OP PC's and how they are NOT a scam.

[MadmanRB]

Just now, 6thOntheLeft said:

But at most times. Walmart is the nearest place out of all the things you mentioned. For example, Dell is located in a REALLY industrial area compared to Walmart, located near your nearest Plaza.

Yes but that doesnt mean its good, hell Best Buy has loads of locations and I think most of us know when we shop for a computer from there we know they are full of shit.

Convenience means nothing with you spend that kind of money on a product.

If this wasnt targeted at gamers and maybe something made for an office or something maybe we would not have as much on this but fact is these computers are not exactly of quality.

Sure calling them a scam may be off but one sure as hell call them crap.

Even for prebuilts these seem very sub par, even compared to HP open or Dells alienware line

[UnwantedLinks]

2 minutes ago, Eastman51 said:

$2k for a low end motherboard, with a low end CPU cooler, low end RAM, a low end GPU (yes, there are different levels of quality in GPUs, even at 1070s), and a dirt cheap PSU.

You could build a PC for significantly less with the same hardware, minus the PSU cause you probably can't find those Great Wall units anywhere. 

 

And then you get the wrong unit. You spent $2k and got a PC "worth" $1.5K. What's up with that? Amazon rarely makes mistakes, and look at how big their business is. I'd expect a company like Walmart to at LEAST get my order right. 

 

But on top of getting the wrong thing you paid for, it doesn't even work. These PCs are for people who don't even know what the difference between an SSD and an HDD is; so when you have a PCIe cable not plugged in, their world ends. It's not hard to plug it in, but these people would have trouble getting the side panel off, let alone trying to figure out which cable it is, where it goes, and how to plug it in. 

 

You also have stupid things, like glueing the USB 3 header in place. You don't get USB 3.0 on the front panel; $400 laptops have USB 3.0, why can't a $2k "gaming" desktop have them? Why is the USB C port even included? Do they expect their buyers to even know what that port is called, let alone know what they can use it for? And why put it in the back, why not on the FRONT? And the gap for airflow on the front fans is almost non-existent, what "engineer" designed this? You can get better cases for $20. 

It's either Amazon, or Walmart. Amazon does it rarely, so it's Walmart. And hell, they have more shit in stock compared to Costco. It was most likely a tired-ass employee or something.

[Jsmith2211]

8 minutes ago, MadmanRB said:

The issue is for the money you can spend on one of these computers you can do far better and have something better to boot.

And this isnt just from a self builder enthusiast perspective but also a value perspective and a overall quality perspective.

Obviously not everyone has the skills to build a computer so if one goes out to a store to just buy one a unaware buyer may get one of these without knowing the parts or how they are constructed.

The Overpowered OTP3 certainly looks like a deal when you consider it comes with a GTX 1080, Intel i7 8700, 32gigs of ram, a 512 GB SSD and a 2Tb platter drive all for the price of $1,699.00

However if you consider all the potential quality control concerns one may be more better off with even an Alienware Aurora desktop paired with a 1070 for around the same price point and while this isnt an ideal choice at least you are dealing more directly with a company.

Sure dell isnt the best but it would still be a step up from a walmart returns center.

Or for $100 more one can go to cyberpowerPC right now and order this thing:

https://www.cyberpowerpc.com/system/Holiday-2018

 

Within the same price range and would ber miles better then the Overpowered.

Heck even if there wasnt a holiday sale there are some fantastic options from ibuypower, cyberpowerpc and even Maingear,

Dont just look at the GPU as the selling point, when the machine lacks any real backbone and has zero to no real quality well its not exactly money well spent.

And not to mention you can buy a dtw3 and get a dtw1 and not know if you were a normie and had no idea about computers. Gn didn't know until they took out the ram... 

[MadmanRB]

5 minutes ago, 6thOntheLeft said:

It's either Amazon, or Walmart. Amazon does it rarely, so it's Walmart. And hell, they have more shit in stock compared to Costco. It was most likely a tired-ass employee or something.

Again convenience is nothing if you want quality, just because the McDonald's is closer than the great delicious burger joint 20 miles away does not make it a better option.

Me I would spend that extra 20 miles if i wanted something good and not something made in a microwave.

Heck even Mcdonalds is a steup up from the frozen burger patties you may have laying in the fridge and your closest Mcdonalds is like 5 miles away.

