Fry's Electronics Sucks

If you are looking for Fry's web site, their highly informative web site can be viewed at www.fryselectronics.com. I'm sure that with a web site like this...See more » If you are looking for Fry's web site, their highly informative web site can be viewed at www.fryselectronics.com. I'm sure that with a web site like this they'll quickly dominate Internet sales. Fry's also owns frys.com. Update: A list of Fry's sale items is available at http://www.shoppinglist.com/sl/p?p=n&by=store&s=F&store=Fry%27s+Electronics. Fry's Electronics is a huge store that sells computers, software, household appliances, junk food, and electronic components (as well as other unrelated items). Their selection is huge and their prices are not bad. They frequently have full-page ads in the newspaper. This is where the great part of Fry's ends, however. Fry's likes people to buy their products, but they hate customers. The people who work at Fry's typically have no training and are frequently encouraged to not help customers. No employee can make any decision (probably because Fry's won't train them). Every decision must pass through a manager. Because of this highly ineffecient system, this often leads to long waits and a significant amount of frustration on the part of the customer. What Fry's don't want you to know, however, is that many other stores have similar prices but much better customer service. I guess the other stores spend more money on hiring more qualified employees and training them and less on advertizing. Usually the best service is at small mom and pop stores, and often their prices are competitive with Fry's. Try shopping around a bit. You'll be surprised to find that Fry's often doesn't have the lowest price. One other advantage of other stores is that they often have their catalog on the web where customers can look up prices and selection. Fry's doesn't trust anyone. They don't trust their employees, and they certainly do not trust their customers. The customer is always wrong at Fry's. Fry's regularly searches their employees at the end of the day and even inspects their own dumpsters (see the article at Forbes). Fry's also has a security person at the front of the store who inspects the items of customers leaving. What Fry's wont tell you is that you do not have to let them inspect your bags. In fact, it is illegal for Fry's to detain you to search your property without first charging you with shoplifting. Another illegal practice of Fry's which I have been alerted to is that for large purchases payed by check Fry's will copy your ID. Apparently this is illegal, but don't quote me on that (I am not a lawyer). Fry's has a great return policy. Unfortunately people need to use it far too often. I have read numerous reports of returned defective items being placed back on the shelf. I can attest to this from personal experience. There have been numerous times where I have had to return items that were obviously previously opened and defective, sometimes in a nicely sealed package without the sticker indicating it was previously opened. If you do see a sticker on the box, stay away from the box, as the chance that the item inside is defective or missing some critical part is very high. It is also a good idea to open the box as soon as you purchase an item. I have read on several occasions about people buying an item and finding that they just spent $100 for an empty box. My experience is that around 1 in 4 items at Fry's is defective. If there are a lot of items on the shelf with the restocking sticker, assume that all of the items are probably defective. It is always a good idea to inspect tthe items you purchased before you get very far. If the box has a sticker indicating that it was restocked you might want to inspect it up at the cash register to make sure everything is present (although it still has a high probability of being defective).See less »