I don't think so; they'll only be there for one weekend, and I don't think they intend to have a longer or more established presence anywhere (for now).
Actually, I just ordered something there and noticed something new in their check-out process. When picking shipment method, they also offered in-store pick-up for three of their warehouse locations. Unfortunately, I am nowhere close to them... Hopefully they will offer more pick-up locations soon.
Pretty interesting concept, more like promotional event though I think and a way to connect with customers.
I'll say one big reason I've grown to love and rely on Newegg is their fast shipping turnaround and fast FREE shipping. I remember back in the day with their FedEx Saver, I used to basically get product overnighted to me from Calif to DC because I was so close to Dulles Airport.
Nowadays, Newegg is still top-notch when it comes to fast, free shipping, often with no minimums unlike Amazon. Also, Amazon takes forever to just FILL orders before even factoring in shipping times unless you are a Prime member. I personally hate it because I feel it artificially pushes people toward Prime membership, but Newegg is just fast, consistent and excellent in this regard, setting the standard for the rest of the e-commerce tech/PC industry.
Unfortunately, Newegg Canada almost never offers free shipping. In fact, their shipping has gotten much worse. Until very recently, you could pick which shipping company and speed was used. (normally the choices were UPS or Purolator with some speed choices). For me, UPS is way more convenient, because there's a UPS store near where I work, and UPS automatically redirects packages to the closest UPS store after the first delivery attempt in my city, so I always would choose UPS.
Recently, Newegg changed the shipping options to essentially "fast" and "slow". No more choice of shipping company, they make no guarantees who they'll ship with. What's the problem with that? Well, if they ship via Purolator, it adds a minimum of two business days to the shipment (one day for the item to make it back to the warehouse, one item to redirect it to the store), and about $5 in public transit fare to get to the Purolator store.
So now shopping at NewEgg is randomly an enormous inconvenience... so I don't shop there anymore. Shame, I loved shopping there, but it's a really dumb move on their part.
If you want free shipping you're better off buying from one of Newegg's Canadian competitors that offers in store pickup such as NCIX, Memory Express or Canada Computers (depending on where you happen to live).
correct, (although NCIX tends to wait until friday it give the pick notice)... canadacomputers i would not pick up from... the whole deposit thing means they may cancel the order up until you show up to pickup the item...). NCIX won't do that because they will tell you at the order Verification stage if you will be able to order it ... the canadacomputers "deposit thing" reminds me of "logic computers" scam that they would take a deposit on a item at a low price, then when you pick it up, they refund your deposit... having said that i have had NO problems with NCIX, or newegg. also if you can "will call" an item at newegg.ca it is worth the experience, just to see the inside of newegg.ca warehouse/pick up area!...
Newegg also offers will-call at their City of Industry warehouse. Which, for me, is incredibly convenient - a 20 minute drive and I can have my order the same day, with no shipping charge. So far I've only run across one or two items that were shipping from their New Jersey facility and therefore weren't available for Will Call in COI.
Hmm. How much is your gas and time worth? A 20 minute drive, so I'm guessing at 40 minute round trip. That's about $5 in gas depending on vehicle, plus lets add 20 minutes for parking plus getting in queue to pick your your item.
So an hour of your time plus gas money. No I'd prefer to just pay the $5-$7 it costs to ship most items and have it delivered to my doorstep.
A 20 minute drive could be 10 miles, and 20 miles to me is 2/3rds of a gallon. That's ~2.30 where I live. And considering I'm not a CEO or important manager like most people, every second of my time is not worth money, and if I could get an item on the same day instead of paying AND waiting, it'd be worth it to do that. Plus, I might have other errands to run.
you can spin it one way, but its not nearly as bad if you look at it from a different angle. Most people don't literally count their time as money unless they need to be available 24/7. Now, time with family is something different, but is much harder to measure since its pretty subjective.
Wow, what a boring life you must have. Personally unless I have other things to do, I wouldn't mind going and picking something up. Instant gratification and all that.
