PC world muppets!
 

Having had my housemate looking for a Router for our CABLE VIRGIN BB, he had gone to the supposedly resputable store that is PC WORLD.

He had gone in to purchase the much recommended WRT54GC from linksys.
Upon picking up the rquired router, a PC-W rep had told my house mate that it was no good for his needs.
Then they recommended... This is the funny part...

Linksys Wireless-G "ADSL GATEWAY" with speedbooster.
Now he has brought this home and the first thing I noticed was the huge ADSL sign on the box.
Then looking at the minimum requirements it clearly states an active ADSL line is needed.
My friend isnt the most addept at PC accessories so he took the "qualified recommendation" from this rep!

What a shame... Has anyone else had such a complete shambles curtesy of the professionals????

Re: PC world muppets!
 

This isn't the first time (sadly) that I have heard of PC world people saying this, and, TBH, I find it shockingly bad that their training appears to be lacking in this area.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Can't say I'm surprised to hear this. I can't help but feel that the implication that *all* PC World staff are 'muppets' is a little unfair - admittedly this particular member of staff probably *is*, but that doesn't mean that they all are.

Suggest your friend simply return it to PC World, get a refund (it isn't suitable for the specified need that he made the sales person aware of at the point of purchase), and take your money somewhere else.

They shouldn't refuse your friend a refund provided that he states his case firmly, and sticks to the facts.

Once you've got the refund in your hands, write a nice letter to PC World's head office and explain calmly and factualy what happened and that it resulted in you getting a full refund.

Now take your money somewhere else. Arguably, since you know exactly what you want, you will probably find that you get a better deal shopping online.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

I've heard them called a lot of things but professionals never popped up :p: there are some good people at PC World but they generally leave to a more technical job or get promoted to management and whisked away.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Surely the difference between ADSL and cable is idiots stuff?? Even i know that!

(not aimed at your friend btw, more at the plonker who sold him the modem :))

Re: PC world muppets!
 

The ones who know what they're talking about are probably not allowed to be as helpful as they want to be. Just guessing lol.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

I can give you several reasons not to shop at PC World again and the main ones are:

1) The products are over priced.

2) A lot of staff (not all, but a lot of) do not know what they are talking about and will sell you the products they need to sell or promote.


Check out Ebuyer, Amazon, etc for cheaper prices and customer reviews.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Good reasons, but sometimes you may need to get a part quickly. Ebuyer et al are good for price, but waiting for delivery is not an option.

I've raced round to the local PC World to get a part that suddenly died. Not the best price wise, but for being there it was useful.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Plus charge him double for not listening to you in the first place

Re: PC world muppets!
 

I have 2 stories about pc world.
1. A Friend of mine went there to get an all in one printer. He was sold a canon ( I cannot remember the model ). He used compatible ink cartridges ( I advised him not to, as they were more prone to clogging). Needless to say, after a while it clogged. So he took it back (6 months old, still under warranty) to get a replacement. He was asked if he had used compatibles, instead of the proper catridges. He told them he had.:rolleyes: He was then promptly told that the use of compatibles was ILLEGAL & so was selling them. This was by the technician bloke, not the numpty sales staff. He came away with a printer that was in warranty but could not use. They just said to contact canon direct to arrange a warranty repair. When he did, the cost was more that the printer was worth. He bought a different printer, but still uses compatibles, not the proper cartridges.:dozey:
2. I was also in the market for a printer. I did a lot of research online, in order to get the best mix of printer/cartridges cost balance. Once I had decided on the model, I went into PC world (I didn't buy online then) to get my shiny new printer. I did a bit of browsing whilst I was there & then headed to the printer area. I hovered over the different printers for literrally a minute, then, just as I was about to pick up the box, a salesman did the "can I help you sir?" bit. Being the polite person, I engaged the salesman in conversation, saying that I had looked at the different types & had selected this one. He agreed that it was a good buy & said to mention his name at the checkout. I didn't though, as I felt this was cheeky to give him the commission for a sale that he didn't make.

The morale of these stories are that PC world are a bunch of box shifters that couldn't give a rats **** to the customer, once you are out of the door.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

I can't believe some of their prices !
The fact that I see a 2 metre ethernet cable for £14.99 is just a complete rip off.
I pay £1.16 for the same thing. !

