Best Buy advertising higher than regular prices as sales?
By Donald Melanson 
posted May 24th 2010 1:07PM
posted May 24th 2010 1:07PM
Could some Best Buy "sales" not really be sales at all? Shocking, we know, but stay with us for a minute. As Consumerist reports, the mega retailer seems to have recently begun advertising some laptops at prices that are actually higher than their regular price, and then taking things one step further by placing "as advertised" signs on the laptops in store -- thereby giving consumers the impression that they're getting a deal. A tipster to Consumerist specifically sites laptops like the Dell and HP modes advertised for $649.99 and $699.99 in the latest ad pictured above, which are apparently $20 and $50 higher than their regular price -- previous laptops advertised at higher prices also now seem to have gone back to their regular price. Of course, all of this seems to technically be on the up and up, since Best Buy isn't actually advertising the laptops as being "on sale" but, if it is indeed a regular practice, it's definitely not doing a service to customers, to say the least.
Update: So here's the deal: Best Buy is bundling 6 months of its Ask an Agent and Virus and Spyware Protection packages into the offers. Each would normally cost you an extra $20 ($40 in total) which Best Buy is now giving away for "free" with the inflated price tag. Hey, we're sure you were going to buy those anyway, right?
Update: So here's the deal: Best Buy is bundling 6 months of its Ask an Agent and Virus and Spyware Protection packages into the offers. Each would normally cost you an extra $20 ($40 in total) which Best Buy is now giving away for "free" with the inflated price tag. Hey, we're sure you were going to buy those anyway, right?
No suprise, a top of that sales tax.......
@techlord
I read the post a couple of time, and I still don't get it.
Who buys laptops in BestBuy anyway? I got mine in OfficeDepot with $170 rebate... OfficeDepot stores look more beatup but you can snatch awesome deals. Screw bestbuy
@techlord
All retailer do this. I remember years ago going into Music stores years ago, then is when we had to walk in to stores to buy Music... Anyway, they would have most CD's retail for $12 - $15 (RIP that Process!) and then all of a sudden the "Sale" came and you saw the sticker on that CD that was $15.99 the week before and it now said:
Regular Price: $21.99, Sale: $18.99.
Welcome to Rip-Off Ville, and you're a Resident!
@BecauseItsNotGoogle Agreed, Best Buy is advertising items that they sell. The print doesn't actually indicate sales for marked-up or original priced items. There is no big conspiracy, there is no trickery - its business. Back to real news.
@BecauseItsNotGoogle
Agreed and heaven forbid anyone from doing some research before buying a laptop or otherwise big ticket item...
@SLINC
Yup. Common tactic that is used in ALL retail stores. Heck, I remember working at CompUSA just last year and they would jack prices up by $20-$50 for the "blow out sale!"
@BecauseItsNotGoogle
Actually, this kind of news regarding Best Buy's sales practices is why I never shop there. From bogus in-store setups comparing overpriced Monster HDMI cables to component cables to charging $55 for a $50 gift card and now this all adds up to a pattern of abusive and deceitful sales practice.
@BecauseItsNotGoogle
Agreed.
Stick to the apple rumors........not the "hard hitting" journalism.
@ValhallaSky
I worked @ a CompUSA in NorthEast Philly back in like 1996... WORST JOB EVER!
People came in there with the Chip on their Shoulder wanting to pick a fight.
@techlord
only stupid people should have a problem with this. there's two things to think about when looking at this situation, if you're going out, and buying new TVs/laptops/fridges etc w/out ever shopping around, but just trusting the price u see in ad is the best price, 1) you're a dummy or 2) you have just way too much money on ur hands.
And even if in the case you buy a laptop at the regular price when it is advertised, and the next week it were to go on sale....who said you can't 3) price match it? Word to the uninformed: if you buy something at best buy, look at the date of your receipt. Come in 30 calendar days after your purchase, go to customer service, and say ''i would like to price match this''. When they scan/type ur receipt information into the computer, the computer automatically gives you the lowest price in the last 30 days/4 weeks worth of ad changes. So be wise, and not lazy, and you might actually save yourself a few dollars.
Does a ten pound bag of flour make a really big biscuit?
