I went into Comet today in Leeds, Crown Point and got one of the sales reps to show me the difference between a monster HDMI cable for £60 and a standard £5 one. He showed me the setup, it was a single blu ray player with the exact same model TV x 2 displaying a high definition video. My mother had spent £50 on a HDMI cable at christmas because of this demonstration. He said "the purpose of this is to show the difference between a £20 hdmi and a £60 hdmi. I said I don't believe that the tv below is displaying a high definition image (it was obvious) and asked him to switch the cables round. "Oh....it's a scart" (the sales rep) I went to look for the manager and he said "oh no this is to show the difference between composite and a HDMI signal and it's always been like that". I asked him why did the sales rep say otherwise and he just repeated his previous statement. How long is Comet and other stores going to continue scamming people into thinking that you can get a better digital (on or off) signal? Surely this is illegal? UPDATEHere's a response to an email I sent to comet with basically the same text as my OP - "Dear Mr Street, Thank you for your e-mail Having discussed this issue further with the manager of our Leeds Crown Point store, he did confirm that the set-up is a comparison display in store for what comes free with our products, and the upgrades that are available to purchase. he further advised that this display is has only ever served this purpose only not any other. I apologise if you felt otherwise and can advise that the store manager will discuss this matter with the colleague concerned to ensure that there is not any confusion with regards to this display with future customers. Due to the time that has elapsed since the purchase was made, this matter would not be able to be investigated further and I can confirm the store manager stands by his decision. I apologise for any inconvenience caused to you or your mother." If the guy hadn't have said it's a £20 HDMI cable vs a £60 HDMI I would believe this a bit more, the fact that he did say that suggests to me that he's been told about the cable by someone (his manager?)
£5 HDMI cable? madness high street price! just bought a 1.5m HDMI cable for £1.50 on the bay last week. thought about going 99p with a 0.5m cable, but wasn't sure if it was long enough. these company make money off accessories. they sell TV at a low price margin with large adverts to get you into the shop, then try to sell you advanced cover, expensive HDMI cable. what i do is to just buy the TV, ignore all their other services, then buy accessories on ebay although need a bit of patience since these cheap oversea stuff take a long time to deliver. the lesson here is to not trust a sales person.
It's illegal, but to prove it you'd have to get it on tape, and not just once. They will ALLWAYS just claim it's a rep's mistake, so to get them fined, you'd have to prove intent. Frankly, this is one particular scam that i don't think is worth getting worked up over. Customers are still getting high-quality video, for which they are willing to spend X amount. They spend that amount, get their HQ video, and the store makes a healthy profit, which is VERY hard nowadays. Without little scams like this, most stores are doomed with today's razor-thin margins.
Yeah when my dad came back with a £20 HDMI cable from John Lewis, I sent him back to get a refund. Bought the same length cable for £2 online.... looked nicer as well
A high-street store making extra money from, to be blunt, lying to their customers not worth getting worked up about? I'd respectfully disagree there, though you've a point about the need for proof - a picture of the back of the unit showing the SCART along with a witness to confirm the conversation should suffice. Then complain to the local Trading Standards office (see here to find the closest one). If a company is prepared to go to such lengths (and likely pressuring their sales reps to be the fall guys) then the sooner they're shut down the better.
its that kind of attitude that makes stores think they can continually rip people off, what about the low wage person thats maybe saved the 50 quid because of some scam store demo? people need to be shown the difference so they can see for themselves not just scamed because 'everyone is happy' thats just rediculous and you need your head testing if you think otherwise. also do you not think that the reason some stores are doomed these days is beacause of ripping people off like this? you have someone who knows a little bit about tv and they will almost always buy a cheaper one off ebay or somewhere than go to a high street store where they no they will be ripped off, then you have people who have there friends and family ask for advice from someone who knows a bit, what do you think there advice will be? thats the reason high street stores like currys are falling by the wayside, because people are losing trust because of scams like this and massively over-inflated prices like 50 quid for a hdmi cable, its rediculous if you ask me
Thanks for making this personal, i'll get my head examined right away What do you buy when you buy entertainment equipment? You buy the experience, the entertainment, the joy of having bought something high-end. If you have just sshelled out on an expensive TV and an expensive BR-player, ofcourse you could connect them with a 2 dollar cable, but this FEELS all wrong to people who don't know technology. You went to the store to buy fancy stuff, not cheap chinese stuff, no matter that there's no difference in actual quality. What people who call this a scam are forgetting, is that perceived value is actual value. There is a demand for these cables.
1. im not making this personal at all and if thats the way it came across then i appologise 2. people who dont know are being dupped into think the 50 quid cable is better with dodgy store demos and in general, lies....how is that not a scam and how is that ok in way at all?
It depends. For example i paid 8 euros for a HDMI cable (2 and 3m long), but i don't have any problems with that - it is a HDMI1.4 cable, with the ethernet feature too (not using it yet), plus it is a nice braided cable compared to good old cheap plastic cables... But yeah, pretty much any HDMI cable above 10-15e is questionable at least, scam at worst.
I'm not disputing that the sales tactics are dodgy. As for the rest of your questions, it's all explained above. Perceived value is actual value. If people feel they are getting more, they ARE, in a very real way. They will enjoy their purchase, their movie more, even if there is no actual differnce in picture quality. IMHO, this is EXACTLY equivalent to a manufacturer boasting the good color gamma on their TN panels, while in fact they just gave it a glossy finish and turned the conttrast up in the store.
This is potentially terrible if it was with intent. But Xtrafresh also does have a point, everything comes down to how much it is worth to you, rather than a stock, standard value. Overall, obviously try to stop them doing it in the future.
the thing is, that 'perceived value' is being driven up by dodgy, underhand and illegal sales tactics
See what the placebo effect can get up to? I just found this site. Also, if you think £60 for an HDMI cable is a rip off, what about a £2,630 1m power cable! Guaranteed to give crystal clear sound and video to the powered appliance!
But that's an actual difference you can see with the color gamma, it's not a flat out lie. You can get that picture by changing the settings. Comet were clearly scamming people into thinking the tv below was a "cheap, basic HDMI" and the one above was a "top quality £60 HDMI" when in fact it was a scart lead. That's a lie because it's misleading people into thinking their is an advantage. And what would you say to people who get home with their £60 hdmi and "think" it's better (still morally wrong for comet to allow that to happen) and then they put in the standard HDMI that comes in the box to see the difference and they don't see it.....just a "oh well this one costs more so its better"?
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/offer-listing/B0057NZNMU/ref=sr_1_2_olp?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1312197106&sr=1-2&condition=new
from the £2000 power cable: WTF? so if i want to upgrade my graphics card to gtx680, i would be better off buying a set of new PCIe power cables?
Do you realize you linked to a HDMI switch, right ? http://www.atlona.com/epress-kit/pdf/PRO2HD1616M-SR_ds.pdf
well this is the reason i dont go to actual shops anymore, online beats it anyday. Plus i dont get the whole "go into currys and view the tv before you buy" i know they make the picture crappy on some sets on purpose to sell the crappy sets at big profit prices, so i just read reviews and hunt for the cheapest deal with a reputable company.
Personally before I buy a product I both read official reviews by pro reviewers and then browse forums to see comments on the product from those who have bought it before I decide,I feel that way I get a more balanced and accurate idea of the quality of the product in terms of reliablity and quality as well as price,and of course feedback on retailers or etailers as to which to buy from