[Eastman51]

2 minutes ago, MadmanRB said:

Again convenience is nothing if you want quality, just because the McDonald's is closer than the great delicious burger joint 20 miles away does not make it a better option.

for sure. I'd rather drive 40 minutes to Micro Center than go to Best Buy for an SSD. I know I'll have a better selection and be getting a better deal.

[MadmanRB]

Just now, Eastman51 said:

for sure. I'd rather drive 40 minutes to Micro Center than go to Best Buy for an SSD. I know I'll have a better selection and be getting a better deal.

Indeed, the only time I had to do best buy was recent but that was because the route to Microcenter was blocked off by a tractor trailer accident... wasnt Microcenters fault as yes i would go there any day over best buy.

[UnwantedLinks]

15 hours ago, MadmanRB said:

Again convenience is nothing if you want quality, just because the McDonald's is closer than the great delicious burger joint 20 miles away does not make it a better option.

That can happen. Our class discussed it. And related to McDonalds, it's because parent's don't have enough time to drive all the way to big-box stores (etc, Dell). So parent's settle for a much shorter distance to grab what their kid needs. And half of the time, it's Walmart. Since, they are parents. They're hard working? Right? And their time is very limited. Since all most of their life will be: Wake up > eat > work > eat > kid got a A+ > gotta go to work early > settle for a much shorter location > grab what their kids looking for > go home > eat > watch some TV > sleep > repeat

 

15 hours ago, Eastman51 said:

for sure. I'd rather drive 40 minutes to Micro Center than go to Best Buy for an SSD. I know I'll have a better selection and be getting a better deal.

Problem, we are pretty much involving all countries into this argument, and micro-center is not within our country

[Jsmith2211]

8 minutes ago, 6thOntheLeft said:

It's either Amazon, or Walmart. Amazon does it rarely, so it's Walmart. And hell, they have more shit in stock compared to Costco. It was most likely a tired-ass employee or something.

Are you a rep for Walmart or something? They are bad value at least accept that. These are not a scam, no, but nobody should buy them. Also I don't like the design of the fans... Not a big thing but it is a thing I can say a about this shitty case. 

[Eastman51]

1 minute ago, 6thOntheLeft said:

That can happen. Our class discussed it. And related to McDonalds, it's because parent's don't have enough time to drive all the way to big-box stores (etc, Dell). So parent's settle for a much shorter distance to grab what their kid needs. And half of the time, it's Walmart. Since, they are parents. They're hard working? Right? And their time is very limited. Since all most of their life will be: Wake up > eat > work > eat > kid got a A+ > gotta go to work early > settle for a much shorter location > grab what their kids looking for > go home > eat > watch some TV > sleep > repeat

I don't know. If I was an uneducated (in PCs and PC gaming) parent, I'd want to do some form of research before I bought my kid anything. I mean look at all the "gaming" branded pre-builts, they all are quite expensive. I would want to make sure that I'm getting a good deal on something that isn't garbage, ensuring that my hard earned cash wasn't gone to waste.

[aezakmi]

yeah if you like those pieces of junk so much why haven't you bought one yet? checkmate, mate.

[UnwantedLinks]

1 minute ago, Joelsome said:

Are you a rep for Walmart or something? They are bad value at least accept that. These are not a scam, no, but nobody should buy them. Also I don't like the design of the fans... Not a big thing but it is a thing I can say a about this shitty case. 

I'm not a rep for Walmart. I'm pretty much defending them from the hate they are getting.

 

Plus, almost EVERY company does this sort of business practice, including Dell, Cyberpower, Acer, HP and more, including Hardware manufacturers.

[Jsmith2211]

1 minute ago, 6thOntheLeft said:

Problem, we are pretty much involving all countries into this argument, and micro-center is not within our country

Or mine. The closest thing we have to Walmart here is asda (UK) and them selling a pc would be a pc in a tracksuit with a big reduced sticker in the front. The closest thing we have to best buy is pc World. Who ripped me off with an m11ad for gaming with an r7 240 and an i5 4440s. I was no more than a student wanting to play Minecraft and watch YouTube. I knew nothing of what I know now. If only I had known I would have punched that salesman in the face. I don't want anybody getting ripped off like I was... At leadt these things don't have 240s in them is all I can say... 

[Eastman51]

3 minutes ago, 6thOntheLeft said:

Problem, we are pretty much involving all countries into this argument, and micro-center is not within our country

Most countries in question probably have something reminiscent of a Micro Center, so... 