@techlord
Who hasn't priced something on the Dell web site only to go back two minutes later and the price is different? Or look up the identical item on the Dell business site and find it's cheaper.
Engadget and especially you are Noobs. Both those prices are the regular prices of the laptops and the definition of as advertised means that it is in the Ad, not that it is on sale. Maybe should look at a Best Buy Ad again and see that there are two different things, those advertised and those on sale, before you just go bashing on something and look like tards. That's just bad journalism. And if you think Best Buy rips people off so bad, maybe you should look at Office Depots Ad this week. They list a HP G60 laptop as if you are saving $150, yet Best Buy has almost the exact same laptop as a regular price for $20 more than their "sale" price. Last time I checked, something with those specs listed at a regular price of $639 might have been like 2 years ago. So I guess you can call that a Sale, Office Depot.... Do some research first Engadget, otherwise, you have readers like this noob who think he's getting a good deal at places like Office Depot.
@pbj
Basically what happens is Best Buy raises the price of their laptops a couple days before they are advertised in the ad. You would assume the advertised price is the lowest it is offered at, but in reality, after the sale is over, they drop the price back down to its original price. Yes, they do it, I've witnessed it myself.
@Dandmcd
Lol bestbuy only changes prices on sundays... they dont change something on a friday and then take it back down for some sale...
Lowest advertised price means its the lowest price the manufacturer has ever allowed them to advertise.
Dont say stupid things.
You are an idiot if you got charged $55 for a $50 gift card. Because, first, the credit you pay goes onto the card they aren't like some pre-done cards that they mark up and, second, I doubt that happened but if it did you just got ripped off by a thief employee. It's not Best Buys fault that you're stupid.
@schultz
False, prices change daily, I should know, I work there! I spend the first hour or two of my day repricing the store. Not only do they change daily, sometimes price changes happen midday on occasion.
@techlord
Shocker! Best Buy ain't a best buy. Apple rules though!
@techlord Yep, hopefully they won't do this on blackfriday, else people will go crazy. http://bit.ly/blackfriday-2009-walmart-worst-video
The not so Best Buy.
@furquanatique I'd think that majority of the audience here already know that
BB is a frickin joke. The only time I go in there is to see what I want to purchase online.
@furquanatique
Best Buy elsewhere.
@furquanatique I am still waiting on the expose where they sell notebooks at a loss. Oh that does not count? Too many people want stuff for free or at such a low price that no money is made on the item, and wonder why such high markups on cables and services are there.
If the price is too high, then get it somewhere else, but I am not going to be one to begrudge any company trying to sell something for an actual profit. And to those who did not know before.
As advertised =/= On sale
It's like people complaining about some services/attachment costs being a rip off. All the while they are getting a machine orders of magnitude more powerful than what was available yesteryear, and at a FRACTION of the cost of the older machines, even with the add ons, with less margin for the companies that sell the items and make them. But who cares about them.
@tybert7
I like the customers who say that a 350 dollar celeron laptop is WAYYYY too expensive or that netbooks are WAYYYY too heavy. It's almost like they didn't know notebooks/netbooks existed until yesterday.
A fool and his money...
slow news day, right?
@kingofwale
Next we're going to hear that they markup cables and accessories...
@PlatinumSkeet
Only if Gizmodo posts it first hours earlier... Seems to be the trend lately... This, the Hulu on 2.2 etc... :(
@kingofwale, They took steve being at wwdc to be breaking news. It is a really slow news day for them.
Yeah, but who told that if it's on sale it must be cheaper than regular price. And they have rights to change the price when ever they want.
@artissco In Europe if it's on sale it must be cheaper than regular price, or they get busted.
@artissco There is a little thing called business ethics. It's not required, but most people agree that it should be used...
Corporation engaging in best interest for self, unethical to consumers?!
In other news, Goldman Sacs reached an agreement with the senate..
I haven't bought anything from Best Buy in 6 years. Long live online shopping!
