Best Buy upset with HP over selling just 25K TouchPads

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  • Reply 41 of 116
    cycomikocycomiko Posts: 716member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by tjw View Post


    and this is related to the HP tablet how??? Prick



    about as much as most articles at appleinsider actually have to do with apple.









    ---



    Locally, I can see why apple sells. Because its the only tablet retailers have actually set up. APple gives retailers virtually no margin, while making them provide a dedicated area for apple products. Other tablets are jammed in with a pile of computers/ereaders. Most are not connected to any wifi (which the ipad is) and completely and utterly useless for anyone trying to see what the products are like. I have an ipad, my wife has an ipad. I want to see what the options are like, but I go in, the android tablets are locked, the HP (just released and no price cut for us...) is stuck on setup wifi screen. Walk around the other side, the Blackberry is in the same state. But then again, this stupid place locks all computers except macs.
  • Reply 42 of 116
    jragostajragosta Posts: 10,473member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AbsoluteDesignz View Post


    Well I'd say a good 40% of the Windows PC buyers can't afford or can't see the added value in Apple PCs...probably less but I'm being generous. The other 60+% (people like me) honestly find Windows more appealing.



    Once again, this is not always true - not even close.



    One of Apple's best sellers is the Air. PC vendors can't beat the Air on price - and are begging Intel for price cuts just so they can compete. The iPad is priced right in line with most of the competition (other than clearance sales like TouchPad). In many cases, a 7" tablet from a competitor will cost you as much as a 10" iPad.



    60% of Windows users find Windows more appealing? You're hallucinating. The overwhelming majority of Windows users never even consider a Mac and don't know anything about it. Whether that's because of FUD or network effects or price doesn't really matter. Only a very small fraction of Windows users seriously consider a Mac.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AbsoluteDesignz View Post


    Using both in my day to day (Mac for work, PC for freelance) it is no contest which is better (opinion of course) and a lot of people have similar feelings.



    You are in the minority. Apple consistently has much higher customer satisfaction ratings than anyone else. And there is anecdotal evidence that people who have used both prefer the Mac - by a significant portion.
  • Reply 43 of 116
    Wonder if HP will charge Best Buy a restocking fee?



  • Reply 44 of 116
    What a lot of us geeks don't get is that the man in the street is not a geek. He doesn't call these new computer thingies tablets, he calls them iPads - just like he goes into a shop for a vacuum cleaner and asks for a 'Hoover' he goes into a shop and asks for an iPad. I know at least one person who went into a phone shop asking for an iPhone but came out with something else because the salesman (who couldn't offer an iPhone) told him it was the same as an iPhone. My friend didn't know the difference and now regrets the purchase but has to wait for the end of his contract.



    My sister (who is completely non-technical) and her kids all knew what an iPad was. They were all over me when I saw them recently and had my iPad with me. And my brother-in-law is a died in the wool PC Gamer Windows fan. Yet the non-tech part of the family have two iPod touches, an iPhone and an iPod shuffle between them.



    The reason Best Buy overstocked itself probably had something to do with them listening to the noisy anti-Apple brigade and equating noise to volume. They chose to take the risk of over-ordering the TouchPad (presumably to hit the lowest price point on the HP discount price scale) and only they should pay for it.
  • Reply 45 of 116
    jragostajragosta Posts: 10,473member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SwissMac2 View Post


    The reason Best Buy overstocked itself probably had something to do with them listening to the noisy anti-Apple brigade and equating noise to volume. They chose to take the risk of over-ordering the TouchPad (presumably to hit the lowest price point on the HP discount price scale) and only they should pay for it.



    Yes, it was Best Buy's mistake to order so many.



    However, BB does have a legitimate complaint against HP. They were promised a good quality product. To the extent that the TouchPad failed to live up to the marketing hype, HP does have some liability. Beyond liability, of course, is the matter of credibility. Even if HP didn't overhype the product, BB sells a lot of HP products and it may not be in HP's best interests to force the issue on a POS product that no one wants.
  • Reply 46 of 116
    cajuncajun Posts: 95member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post


    Best Buy is reportedly unhappy with HP after having sold just 25,000 of the PC maker's TouchPad tablets and is unwilling to pay for the more than 240,000 unsold units, according to a new report.



    BestBuy has approximately 1200 retail outlets (plus websites) to sell equipment through. That's roughly 200 units per storefront, which sounds extremely high.
  • Reply 47 of 116
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Orlando View Post


    I don't get why anyone would buy an HP tablet.



    An iPad makes sense as it is the best tablet available and I can understand buying Android tablets if you already have an Android phone (as many people do). But a WebOS tablet?



    People with the Palm Pre Plus generally love them. From what I hear, WebOS is great. I've not really used any WebOS devices, but the demos I've seen look slick.



    I think its great to have alternative, competing OSs on the market. I've not seen anything like that since the days of the Trash 80 vs. the IBM PC vs. the Apple II. Things were more complex and interesting (albeit more confusing for consumers) in the pre-Macintosh, pre-Windows era.
  • Reply 48 of 116
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by island hermit View Post


    Suck it up, Best Buy! If you're stupid enough to stock that many Touch Pads then you should pay the piper.



    Be patient... soon HP will find a reasonable price point... $9.99.



