Dick Smith up for sale

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#575948 1-Feb-2012 15:45

jbard:
stevenz:
They have house band products which are rubbish, batteries included.

Actually, I've found most of the DSE branded stuff to be pretty reasonable. I got a DSE router which turned out to be an extremely reliable rebranded TP-Link unit. Given it's a house brand most of it is still over-priced, but there's some gems to be had.

+1

On the other hand I bought a DSE-branded $50 powered USB hub. It lasted about a month. It's replacement lasted... about a month. I did not bother going back to replace the replacement.

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Byrned

455 posts

Ultimate Geek

#575952 1-Feb-2012 15:58

Maybe Best Buy will try and establish themselves in this corner of the world.

They're going through a program at the moment reducing their square footage of the stores, but at the same time opening more points of presence, including in China, so I guess it's not inconcievable that they wouldn't take the opportunity to overnight have a large presence, and later do a rebrand.

crackrdbycracku

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#575960 1-Feb-2012 16:23

SaltyNZ:
jbard:
stevenz:
They have house band products which are rubbish, batteries included.

Actually, I've found most of the DSE branded stuff to be pretty reasonable. I got a DSE router which turned out to be an extremely reliable rebranded TP-Link unit. Given it's a house brand most of it is still over-priced, but there's some gems to be had.

+1

On the other hand I bought a DSE-branded $50 powered USB hub. It lasted about a month. It's replacement lasted... about a month. I did not bother going back to replace the replacement.

Put it this way, anybody think the house branded stuff DSE have, including the Konka TVs, are a good enough reason for Dick Smith to exist?

Didn't anybody tell you I was a hacker?

stevenz

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#575978 1-Feb-2012 16:47

Byrned: Maybe Best Buy will try and establish themselves in this corner of the world.

They're going through a program at the moment reducing their square footage of the stores, but at the same time opening more points of presence, including in China, so I guess it's not inconcievable that they wouldn't take the opportunity to overnight have a large presence, and later do a rebrand.

Best Buy tried England, they didn't last long (April 2010-January 2012), I doubt they'd be too keen on trying way down here after that wee experiment. That was a joint venture with Carphone Warehouse who are doing fairly well with their own stores however.

JB are pretty close to Best Buy's format but a bit more no-frills if that's possible.

@KnightNZ

mattwnz

20141 posts

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#575979 1-Feb-2012 16:49

crackrdbycracku:
SaltyNZ:
jbard:
stevenz:
They have house band products which are rubbish, batteries included.??

Actually, I've found most of the DSE branded stuff to be pretty reasonable. I got a DSE router which turned out to be an extremely reliable rebranded TP-Link unit. Given it's a house brand most of it is still over-priced, but there's some gems to be had.

+1?

On the other hand I bought a DSE-branded $50 powered USB hub. It lasted about a month. It's replacement lasted... about a month. I did not bother going back to replace the replacement.

Put it this way, anybody think the house branded stuff DSE have, including the Konka TVs, are a good enough reason for Dick Smith to exist? ?

I often wonder why retailers have house brands, but I guess the margins on them are greater.

crackrdbycracku

1168 posts

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#575982 1-Feb-2012 16:59

I often wonder why retailers have house brands, but I guess the margins on them are greater.

I think it gets people in the door. You look on line and go 'wow, that's cheap', when you get to the store the 'retail associate' [Don't look at me, thank Stephen Elop] wastes no time telling you that the house band is rubbish and you should in fact be buying a TV which is three times the price. Not that you can blame a person working on commission.

Didn't anybody tell you I was a hacker?

alienwithin

136 posts

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Inactive user

#576009 1-Feb-2012 17:44

the last i heard of dick smith last year was that harvey norman was taking a quiet look at buying DSE

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Aaroona

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#576014 1-Feb-2012 17:50

To be honest I'd love for it close down. Its a waste of time anyway. DSE lost itself when it started doing away with kits, electronic bits, and started employing muppets.

