$1700 for QX6700 at Newegg - Ridiculous

[HannibalX]

It's currently 1200 @ Newegg.

I won't be buying one at any price.

 

[DrMrLordX]

Originally posted by: zsdersw

Of course they're free to express their opinions, but that was never the point. The point is that those opinions are ridiculous.. and I'm going to point that out, period. The customer can expect to pay whatever he/she wants, but that doesn't make it a crime for retailers to offer to sell it for more than that amount.

It doesn't make it a crime . . . but many consumers find this sort of demand exploitation to be rude and opportunistic.

When customers go away, the price drops. When customers form lines to get a certain product, the price goes up. It's a self-regulating system.

Most, if not all the posters in this thread already know that. However, the retailer has the option of ignoring certain aspects of the free market system at their own discretion, or at the very least can exercise a certain degree of restraint. The problem is that when customers go away, one has to realize that maybe they should never have been driven away in the first place. Maybe the retailer (in this case, NewEgg) should never have set the price so high as to have driven people off in the first place. They can continue doing this, if they like, but what's the sense in that? The retailer pisses people off and maybe loses business, and the customers get pissed off and have to go shop somewhere else.

The people who just *had* to have a QX6700 when it was initially offered for $1700 on Newegg (and determined they would buy it from Newegg) are precisely the people who will pay the premium for being among the first to have the product in their hands. The desire to be "the first to have it" is an intangible force that retailers would be foolish not to put a dollar amount on.. and everyone else would be foolish on which to question either the customer or the retailer.

The people who "had to have it first" are arguably the most valuable resource available to consumer technology retailers in existence. Of course you want to take advantage of them, to a point. If you push things too far, lose them, and then drop the price hoping to get them back, they might not come back. If you've got them lining up at your site/storefront on a regular basis for new releases, why rock the boat? Keep them happy. Keep them coming back. When you pinch them for an extra 5-20% or so on new stuff, they'll hardly take notice, right? Then you pinch them for ~%55, they take notice.

The price of admission to being a computer enthusiast is precisely situations like this.

Not it isn't. The price of admission is being curious about computer hardware, messing around with it, and so forth.

Complaining about prices in an online forum is as stupid and useless (and, yes, bullsh!t) as complaining in an online forum about taxes, prescription drug costs, and everything else we the public find is wrong with the world. Oh, woe is me! Newegg charged a premium for a niche product that's in demand for a select few! Whatever will I do?

I'll tell you what they'll do: they'll go on a forum like this, tell people about the price that offended them, and in some situations try to convince others that the price was offensive. In this case the OP was so amazed by the price that all he did was tell people about it without even making his own value judgment. We came to our own conclusions. The majority of posters here concluded that what NewEgg did was offensive to the bleeding-edge tech consumer.

How can I go on with my life? Too dramatic for you?

No, not really.

The "twist the dagger" remark was too dramatic.

If you say so.

The people who wanted a QX6700 are going to come back to Newegg.

They'd better hope . . .

A price anomaly, alone, rarely turns a customer away permanently because price is just one of many factors that online shoppers consider.

I don't know that we can consider this to be a price anomaly. The Egg had some uh . . . wild pricing episodes during this year's great rush on Conroe CPUs. To quote Duvie:

Originally posted by: Duvie

Screwegg has been doing this more and more....I think maybe their CEO went to school with boys from Haliburton and the Oil companies....

This is anecdotal, but it is still a valid example showing how NewEgg's pricing practices have been noticed and are starting to annoy some premium buyers. Duvie IS a premium buyer, even if he is prudent in his acquisition of hardware (the ES Kentsfield for $660 was a smart buy for example). NewEgg should want a guy like him shopping there first when new items are released. Do you think he'll be interested in buying a $1199 QX6700 from them if/when he sets up another Kentsfield box for himself or a friend/acquaintance? Probably not.

Other things count, too.. such as speedy shipping, good order status and tracking information, and just the sheer selection and variety that Newegg offers.

They don't stand out as much as they once did, and while I've had good experiences with two of NewEgg's competitors, I won't mention them by name to avoid making a statement that might read like an ad for a specific company . . . teehee

Additionally, as someone else mentioned, many of the same people who had to have the QX6700 and complained about the $1700 price Newegg was charging are the same people who sell their "old" computer stuff on eBay for as much as they can get for it, which is the same thing Newegg was doing.