For example, Memory Express in Canada.

But there's usually Newegg online as well, plus you can pick parts and have them build it for you.

[CheeseburgerChad]

Ok. Everyone just calm down for a second. I would like to start by saying that I watched both Steve and Linus' videos and while some valid points have been made, there are people in this thread who do not seem to understand some key points here.

• Firstly, I think some of you don't realize that the scam people are referring to is the fact that Steve over at Gamers Nexus was sent the wrong model of the system, being accidentally shipped the lower end model when he paid for the higher end one. While this IS a problem on Walmart's end that they claimed they would help with, and I personally do not know how many people other than him had this issue, I don't think it's fair to say that these PCs are actually a scam, assuming you do get the right model.
• To those of you who are arguing that it is a "scam" ONLY because they are "charging too much" and that "DIY is better" clearly do not understand the place in the market for pre-built machines. Obviously, there is typically going to be markup with a prebuilt because the system builder that you are buying from (in this case Walmart) has to spend money to get people to build the machines (regardless of their age or pay rate) as well as people to decide what parts go into it, not to mention marketing and graphic design etc. This aspect is no different from other system integrators (SIs) that actually do build relatively high quality towers (see Linus' new video series for some examples). While most people on this forum would agree (myself included) that building your own PC is not very hard and will almost always save you a lot of money, there are people in this world that will buy a pre-built either due to a lack of technical knowledge, or simply because they want to get straight to using their PC without any effort going into picking out parts or putting them together, and while they're at it they probably get a warranty too depending on the brand.
• Acknowledging that pre-built systems, although generally a lesser value, do have a place in the market (even if it's not for you), then we can address the main issue here, which is the questionable build quality. The parts Walmart has chosen to put into this build, especially the motherboard and power supply, are in fact sketchy, as noted by both reviewers, and the thing with the GPU arriving unplugged is an odd issue with a nevertheless relatively easy fix. Although it is clear that Walmart cut some corners to lower their own costs, everyone (assuming the shipping issue gets sorted out between models) is still getting what they technically paid for. Most people will get hardware that is more than adequate to play the games they want to play, even if the thermals of the case are not very good. In the end there wasn't any "fraudulent" activity that would constitute a scam here. I think this is just Walmart's lack of knowledge in the PC market. This is definitely not the first poorly designed pre-built ever.

TL;DR: While Walmart has some kinks to work out in the process, people are still technically getting what they paid for, and it's not uncommon for pre-builts to cost more than their value in raw parts anyway. I don't think Walmart is intentionally trying to rip off consumers, but rather just don't have the knowledge or experience necessary to be a quality contender in the pre-built market.

[Jsmith2211]

1 minute ago, 6thOntheLeft said:

I'm not a rep for Walmart. I'm pretty much defending them from the hate they are getting.

 

Plus, almost EVERY company does this sort of business practice, including Dell, Cyberpower, Acer, HP and more, including Hardware manufacturers.

Asus... M11ad as a gaming pc. Google it. Asus describe it as a media consumption pc... Sold as a gaming computer... 5 years later and I still won't buy from Asus or pc world as long as I can avoid it. 

[UnwantedLinks]

2 minutes ago, aezakmi said:

yeah if you like those pieces of junk so much why haven't you bought one yet? checkmate, mate.

I'm pretty much neutral, I don't agree with their business practices and at the same time I don't agree they should be getting hate.

 

 

[Jsmith2211]

2 minutes ago, CheeseburgerChad said:

Ok. Everyone just calm down for a second. I would like to start by saying that I watched both Steve and Linus' videos and while some valid points have been made, there are people in this thread who do not seem to understand some key points here.

