PRC Direct & My Toshiba

T

TimFooty

Guest
I've ordered a TOshiba 32ZD26.

I had a phone call today (I placed initial order on Friday but heard nothing back until Monday) from RGB telling me that they would order direct from Toshiba for about a ten day delay.

I also ordered at PRC on Friday and they responded next day, telling me that they had one 32ZD26 in stock but that it was damaged so they could not let me have it. They then said 10 days. 30mins later they called back to say they had found one in stock at another supplier and could deliver on Friday. I ordered from them as they resonded quickest.

Now I'm panicking what with stories of repackaged goods. Out of your experience, if it is brown taped should I open and inspect it there and then? Should I expect a Toshiba sealed box and nothing else?

Please help!
 
Just my personal view but if I pay money for a new piece of equipment mail order or not I expect it to be new, in an original box, fully sealed and taped (see through not brown!!)

There are a lot of reports about mail order companies reselling goods but at the end of the day you take your chances wherever you buy and if the price vs reputation issue is big for you then go to you reputable high street specialist retailer pay over the odds and get exactly what you want (in my case I try to spread the risk ie if I am spending a couple of hundres I may go mail order, if it £1k+ then I stick to somewhere I can walk into and shout loudly if things go wrong!!!)

All the best with your purchase though
 
The chances are it will be new. After opening the carton do an inspection and if you are happy with what you have chill out.Dont go looking for hidden menus with an hours run counter ;) just enjoy the set .However if it's obviously second hand or damaged then thats a different matter.
 
Thanks for the advice - just a few days to go now, so my fingers are still crossed.

Going mail order was the only option really - especially as the Comet "in store" price was £300 more. The shop assistant could not believe it. Neither could I.
 
I had 2 tvs from JL and they both had brown tape. Their reason was that they always open the packaging to ensure that all items are in the box. They had a lot of remotes go missing from their tvs at one time. Since they have started to open the boxes when they take delivery the remotes have always been there.
 
I almost got mine from an onlie retailer - but after over a month with no word on a dlivery date I opoted for the high street. Ok I was spending £300 extra but I am glad I did. When I picked it up the box had the original Tosh Tape (which goes see through when opened)and it was untouched. Took it home and have had no problems. Its swings and roundabouts.

Paul
 
I found a shop in Birmingham called Electrocentre who do the sets as cheap or cheaper than most web sites (they do have a website too - Go here )

I got Comet to price match them on a Panasonic TX32PB50 that was £300 cheaper at Electrocentre.
 
My view of PRC Direct:
All is well. PRCDirect have surpassed my expectations of them. My new Toshiba 32ZD26 was delivered ahead of schedule and in complete working order.

I was a little concerned after placing the order because I then read on other threads here that Toshiba engineers often deliver and install (no mention of that from PRC), or that the delivered box (not necessarily from PRC - just mail order in general) appeared opened or used.

With my delivery the box was a little worse for wear (a bit tatty) but all the correct Toshiba tape was in order and the TV inside was in pristine condition. TV Remote and instructions were still in original unopened packaging. Plugged it in, turned it on and fully working within seconds (what a great tv).

Hats off to PRC, and thank you. You delivered on time, a complete order, in fully working condition, and at a price £300 cheapter than the high street!

My only complaint of them is the slightly abrupt and unhelpful attitude of one of the sales reps when I enquired about adjusting the order to upgrade to a 36inch instead of the 32. Quite short-tempered. In the end I left it unchanged. But the remainder of the staff I spoke to were extremely helpful - called me back three times the day after placing the internet order just to confirm all details and let me know the progress of the stock/order. Ordered last Friday, deleivered following Thursday (not bad for Cornwall). Overall PRC delivered good customer service.

My view of the Toshiba 32ZD26:
A fantastic TV. Compared to my old 25" 4:3 Sony it's a whole new viewing experience! My shortlist was the Panasonic TX32PH40, the Phillips 32PW9527 and the Tosh.

To be honest, to me picture quality on all seemed pretty good (could not distinguish much on the Pixelplus Philips technology). For me it was the clean lines of the Tosh which won the day. It now takes pride of place in the corner of my lounge - a very attractive piece of furnitre, something often overlooked.

I was concerned that the 32inch would be too small - but now it's in place it is perfect. A 36inch is definitely desireable but would probably have been too big for me, and the cost of that is 50% more than the 32. It's a choice I agonised over, but I am delighted with the final decision.

Now, where's the remote? Tweaking to do!
 
Originally posted by TimFooty
[BOverall PRC delivered good customer service.
[/B]

Sounds like you were very lucky Tim.

I have an order in for the 36ZD26P with RGBdirect, who I believe are the same company as PRCdirect, and have found them nothing but useless.

Now, considering they simply take your order and pass it on to Toshiba for direct delivery, I would expect them to make a much smaller margin than the High Street. I would also expect them, as companies that promote themselves online, to have reasonable communication systems in place.

Apparently they FAX (do people still actually use faxes?) Toshiba with the order. In my case, to read my emailed order and send that info to Toshiba took 4 working days.

A week later and I still have no idea when my TV is likely to arrive. Of course, my card has been debited... they're pretty clued up when it comes to that it would seem.

Don't get me wrong, I love the principle of ecommerce and would never buy any hardware or software in the High Street but some of these companies tarnish the whole deal. In the words of David Brent, 'Shame'.
 
TIMFOOTY i`m glad you had no problems & you like the tv. but don`t speak too soon in case you have a problem with the tv. then we will see what you think of the after sales service.as i think it was crap but they did do one thing they said they would.they said they would collect the tv check it over then refund me. witch they did so i`m happy with that but i taped too photos to the boxs to show they were in good order just i case they tried to say they were damaged.got my new one from empire in bradford the same night no waiting sealed with tosh tape the tv is fine now i have got rid of the slight white haze on the left side of the screen.
 
You are correct. My experience of PRCDirect has been trouble-free, but this is the only experience I have of the company, and my opinion of them is based solely on that. I am not at liberty to say how they perform on customer service / refunds, etc because I have no experience of that.

There is always a risk purchasing any goods by mail order, not necessarily internet - PRC has been going much longer than the consumer internet, I believe.

My advice woulde be to always purchase using Barclaycard or a similar credit card which offers fraud protection / insurance on all purchases. That way you can always be certain that your rights as a consumer will be protected. Mail Order companies, especially the established ones, dread the wrath of Barclaycard and associated merchants.

I wish you all the best with your own experiences!
 

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