Two things:

1). Got links to back this up? I don't know that I'd count myself in this group of people, but for what it's worth, the last piece of computer hardware I shlepped off to an acquaintance was for free. I gave one of my friend's brothers my old T-bird box, lock stock and barrel 'cuz he needed it and I didn't. No way I was gonna let that thing suck up juice with Hecubus Mark II in the house. I also gave away my old GeForce 4 ti 4200 to my friend as one part of a two-part wedding present. And no, this does not make me a saint, just saying you're painting with a rather broad brush here aren't you?
2). Those selling off used hardware are still selling their stuff for well below MSRP while providing information on overclockability of hardware (when applicable) making purchases of RAM, CPUs, and video cards less of a crap shoot (props to etailers that ship specific steppings on request). People buying up old s939 X2 and Opterons in the wake of Core 2 pwnage are racking up the good deals. And I'm sure you'll notice that, at least here on Anandtech, as MSRP on things like Opteron 165s and Athlon X2 3800+s drop, prices on the FT/FT forums here have also dropped. In my experience, the FS/FT folks here price their stuff to move, not to gouge. So they aren't doing the same thing.

The bottom line: Newegg will remain on their list of places to consider when the next thing they have to have comes along.

This remains to be seen. I am not quite so confident, and that worries me. If the Egg starts to dwindle, then I lose my free hardware shopping guide. Eek!

The "average customer" is not going to buy the QX6700 and the QX6700 is not a mainstream product,

. . . and yet look how many people have noticed NewEgg's old price of $1700 for the QX6700? You seem to forget that, while we may not be in the market for such an item, we probably know of or are friends with someone who might buy a QX6700. And we don't like watching our friends or relatives get screwed, do we? Of course not. We'll steer them away from companies whom we see as threats to early adopters.

 

[zsdersw]

Originally posted by: DrMrLordX
It doesn't make it a crime . . . but many consumers find this sort of demand exploitation to be rude and opportunistic.

"Many consumers" are not going to be purchasing the QX6700 or other niche products at the very cusp of their presence in the market, either.. whether it's offered at MSRP or not.

Most, if not all the posters in this thread already know that. However, the retailer has the option of ignoring certain aspects of the free market system at their own discretion, or at the very least can exercise a certain degree of restraint. The problem is that when customers go away, one has to realize that maybe they should never have been driven away in the first place. Maybe the retailer (in this case, NewEgg) should never have set the price so high as to have driven people off in the first place. They can continue doing this, if they like, but what's the sense in that? The retailer pisses people off and maybe loses business, and the customers get pissed off and have to go shop somewhere else.

If you think the very temporary price of $1700 for such a niche product like the QX6700 is such the abuse of the free market system that you're painting it as, then you've definitely got a classic case of making a mountain out of a mole hill.

The people who "had to have it first" are arguably the most valuable resource available to consumer technology retailers in existence. Of course you want to take advantage of them, to a point. If you push things too far, lose them, and then drop the price hoping to get them back, they might not come back. If you've got them lining up at your site/storefront on a regular basis for new releases, why rock the boat? Keep them happy. Keep them coming back. When you pinch them for an extra 5-20% or so on new stuff, they'll hardly take notice, right? Then you pinch them for ~%55, they take notice.

Here's a newsflash: they're still lining up at Newegg's site on a regular basis. The audience for the QX6700 is not even the majority or the whole of what is considered the "computer enthusiast" segment of the market. Newegg knows that people will keep coming back because, on the whole, they're probably among the best places online to buy computer hardware. I ended up buying nearly everything for my Conroe system from Newegg simply because everywhere else was a "Wild Bill's Computer Parts" potential scam operation or simply not as inexpensive. I bought the CPU from ClubIT and the hard drive from ShopBLT, but other than that.. it was all Newegg.

Not it isn't. The price of admission is being curious about computer hardware, messing around with it, and so forth.

