VPR Matrix Laptop for cheap if available in your area

[BentValve]

I guess I didnt finish. ..
Anyways I really like the laptop but if it breaks I am screwed, I can keep it and gamble that it will keep running ,otherwise if it breaks I am screwed. Or I can take it back , finish paying off my BB card and finally tear it up once and for all...I mean it this time , this is the last straw for me.
Then go buy a Dell instead.

What would you do? What are the odds of a laptop breaking?
BTW I left out another part...when I got it home I noticed a screw was stripped out on the bottom of the unit, it looks like someone had it apart and when they went to put back in the LCD screws they did not realize that you sort of have to open the LCD and alight the holes, they just forced it in and it stuck about half way, hence the loose LCD, I am a mechanic so I am pretty comfortable with this sort of stuff, I went to the hardware store and bought the right screws and a tap, tapped out the hole and reinstalled the screws correctly. Now its as tight as a drum.
I ran Sandra Burn-In wizard 145 times and have run 3-D mark 2k3 at least 6 times now and the laptop is
very stable and runs great, better than my Athlon XP 2000+ desktop in some ways!
I have never owned a laptop so I am wondering if this kind of stability is extremely common or something?
I really want to keep this laptop but I would like to have a better idea of what my odds are of something going wrong since I am all on my own. How much are HDs and CDR/DVD roms etc? Do LCDs fail? (BTW I cannot even find a single dead pixel on mine)

 

[DWray]

I picked up a display model yesterday in store. I figure I'll send in the rebate form anyway, can't hurt right?

Anyway, since mine was without a box, if someone could send me a scan of their UPC code from the box (Not the receipt or anything, just need a copy of the UPC), I would greatly appreciate it!

davidwray@fuse.net

Thanks!

Edit: Paid $899.99 for the display + $199.99 for the 3 year plan +$79.99 for the Linksys Wireless Router

 

[iamwiz82]

these laptops are one of the ugliest designs of all time. I saw some at BestBuy last night and their look put me off so bad that it wasnt worth the savings.

 

[gordita]

Originally posted by: dew042

Originally posted by: digital3300


basically if the store feels it can sell the laptop on its own then it wil cancel the online order inspite of being in stock... they earn more by selling in B&M... like there won't be this $200 in-store.

that's just not true. best buy stores don't have time to turn away assured revenue. that's just ridiculous. profit on one laptop is smaller than you might expect and your assertation that there are a bunch of csr's sitting there scheming to cancel orders is laughable. furthermore rebates are fulfilled by a 3rd party fulfillment co and it does not affect the individual store's revenue. and even furthermore best buy stores are encouraged to fill .com orders.

i can tell you for sure that my best buy store has not had either of these models for about 3 weeks - which would make filling an order rather difficult. right now vpr is in between product lines. we just got new emachines and sonys too. its product cycle turn right now.

but what do i know.... the guy with one post is an expert....

dew.

any idea on what the new lines will look like?
i love the widescreen model and would love to buy their current one or if the new one is even better.....
what is the timeframe for their new line?

 

[chrisjor]

thanks for the info!!

 

[lundog22]

hehehe read my post about getting a $200 3 year service for a $800 Laptop

~Link~~


Not all bestbuy is bad, mine is friendly and nice. I shop there all the time.

 

[chanfo]

Originally posted by: DWray
I picked up a display model yesterday in store. I figure I'll send in the rebate form anyway, can't hurt right?

Anyway, since mine was without a box, if someone could send me a scan of their UPC code from the box (Not the receipt or anything, just need a copy of the UPC), I would greatly appreciate it!

The UPC code contains the serial # of the unit. I think they track the rebates by serial also.

I picked up the 200A5 which is the P4 2.0M 15" widescreen for $1200 after rebates. Also paid for the $250 3 year warranty. Mine is made in Taiwan and not Korea.

 

[mtgcollector01]

Just ordered one.