• Firstly, I think some of you don't realize that the scam people are referring to is the fact that Steve over at Gamers Nexus was sent the wrong model of the system, being accidentally shipped the lower end model when he paid for the higher end one. While this IS a problem on Walmart's end that they claimed they would help with, and I personally do not know how many people other than him had this issue, I don't think it's fair to say that these PCs are actually a scam, assuming you do get the right model.
• To those of you who are arguing that it is a "scam" ONLY because they are "charging too much" and that "DIY is better" clearly do not understand the place in the market for pre-built machines. Obviously, there is typically going to be markup with a prebuilt because the system builder that you are buying from (in this case Walmart) has to spend money to get people to build the machines (regardless of their age or pay rate) as well as people to decide what parts go into it, not to mention marketing and graphic design etc. This aspect is no different from other system integrators (SIs) that actually do build relatively high quality towers (see Linus' new video series for some examples). While most people on this forum would agree (myself included) that building your own PC is not very hard and will almost always save you a lot of money, there are people in this world that will buy a pre-built either due to a lack of technical knowledge, or simply because they want to get straight to using their PC without any effort going into picking out parts or putting them together, and while they're at it they probably get a warranty too depending on the brand.
• Acknowledging that pre-built systems, although generally a lesser value, do have a place in the market (even if it's not for you), then we can address the main issue here, which is the questionable build quality. The parts Walmart has chosen to put into this build, especially the motherboard and power supply, are in fact sketchy, as noted by both reviewers, and the thing with the GPU arriving unplugged is an odd issue with a nevertheless relatively easy fix. Although it is clear that Walmart cut some corners to lower their own costs, everyone (assuming the shipping issue gets sorted out between models) is still getting what they technically paid for. Most people will get hardware that is more than adequate to play the games they want to play, even if the thermals of the case are not very good. In the end there wasn't any "fraudulent" activity that would constitute a scam here. I think this is just Walmart's lack of knowledge in the PC market. This is definitely not the first poorly designed pre-built ever.

TL;DR: While Walmart has some kinks to work out in the process, people are still technically getting what they paid for, and it's not uncommon for pre-builts to cost more than their value in raw parts anyway. I don't think Walmart is intentionally trying to rip off consumers, but rather just don't have the knowledge or experience necessary to be a quality contender in the pre-built market.

Bravo. You hit the nail on the head here. It is a rip off. Just likr what happened to me. And I want nobody to have to go thought the pain of having a shit motherboard and psu to upgrade before they can upgrade the rst of it if they ever do learn baout the parts of a pc... 

[UnwantedLinks]

1 minute ago, Joelsome said:

Bravo. You hit the nail on the head here. It is a rip off. Just likr what happened to me. And I want nobody to have to go thought the pain of having a shit motherboard and psu to upgrade before they can upgrade the rst of it if they ever do learn baout the parts of a pc... 

But here's the thing; Walmart is a smart-ass company. They are pretty much experts and business. Like other industry-leading giants.

[Eastman51]

3 minutes ago, CheeseburgerChad said:

Ok. Everyone just calm down for a second. I would like to start by saying that I watched both Steve and Linus' videos and while some valid points have been made, there are people in this thread who do not seem to understand some key points here.

• Firstly, I think some of you don't realize that the scam people are referring to is the fact that Steve over at Gamers Nexus was sent the wrong model of the system, being accidentally shipped the lower end model when he paid for the higher end one. While this IS a problem on Walmart's end that they claimed they would help with, and I personally do not know how many people other than him had this issue, I don't think it's fair to say that these PCs are actually a scam, assuming you do get the right model.
• To those of you who are arguing that it is a "scam" ONLY because they are "charging too much" and that "DIY is better" clearly do not understand the place in the market for pre-built machines. Obviously, there is typically going to be markup with a prebuilt because the system builder that you are buying from (in this case Walmart) has to spend money to get people to build the machines (regardless of their age or pay rate) as well as people to decide what parts go into it, not to mention marketing and graphic design etc. This aspect is no different from other system integrators (SIs) that actually do build relatively high quality towers (see Linus' new video series for some examples). While most people on this forum would agree (myself included) that building your own PC is not very hard and will almost always save you a lot of money, there are people in this world that will buy a pre-built either due to a lack of technical knowledge, or simply because they want to get straight to using their PC without any effort going into picking out parts or putting them together, and while they're at it they probably get a warranty too depending on the brand.
• Acknowledging that pre-built systems, although generally a lesser value, do have a place in the market (even if it's not for you), then we can address the main issue here, which is the questionable build quality. The parts Walmart has chosen to put into this build, especially the motherboard and power supply, are in fact sketchy, as noted by both reviewers, and the thing with the GPU arriving unplugged is an odd issue with a nevertheless relatively easy fix. Although it is clear that Walmart cut some corners to lower their own costs, everyone (assuming the shipping issue gets sorted out between models) is still getting what they technically paid for. Most people will get hardware that is more than adequate to play the games they want to play, even if the thermals of the case are not very good. In the end there wasn't any "fraudulent" activity that would constitute a scam here. I think this is just Walmart's lack of knowledge in the PC market. This is definitely not the first poorly designed pre-built ever.