Oh, if only it were that simple.. but it isn't. My "price of admission" statement wasn't about just the QX6700.. it's about all computer hardware. What's the average length of time that the average computer enthusiast runs his current setup without any upgrades or changes? I'd wager it's *significantly* less than a year, probably closer to just a few months. It's like being an enthusiast in any other area; take cars, for example. Most people don't do any upgrades on their cars, but car enthusiasts do everything from both simple and complex performance and appearance upgrades to complete swaps of major car components.. at a cost that sometimes exceeds the worth of the actual car. The price of admission for being a car enthusiast.. or a computer enthusiast.. is spending lots of money that you don't really *need* to spend. The QX6700 is the hot new exotic-sized set of alloy spinner wheels (for lack of a performance-related example); those who want them will spend *a lot* to have them, let alone to be among the first to have them.

I'll tell you what they'll do: they'll go on a forum like this, tell people about the price that offended them, and in some situations try to convince others that the price was offensive. In this case the OP was so amazed by the price that all he did was tell people about it without even making his own value judgment. We came to our own conclusions. The majority of posters here concluded that what NewEgg did was offensive to the bleeding-edge tech consumer.

All of which is essentially pointless. Not buying it from Newegg, alone, would've had the desired effect on the item's price. Consumers complain with their wallet.. by not using it. Everything above and beyond that is a waste of time and effort.

They'd better hope . . .

The QX6700 won't make or break Newegg.. even if everyone who wants one doesn't order it from Newegg.

I don't know that we can consider this to be a price anomaly. The Egg had some uh . . . wild pricing episodes during this year's great rush on Conroe CPUs. To quote Duvie:

This is anecdotal, but it is still a valid example showing how NewEgg's pricing practices have been noticed and are starting to annoy some premium buyers. Duvie IS a premium buyer, even if he is prudent in his acquisition of hardware (the ES Kentsfield for $660 was a smart buy for example). NewEgg should want a guy like him shopping there first when new items are released. Do you think he'll be interested in buying a $1199 QX6700 from them if/when he sets up another Kentsfield box for himself or a friend/acquaintance? Probably not.

The Conroe and Kentsfield CPU's aren't like 250GB hard drives or computer cases. They're premium products (at the time of their initial introduction) and early adopters will pay a premium for them.. it's as simple as that. Anyone who would pay $1700 for a QX6700 or whatever the highest Newegg price for the X6800 was should have their head examined. Most enthusiasts in the market for those new products would've waited a little while when the price from Newegg dropped, as it always does. And guess what? Those enthusiasts aren't pissed off at Newegg.. and will continue to buy stuff from them. I'd wager there's far more of them than the kind of people you're talking about.

They don't stand out as much as they once did, and while I've had good experiences with two of NewEgg's competitors, I won't mention them by name to avoid making a statement that might read like an ad for a specific company . . . teehee

Newegg is as aware of its competitors as anyone.

Two things:

1). Got links to back this up? I don't know that I'd count myself in this group of people, but for what it's worth, the last piece of computer hardware I shlepped off to an acquaintance was for free. I gave one of my friend's brothers my old T-bird box, lock stock and barrel 'cuz he needed it and I didn't. No way I was gonna let that thing suck up juice with Hecubus Mark II in the house. I also gave away my old GeForce 4 ti 4200 to my friend as one part of a two-part wedding present. And no, this does not make me a saint, just saying you're painting with a rather broad brush here aren't you?
2). Those selling off used hardware are still selling their stuff for well below MSRP while providing information on overclockability of hardware (when applicable) making purchases of RAM, CPUs, and video cards less of a crap shoot (props to etailers that ship specific steppings on request). People buying up old s939 X2 and Opterons in the wake of Core 2 pwnage are racking up the good deals. And I'm sure you'll notice that, at least here on Anandtech, as MSRP on things like Opteron 165s and Athlon X2 3800+s drop, prices on the FT/FT forums here have also dropped. In my experience, the FS/FT folks here price their stuff to move, not to gouge. So they aren't doing the same thing.

1.) Since I don't know anyone's eBay ID's.. it would be hard for me to come up with links, now wouldn't it? But, for what it's worth, I have seen many people on here mention how they're going to sell their old stuff on eBay. Since your "part 1" deals with whether they'll sell it or just give it away, that's all I'll mention under my "part 1"... now on to part 2...

