't make all that much sense for them to have been working on two different in-house linux distributions (the Foleo was running an entirely different OS from their smartphone product.)

[Zealot]

I disagree. I'm not sure if this is where Hawkins will eventually go in the future with the idea, but extending the idea further, my vision of it years down the road is a smartphone with an iPod sized amount of storage in it, for ALL files to go on. When you walk into your house and get to your desktop... which would, which would basically just be a thin client monitor/ keyboard&mouse, your documents wirelessly are shown on the larger monitor in the larger applications. Maybe you close that file, and put on a little music in the morning, before you go to work. As you start on your way to work, a similar device in the car headunit realizes that you were just playing music, and continues (again wirelessly) to play the same song from the same exact spot as you walk to your car. Since you're in your car, the navigation app automatically pops up to get you to where you're going, with traffic downloaded over the internet through the phone. Then, you get to work, and as you approach the computer there, again you have access to all your files, ready to open to the exact spot you were at before.


Hmmm...compelling picture.

If Hawkins had described the product and it's possible role that well, we might all have one today.

Z

[Composer]

As much as I like the Palm devices I don't think the Foleo stood a chance against the EEE not to mention these new machines. They vastly underpowered it....Intel PXA27x come on! Hello 2004 wants it's CPU back. It's unfortunate for sure, I do agree that Palm more than likely had NO idea about the EEE until it was too late. That's why you need highly trained spies. :cool:

[Zealot]

"Many Bothans died to bring us this data sheet, hopefully our technicians will find a weakness before this UMPC becomes fully operational..."

[Composer]

"Many Bothans died to bring us this data sheet, hopefully our technicians will find a weakness before this UMPC becomes fully operational..."

They are our only hope?

[rudo]

i wonder wot will happen to all those poor orphaned 701's. I'd give one a good home... at a liquidated price of couse.

[Composer]

i wonder wot will happen to all those poor orphaned 701's. I'd give one a good home... at a liquidated price of couse.

Yeah if they're really cheap they'd be perfect gifts.

[DavoMrMac]

When I had a 701 to try myself a few months back, it certainly looked promising. However, after trying to use it for anything remotely productive it soon showed its limitations. I think it still is a lot more suited to education, to give kids an introduction to internet, WP, edu games etc.

That said, the 701 is very well built, nice crisp screen (albeit small) and a great price.

[staker]

It was simply too small to do real work on that is why something like the msi wind would be great.

[webbyboy]

yeah perfect gifts for kids. :D

[tyrian]

701's screen is simply too small.

But wouldn't people be able to decide if the screen was too small in the store instead of taking it home only to return it? Personally I just thought the resolution was too small but it would be a waste of space if they didn't fill up the bezel anyways.

[JDGAFFLIN]

You can chalk this up to uninformed Buyers, as well as sale people trying to get the commision on a sale without giving the proper info to the consumer.

The average parent nowadays is looking at price, especially in this struggling economic climate. They see the price. Ask if it can surf the web, and think their kids will be fine with it, without realizing the multimedia options aren't there.

The sales person is trying to make that sale. Get that buck, or, the compaines are just not importing the idea of product knowledge on their collective sales staffs.

None the less, I wish I could scoop one of these returns up at half price. :D

[kentback]

Speculation aside about the mass populace (and granted, I'm sure it is true that the majority of electronics are returned because the buyer can't figure out the device), who has bought an Eee PC and found the hardware defective? Or are we all a bunch of non-owners speculating about the owner experience? If someone has a defective Eee PC, please speak up - I'd like to know where the lemons are.

[Composer]

That's one bad thing about having a commission based electronics job. When the people who buy them return them to the store they don't take the commission away from the sales people so why should they care? I walked into Sears a few months ago and asked them if they had something there and they said they didn't carry it but if I wanted they could order it for me from their sears website. Silly.

[MathProfJohnson]

Not surprising in the least, returns (http://gizmodo.com/5012728/most-returned-gadgets-actually-work-fine-only-about-1-are-broken) of perfectly good electronics happens all the time. Probably not as much as the statistics say but the Eee 701 is such an impulse buy and with Best Buy's return policy it's not unreasonable to take it home and try it.


AT A 15% RESTOCKING fee... that is reasonable?//??
I worked at Best Buy one summer when I was in college...

Lets just say I'm surprised that more stuff isn't returned for being broken the way it gets tossed around when new inventory comes in.

I second that
The retailer was not blue and red.

The reason I think it is sold in this way is due to commision on sales.

WHO gets commission?

[Composer]

Maybe it's just people that are finding out about these new umpc's and changed their minds? Or maybe they can't get used to that newfangled "linux"

[FlyingAero]

At least your retailer has it! best buy will have nothing to do with UMPC's...