TL;DR: While Walmart has some kinks to work out in the process, people are still technically getting what they paid for, and it's not uncommon for pre-builts to cost more than their value in raw parts anyway. I don't think Walmart is intentionally trying to rip off consumers, but rather just don't have the knowledge or experience necessary to be a quality contender in the pre-built market.

I think you're right, the overall concept and product is not a scam. GN's order was a scam, but it obviously shouldn't represent every order out there. 

 

But the value is completely skewed. Most other SI's have a far better value for their products, at the very least in build quality. 

Pre-builds have a place in this world, not saying they don't, just saying that Walmart is clearly not doing it right. 

[Eastman51]

7 minutes ago, Joelsome said:

Asus... M11ad as a gaming pc. Google it. Asus describe it as a media consumption pc... Sold as a gaming computer... 5 years later and I still won't buy from Asus or pc world as long as I can avoid it. 

Pretty sure it wasn't Asus who told you it was a "gaming" PC, but the place you bought it from (UK version of Walmart you said?). 

[UnwantedLinks]

2 minutes ago, Joelsome said:

Bravo. You hit the nail on the head here. It is a rip off. Just likr what happened to me. And I want nobody to have to go thought the pain of having a shit motherboard and psu to upgrade before they can upgrade the rst of it if they ever do learn baout the parts of a pc... 

Oh. warranties, and it's most likely VERY unlikely that you will be using that PC for some next-level 3D generated shit

 

so a Great Wall PSU is decent. 

 

I have a Acer Aspire sitting in the other room, still works just fine, AMD A6, 200 Watt PSU. Nothing is wrong with it. It works. And yes, the only thing on the consumers minds are just, if the computer works. That's all. They are not gonna be sitting there; wondering, what the hell is in their system. Or maybe thinking that they should upgrade their hardware inside it.

[Jsmith2211]

1 minute ago, Eastman51 said:

I think you're right, the overall concept and product is not a scam. GN's order was a scam, but it obviously shouldn't represent every order out there. 

 

But the value is completely skewed. Most other SI's have a far better value for their products, at the very least in build quality. 

Pre-builds have a place in this world, not saying they don't, just saying that Walmart is clearly not doing it right. 

Prebuilts have a place of course they do. These Prebuilts done right and at 2/3rds of the price have a place. If they fix the problems. Don't cheap out of the PSU. Don't cheap out on the mobo... And let her breathe! 

[UnwantedLinks]

3 minutes ago, Eastman51 said:

I think you're right, the overall concept and product is not a scam. GN's order was a scam, but it obviously shouldn't represent every order out there. 

 

But the value is completely skewed. Most other SI's have a far better value for their products, at the very least in build quality. 

Pre-builds have a place in this world, not saying they don't, just saying that Walmart is clearly not doing it right. 

Not really a scam, it might be human error or some dumb-ass employee just got it from a shelve at they didn't bother checking what level it is.

[Jsmith2211]

Just now, 6thOntheLeft said:

Oh. warranties, and it's most likely VERY unlikely that you will be using that PC for some next-level 3D generated shit

 

so a Great Wall PSU is decent. 

 

I have a Acer Aspire sitting in the other room, still works just fine, AMD A6, 200 Watt PSU. Nothing is wrong with it. It works. And yes, the only thing on the consumers minds are just, if the computer works. That's all. They are not gonna be sitting there; wondering, what the hell is in their system. Or maybe thinking that they should upgrade their hardware inside it.

Yes, but if they ever decide to understand how it works like I did, they will be ticked off at the mobo. I always get a good mobo and psu + case. Then the rest can be upgraded easily. 

[CheeseburgerChad]

1 minute ago, Eastman51 said:

I think you're right, the overall concept and product is not a scam. GN's order was a scam, but it obviously shouldn't represent every order out there. 

 

But the value is completely skewed. Most other SI's have a far better value for their products, at the very least in build quality. 

Pre-builds have a place in this world, not saying they don't, just saying that Walmart is clearly not doing it right. 

I completely agree. There are definitely a lot of other pre-builts that are far better in terms of value and build quality out there. I think in the end the Walmart ones are not something that should be recommended to people, but should still get the job done. A lot of people read reviews before buying products anyway, so hopefully that helps too.