@GixxeR not every time, at least I wont buy my TV online, don't know if something happen to it while shipping as seller refuses that its not his fault, some defects come up after 6 months or so
While I can't comment on the raised prices I used to work for best buy and everything that was in the ad said "as advertised" on the price cards. They also had cards that showed "on sale" with the regular price on it. But the weird thing was sometimes things would say "as advertised" and they would be on sale and sometimes they would be regular price.
Yeah i love how they always "advertise" Macbooks at a base of $999...why even advertise that??? When is the last time that price changed ONE PENNY?!? I understand Apple sets that price, but why bother??Not suprised at all about this article ONE BIT
@BecauseItsNotGoogle why are you hating on everyone? engadget didn't say this illegal, they didn't even say it should stop. they just pointed out the scummyness and dishonesty of it. i agree with you in part: buyer beware. but that doesn't make it perfectly ok to do.
this is no different from that lady in canada who was ripped off on a mazda. some companies like mazda will stand for the good of their customers and make sure this kind of thing doesn't ever happen to their products, and some companies like HP obviously don't give a crap about their customers and will let best buy and others get away with it. i'm not talking about the legality of it or the money-making logistics of it. just basic human decency.
@BecauseItsNotGoogle oh, forgot to link to the mazda thing. it was a total win. http://www.autoblog.com/2010/05/14/followup-mazda-terminates-canadian-dealer-that-swindled-custome/
@Siefe Around the holidays Best Buy had the iMacs and MacBooks for $100-200 off depending on model. In November I got my 21.5 iMac for $1099 instead of $1199 - and I used reward zone which got me an extra $20 back in gift certificates. Total price (before tax) was $1079 for the Apple desktop that just came out 3 weeks before.
I wouldn't say they NEVER go on sale, just, rarely do.
@onemadrssn
.........it's scummy to sell products with legitimate markup over msrp at a walk im store? To lazy consumers who won't research prices?
Imagine if best buy allowed you to purchase from other vendors. Or if they didn't put a clearance sign on these prices. Oh wait!
@onemadrssn
HP could care less. Best Buy purchases these computers from them to RESELL, so as bad as it is they can mark it up all they want. HP already has their money, so they don't care. Same with every other company in the world.
@PBB not its not the same with every other company in the world. if an uninformed person goes into best buy and sees bright yellow sale signs over an HP laptop and buys it and later finds out from their informed friends that they got ripped off and it was bad price, they will have huge buyers remorse and will be very unlikely to buy an HP product again. this hurts HPs long-term brand perception. some companies take this very seriously (apple for one, mazda and i showed in my earlier example, among many others) and they will refund the offended customer and make it right.
i understand that being decent isn't as profitable as being a scumbag (and being a scumbag is not illegal), but it makes my heart beat easier and slower knowing i'm not a scum bag. also knowing that i am educating at least some consumers to make better choices.
one time not too long ago i was at best buy shopping for a GPS unit. the blue shirt told me to buy a garmin because garmin owns 13 satelites and tomtom only owns 5, therefor garmin is better. no dipshit, niether of them own any satellites, they use public signals sent from us air force satellites, and theres only a dozen of them total. things like that aren't illegal, and they shouldn't be, but they are 100% wrong and people who practice them should not be allowed to breathe the same air as me :-)
@onemadrssn All they had to do was some independent research instead of an impulse buy because of flashy signs. I see people on ebay that overpay because of bidding wars. People get caught in the moment, get burned, and have no one to blame but themselves. I don't see how it hurts the brand of the product you just bought. If I go online, find the MSRP, and see it is less than what I paid then shouldn't I be mad at the retailer and not the brand? When I go out to a bar and I have to buy a $8 beer I realize that the bar is overpriced but it doesn't change my perception of the brand.
It's idiot tax. I love it. Read the fine-print!
Best Buy has been doing this for over a decade.
How is this news?
caveat emptor
This isn't surprising. BB has a very slim mark up on laptops, in most cases if anything it's only a few bucks. I'm sure someone higher up thought it would be a good idea to test the waters and see if they could get away with this to try and turn more of a profit now that people are becoming more aware that they can get their accessories cheaper at other places. When I worked for BB if we sold a computer or laptop with out a certain amount of accessories, and a service plan we were given a "talking too" in the back room and if it kept up that person would be gone in short order.