Re: PC world muppets!
 

This happened to my mums friend lol

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Yeah I do agree that they can be a right bunch of muppets sometimes. In my local PC World, all of the Routers/Firewalls/Gateways are sorted into ADSL/Non-ADSL and badged obviously

Re: PC world muppets!
 

99.9% of the time i'd agree with you...but i bought a new webcam from pc world a few weeks ago, as it was over a tenner cheaper than amazon/aria/micro direct/ocuk! What's more, ordered it online and they had it sat on the counter at the store, waiting for me :)

This is probably the only known case of non-muppetry there, ever, but there you go :p:

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Yes, a cable at that price I would never buy from them. But it's things like PSU's and HDD's that I'd pay a bit extra for to get one quickly.

And I have noticed that sometimes (very occasionally) they seem to put out some item that is cheaper than everywhere else and is a bargain. But only occaisionally lol.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

I was in a PCW in North Wales last week and was looking for a router and needed one quickly as my cousins had blown up. Newho... I got to the routers and could see that they had run out of ADSL (which I needed) but funnily enough they had a pile of Cable/DSL.

The enevitable happens and the 'dude' comes over to offer me some 'advice'. When he had finished trying to convince me that Cable/DSL and ADSL were interchangable (and I had stopped laughing) I left.

But what is really silly is that they are selling Cable/DSL routers in an area where the nearest cable network is around 100/150 miles away!!

Re: PC world muppets!
 

LOL, yeah. You're ok as long as you know exactly what you want and don't need their, ahem, advice. Just make sure that if you 'out-tech' the sales staff that they don't offer you a job! lol

Re: PC world muppets!
 

technically the cable/dsl routers can be used with ADSL if you have a seperate modem with an ethernet port..

Not that the person in PCworld would have known that, he probably saw the /DSL and assumed it was also a DSL router.

Isn't pcworld training based on how many people you can get though the till? and isn't the right product for the customer the most expensive one you can convince them to buy?

Re: PC world muppets!
 

hehehe thats a nice 1 ;)

what I hear quite often now is people buying from PC World or Curry's bluetooth adapter to work with their wlan routers :O

got a good chuckle at that all the time when I have some1 on the phone with that and trying to explain that Bluetooth and wlan are totally different from eachother and then the cust argues with me that we sold them the wrong product :O

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Same price as their kettle type cable, must be solid gold not copper.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

I never thought this topic would be so popular. LOL

OK, I did go back to PCW, got things sorted which Ill post and tell you the story shortly.

I got the router I wanted, now Ive got it setup, and I can access the wireless network from my laptop. I can also access the internet here at my main PC.

Im just hoping one of you guys wouldnt mind telling me how to put a password on the Wireless connection, without messing up the network.
Everytmie I add a password under the security tab, I cant access the network from my laptop.

By the way, you'll be pleased to know there were 2 very people left in PCW feeling very small. LOL.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

This thread has some useful info for securing your network:

http://www.cableforum.co.uk/board/94...s-network.html

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Mic, 1st and main thing you HAVE to do when securing the network is connect via ethernet otherwise you will lose the signal and dont know what security has been applied.

my preference goes to WPA-PSK with TKIP if your hardware supports it (which is should)

Re: PC world muppets!
 

SWEET!

Thanks very much.

Okee Dokey, Im off for me tea and then Ill tell you all the tale, just coz I know your all so eager... LOL...

In a bit peeps.

PS.

Cheers Doc, I had tried those but for some reason the laptop couldnt connect, guess the woreless card isnt that upto date to be able to use the newer security encryptions.
But Ive ended up adding WEP, then Ive added the Laptops IP and MAC to the network accepted list, now that runs fine, and Ive removed the broadcasting of the SSID because it is no longer needed.

Thanks for the help guys. I will post the PCW story shortly.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

all lets hide :) cuz he'll be back shortly



just kidding mate :) no problems for helping and I think with most questions here 99% of the people would be able to help ya out

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Err hang on... shouldn't it be down to the purchaser to check the specs of a purchase before deciding whether or not it's suitable?

