Macs at Best Buy Canada

kung fu guykung fu guy
Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
Best Buy Canada has started to sell macs, a year after opening in canada. I saw an ibook, emac and powermac. iPods have been around for a while. While this appears to be a good thing on the surface, macs given more visibillity and distribution, this smacks of the old apple strategy. And we know how well that did. In a few months, the macs will be pushed to a corner of the store. The sales from Best Buy will be negligible. Why bother? Best Buy's sister company, Futureshop, sells a couple of macs. Didn't they learn?

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 12
    frank777frank777 Posts: 5,839member
    Today was a holiday, so I'll check out Best Buy tomorrow. If it's anything like Future Shop, it'll be a waste of everyone's time.



    Since Computer City shut down, Canada doesn't have a big box CPU retailer like CompUSA in the U.S. Apple has a presence in the smaller Compusmart outlets, but they need a national player or to start up Apple Stores in the provincial capitals ASAP.



    If Best Buy wants to do it right, all they need do is devote a single aisle to showcase Macs. On the shelf you'd have the iBook, iMac, Powerbook and Power Mac. Below the top shelf, a selection of the top 50 software products and Mac specific accessories on the end caps. Compact to save space, but still showing a committment to the platform.



    If they won't do that, they shouldn't do it at all. Putting one iMac on display and no software on the shelves - a la Future Shop - is a recipe for disaster.



    I live around the block from a Future Shop and when we purchased our last two Macs, I went to Mississauga and Scarborough dealers to check out prices.



    Never even considered making such a large purchase from a store that obviously doesn't care.
  • Reply 2 of 12
    satchmosatchmo Posts: 2,699member
    Absolutely correct. I can't stand the way Apple products are treated and neglected at both Best Buy and Future Shops here in Toronto.



    More often than not, the iPods were broken at the Best Buys I visited. The iMacs at Future Shop were dirty and not working properly.



    The lack of a good Apple presence in Canda begs the bigger question. What happened to the proposed Apple Stores opening up in Toronto?
  • Reply 3 of 12
    kung fu guykung fu guy Posts: 158member
    I like what Compusmart is doing with the mac. They are a national retailer on a smaller scale. Not some general electronics behemoth. Apple should find regional partners like compusmart.



    On another note, Best Buy got rid of their appliances dept. Maybe things aren't as rosy as it appears. After a spectacular launch, maybe the ship sprung a few leaks. Bad timing on apple's part.
  • Reply 4 of 12
    frank777frank777 Posts: 5,839member
    Didn't know that. It may be a good thing...now they have space for a real Apple Store-within-a-store!
  • Reply 5 of 12
    purepure Posts: 26member
    at 401 & Kennedy there is a Compusmart within the Kennedy Commons plaza. Real nice Mac section
  • Reply 6 of 12
    mandimandi Posts: 17member
    I saw the macs at best buy as well. I was over there on tuesday. They were in the corner of the computer department, all alone. There were two ibooks (12" and 14" 1Ghz modles), Powermac and an eMac. The 14" ibook wasn't working The sales people looked at me funny when I was playing with the macs. They had this expression "ewwww... you're touching a leper!" lol Oh, on a shelf about they also had the Airport base, and two copies of Microsoft Office 2004 for mac... wow. talk about selection.



    They don't sell macs anymore at futurecrap. I saw an eMac there awhile ago... and yeah, it was all broken and dirty. No one takes care of our poor little babies! damn them!
  • Reply 7 of 12
    jim paradisejim paradise Posts: 116member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by satchmo

    Absolutely correct. I can't stand the way Apple products are treated and neglected at both Best Buy and Future Shops here in Toronto.



    More often than not, the iPods were broken at the Best Buys I visited. The iMacs at Future Shop were dirty and not working properly.



    The lack of a good Apple presence in Canda begs the bigger question. What happened to the proposed Apple Stores opening up in Toronto?



    What's really odd about it is that considering our population size, Canada has one of the largest user bases for Apple.
  • Reply 8 of 12
    satchmosatchmo Posts: 2,699member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Jim Paradise

    What's really odd about it is that considering our population size, Canada has one of the largest user bases for Apple.



    I've always wondered what Apple's marketshare is, here in Canada. Do you have any numbers?
  • Reply 9 of 12
    blackwaveblackwave Posts: 84member
    I just browsed the Mac selection at an Edmonton BestbUy today, infact. Contrary to your unfortunate experiences detailed above, mine was quite friendly and competant. The models on the shelves were up to date, their prices were as-good if not less than Apple's, and the sales person was surprisingly knowledgable. They had two iBooks, a 15" Powerbook, a 1.8 Dual PowerMac (17" display paired) and an eMac on display, mentioning the presense of the other powerbook/eMac/PowerMac/Display models in the back. The manager, amusingly, heard me bantering with the sales person over the powerbook and offered me a job.

    I'd figure that to be a small signal that this store, at least, is interested in Mac sales. Hell, they were praising the Macs saying how glad they were to have them in their store.



    Oh, and all of the CompuSmart's I've been to around here have comparitively worse selections of Macs and even less knowledgeable salespeople. Not to mention, some 90% of the time, their display models are _completely_ outdated - often by as much as a year.
  • Reply 10 of 12
    frank777frank777 Posts: 5,839member
    I went in last weekend as well. In Mississauga, there was little to no software, but there were spaces reserved for various titles.



    The funny thing is there was a typo in the flyer for the Mac opening weekend. A 15" Superdrive Powerbook was advertised for CAN $2649, when the price is usually $3299. They did knock $100. off the eMac (to $999.), but I'm sure that was a typo for the Powerbook.



    If I'd had the $2700. to spend, I would have tried to get it.
  • Reply 11 of 12
    the cool gutthe cool gut Posts: 1,714member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by satchmo

    I've always wondered what Apple's marketshare is, here in Canada. Do you have any numbers?



    The only numbers I know are that there are more Mac users per capita IN Canada than the U.S.



    So, Steve ....



    WHERE'S OUR F*CKING, G*D DAMNED MUSIC STORE!??!!! FOR CHRISTS SAKE !!!!GET THE F*CKING BOAT SHOW SAILING ALREADY!!!!!! WHAT THE F*CK ARE YOU GUYS SITTING ON YOUR F*CKING *SSES FOR .... EHH?!?



    HOLY F*CK DOES THIS PISS ME OFF!!!



    JESUS



    CHRIST











    F*CK







    But I digress.
  • Reply 12 of 12
    kung fu guykung fu guy Posts: 158member
    I went back today to check out the mac section. It's been completely renovated! Appliances gone. New digital hub/media and service area. They even moved the giant wall screens over from the tv section. They have special stations devoted to demos. Looks nice but the rest of the computer section is cramped. I noticed new service people called "geeks". They were wearing geek tshirts. I wonder if these are Bestbuy employees or outsourced help. And the macs were at the back wall, next to the service counter. 3 software titles that I could see. I also bumped into a apple demo day rep. Same old tired apple strategy. Sigh...
Sign In or Register to comment.