buying online / pickin up at a store

[caroli]

Hello

We're traveling to Orlando in July. We'll rent a car (haven't decided yet the company). As we'll be staying there for more that 10 days I realized it is cheaper to buy a GPS than to rent it from the rent-a-car company.
So I want to buy it online and then picking up at a store. I found some good offers in Best Buy buy read lots of bad reviews about bad costumer service. I never buy online so I must ask you: do you recommend me that company? Should I choose another? (Wallmart, for instance?)

I'll be grateful for any tip you can share with me.

Thanks and sorry for my terrible English.

 

[yesiamcrazy]

Best Buy is a reputable company. If the best deal is there, you should be fine ordering from them.

 

[Fire14]

I have used best buy, walmart and a few others for online order/ store pick up. I personally have never had issues with any of them but Walmart seems to take forever to ship stuff.

 

[happily single]

For something like a GPS I would actually buy it at home, so I could get use to using it. I bought and returned 2 different gps before I kept the 3rd one I tried.

 

[caroli]

For something like a GPS I would actually buy it at home, so I could get use to using it. I bought and returned 2 different gps before I kept the 3rd one I tried.

The thing is I live in Argentina and here they cost so much more.

Thank you for all your answers. I guess I'll take the "risk" and buy from BestBuy

 

[arminnie]

I do not believe that Best Buy is a reputable company.

 

[bumbershoot]

Picking up in store has NEVER been a problem for us with Best Buy, it has always worked as smoothly as we wished. For our dealings with them, they have been 100% reputable.

 

[Jedimom]

Are you bringing a computer with you and will you have internet access? Your GPS will not be set up and ready to go straight out of the box. You'll need to download a bunch of stuff before you can use it. I purchased my first GPS last weekend, and it was going to take 3+ hours for the download (I ended up falling asleep and it updated itself overnight).

 

[jel0511]

Are you bringing a computer with you and will you have internet access? Your GPS will not be set up and ready to go straight out of the box. You'll need to download a bunch of stuff before you can use it. I purchased my first GPS last weekend, and it was going to take 3+ hours for the download (I ended up falling asleep and it updated itself overnight).

I've never had that problem with any of the GPS's I've bought. They've always been ready straight to use out of the box.

 

[Swimalie]

I do not believe that Best Buy is a reputable company.

I agree. Years ago they had an issue with an unsecure network. People would sit in their parking lots and steal credit card info. I haven't shopped there since then. They knew about the problem and still didn't correct it in a timely manner. If they did this with their stores, what are they doing wrong with their web site?!

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

I've never had that problem with any of the GPS's I've bought. They've always been ready straight to use out of the box.

You almost always have to update the maps.

OP - Best Buy will be fine for buying your GPS.

 

[girli565]

Are you bringing a computer with you and will you have internet access? Your GPS will not be set up and ready to go straight out of the box. You'll need to download a bunch of stuff before you can use it. I purchased my first GPS last weekend, and it was going to take 3+ hours for the download (I ended up falling asleep and it updated itself overnight).

I've never had to do this with any of my GPS's. I've plugged it in to the adapter, went through the start up and away we go! Make sure you purchase one that has a 2012 update. The last one I bought was in 2010 and had a sticker on it that it was already updated with 2010 map update from the manufacturer.

 

[Hannathy]

Picking up in store has NEVER been a problem for us with Best Buy, it has always worked as smoothly as we wished. For our dealings with them, they have been 100% reputable.

We have never had a problem either and we do it a lot. They are almost always cheaper on line than in the store. Have actually driven home and ordered something after being in the store and then driven back to pick it up.

I will agree that if you order from Walmart to be picked up in store allow A LOT of extra time they are slooooow.

 

[girli565]

We have never had a problem either and we do it a lot. They are almost always cheaper on line than in the store. Have actually driven home and ordered something after being in the store and then driven back to pick it up.

I will agree that if you order from Walmart to be picked up in store allow A LOT of extra time they are slooooow.

You shouldn't have to go home and order it, if you can show them it's cheaper on their website (any retailer's website, I've had them price-match Amazon once) they will price match in store for you. They did that for us with our Nikon camera last summer.

 

[caroli]

OMG! I didn't know I have to download lots of stuff in order to use the gps. So, when it says that they have "Preloaded street maps" is not enough anyway? I have to download other things?
Sorry but don't know much about gps.
I wanna buy the Garmin nüvi 50LM...

 

[bumbershoot]

After thinking about it more, why do you want a GPS? If you're pretty much just doing WDW and maybe Universal, there's really no need. Things are incredibly well-marked.

If you're using it while driving on the WDW property, you should know that sometimes a GPS map will try to put you on an employee-only road, and it won't necessarily give you the best information.


We have found that a good map, a knowledge of where we are and where we are going to, along with a sense of humor, is REALLY good for WDW-driving. The roads around there are like highways, with pretty intensely marked signs at exits. If I know I"m in the Epcot area and I want to go to the Magic Kingdom area, I follow signs to what's in the MK area, and then the signs to get to the exact place I'm heading.


Driving on the highways, a map is a good thing to have. It's good to know which directions I-4 goes to, and the roads to the airport.


I've mapped out a bunch of routes using a map and googlemaps online while at home, write out the directions in a notebook, and can refer to them during the trip.


DH brought his GPS once, and the main thing it did was annoy us. And try to get us to go on some backstage road.

 

[JB2K]

Hello

We're traveling to Orlando in July. We'll rent a car (haven't decided yet the company). As we'll be staying there for more that 10 days I realized it is cheaper to buy a GPS than to rent it from the rent-a-car company.
So I want to buy it online and then picking up at a store. I found some good offers in Best Buy buy read lots of bad reviews about bad costumer service. I never buy online so I must ask you: do you recommend me that company? Should I choose another? (Wallmart, for instance?)

I'll be grateful for any tip you can share with me.

Thanks and sorry for my terrible English.

Walmart (Vineland Rd., Kissimmee - very close to WDW) does a good job with their "Site to Store" program -- I ordered a stroller in 2008 and picked it up with no problems...

 

[mdsoccermom]

Are you bringing a computer with you and will you have internet access? Your GPS will not be set up and ready to go straight out of the box. You'll need to download a bunch of stuff before you can use it. I purchased my first GPS last weekend, and it was going to take 3+ hours for the download (I ended up falling asleep and it updated itself overnight).

We just got a new Garmin a few months ago and didn't have to do that at all. It was ready to go.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

OMG! I didn't know I have to download lots of stuff in order to use the gps. So, when it says that they have "Preloaded street maps" is not enough anyway? I have to download other things?
Sorry but don't know much about gps.
I wanna buy the Garmin nüvi 50LM...

No, it should be good to go right out of the box. While it is possible it won't have the very latest maps, the maps will be loaded on it and they should be fine. When you get home, you can update the maps.

 

[caroli]

Thank you all!