We all know a few PC World staff can talk sh*t but it's a bit muppety to buy a router for ADSL knowing you don't have it.

---------- Post added at 21:28 ---------- Previous post was at 21:27 ----------


They are here, too.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

I think however someone who is supposidly trained to help the customer to make the correct decission should be knowledgable enough to point the novice in the correct direction... IMO

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Friend of mine went to PC World not so long back and asked a rep for a router to be used with VM cable broadband.

He was sold a switch by Belkin. :rolleyes:

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Not sure what renders it more useless.... the fact it was a switch or that it was made by Belkin ;)

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Belkin switches aren't to bad.

Can't say the same for the routers tho.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

The clue is in the DSL router bit. Technically you can plug a usb adsl modem into your pc and share it through the ethernet port out to the router.

Routers can be made to make many ways if you want to, I use a 3com adsl modem router as a wireless access point on the office network as I'm loath to spend money on something that will do the same job.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

:monkey:


Or an ADSL modem with an Ethernet port ;)

Re: PC world muppets!
 

I've seen some staff in many shops (not only PC World) that totally forget about the customer.
They forget about what the customer wants and instead focus on what they can push as a sale and what they can get out of it.
I think there is being a good salesperson and then there is going over the top.

I would much rather buy from someone that listens to me and understands my needs than someone who is clearly trying to push a product so that they get their commision or prize for the days biggest sale.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

This is not true. As long as you remember the settings you put into the router & you put them into the wireless adapter settings straight away, you can do this from a wireless connected PC. I have done this recently.
I do concur that it is preferable to change the router wireless settings from a hard wired PC, as you won't loose the connection (temporarily).

Re: PC world muppets!
 

and me often had to set up wireless networks with my laptop at homes. However some routers come with wireless turned off so I always carry a cable too

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Going back to PC World topic...

I once saw a techie behind the technical area check to see if an ink cartridge was empty by shaking it and listening to it to see if he could hear the ink....

...like you can hear ink when it's soaked in a sponge inside the bloody cartridge....MUPPET!!!!

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Hmm do long as its not a 'router' it self. Had massive problems with the bt voyager adsl modem which had both usb and ethernet and was essentially a 2 port wired router. Trouble was when I plugged it into my linksys cable router I could not get evrything to play ball. Finally got it all to work by letting the voyager 'router' handle dhcp for my network but then it crashed every 10 mins due to overheating.

All I wanted was to forward 1 bloody port to 1 machine. Solved it by taking advantage of a price messup on ebuyer and got a dlink 54mbs wireless adsl router for £12.00 :-)

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Bargin then ;)

Although my dlink adsl router was always a pain in the backside :(

Re: PC world muppets!
 

if i buy from pc world - i have my ipod on full blast and aim myself for the aisle that has what i want... if it doesnt i look down to the ground and weave in and out covertly to the exit...

they are fantastic when they have stuff in stock, when im doing a home job as part of my work - (and im not paying for it anyway) i purchase from pc world out of convienance. As another poster said they bale me out also when i need a quick fix.

Would go to maplin - but i used to work there and just feel awkward in there.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Only played with a friends Belkin router once. Wasnt to impressed.

PC World are without a doubt, 110% useless. :)

Re: PC world muppets!
 

We have a guy on our IT telephone support desk who is ex-PC World.

If his knowledge (or lack of) is anything to judge by then you should visit your local PC World branch regulary and remind them to breathe.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

switches are simpler less to screw up as its got no cli/webinterface ;)

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Did your friend make it clear that he had DSL cable Broadband?
To be fair, the majority of broadband users in the uk do have ADSL so if your not so s**t hot mate didnt know the difference between the 2, how can it be the reps fault?

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Indeed. Most people don't know what an ISP is let alone who theirs is, and whether it's ADSL or Cable.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

You go into a shop with a recommendation from sourceswho knows what they are about then pick up said router only to be told something wrong from staff????? it is the reps fault

---------- Post added at 18:44 ---------- Previous post was at 18:43 ----------

see above

Re: PC world muppets!
 

