it's best to buy new from a reputable dealer (even if you are a poor student) because there are so many things that could be wrong with the console.

GEEKTHOUGHTS - Is Best Buy really the best buy?

I've been very happy with Best Buy, having purchased a number of
computer peripherals, a TiVo, and even a digital and video camera
recently. That's why I was surprised to hear of the experience
described below, which has made me think twice about purchasing any
cards or computer parts from Best Buy in the future.

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Imagine your excitement if you're a 3-D enthusiast and a new video
card has just hit the streets. This new card is no cheap card, either,
selling for about US$500.

So, you go to your local Best Buy and pick one up. Then you go home,
unwrap the packaging as if you were a kid on Christmas morning, and
plug it into the PC. On boot-up you notice something strange, however:
for some reason Windows is detecting the card as a model lower than
the one you just purchased.

You go to the card manufacturer's website and download the latest
drivers since it's clearly a driver issue. One new driver install
later and the card is still being detected as an older model.

Being a computer-literate person, you shut down the PC and inspect the
card a little closer. Now you see that the identification label on the
card is actually glued on poorly, and you come to find out that the
card you purchased is in fact an older card that someone has somehow
put a new card label on. The surprising thing is that the card was in
a sealed package in a shrink-wrapped box!

Clearly this is just a simple error at Best Buy or the manufacturer,
so off you go to Best Buy to explain the "funny" situation that has
occurred.

Now here's where it gets sad and not funny. The salesperson tells you
that he can't exchange the card for a new one since, clearly, YOU
switched it out.

WHAT??!!!! You just spent $500 on a new card and now Best Buy's
telling you that you are stuck with the old one?

So, you talk with the store manager, feeling that resolution is almost
at hand. Surprisingly, you get the same response from the manager that
you got from the salesperson.

Now you're stuck with an older card that's clearly not worth the $500
you paid. What would you do next?

Well, the person who this REALLY happened to called Best Buy corporate
... which had the same reaction and refused to do anything about the
card. The person then called the Better Business Bureau. He even
called the local news and told the story, hoping the channel would do
a news feature on it. Needless to say, he was still stuck with the
older card that he paid a new card price for--and he really wanted the
new card. What would you do next?

This person devised a plan. Why not go to another Best Buy and tell
the salesfolk that the card doesn't work right and that he wants to
exchange it?

Unfortunately for him, Best Buy is pretty savvy, so the returns person
put the card into one of their test machines and told him that not
only was nothing wrong with it, but it was, in fact, an older card.
Still stuck with the same card, he finally gave up, never to shop Best
Buy again.

What would you have done? I think I would have done the same things
that he did, except that I probably would have actually broken the
card and crazy glued the new label onto the card so that it would look
like it was the NEW card.

I had a friend who once bought a soundcard, took it out, and returned
the box without the card--it was heavy since there were a lot of
manuals. While I don't condone that behavior, it may have worked in
this case.

In the end, this person spent his hard-earned cash on a new card and
got screwed. The person that stole the NEW card from Best Buy or from
the card manufacturer got away with a new card.

I'm hoping that this newsletter reaches someone who can make a
difference here, and if appropriate I'll share the name of the person
this happened to and give Best Buy a chance to make it right.

Best Buy owns Future Shop. And I don't mean "ownz" (I don't much care for either store), I meant they literally own Future Shop.