Where do you buy your hardware?

[W1zzard]

We're wondering, whether you're buying most hardware online, or prefer to go to retail stores to check out the merchandise first.

 

[jak_2456]

How about a third option for local classifieds like craigslist or FB Marketplace? I've bought a lot of stuff there. Or the third option but vice versa?

 

[dirtyferret]

parts: microcenter & amazon,
PCs & laptops: DELL outlet & Newegg

 

[Sithaer]

Mostly from a second hand site/forum in my country but I guess that also counts as online so I've voted that.
At least for the more expensive parts, case/mouse/keyboard and peripherals in general I buy new from an online shop located in our capital city.

Checking out in person is not really an option for me since the closest place like that is 50+ kilometers away from my place and they don't have too much stuff displayed either. 'yeh I'm always jealous of Microcenter whenever I watch a video about it or hear what kind of deals they have, thats simply not a thing here/EU in general'

 

[Count von Schwalbe]

Microcenter is nice but bear in mind they don't have that many stores. I could drive from Budapest to anywhere in Hungary in less time than it takes for me to get to my "local" Microcenter.

Other than that, the choices are Best Buy or Walmart, pretty much. Generally I might impulse buy a SSD or maybe a RAM kit from these, but the prices and selection for big-ticket items or even things like PSUs and Cases are pretty dismal. So online it is. Newegg, Amazon, Best Buy online, and B&H are almost always cheaper than buying in store anyways.

 

[Dr. Dro]

Online, there are almost no physical hardware stores in my country, and all of them target a very specific segment of laymen who have no technical understanding of things, in other words, they sell old tech at extremely high prices.

 

[jak_2456]

I also consider myself quite lucky that I'm not too far away from a Best Buy or a Micro Center. However, I buy some of my hardware from eBay because it's either a) old and not sold anymore or b) much cheaper used.

 

[Sithaer]

Microcenter is nice but bear in mind they don't have that many stores. I could drive from Budapest to anywhere in Hungary in less time than it takes for me to get to my "local" Microcenter.

Other than that, the choices are Best Buy or Walmart, pretty much. Generally I might impulse buy a SSD or maybe a RAM kit from these, but the prices and selection for big-ticket items or even things like PSUs and Cases are pretty dismal. So online it is. Newegg, Amazon, Best Buy online, and B&H are almost always cheaper than buying in store anyways.

Aye I've heard that they don't have too many around but still at least its a thing.
I don't have a car/driver's license either so traveling around simply doesn't worth it for me in general when our retail stores are meh at best. 'crazy overpriced too'

Sometimes I do meet up with the second hand seller/buyer if its possible/not too far but luckily that wasn't needed in the past ~2 years or so and all of my second hand deals went smoothly w/o issues. 'At least we do have some decent forums for such where I can find solid/trusted sellers'

 

[Legacy-ZA]

Online, but I can tell you this, if there was a Microcenter here in South-Africa, I would be all over that place.

 

[TheinsanegamerN]

There's literally nowhere around here to buy parts in person. The nearest microcenter is 3 hrs away. So everything is online, either new via newegg/amazon/B&H/Manufacturer or via marketplace/forums.

 

[Macro Device]

A mix of everything with the serious leaning into buying second hand parts from various non-store persons on local Craigslist equivalents (Avito.ru in this case). I personally test equipment before paying so I virtually never run into any unpleasant surprises. Online stores have better prices and more no-name parts of good enough quality going on compared to retailers but oftentimes, no warranty, de facto at least.

The only things I got in my system bought in retail are my RAM ("DLSS" PC only and only half of it, another half was bought 2nd hand) and that Team Group SSD from my YOLO-PC. Oh, and my peripherals, these are also from retailers, with headphones being purchased online and mousepad being an exception as it's bought 2nd hand.

People are scared and/or disgusted by used parts but I'm constantly low on cash (don't tell me to get a job, I know it wouldn't hurt to do so) so it's my only reasonable option + if you buy a used last-gen thing that's about 2 or 3 years old you can be certain it outlived factory defects and can be totally trusted to live for many years if you don't abuse it yourself. Also saves the world from too much e-waste.

 

[Mr. Perfect]

Both, really. For most things I buy them online, either because they're exclusively available online or there isn't time to drive an hour+ each way to Microcenter. On the other hand, Microcenter really has some great prices sometimes. That and it's just fun looking around there.

 

[randomTPUreader]

I've bought the vast majority of my PC hardware online for the past 20 years. I only do retail/in-store if there is something I absolutely need right away and can actually get it locally.