Its been a long time coming and honestly, I'm surprised its taken this long.

theoldfarter

233 posts

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#576063 1-Feb-2012 20:48

I got given a Dick Smith $50 gift voucher for Christmas. I mainly buy console games from them as, with their VIP card, I get a 10% reduction on the advertised price. In relation to console games, they are cheaper than their competitors here in Masterton. The next game I am waiting for is Mass Effect 3, due out 9th March. Hope my local store does not close before then. lol

Dunnersfella

4086 posts

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#576071 1-Feb-2012 21:00

stevenz:
Byrned: Maybe Best Buy will try and establish themselves in this corner of the world.

They're going through a program at the moment reducing their square footage of the stores, but at the same time opening more points of presence, including in China, so I guess it's not inconcievable that they wouldn't take the opportunity to overnight have a large presence, and later do a rebrand.

Best Buy tried England, they didn't last long (April 2010-January 2012), I doubt they'd be too keen on trying way down here after that wee experiment. That was a joint venture with Carphone Warehouse who are doing fairly well with their own stores however.

JB are pretty close to Best Buy's format but a bit more no-frills if that's possible.

Best Buys KILL JB Hifi in every way, shape and form.
Their home theatre rooms / range and high end panels smoke what JB's stock.
They're not crowded, full of teenagers with piercings... sorry, staff...
Honestly, I would equate JB and Fry's.

And for those people who believe DSE should go back to selling electronic kits...
I could only imaging the posts on Geekzone complaining about their prices, and how they went on-line and bought the same thing for $12 less including freight.

CamH

564 posts

Ultimate Geek

#576106 1-Feb-2012 22:20

I think the Dick Smith brand has outlived it's time. 9 years ago, I would go into DSE to buy batteries, components etc and I loved to make up those kits they sold. Today, I only go into DSE if I want to be insulted by some staff member who's bored in his job or look at some GPS I can purchase online for $40 less.

DSE need to shut down retail, channel all their money into online, completely re-do their site and drop their prices. That's how everything's going anyway. Oh and those TV's - Get rid of them, if I want a cheap TV, i'll go to the warehouse - At least the staff there know something about the product they are selling.

nakedmolerat

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#576114 1-Feb-2012 22:44

my DSE branded DVI - HDMI cable, is still good after 3 years of rigorous use

surfisup1000

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#576163 2-Feb-2012 07:56

freitasm:
crackrdbycracku: Features house brand Konka TVs the quality of which staff describe as 'not quite there yet' [I asked on Saturday] and a great value range of branded AA batteries.

That's not the truth. Their branded AA batteries are bad value. I bought a cheap digital camera for my daughter and the staff recommended "why not some spare batteries?". I thought "Why not?" and bought a couple.

They are so bad, the camera only took 20 pictures before borking. Not even using good batteries (three sets of a well known brand alkalines) after fixed it. I "reset" the camera by removing the batteries overnight. Next day the camera worked fine. I took to my local DSE and the person there said "hmmm, they shouldn't have recommended that, those batteries are not good enough for digital cameras and other electronic devices".

I find the DSE AA branded alkaline batteries to be excellent value. Cheap as chips , often on sale, and power my kids toys like little troopers.

They last months on the computer mouse. Went for a full week camping and they powered the walkie talkies the whole time and still not run down.

Although, I see now that Bunnings are stocking very cheap alkaline AA's,will have to give'em a try.

Maybe that is part of dick smiths problem, they are no longer the exclusive source for many technical products.

sbiddle

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#576168 2-Feb-2012 08:14

I'm not quite sure why JB would want to buy DSE. DSE have many underperforming stores in poor locations, many would argue they would be far better off continuining their own expansion plans with their own brand rather than buying a brand that has been struggling for a number of years.

scuwp

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#576169 2-Feb-2012 08:20

I always go into DS with great expectations, but I honestly can't remember the last time I walked out with a smile on my face. Other than cheap photo prints I also don't think I have handed over any cash in a long time. Use to have experienced knowledgeable staff and awesome range, now just like any other electrical retailer. I think they lost their way about 5 years ago when they 're-invented' themselves. The staff try hard, but now most of the ones I come across wouldn't know an Apple from an Android. Past time they went and left other better retailers to it.

Lazy is such an ugly word, I prefer to call it selective participation

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