Has anyone bought anything (computers or software) and had good luck with those Market Pro Shoes computer show-n-sales. There's one this weekend at the Timonium Fairgrounds. Just wondering if there's anything to stay away from. Any suggestions? Thanks.

Warren

 

you can pick up some good deals there but i would bet you can find just as good deals on ebay and avoid the crowd and entrance charge.
i had a bad experience years ago with a bad hard drive i purchased from a vendor there. those vendors don't have the best customer service
good luck!

 

by the way what software do you need? i might be able to help ya out.

 

good deals on older stuff that may be harder to find, but if you want something with a warranty look elsewhere. sketch city!

 

I haven't been to any of the Market-Pro shows, but when I used to live in NJ I used to goto the shows in the Raritan Expo hall all the time (I think KGP is the company that ran those ones). Over Thanksgiving I went there again and I was shocked that there was hardly any vendors there and their prices were pretty poor compared to what you could get online now.

If you're just looking for some basic hardware or software thats easy to find, you're better off buying online. I usually try Newegg for a lot of my purchases, and you can also use Pricewatch to find the lowest prices and then use Reseller Ratings to find out if the company is reliable or not.

If you're ordering a bunch of stuff, the tax you'll save should exceed the shipping costs.

 

You pay a $7 entry fee, so if you're going to just walk around, it's not worth your time. But if you need some good software or some hardware, I was able to pick up a lot of OEM stuff and Retail stuff there. Make sure you know your prices. For ex, I usually pick up Norton System Works when I go there once a year for about $11. They also sell dvds, computer games and video games. I bought a DVD ROM drive from a vendor and it didn't work, I called them up and they replaced it for me the next week (they were in a show in Frederick).

 

Back in the day, I used to be a Market Pro fanatic. I'd go to every show that come in town. I'd even buy the annual membership.

This was before all the good Internet shopping sites. In fact, I think the promary way to buy stuff was via the ads in the printed copy of "Computer Shopper".

Boy did they go downhill in the past few years. The one here in Richmond is more flea market than computer show - cell phone cases, luggage, 5 year old laptops, and more token ring NIC's than you can shake a stick at. Absolute crap. I won't be heading back any time soon.

My folks live in Timonium and I've been to the ones at the fairgrounds. They seem to be a little better, just due to the size of the market. However, I think you can do just as good, if not better on the Internet without paying an entrance fee.

 

Ye, I used go to the shows in MD before Dell got cheaper than White box with very hard get warranty.

Hardware, I just order from NewEgg.com, great price, great warranty service. PC, getting from Dell, $499 for 3ghz, 160gb, and msoffice 2003, very hard to beat.

software, ebay..cheap, but sometimes small seller selling software that came with specific PC brand...these are ok but sometimes it is not working well.

 

Just like the other guys I used to go all of the time. They really have gone down hill. If you want an elderly Dell or IBM PC, they usually have a bunch of them.

If you want to buy software just make sure you know what version is current. There are a bunch of folks selling outdated versions of software.

Pretty much you have to know what things should cost and know what you want.

Anymore, I just tend to go to tigerdirect.com They seem to have reasonable prices and I haven't had any trouble with their stuff. I figure any difference in the price is made up by my not having to stand shoulder to shoulder in a crouded room.

Also, unless you really want a custom PC with high end components, it is hard to beat Dell these days. The thing I hate about Dell or any other factory PC is that they load the thing down with a bunch of junk software. What I usually do is order one with the minimum amount of software that I can and format the drive once I get it and then load what I want on the system.


John