LOL think i agree with Intisilence.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Only if the staff told him it was compatible with cable. For instance, they could be misinterpreting something the guy said, and the customer gave the rep misleading information to possibly infer an ADSL connection was being used.

PC World do employ some muppets - I've spoken to more than a few - but I fail to believe this one at face value.

Why ask for advice if you are confident the product in your hand will work?

Re: PC world muppets!
 

No No
The guy went in with a specific model knowing that was right. They should have took his word for it and let him buy they should not have interfered. It does not take a wizkid either to ask the right questions so there ;)

Also where does it say he asked for help? your assuming he did where as the salesman may well have just interfered

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Emplyees of pc world know just as much about pc's as do the employees of Clarks shoes.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

that's an insult to employees of Clarks shoes.they more than likely know more

Re: PC world muppets!
 

True..... SAD BUT True.......

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Went into the Peterborough store a while back looking for a cheap skt939 heatsink/fan after breaking my xp120.Spoke to one of the lads in there and explained it was for a Opteron and he said" ahh a skt939 hsf wont fit as its a server chip" To be honest i was suprised he even knew what a Opteron was but still asked to speak to someone else.

Some of the people that work there are good and some are bad as with many retailer outlets,i guess it's luck of the draw as to which you get with the purple shirt wearing brigade.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

My viewpoint exactly; and some of this story still doesn't add up to me.

I go in PC World, look for myself, and come out with what I wanted. No need to ask the staff, and I can often catch them out if I do.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

I use PC World as I like the instant satisfaction of buying from a shop. I take what the staff tell me with a pinch of salt and agree that there are good and bad staff. The best thing I find with buying from PC World is that I've had no problem exchanging faulty goods over the counter, even a hard drive which failed after 10 months was upgraded at no cost to a better model as the original was no longer in stock, to do this over the internet and postal service would have been to much hassle for me.:)

Re: PC world muppets!
 

I buy online cuz I like the instant satisfaction of saving a large wedge

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Superb! :D

Re: PC world muppets!
 

And the added bonus of the "Distance Selling Act"

Re: PC world muppets!
 

PCWorld (sic) do have some bargains sometimes...

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Yup. On Friday I printed out a PC world webpage at work, to prove a price of a new mouse. It was the Saitek GM3200. This is £30 in store, £22 online. I didn't want to use the works computer to buy with my credit card, so I went into the store with the piece of paper, in order to attempt to price match. I was amazed when they said they would match their online price.
So I walked out with a mouse which cost £22. This was the cheapest I found anywhere, including online.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

This one?
http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/119665

£23 but if you build your order up to over £30.00 with say a 1 gib usb key you could use google check out and get both the items for £20.00.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Didn't know that. Oh well, happy with the £8 I saved. the mouse is damn good too.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

I remember one girl who I used to be friends with (as far as I know, I still am, just haven't seen her for a couple of years). By her own admission she knew very little about computers (her degree was in English). She was in charge of the Technical Support department at our local PC world, and advised me never to ask them for advice.

Re: PC world muppets!
 

:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl: figures!

Re: PC world muppets!
 

The best deal coming out of PCW imo,has been a £400 Compaq notebook.turion x2 64, 1gb ram,dvd-r +/- ,vista etc...these usualy come up on bank holiday wkends. so if anyone looking to buy a laptop, keep an eye out on the coming bank holiday!
Its a shame how,during interviews,companies ask u stupid questions that ppl usualy make up answers for and they don't try to figure out how truly helpful the person would b on the shop floor. I have worked at BQ, and its was beyond belief wat information the muppets would give customers!!

Re: PC world muppets!
 

Question: where's the best place to find PC world staff when you're desperately looking for help? :erm:

Answer: Usually outside the main entrance - smoking! :D

Well! - they are at the Blackpool store :dozey:

Si thee

Re: PC world muppets!
 

To redress the balance somewhat - my brother recently bought some memory for his computer from PCWorld. Now, while he's a smart-arsed patent lawyer, with a PhD in some really esotoric bio-tech field, he knows sh*t about computers. And bought the wrong memory. But, even though he'd taken it out of the protective wrapping, they changed it for him, no problem.
Still of been cheaper to get it online though!