Micro Center

I bought an my first Apple here. The salesman said I could get the One to One class at the Apple store just by going there and paying the $99 for the class. WRONG! You can only get in the ONe to One class if you purchase through Apple directly. Also he talked me into iWORK software ($79) saying I needed it so my computer would be able to receive emails and docs from PCs with no problem. Just got off the phone with Apple because I was sick and tired of not being able to open emails from friends with PCs who sent me videos and pics. The nice lady at Apple helped me download a free app that solved my problem. She said iWORK is for graphs,charts,spreadsheets,etc. I want to start over. Return it all to Microcenter and re-buy from Apple! more

Tthis place is rediculous!! I bought 2 sticks of RAM that were on sale (rebate) and the sales rep told me the rebate applied to both sticks. When I sent in the rebate information, 1 was denied because they only allow 1 per household. I was clearly told by the sales rep that the rebate applied to each that I bought. At first I thought it was just a poorly educated sale rep, but when I called in to complain about this and advise them to inform their sales reps of the policy...the manager hung up on me. more

Pros: Microcenter carries a broad selection of computer and electronic parts. If you're building a new system, or upgrading and repairing an old system there's a good chance they'll carry what you need to get the job done. Convenience. I love Newegg and other online parts dealers. However there often times when you need to see and handle a product. Or you just can't wait for 3-4 days for a part to be delivered. This where MC really shines. It's well located. Squished between everything, and yet far removed enough from everything so that traffic isn't a beast. I love that I'm able to get in and out in fairly quick time. They do a fairly admirable job of keeping pricing similar to what you'd find online. Not always, and not with every product, but certainly better than other retail stores like Best Buy. Cons: Microcenter doesn't necessarily carry a deep selection of computer and electronic parts. It's hard to knock them for this too badly as there's only so much retail space and they just can't carry every possible make of a product. However don't expect to have the same kind of selection you'd encounter with online retailers. Level of knowledge can vary. Seems like a no-brainer, but not every employee is going to be able to help answer a particular question. I've found some employees are more helpful/useful than others. Still, better on the whole than what I've found at places like Best Buy, Radio Shack, etc... Pricing can be outrageous on some products. Major components (graphics cards, power supply units, etc...) are often similar in price to online retailers. Watch the little stuff though. Example: trying to sell a bottle of rubbing alcohol (cleaning agent) for almost $20. Can find the same product for $2 at Walgreens. All in all, Cincinnati is fortunate to have a store like Microcenter. It's not perfect for every situation, but it does enough things right, enough of the time. more

I made 3 trips to Microcenter purchasing and returning the same piece of bum equipment (a Cannon Scanner). The last trip, I asked if someone could turn on the scanner so I wouldn't have to drive all the way back to return it again. They directed me to the computer help center, where one person was already assisting a customer. When I asked how long I would be waiting he claimed ""Oh, it will be a while!"" Meanwhile, 3 guys in the returns and services area (where they could clearly see that I wasn't getting any help) just stood there hanging out. I asked if they could help me and all of them just lamely shrugged their shoulders and said ""Sorry, the other guy is on break and we can't do anything about it"". #1 rule in customer service is act like you care, #2 rule is do SOMETHING!!! Your company represents this shoddy product and you should bend over backwards to make it right! What is wrong with the management in this store? more

Micro Center has a great selection of parts if you're planning on building a PC. They have a lot of well-trained people. Prices are especially good on Apple products, too. Pros: Great selection, knowledgable staff Cons: Only 1 Cincinnati location more

Recently took my PC in for repair or files recovery. The machine would power on, but freeze immediately. Took it to MCM and was told in their report that there was software corruption and needed a format and reload. ""All data on the unit will be lost."" I paid $79 for that! And, they offered to reload for another $60.00 - reload what? Pros: Large selection of hardware and software Cons: Often, no one answers the phone more

Calling Micro Center Mall @ 11:45 with no answer and no machine picking up. I've made several attempts and it just rings until it times out. ????... Maybe they don't open up until noon. more

Cable was going to take another week until it was installed, so I decided that I wanted to play movies from my computer onto the TV until the cable was hooked up. A sales person from Circuit City directed me to Micro Center to find a adapter for my macbook, after I told him I was new to the area. When I entered the store, I could not find anything and all the sales people in the main section seemed to busy to assist me. I asked a salesperson who was restocking for help. He told me that I would need two adapters, one from the main accessories section (HDMI to DVI) and one from the mac section (mini-DVI to DVI). He walked with me back to the mac section and they were out of stock of the second adapter. A salesperson warned me that if I had a Samsung that did not have a VGA input.. not to connect my computer because it could cause my TV to EXPLODE!!! Well since they did not have the right adapter in stock I did not buy anything that day. But noticed that you could get $200 off anything over $200, if you sign-up in store for Vonage. Since I was already planning to use Vonage, after my cable was set up, I returned to Micro Center to get Vonage and hoped to use to discount on a new TV. When I got to the store, I learned that the discount was $250 (bonus!), but they did not have any displayed TVs instock that were $250-$300. I used my new blackberry to search their website, since they claimed to allow you to order online and pick-up in 18 minutes. I saw a TV that would work and asked a salesman about it. He told me that it was not in stock and that I would have ordered it and later received an e-mail telling me that it was no longer in stock. So I went back to looking and since you had to use the discount the day you signed up, was debating leaving (just getting Vonage elsewhere) or buying a more expensive TV. I asked if the more expensive TV was in stock...and the salesman told me that he had made a mistake and the original TV I had asked about was actually in stock. So while the whole process took longer than I planned, I got a Vonage adapter (79.99), 19"" LCD TV (279.99) which both had rebates (-70 for Vonage and -50 for the TV) and 250 discount for signing up in-store with Vonage. So with rebates, I only pay ~$10 taxes for the equipment purchased in the store. (NOTE: This total does not include the activation fee during the online subscription to Vonage.) I like that the salesman was honest, he could have just sold me the more expensive TV. When my husband wants to purchase electronics, we will visit Micro Center and I'll look for the same salesperson. Pros: large selection, competitive prices Cons: can be overwhelming to find things more