    I expect that Best Buy is a big enough customer that they and HP will find common ground. The alternative is for BB to sell most of them to a liquidator for pennies on the dollar, which would be very bad for HP. If the sell them to NewEgg, for example, who then blows them out for $99, it would ruin the market for WebOS, maybe forever.



    HP needs to step up to the plate. Take the bullet. Keep the customer satisfied. And many other cliches.
  • Reply 49 of 116
    quadra 610quadra 610 Posts: 6,757member
    Yep. Kinda hard to sell stuff no one really wants to buy.
  • Reply 50 of 116
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Alfiejr View Post


    (ok, one 16G wifi-only is listed now on eBay. with less than 2 days to go it is up to $155 after 29 bids. i'll put it on my watch list and see where it winds up.)



    Click on the "completed listings" box to see what they really sell for. The "Buy It Now" prices are wet dreams, and the current auction prices are low until the last 30 seconds of the auction.
  • Reply 51 of 116
    quadra 610quadra 610 Posts: 6,757member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by bedouin View Post


    A big problem with the Touchpad is that its future is uncertain.



    The other big problem is that HP f-ed up the release and no one wants a half-baked iPad non-competitor. All sorts of problems with it, to which HP later admitted, almost proudly.



    It's as if Rubinstein loves to hate himself.



    Not sure what HP was thinking.
  • Reply 52 of 116
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleLover2 View Post


    I expect that Best Buy is a big enough customer that they and HP will find common ground. The alternative is for BB to sell most of them to a liquidator for pennies on the dollar, which would be very bad for HP. If the sell them to NewEgg, for example, who then blows them out for $99, it would ruin the market for WebOS, maybe forever.



    HP needs to step up to the plate. Take the bullet. Keep the customer satisfied. And many other cliches.



    I say this sincerely... $99 will appear to be too much for this tablet. Someone would really have to know what they are buying to spend that much.



    It's sad because webos is a fine operating system but HP really missed its opportunity to make a splash. Now they may never stay in the game because of this one pathetic failure.



    I can't imagine being one of the 15,000 to 25,000 people who bought one at full price. I'd be returning it to BB.
  • Reply 53 of 116
    WebOS is useless with not enough apps, and most importantly, owned by a company nobody trusts. Nowadays trust is the most important thing when selling tablets because it's a luxury and non-essential item. That's why all the Android tablets failed miserably.
  • Reply 54 of 116
    ssquirrelssquirrel Posts: 1,196member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Michael Scrip View Post


    In this thread I've heard:



    "Kind of a shame. Its better than Android."



    "I would take one of them over an Android tablet though...."



    And I can't go 5 minutes without seeing the Russell Brand TouchPad commercials on TV.



    So... what is wrong with the TouchPad? Why aren't people buying them?



    Could be people dislike Russel Brand and hate anything associated w/him. I don't, but some might. I think the main thing wrong w/the TouchPad in most people's eyes is it lacks an Apple logo and is not called the Ipad.
  • Reply 55 of 116
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,851member
    Well after this leak (once verified of course, cough cough) I guess HPs investors will know and can be duly spooked!



    I think HP should do a deal with BestBuy and do a promotion to give one of their tablets away with every set of HP inks, I mean there must be enough profit in those damned inks!
  • Reply 56 of 116
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by NeoTheta View Post


    Wonder if HP will charge Best Buy a restocking fee?







    If they don't, HP can't legally call all the ones that are returned "sold", now can they.
  • Reply 57 of 116
    but but.... I thought webOS does Flashi! What happened?

    ROTFLMAO



    Ah all these iPad "killers!".... Why don't they focus on coming up with a legit iPad challenger first and leave the "killing" for later?



    I feel bad (in a sarcastic way) for those 25,000 FOOLS who bought in to a product that will be killed soon. They thought HP is backing this, we have a future....wrong!



    Windoze tablets next? Possibly with a whopping 2.5 hour battery life?
  • Reply 58 of 116
    jragostajragosta Posts: 10,473member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by island hermit View Post


    I say this sincerely... $99 will appear to be too much for this tablet. Someone would really have to know what they are buying to spend that much.



    Not at all. $99 would be more than fair. Lots of people have spent considerably more than that for a simple eReader that doesn't do anything else. Paying $99 for a tablet that will function as an eReader as well as doing lots of other things is very reasonable. Heck, at $99, I might buy one and give it to my daughter to watch movies when we're traveling.
  • Reply 59 of 116
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Granmastak View Post


    Windoze tablets next? Possibly with a whopping 2.5 hour battery life?



    No, that was first. They got surprisingly good battery life. You've missed out on a decade of history.



    But Windows was never meant for a touchscreen. And the tablets were huge.



    Windows Phone 7 tablets will be interesting, though (Or Windows 8 tablets, whichever they decide to use).
  • Reply 60 of 116
    orlandoorlando Posts: 601member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleLover2 View Post


    People with the Palm Pre Plus generally love them. From what I hear, WebOS is great. I've not really used any WebOS devices, but the demos I've seen look slick.



    That is fine except virtually no one bought a Palm Pre. Apple can sell iPads to there existing base of iPhone owners. Motorola, Samsung, etc can sell Android tablets to the existing base of Android smartphone owners. But for the TouchPad to be a success HP must appeal beyond Palm Pre owners as there isn't enough of them.
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