The price was AUTOMATICALLY changed in the confirmation price to $948. Good deal.

So $1000 after tax - $200 = $800 = what I sold my ZE4100 for.

 

[digital3300]

Originally posted by: dew042

Originally posted by: digital3300


basically if the store feels it can sell the laptop on its own then it wil cancel the online order inspite of being in stock... they earn more by selling in B&M... like there won't be this $200 in-store.

that's just not true. best buy stores don't have time to turn away assured revenue. that's just ridiculous. profit on one laptop is smaller than you might expect and your assertation that there are a bunch of csr's sitting there scheming to cancel orders is laughable. furthermore rebates are fulfilled by a 3rd party fulfillment co and it does not affect the individual store's revenue. and even furthermore best buy stores are encouraged to fill .com orders.

i can tell you for sure that my best buy store has not had either of these models for about 3 weeks - which would make filling an order rather difficult. right now vpr is in between product lines. we just got new emachines and sonys too. its product cycle turn right now.

but what do i know.... the guy with one post is an expert....

dew.

Here's the s*it I got from Beastbuy today,

"Thank you for shopping at BestBuy.com.

One or more of the items that you've recently ordered have cancelled.
Please take a moment to contact our Customer Care representatives by
replying to this e-mail or by calling us toll-free at 1-888-BEST BUY
(1-888-237-8289) for further assistance.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. The details of your
order are below."

Would someone with 1942 POSTS and REGISTERED since 2000 care to explain this? I knew this was coming from my previous expereince with beastbuy! The MF's cancel anything they want to even if its in stock at store. (I called the store and they indeed have it in stock, just no rebates.)

So the score now is 7 cancellation out of 8 orders. I had a digital GC applied which they will now not return to me, happened in past also. To make things worse the evil beasts will not remove the hold on my credit card for weeks from now :|

I swear I will NEVER shop with worstbuy again.

 

[digital3300]

The b*stards actually sent 2 emails... here's the second one,

"Thank you for shopping at BestBuy.com!

Unfortunately, the items you ordered were not found at our store.
Please contact our Customer Care representatives at onlinestore@bestbuy.com
or toll-free at 1-888-BESTBUY (1-888-237-8289) to check product
availability at other locations, or we'll be happy to ship those items to you
free of charge."

I am now waiting for the expert with 1900+ posts to explain this! Its actually becuase of support from handful of morons that worstbuy survives. Sorry but I can't help but be caustic.

 

[BentValve]

I bet the reason they are doing that is because an employee is buying them.

 

[vortix]

Digital...if you just call them they will work out the problem - same thing happened to me and everything's all good now after talking to them

 

[muttley]

does this have the scroll mouse feature?

 

[jodhas]

Originally posted by: iamwiz82
these laptops are one of the ugliest designs of all time. I saw some at BestBuy last night and their look put me off so bad that it wasnt worth the savings.

dude, what are you smoking??? it's a sweeeeeeet looking laptop.

then again, it is said that the beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

 

[CStrikeADDICT]

Originally posted by: jodhas

Originally posted by: iamwiz82
these laptops are one of the ugliest designs of all time. I saw some at BestBuy last night and their look put me off so bad that it wasnt worth the savings.

dude, what are you smoking??? it's a sweeeeeeet looking laptop.

then again, it is said that the beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

i agree.

does anyone know any deals for laptop cases?

 

[muttley]

does this have the mouse scroll feature?

muttley

 

[TekDemon]

Originally posted by: jodhas
Well, anyhow...
Now that Samsung knows that their products are a big hit here in US, they are beginning to sell notebook computers in US as well. (the T and Q models). Samsung will probably put an end to all this OEM crap and start taking over with their brand.

Yeah, haven't you noticed their new DigitAll advertising blitzes? I've seen sooo many of those at the movie theatres in NYC it's getting quite annoying...lol
Quite the push if you ask me...they do have a LOT of new sexy products though...like the ultra super sleek DVD player, etc.