2.) Those selling their items on eBay are selling below MSRP because it's USED. Unless you're going to be unethical and pass it off as New, you're gonna have to indicate it as Used and ask a price that's something less than MSRP. Common sense, though, tells us that while the seller is motivated to sell, and recoup some of his money.. he/she also wants to get as much as he/she can get (exactly what Newegg is doing with the QX6700). As most everyone else does on eBay, the seller will probably look to see what other people are selling the item for (and/or what auctions for the same item have closed for) and position their price very near it, maybe offering free shipping or something else to make their auction more desirable.

. . . and yet look how many people have noticed NewEgg's old price of $1700 for the QX6700? You seem to forget that, while we may not be in the market for such an item, we probably know of or are friends with someone who might buy a QX6700. And we don't like watching our friends or relatives get screwed, do we? Of course not. We'll steer them away from companies whom we see as threats to early adopters.

The forums of Anandtech are not an example of "many people".. and our "friends" who might be looking at a QX6700 are probably savvy enough to do their own research and price shopping.

 

[Tegeril]

Newegg hiked it back up. 1599. Lame.

 

[DrMrLordX]

Originally posted by: zsdersw

"Many consumers" are not going to be purchasing the QX6700 or other niche products at the very cusp of their presence in the market, either.. whether it's offered at MSRP or not.

People pay attention to prices on many items when making judgments about whether or not they like a retailer's pricing policies. That QX6700 price really stuck out like a sore thumb, as did many of their Conroe prices.

If you think the very temporary price of $1700 for such a niche product like the QX6700 is such the abuse of the free market system that you're painting it as, then you've definitely got a classic case of making a mountain out of a mole hill.

This statement seems to sum up what you're not entirely understanding about my argument . . . the free market system really has nothing to do with this discussion, or shouldn't. It's about how NewEgg is choosing to treat its customers. They can set prices however they want, but supply-side economics can't save them from bad press and negative word-of-mouth. This is about customer relations more than anything else.

Here's a newsflash: they're still lining up at Newegg's site on a regular basis. The audience for the QX6700 is not even the majority or the whole of what is considered the "computer enthusiast" segment of the market. Newegg knows that people will keep coming back because, on the whole, they're probably among the best places online to buy computer hardware.

NewEgg has a huge customer base that won't turn on it the way Monarch's has, mostly because NewEgg isn't imploding (as is Monarch, apparently). That being said, nobody is invincible. I've already seem some folks on here basically turn on NewEgg in the past year.

I ended up buying nearly everything for my Conroe system from Newegg simply because everywhere else was a "Wild Bill's Computer Parts" potential scam operation or simply not as inexpensive. I bought the CPU from ClubIT and the hard drive from ShopBLT, but other than that.. it was all Newegg.

Last machine I bought was 95% from mwave. It woulda been 100% but their RAM selection stunk.

Oh, if only it were that simple.. but it isn't. My "price of admission" statement wasn't about just the QX6700.. it's about all computer hardware.

Sure it is. Enthusiasts can get their fix buying new hardware or playing with old stuff. Makes no difference. Plenty of old hardware comes cheap or even free. Some enthusiasts just read the tech docs and articles to keep up on what's new without toying with the junk in person. I'm on a very slow upgrade cycle myself, and whenever I do buy stuff, it's almost always loss-leaders or equipment 2-3 generations out of date so I don't get burned by sensational "gotta have it now" price gouging. Usually I wind up paying less than the original MSRP on every component that I buy, and I add additional value through the sacred art of ghetto overclocking. I don't get the latest stuff, but I get what I need.

What's the average length of time that the average computer enthusiast runs his current setup without any upgrades or changes? I'd wager it's *significantly* less than a year,

Who knows? Plenty of folks in this forum sit on their machines for 2+ years at a time.

All of which is essentially pointless.

If the OP's post was pointless, then why were you so angry about it and all the people who seemed to share his implied sentiment?

Not buying it from Newegg, alone, would've had the desired effect on the item's price.

Again, here's another point you don't quite seem to be grasping. Nobody posted in this thread to force NewEgg to charge less. We did it to express irritation with NewEgg for ratcheting up their price-gouging on new items. If they're charging $1700 (or $1599 now apparently) for a QX6700, what should we expect from them when the E4300 launches? I might actually want one of those. Looking back at what they did with the E6300-E6700, the E6800 and the QX6700, I would imagine that the E4300 will sell for a pretty penny on NewEgg whenever supplies fluctuate. What that tells me is: buy elsewhere, warn others.

