Oh How i Dream to have AW's shipping account...

it's kinda disheartening... seeing so many systems purchased, then sent back...

so many personal experiences posted here, and yet at times, there are certain posts that absolutely outweighs all the negatives and then makes another person to take the plunge... system gets ordered, then finds out to have the same result as mentioned and joins in the ranks of those who have had issues with this laptop and posts in one of those kazillion page long threads...

meanwhile, AW must be sitting in a room full of brand new, spankin new but "refurb" laptops... i guess their mind is not at peace either...

but then again, they are holding onto 15% of the cost for restock fee for a product that was "not satisfactory"...
hmm... no expert in the computer industry but normally, wholesale x 2.5 = basic markup at ~60% dept stores...

a system for $4000
wholesale appx $1600
a simple formula for LDP to Wholesale to be factor of x2 of LDP then: $800 LDP?
eh, simple scenario... very simple and may be flawed...
but heck 15% of purchase price is bout $600 pretty much they cover 75% of the cost just on the restock fee...
hmm...

but in the end, the only winner i see, every day as i look and see new threads on this "Alienware M15x PingPong Table" is the freight company... gladly seeing the box they deliver, pick up and take back... yadda yadda yadda...

in the end... the shipping company seems to be the only winner here... second by AW...

of course, there are the select few that are 100% absolutely satisfied... the lucky ones...

perhaps a bit more consideration and evaluation of the pro's and con's is needed before giving another couple of hundred bucks to the freight company and giving AW another 15% of your money...

just some monday morning thoughts i figured on sharing with you folks...
as for why this post... i dont know... 15% of my hard earned money, or even my parent's hard earned money is a lot of money...

 

I know i'm never buying from AW ever again. It was a bitter disappointment from the moment I opened the box.

 

Lame thread.........

 

and thank you for sharing your opinions...

 

I can barely comprehend what you're trying to say, your thoughts are very fragmented, but from what I can figure out:

1. The 15% restocking fee is very standard, and the fact that some of the big-name retailers don't make the customer pay the fee is something that they should be praised for. 10% covers the cost of subsequent markdown - Alienware must sell the computer as refurbished, and at a discount. Then 5% covers other logistical costs.

2. I don't know where you got the 2.5x markup from. Markup (or margin) on products differ greatly depending on what you're talking about. There's no such thing as a standard markup, and it would be foolish to base your assumptions on a single number.

3. As far as computers go, a budget computer has 0-10% margin, and it's actually quite common for the margin to be negative (the company actually loses money selling it). This occurs when there's a huge coupon out (aka, 10% off, $150+ off).

A mainstream computer (not Alienware) has anywhere from a 0-20% markup, and it varies widely. Again, it's possible for the margin to be negative or nonexistent.

A boutique computer (what Alienware used to be, currently companies like Voodoo, Falcon NW, etc...) may have incredible markups compared to the rest of the industry, maybe even in the vicinity of 100+%.

Accessories at retail stores have insane markups, for example USB and HDMI cables can have anywhere from 1000-2000% markups (aka, cost is $2, sold for $32).

Thus, as you can see, the markup and margin are as far away from a set number as it could be. There's no such thing as a standard 2.5x or whatever number for every item.

 

from where i sit, it seems many folks are jumping into the m15x, drawn to the "best of the best of the best..." only to be faced with disappointment and return the product for a 15% re-stock fee.

as form my markups, you are right, there is no blanket markups across the industry but just for the sake of seeing some numbers... lets take a hypthetical situation...
i wanted to see... "If they play by my figures... how does it work out?..."

from my experience, well, for over 20 years, i've dealt with Federated Department Stores, as well as many other chain stores in my industry (apparel) and basically they retail at 60 ~ 65% markup from wholesale to retail. so a rough and simple calculation comes to 2.1x wholesale = retail...

(excuse me, it is more appx 2.0~2.1 factor for 65% markup based on a wholesale)

for example,

MSRP $770.00
Cost $373.00
Margin $513.00 (=65% of MSRP for 65% markup)

770 / 373 = ~2.06

apply those figures and it is amazing how big of a room there is between LDP and MSRP... so the 15% of MSRP is HUUUUUUUGE...

i'm sure the numbers are different for electronics, but still i'm sure these companies have their numbers and profits covered.

i remember Reebok Classics which sold for $65.99 msrp (at 60% markup) was actually made for around FOB $5.00 from china in the 80's.

so in essence, the 15% restock fee seems to cover a a big portion of vendor's cost. and it's like used cars, they say they loose money on the deal... but they never do...


in essence, why this thread? i dont know... perhaps to indicate to folks, these companies got their asses covered... they always do... and so read and evaluate and re-evaluate before buying...

but in reading these boards, i've seen folks buy, and sell, and just "throw away" money...


as for budget computers having 0% ~ 10% margin... you mean the net margin for a retailer? how do they stay in business?

and you have to consider that AW sells their product ar bout average or above average retail to others of similar products, right? then their margin is much bigger since they dont buy from wholesale, it's direct, LDP to MSRP...

i am very curious Lithus, how and where you get your markups and margin figures from. not to argue with you, but those numbers are very interesting, if from a reliable source. Just want to learn... that's all...