Will-call is an awesome option if you are lucky enough to be near a warehouse. I would drive from Riverside, CA to City of Industry to pick up my MWave orders. Newegg is there too? That's awesome. I wish I knew that when I used to live in Riverside. No postage, no waiting for so many working days, and I can feel confident that my new hard drive hasn't been punted into the back of a truck. Definitely worth the 40 min round trip. It doesn't matter who the retailer is, being able to physically pick up your merchandise is nice. You gotta admit, an internet retailer is using a physical presence (even if temporary... "Newegg tour coming to you!") has a nice irony to it.
I worked at Micro Center for three years and never saw the DOA rate that Newegg reviewers report. Part of it has got to be the effects of shipping products individually through the public couriers.
I'd love a walk-in NewEgg store to actually see some of the items they sell instead of purely basing orders on online reviews etc. However, I don't need NewEgg for this as my home town has Microcernter which has a massive overlap. I'm there often enough people think that I work there. Ultimately 'd probably wind up splitting my shopping between the two places, Microcenter has the best CPU prices where as NewEgg has the best GPU prices.
Yep good point, similar to Dell and their "kiosks" that resulted in sales tax for many. I'm not that too worried about it though, it seems they are more focused on West Coast for now.
" They have been around just about as long as I can remember in the computer world – founded in 2001, a couple years before I actually started writing for AnandTech. "
Wait, how old IS Jarred? :P I'm only 31 (says he optimistically) and I definitely remember shopping for parts before Newegg... I remember using CDW and PC Connection a lot early on (I think they cater more to businesses and IT these days?), then MWave and Outpost.
Whatever happened to Outpost, I think I got a 19" Samsung CRT from then when I moved for college. I remember them tossing in lots of free swag with their orders (to promote the brand), something Newegg did for a while too. Shame they seem to have ceased entirely, I could use another Newegg cap to broadcast my geekness... :P
Outpost got bought out by Fry's and became their webstore, I believe.
But yeah it was kind of the Wild Wild West for PC stuff before Newegg consolidated things. I remember there was a lot of local PC stores like Monarch Computers, a bunch of shops in Ohio, Googlegear/Zipzoomfly, whatever popped up on Pricewatch. Buy.com was actually a decent source at the time for things like HDDs. Newegg killed off most of them in short order because they were one of the first to offer a wide selection of builder-grade DIY gear from the big Asian component makers.
Personally, I prefer NOT having to stop by a physical store.
I can browse multiple products/sites in seconds using multiple windows without having to walk from isle to isle or store to store.
Todays retails store clerks lack any extensive knowledge and I'm savvy enough to research and figure out what I want/need. I've seen clueless shoppers hang on every word of the BB associate and the guy was so weak in his knowledge....I was tempted to step in to help inform the consumer of the REAL differences and the pros and cons to each. I thought better and moved on.
IMO NewEgg should drop the idea and stick with what has been working very well for them. Why take a step back? You have to pay those temp staffers and Cali is NOT the best place to put up a store anyway IMO.
Good gravy, this thread was a trip down memory lane. Thanks for the nostalgia of checking dozens of different sites and comparing/contrasting prices. :-)
I don't buy from NewEgg as much as I used to. They have been constantly getting worse. I had some major problems with DOA and was bitten by their draconian restocking fees. They're no longer the cheapest as well. Both Microcenter and Amazon have often the same or lower prices and no issues with returns. With NewEgg they always make it seem like DOA is my problem, that I'm an idiot who broke it. I had stuff returned to me that was smashed, blaming me for it. I only buy CPUs and motherboards from MicroCenter stores now (walk-in). I no longer trust NewEgg.
I still buy a lot from the egg largely because they have such a good selection and the site'd easy to navigate (something that still escapes Amazon), but more importantly because of Shoprunner (Prime is a complete mess in Puerto Rico). Amazon does have better prices a lot of the time tho, and much better return policies indeed. Newegg's support has still been pretty good to me outside of the restocking fees tho (crediting me the difference when price drops occur a week after my order etc).