I have a Samsung 900NF monitor and aside from it's horribly annoying quirks(likes to develop a super high pitch squeek, likes to blow up repeatedly when put on not so grounded lines-idiot maintainence guy fudged the wiring back home so the monitor kept blowing up...lol) the picture itself is fantastic...of course I'm guessing their reliability/durability has improved(the other monitors in my home did NOT seem to be affected though...and the Samsung also blew up when put on a battery backup system by APC which was then hooked into the wall...by then I was too scared to try it without the thing plugged in lol) since then though...hopefully.

So yes, I'm mighty impressed by the improvements made by Samsung and South Korean manufacturers in general over the last few years...I'd be willing to drive a Hyundai Elantra at this point...although(heh thankfully yay) I don't =P In another 10 years I'm sure their quality levels will be even better...which of course is probably a threat to US businesses...of course the US has a huge stake in SK anyway...bleh

 

[lRageATMl]

I just bought the 200A5 ... excpet mine was 1800 after rebates (roughly a month ago)...but I love it!!! (esp the widescreen )

 

[Atrac]

Any employee that tells you an Open Box item doesn't have a warranty is LYING and only wants to sell you a PSP Extended Warranty. The only case I can think of that there wouldn't be a warranty is if the Open Box item is like 2 years or older.

 

[BobSnob]

Can anyone confirm the capacity (in mAh) of the batteries (VPRN-BA200) on these laptops? How long does the 180B5 last on one charge?

 

[Bushwicktrini]

Well I just got back from bestbuy they didn't have any. Brooklyn, Rego Park and Long Island City.

 

[rebthor]

thanks for the update bushwick, you saved me a lot of time

 

[Atrac]

Well, I thought I'd give this a shot. Went at lunch (the joys of actually having a job) to my local Best Buy. They only had the display model of the 1.7ghz unit. It was all scratched up, had a small chip of plastic missing, and did not have the box, battery, or software.

Now get this, when the *general manager* saw the price on the system, he said he could not sell it for any lower than that price.

Unfortunately I didn't have time to argue. But I did get his name and will be placing a call to Corporate to complain.

 

[Muhc]

I bought a 200A5 in December and returned it 11 days later 'cause the LCD screen died. Great laptop, great screen, crappy keyboard, great battery life, loud as hell, and fairly lightweight considering the screen size. Sharp asthetics, but too big/bulky for my tastes. Also, the touchbad buttons are a bad case of form over function--they're too tiny.

Picked up a used 170B4 a few days later for $1000. Except for one dead pixel, it's a great laptop especially if you can pick it up for the $750 price. It's definately not a super-quick system, but it's fast enough for the web editing, email, and occasional game that I play (N64 emulators, AoM, etc.). The keyboard feels more solidly built than the 200A5 and it's a lot quieter. You can get one of those Toshibas or HPs or whatever for cheaper and maybe it'll be a little faster, but for me a laptop has to be portable and that means lightweight. The 170B4 is not as portable as my old Sony SR33, but it's not too bad compared to the competition. Hard to find anything at the $1000 and lower range with a P4 processor that weighs less than 6lbs.

Here's some benchmarks for anyone interested:

200A5
3DMark2001SE (Build 330)
1280x854x32 3229
1280x854x16 3670
1024x768x32 4034
800x600x32 5037

PCMark2002
CPU 4852
Memory 4343
HDD 6432

170B4
3DMark2001SE (Build 330)
1024x768x32 3289
1024x768x16 3861
800x600x32 4097

PCMark2002
CPU 4150
Memory 3927
HDD 4976

 

[BobSnob]

Went to my local BB and they had one 180B5 that turned out to be an open box item, so I couldn't buy it online with in-store pickup. I then found another BB store that had an unopened one in stock but when I went to order online it has been pulled from the website. Tried calling BB-online but they would do nothing, even though I was able to assure them that a local store had one. This was a great deal but looks as though the $200 MIR is no longer achievable.