This whole thread is basically a heads-up to forum readers to think twice before buying new stuff at the Egg. Nobody here is trying to control prices on NewEgg.

Consumers complain with their wallet.. by not using it. Everything above and beyond that is a waste of time and effort.

Okay, now that's just silly. People have been banding together to share stories about retail experiences for years. Consumer reporting and consumer advocacy are big deals and go far beyond people "complaining with their wallets". Does the name Ralph Nader mean anything to you? I think he's gone bonkers in the political arena, but his influence as a consumer advocate/watchdog is world-renowned.

The QX6700 won't make or break Newegg.. even if everyone who wants one doesn't order it from Newegg.

It might hurt their reputation.

Most enthusiasts in the market for those new products would've waited a little while when the price from Newegg dropped, as it always does. And guess what? Those enthusiasts aren't pissed off at Newegg.. and will continue to buy stuff from them.

I just gave you a prime example (Duvie). This thread is full of people who basically feel the same way . . . they're put off by the former $1700 price tag whether they got the part elsewhere or never were in the market for one in the first place.

I'd wager there's far more of them than the kind of people you're talking about.

Why? Do you honestly think anyone enjoys going to the Egg, seeing an astronomical price on an item that they want, grumbling about it, and going to ZipZoomFly to get it instead? What a pain in the ass that is.

Newegg is as aware of its competitors as anyone.

Eh? I was just trying to say that NewEgg has competition without shilling for some other site. I don't have a financial stake in NewEgg's failure (or their pricing policies), nor does anyone else in this thread with the possible exception of TankGuys (and he defended NewEgg, well sort of).

1.) Since I don't know anyone's eBay ID's.. it would be hard for me to come up with links, now wouldn't it? But, for what it's worth, I have seen many people on here mention how they're going to sell their old stuff on eBay. Since your "part 1" deals with whether they'll sell it or just give it away, that's all I'll mention under my "part 1"... now on to part 2...

We've got lots of posters selling stuff here for good, low prices in the FS/FT forum. eBay is its own dysfunctional beast, as is any auction site really. I don't know why you're fixated exclusively on eBay.

2.) Those selling their items on eBay are selling below MSRP because it's USED. Unless you're going to be unethical and pass it off as New, you're gonna have to indicate it as Used and ask a price that's something less than MSRP.

Another point you seem to be missing here. Whether or not people are trying to get as much money as they can selling used components or not, they're still always selling below MSRP, and the buyer is always getting a good deal provided that the part still functions like new (or with some rough approximation to new that makes the item still useful). Even $5 off MSRP for a used CPU is still a $5 savings. The same can not be said of NewEgg's price of $1700 for a QX6700 which, as you yourself said, is a price so high that anyone paying it should have their head examined.

In summary:
Getting a functioning used product for less than its current MSRP (or last known for EOLed products) is a good deal. Buying a new product for %55 more than MSRP is not a good deal. Intricate analysis is not required to come to this conclusion.

The forums of Anandtech are not an example of "many people".. and our "friends" who might be looking at a QX6700 are probably savvy enough to do their own research and price shopping.

The forums at Anandtech are not the only place where people might disparage NewEgg's astronomically-high prices for new items. And believe me, you'd be surprised by the number of times I've had to save tech-savvy friends, acquaintances, and associates from making bad hardware purchases, especially guys in the It industry. They do not have the time or will to keep up with half of this junk because they're busy slaving away on legacy systems at work. Either that, or maybe they're just lazy.

Originally posted by: Tegeril
Newegg hiked it back up. 1599. Lame.

Yeah, well, yeah. If anyone can't find a QX6700 elsewhere for less after reading this thread . . . oy.

 

[myocardia]

Originally posted by: DrMrLordX

Originally posted by: zsdersw
Newegg is as aware of its competitors as anyone.

Eh? I was just trying to say that NewEgg has competition without shilling for some other site. I don't have a financial stake in NewEgg's failure (or their pricing policies), nor does anyone else in this thread

It seems to me that maybe one person in this thread has a financial interest of some sort in newegg.

 

[zsdersw]

I certainly don't. A computer hardware retailer would be the last place I'd do any investing.