Amazon ships just as fast as Newegg. I recently bought a driving wheel for my PC and had i shipped free but it was supposed to take 4 to 7 days but it only took 3 so no complaints there. I'm a BIG Newegg fan but Amazon is really starting to give them some competition and I now always check both places for the best deal.
Newegg has great customer service and they have even let me return items that they said weren't returnable. But again Amazon is closing in and are very easy when it comes to returns also.
I find your story hard to believe. They have always been nothing but nice to me when I needed to return items and NEVER charged me a restock fee. I have also never gotten anything DOA from them. Not saying it couldn't happen but I'm sure they would replace it ASAP and with a smile if it did.
The one thing that always kept me coming back to NewEgg was their great Customer Service.
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Stuka87 - Wednesday, August 14, 2013 - link
I wonder if they will offer free shipping for in store pickup.Paulman - Wednesday, August 14, 2013 - link
I don't think so; they'll only be there for one weekend, and I don't think they intend to have a longer or more established presence anywhere (for now).Stuka87 - Wednesday, August 14, 2013 - link
Oh yeah, missed the part that its only there for a few days.gamoniac - Wednesday, August 14, 2013 - link
Actually, I just ordered something there and noticed something new in their check-out process. When picking shipment method, they also offered in-store pick-up for three of their warehouse locations. Unfortunately, I am nowhere close to them... Hopefully they will offer more pick-up locations soon.Theremings759 - Thursday, August 29, 2013 - link
like Marvin said I am amazed that any body can profit $5197 in 4 weeks on the internet. go now http://jobs63.comchizow - Wednesday, August 14, 2013 - link
Pretty interesting concept, more like promotional event though I think and a way to connect with customers.I'll say one big reason I've grown to love and rely on Newegg is their fast shipping turnaround and fast FREE shipping. I remember back in the day with their FedEx Saver, I used to basically get product overnighted to me from Calif to DC because I was so close to Dulles Airport.
Nowadays, Newegg is still top-notch when it comes to fast, free shipping, often with no minimums unlike Amazon. Also, Amazon takes forever to just FILL orders before even factoring in shipping times unless you are a Prime member. I personally hate it because I feel it artificially pushes people toward Prime membership, but Newegg is just fast, consistent and excellent in this regard, setting the standard for the rest of the e-commerce tech/PC industry.
Guspaz - Wednesday, August 14, 2013 - link
Unfortunately, Newegg Canada almost never offers free shipping. In fact, their shipping has gotten much worse. Until very recently, you could pick which shipping company and speed was used. (normally the choices were UPS or Purolator with some speed choices). For me, UPS is way more convenient, because there's a UPS store near where I work, and UPS automatically redirects packages to the closest UPS store after the first delivery attempt in my city, so I always would choose UPS.Recently, Newegg changed the shipping options to essentially "fast" and "slow". No more choice of shipping company, they make no guarantees who they'll ship with. What's the problem with that? Well, if they ship via Purolator, it adds a minimum of two business days to the shipment (one day for the item to make it back to the warehouse, one item to redirect it to the store), and about $5 in public transit fare to get to the Purolator store.
So now shopping at NewEgg is randomly an enormous inconvenience... so I don't shop there anymore. Shame, I loved shopping there, but it's a really dumb move on their part.