Before that it was a mix of in-store and mail order (Computer Shopper FTW in the 90s!) Most of the in-store purchases were things like add-in cards or RAM. Mail order for larger items like cases, mobos, HDDs, CPUs and the like.

The area I live in the Midwest US is a decent sized metro area (250K+ people) but has never had a good or stable mix of shops that sold PC parts. Hence my reliance on having thing shipped to me for decades. We've had a Best Buy since the early days of the chain, but I hate the location the only remaining one in the area has been in since the early 2000s so I almost never go there. I even worked part time at one long closed store for a few months back in 1997 before I got a better full time job elsewhere.

 

[ajcardiac]

Mostly online.

There is only one bricks & mortar store in driving distance (CCL) - other than Currys / PCWorld.

Amazon.co.uk is a mainstay of mine.
Others I use are Scan, NeoComputers, NovaTech, Currys, CCL, OverclockersUK, eBuyer.
Quite happy checking out 2nd hand from eBay.

I have been to MicroCenter in Philadelphia when visiting my son.

 

[Arctucas]

Both.

 

[Sithaer]

People are scared and/or disgusted by used parts but I'm constantly low on cash (don't tell me to get a job, I know it wouldn't hurt to do so) so it's my only reasonable option + if you buy a used last-gen thing that's about 2 or 3 years old you can be certain it outlived factory defects and can be totally trusted to live for many years if you don't abuse it yourself. Also saves the world from too much e-waste.

Yeah I've also did not have any truly bad experience with the second hand stuff I've bought with simply following my own rules + what I've learned over the years.
Like my record so far is 1 dead brand new GPU and 1 dead GPU from the second hand market when I was still in the learning stage/much younger.
Usually we also get at least some kind of a warranty on that forum where I buy/sell my stuff. 'my 3060 Ti came with 1 year when I've bought it from the previous owner and now its been a bit over 2 years since I have it as my daily driver'

I can find much better deals there than if I tried to buy the more expensive parts brand new. 'I'm also not exactly swimming in money..'
Tbh nowadays I don't even bother checking the brand new prices and straight go to my usual second hand place when I'm curious and my brother does the same.

 

[Caring1]

The retail store I use only trades online, so it's browse and order online then pick up in store.

 

[Chomiq]

Online, occasionally with in-store pickup if I don't mind walking to the local equivalent of Media Markt that's about 2km away. It helps that your customer protection is much better when ordering online (30 day return window) than buying directly in store.

 

[Todestrieb]

Have to do both.

Everything on my build except PSU and the very old monitor is bought on Taobao, mostly because of local stores have bad availability and/or pricing.
The old monitor I'm using has a dead pixel, and after my brother got a good cheap gaming monitor with no dead pixels (the AOG 24G2 I'm using), that starts our e-tail journey.
The local stores seldom stock AMD products even back when 5800X3D is the king of gaming, and during that time e-tail has a significant price advantage, so that is that.

However, there was a lot of hassle related to the defective GPU I bought on Taobao, (edit: local availability for AMD is much better now, although higher-tier AMD GPUs are still difficult to find) and the price difference is now negligible, so I'm almost certain that the next major purchases will be on local store.

 

[DirtyDingusMcgee]

Newegg mostly. Amazon if i can't find it elsewhere. ASI is good for OEM stuff that others cannot get. I have a friend and colleague that owns a local computer shop, and he keeps a good stock (i buy lots of cables from them). They are great for when i need it now or need stuff from Ma labs or MSi.

 

[Knight47]

There aren't many retail stores with actual stock here or they have very limited stock. You can check out the boxes from 2 meters on the wall or inside a glass case.

Saves them a lot of money, because they don't need any warehouse and a small shop is enough.

 

[SN2716057]

I would love to check stuff physically but there aren't any hardware stores that have the stuff I want. So online it is.

 

[Gigaherz]

Online and used.
I only get something from the store if I need it immediately like an ssd or sd card, wifi stick, stuff like that.

 

[_roman_]

I had many issues with my recent hardware purchases in past three years.
Dead PWM for the fans on a new graphic card / dead psu after 18 months / dead display backlight (self dicagnosed) after 11 months of 12 months warranty for a refurbished notebook (last month)

The local democratic law and the shops do not take back defective goods in my point of view.

Buying online gives me a chance to unpack and see if it works.

Most local stores always say the phrases: "Oh - I have to order that". Before that they do not even know what I ask for. Buying locally is just too time consuming and has a 40 percent surplus tax.

Paying for a parking spot in Vienna, the capital of Austria, makes it even worse.

 

[TheLostSwede]

Both, or sometimes order online and pick up at the local store, assuming they have a good price.