 

The numbers are based on internal Best Buy sources. They then are approximated with help from a variety of sources (financial reports, some wholesale prices, etc). The numbers are accurate, as I've left quite a wide margin of error in them. Obviously the exact numbers are highly confidential and proprietary information to the various companies.

You can't compare clothing with computers. The computers market (especially laptops) is EXTREMELY hard to work in, and I can't stress that enough. I'm constantly surprised how these companies can turn profits with the competition as it is. If you just Google "razor thin margins laptops" you'll get "official" analysis of the market, but just know that these companies are all having a heck of a time staying afloat.

 

interesting...

in any case, we would place lower margins on volume items hence costo, best buys and such...

but i dont think m15x is working on those tight margins...
but i could be wrong.

now you know the numbers next time you shop at a department store and buy full price... better yet... now you know what to say to your wives,fiancee's, gf's in the same scenario...

 

Whether or not you get a lemon doesn't really have anything to do with whether or not you research the pros or cons enough. It's got to do with playing the chances and getting unlucky (which unfortunately has happened, but always happens for any laptop -- it's how probabilities work).

Let's also remember that Chaz said in his review of the m15x that he would not hesitate to recommend the laptop to anyone looking for the power.

 

Hi.

So are alienware laptops made by



or



regards

John.

 

I fail to see the point of this thread, except to knock a company besides the manufacturer of your laptop. To say someone is overpriced and then buy a voodoo computer is illogical, at best. And they don't charge a restocking fee for DEFECTIVE products. If you buy a $4000 computer and don't do your research and then dislike it, who is the fool?

 

Agreed. While my laptop's lid may squeak a bit (and really I think some people are overplaying the degree of squeaking -- I really didn't notice it before), at least I can get an 8800M in my laptop.

 

Well, perhaps I'm one of the lucky ones, but everything is working fine over here

 

mjl, to be chronologically correct, i've purchased my laptop over a year ago from voodoopc after weeks of contemplation and even advice requests from NBR forums as well.

secondly, i have not mentioned that AW is expensive or overpriced... as a matter of fact, i think their price, albeit a bit expensive being new and having all the "new" premiums on it, is much better and i'm glad that AW offers their "flagship" products without the boutique premiums.

yes, legally, AW is not doing anything wrong... and not charging restock for defective is fine.

finally, no, i am not calling out who's a fool here... just a observation where customers buy and return due to lack of satisfaction at a loss for only the end consumer...
the reasons for returns is not new... it's been said many times, even with pics and such... and yet, more are drawn to it and buy and return.

granted there are folks who are satisfied... grats...

it seems that AW and the freight companies are in a win-win situation here...

firstly, i am glad you are satisfied with your product...and was lucky playing the chances... but there is a certain level of satisfaction and assurance the companies need to provide... and "probabilities of not getting a lemon" should not be among them... like the excitement of "probabilities" then i will go to vegas for that.

yes, read it and it almost convinced me to buy another laptop myself... except, well, i am in love with 17" folding desktops so i guess my stubborness helped me to stay away...

hey, AW bashing is not my intent... heck, if i had cash to spend and it was 6 month ago, i would have jumped on the m9750...

even convinced my bro to buy a AW Desktop... to see how disappointing they were back then... case missing parts, order missing parts... but that's a different story...

there are issues in these machines that, depending on your personality or your degree of OCD, you can be satisfied or un-satisfied.

but perhaps AW should reconsider their restock policy on this item...

 

Yes. Alienware and the shipping companies make profits when people buy from them / use their services. Yes, it often comes as a loss (monetary or otherwise) to a customer when he or she is unfortunately forced to return a product. These statements are true, and seem (atleast to me) to be rather obvious. Perhaps I'm just missing your point, but I'm not entirely sure what your message here is. Shipping companies don't care where they are going to and from, and they don't care what's in the box. The fact that they make profits on people's returns isn't some profound observation...it's the nature of their business...just as it is the nature of Alienware's business to turn a profit on a laptop.

 

This thread is not going anywhere and I am therefore closing it.

In the future, please report threads like these so I can get to them more quickly.