Flunk - Thursday, August 15, 2013 - link
If you want free shipping you're better off buying from one of Newegg's Canadian competitors that offers in store pickup such as NCIX, Memory Express or Canada Computers (depending on where you happen to live).surfnaround - Friday, August 16, 2013 - link
correct, (although NCIX tends to wait until friday it give the pick notice)... canadacomputers i would not pick up from... the whole deposit thing means they may cancel the order up until you show up to pickup the item...). NCIX won't do that because they will tell you at the order Verification stage if you will be able to order it ... the canadacomputers "deposit thing" reminds me of "logic computers" scam that they would take a deposit on a item at a low price, then when you pick it up, they refund your deposit...having said that i have had NO problems with NCIX, or newegg. also if you can "will call" an item at newegg.ca it is worth the experience, just to see the inside of newegg.ca warehouse/pick up area!...
chambo622 - Wednesday, August 14, 2013 - link
Newegg also offers will-call at their City of Industry warehouse. Which, for me, is incredibly convenient - a 20 minute drive and I can have my order the same day, with no shipping charge. So far I've only run across one or two items that were shipping from their New Jersey facility and therefore weren't available for Will Call in COI.agent2099 - Wednesday, August 14, 2013 - link
Hmm. How much is your gas and time worth? A 20 minute drive, so I'm guessing at 40 minute round trip. That's about $5 in gas depending on vehicle, plus lets add 20 minutes for parking plus getting in queue to pick your your item.So an hour of your time plus gas money. No I'd prefer to just pay the $5-$7 it costs to ship most items and have it delivered to my doorstep.
karasaj - Wednesday, August 14, 2013 - link
A 20 minute drive could be 10 miles, and 20 miles to me is 2/3rds of a gallon. That's ~2.30 where I live. And considering I'm not a CEO or important manager like most people, every second of my time is not worth money, and if I could get an item on the same day instead of paying AND waiting, it'd be worth it to do that. Plus, I might have other errands to run.you can spin it one way, but its not nearly as bad if you look at it from a different angle. Most people don't literally count their time as money unless they need to be available 24/7. Now, time with family is something different, but is much harder to measure since its pretty subjective.
rudolphna - Friday, August 16, 2013 - link
Wow, what a boring life you must have. Personally unless I have other things to do, I wouldn't mind going and picking something up. Instant gratification and all that.KendoTek - Monday, August 26, 2013 - link
Will-call is an awesome option if you are lucky enough to be near a warehouse. I would drive from Riverside, CA to City of Industry to pick up my MWave orders. Newegg is there too? That's awesome. I wish I knew that when I used to live in Riverside. No postage, no waiting for so many working days, and I can feel confident that my new hard drive hasn't been punted into the back of a truck. Definitely worth the 40 min round trip. It doesn't matter who the retailer is, being able to physically pick up your merchandise is nice. You gotta admit, an internet retailer is using a physical presence (even if temporary... "Newegg tour coming to you!") has a nice irony to it.dac7nco - Wednesday, August 14, 2013 - link
If you're ordering hard drives it's worth the pickup.TGressus - Thursday, August 15, 2013 - link
"Once you know, you will-call"I worked at Micro Center for three years and never saw the DOA rate that Newegg reviewers report. Part of it has got to be the effects of shipping products individually through the public couriers.
Kevin G - Wednesday, August 14, 2013 - link
I'd love a walk-in NewEgg store to actually see some of the items they sell instead of purely basing orders on online reviews etc. However, I don't need NewEgg for this as my home town has Microcernter which has a massive overlap. I'm there often enough people think that I work there. Ultimately 'd probably wind up splitting my shopping between the two places, Microcenter has the best CPU prices where as NewEgg has the best GPU prices.pdjblum - Thursday, August 15, 2013 - link
Hope they limit this to states they already have a physical presence: otherwise, we will all be paying taxes on purchases from newegg.chizow - Thursday, August 15, 2013 - link
Yep good point, similar to Dell and their "kiosks" that resulted in sales tax for many. I'm not that too worried about it though, it seems they are more focused on West Coast for now.Impulses - Thursday, August 15, 2013 - link
" They have been around just about as long as I can remember in the computer world – founded in 2001, a couple years before I actually started writing for AnandTech. "Wait, how old IS Jarred? :P I'm only 31 (says he optimistically) and I definitely remember shopping for parts before Newegg... I remember using CDW and PC Connection a lot early on (I think they cater more to businesses and IT these days?), then MWave and Outpost.
