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Thread: Ever seen a computer infomercial

  1. #1
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    Ever seen a computer infomercial

    When i'm up late watching tv i see alot of computer infomercials ever seen these. The systems really are ok they usually got 1000's of dollars worth of software i guess they get it relly cheap. But ya know what, they really take advantage of the uninformed viewer. They will say things like "onboard ram" and "intergrated graphics" Now we know that intergrated graphics suck but if u knew nothing about computers you'd be like oooh onboard ram and intergrated graphics. They also stay away from specifics like if they say the comp comes with a cd-rw they don't ususally tell u the speed. But if they did they would probably make it sound like the best. I just think that they take advantage alot.
    What do u think?

  2. #2
    Ultimate Member Hellmund's Avatar
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    Well yeah, I think they do. I've seen Pentium 4 systems with P4-1.5ghz and they couple it with a Tnt2M64! That's one hell of a waste. They also always seem to give people $10 speakers..... I will never buy a computer retail in my life.

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    What you don't know won't hurt you. Don't you think that people who buy those won't be happy? Only when you go and tell them that your tnt2m64 really sucks and you can't get fsaa at 1024x768 with 32bit colors they are disappointed. If you know more, get parts and assemble yourself, not everyone knows howto, or even cares.
    But true, that's the way of advertising, with everything. If someone tried to sell me a car and said that it has 4point spray fuel injection with 100valves covered with motorup I'd prolly say 'ooh' since I don't know anything about cars (wouldn't necessarily buy it, I'm happy with my '85 Suzuki sa310) but, I'd perhaps be impressed =)
    -M

  4. #4
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    Anyway to make $$$

  5. #5
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    High Mhz ratings sell computers with consumers. Most people are not educated enough to tell the difference between quality of video cards and sound cards unless they intend to play a lot of 3d games. I was the same way the first time I bought my computer. On the one hand, it is pretty dastardly of computer manufacturers to take advantage of the consumer by offering shoddy parts with their powerhouse chip, but OTOH most consumers aren't going to have a need for a Geforce anyway. Where the computer manufacturers could bring more customers in is education, by telling them what the differences in quality components can offer. That way the consumer can pick and choose exactly what components they think they will need and price it accordingly.

    Sort of like Dell Not suprising they are king of the desktop either. I belive by the time the average consumer buys their second and third pc's that they are a lot smarter about technology and what they are getting. I believe it would be profitible for other companies, like Compaq, to do the same thing as Dell or they will continue to lose market share.

  6. #6
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    i watch those shows all the time. Most of the people selling dont even know what half of the stuff is. They just read from their notecards. I hate how they say, 1000's of dollars of software because you only use a couple of the software titles. Example. windows and office. I also seen them when they have 100 cd's that they give you of plain ****.

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    I think the worst are the home shopping channels. The stuff always looks like a great deal, because they never get into the specifics of each piece.

    "Oooh. It comes with a full tower ATX case." Hmm, what is the power supply rated at?

    "Oooh. It comes with a printer and scanner." Hmm, How fast?

    The worst though is the software-- "You're getting over $1000 in software." Yuh, who's gonna use StickyBear Bop? Or Encarta 1999?

    They never stress what kind of customer or technical support you'll get in case of a problem. At least with Dell or Gateway, you get that.


  8. #8
    Ultimate Member Bob The Great's Avatar
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    I watch them only to laugh at their incompatence! HAR HAR!

    It's hard to believe what terrible systems they put together! Like Hellmund said! Putting an m64 in with a p4 1.4Ghz! It's just not right! I'm sure there are laws against that! or at least there should be!

  9. #9
    Ultimate Member Brangwen's Avatar
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    I find those infomercials hilarious! Especially when the screen / program locks up during a demonstration so the "expert" is forced to comment <u>again</u> on the component chart or the pricing options or take a phonecall from some poor consumer who just placed his/her order. "I especially like the e-mail feature." I envision the "techs" behind the scenes scrambling to unlock the box, i.e., rebooting!

    Nothwithstanding the hilarity, I am reminded how lucky I am to have the the know-how to build my own superior system for considerably less. I do get a bit ticked off because the average consumer is being duped. Well, buyer beware.

    Brangwen

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    I wouldn't say its just infomercials though. I laugh every time I read through Best Buy or Circuit City ads. The thing is, places like that, and mail-order retailers, aren't targeting their products for people like us. Its the same way with stereo stuff. I wouldn't buy anything for my stereo from Best Buy, because I know that I can go to a high-end retailer, and buy Klipsch, B&W, or Marantz stuff, rather than the Bose, Cerwin Vega, Sony **** they sell to unknowing consumers. They sell what people are familiar with... "Megahertz" sells. "Gigabytes" sells. "Intel" sells. Nevermind what the FSB is, or the RPMs are, or any of the other specs that matter. An average person would buy a P4 over a nice Athlon, because Intel is a more recognized name. But then again, does any of it really matter? Personally, I'll never buy a manufactured system, because I know what I'm doing. Whereas, my sister just bought a dinky little celeron system, but its fine because it is perfect for her needs. And thats the way it is for most people. If a person buys into the advertising, goes out and buys a celeron, are they going to miss the bus speeds they could get with a higher quality chip? I doubt it.
    Anyway, thats my 2 cents.

  11. #11
    Member Jonty's Avatar
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    I saw a Pentium 4 advertised complete with a 15 inch monitor.

    Also in PC Worlds own magazine they had a page devoted to 3D cards and what they did, and the illustration was a sound card! Don't these people check these errors (no, probably the person writing the article had never seen either card in their life before!!) If anyone from PC World is reading this it was issue 1 from July 2000!! (UK edition)

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    I have never seen one of the systems with a good video card the best i saw was a computer with a ati rag 128 pro (i think thats beter than the tnt) Then they said they were gonna show the "blazing" performance of the card so i thought that they were gonna play a game nope they downloaded a movie off the internet and showed it playing ughhhhh(it actually skipped frames alot too). You know they do let callers ask questions on the system i would like yo call up and ask if the vid card was good and then say isnt that a 2 year old card?

  13. #13
    Ultimate Member Hellmund's Avatar
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    Yeh sure they're happy until they find out it's a bad system and that is inevitably going to happen at some stage. My conscience wouldn't allow me to prey on someones ignorance like that.

  14. #14
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    My conscience wouldn't allow me to prey on someones ignorance like that.
    Let me guess, you're not in the sales industry =)
    -M

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