Whatever happened to Outpost, I think I got a 19" Samsung CRT from then when I moved for college. I remember them tossing in lots of free swag with their orders (to promote the brand), something Newegg did for a while too. Shame they seem to have ceased entirely, I could use another Newegg cap to broadcast my geekness... :P
chizow - Thursday, August 15, 2013 - link
Outpost got bought out by Fry's and became their webstore, I believe.But yeah it was kind of the Wild Wild West for PC stuff before Newegg consolidated things. I remember there was a lot of local PC stores like Monarch Computers, a bunch of shops in Ohio, Googlegear/Zipzoomfly, whatever popped up on Pricewatch. Buy.com was actually a decent source at the time for things like HDDs. Newegg killed off most of them in short order because they were one of the first to offer a wide selection of builder-grade DIY gear from the big Asian component makers.
john23 - Thursday, August 15, 2013 - link
I wonder why they didn't open one near their head quarters in City of Industry.GotThumbs - Thursday, August 15, 2013 - link
Personally, I prefer NOT having to stop by a physical store.I can browse multiple products/sites in seconds using multiple windows without having to walk from isle to isle or store to store.
Todays retails store clerks lack any extensive knowledge and I'm savvy enough to research and figure out what I want/need. I've seen clueless shoppers hang on every word of the BB associate and the guy was so weak in his knowledge....I was tempted to step in to help inform the consumer of the REAL differences and the pros and cons to each. I thought better and moved on.
IMO NewEgg should drop the idea and stick with what has been working very well for them. Why take a step back? You have to pay those temp staffers and Cali is NOT the best place to put up a store anyway IMO.
WeaselITB - Thursday, August 15, 2013 - link
Good gravy, this thread was a trip down memory lane. Thanks for the nostalgia of checking dozens of different sites and comparing/contrasting prices. :-)Zak - Thursday, August 15, 2013 - link
I don't buy from NewEgg as much as I used to. They have been constantly getting worse. I had some major problems with DOA and was bitten by their draconian restocking fees. They're no longer the cheapest as well. Both Microcenter and Amazon have often the same or lower prices and no issues with returns. With NewEgg they always make it seem like DOA is my problem, that I'm an idiot who broke it. I had stuff returned to me that was smashed, blaming me for it. I only buy CPUs and motherboards from MicroCenter stores now (walk-in). I no longer trust NewEgg.Impulses - Friday, August 16, 2013 - link
I still buy a lot from the egg largely because they have such a good selection and the site'd easy to navigate (something that still escapes Amazon), but more importantly because of Shoprunner (Prime is a complete mess in Puerto Rico). Amazon does have better prices a lot of the time tho, and much better return policies indeed. Newegg's support has still been pretty good to me outside of the restocking fees tho (crediting me the difference when price drops occur a week after my order etc).asians - Friday, August 16, 2013 - link
they said everything will be shipped for free during this first pop-up store event. http://www.ciol.com/ciol/news/193648/ontrac-delive...piiman - Saturday, August 17, 2013 - link
Amazon ships just as fast as Newegg. I recently bought a driving wheel for my PC and had i shipped free but it was supposed to take 4 to 7 days but it only took 3 so no complaints there. I'm a BIG Newegg fan but Amazon is really starting to give them some competition and I now always check both places for the best deal.Newegg has great customer service and they have even let me return items that they said weren't returnable. But again Amazon is closing in and are very easy when it comes to returns also.
piiman - Saturday, August 17, 2013 - link
I find your story hard to believe. They have always been nothing but nice to me when I needed to return items and NEVER charged me a restock fee. I have also never gotten anything DOA from them. Not saying it couldn't happen but I'm sure they would replace it ASAP and with a smile if it did.The one thing that always kept me coming back to NewEgg was their great Customer Service.