Sony VAIO FX340K Laptop (P3-850MHz) for $500! ~ Good lord this is HOT, but is it legit?!

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OJ

Senior member
Oct 9, 1999
858
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With all the Christmas season business in high gear I am very busy, But in about a week, (just after Christmas) I will take the plunge and find out what the deal is with this place.

This will most likely be a total waste of time, but I have that week off work and my wife is working so I will check it out.

If it does pan out I will try to buy multiple units, but I won't hold my breath.
The AT'ers around here are sharp enough to know when something is fishey! and I usually follow their advice.

 

Verby

Member
Dec 7, 2001
28
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dajeepster,

yes, my phone number is a 410 number, the number on the packing list is a 440 area code, and is actually a ohio number. Neither gps computer services or yahoo have my phone number, as its not required to process a credit card order. If you would like to meet, thats cool. Im available before 11:30 and after 8 monday thru friday, or better yet, maybe we can set something up before the weekend is up.
Verb
 

Tarobap

Senior member
Apr 24, 2000
480
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Fight Fight Fight!!! . . . Verby vs. Dajeepster . . . winner takes labtop . . .

GIVE ME A BREAK.
 

elfbomber

Member
Nov 20, 2001
74
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Wow, this is just getting more exciting and interesting...
I guess it's safe to say that Anandtech now has it's own Soap Opera!
 

TurtleMan

Golden Member
May 3, 2000
1,424
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im on dajeepster side... verby just sound umm.. i don't know.. don't really trust junior member on something they said .. especially he just joined it ..
 

hashbrowns

Banned
Aug 10, 2001
348
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i think verbys legit...
but i also think he got lucky and gpscomputers is just setting everyone up and once they reach a certain number of orders theyll dip like the stix that bare their name.
 

tantos

Senior member
Jan 18, 2001
644
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I can't believe this thread has survived this long!!!!
Are you that desperate to get a laptop? My god...if you get ripped off, you better not come in here and moan about it because you are plain stupid to assume that anyone can get a sony laptop for $500 bucks..I doubt even wholesalers can get the laptop for $500 from Sony..Sony is very strict on their retail prices..Man..get with it...Just because one guy supposedly got his, you all think gps will give you one too? America is going to hell in a handbasket with all of these naive people...
 

GetReal

Golden Member
Mar 30, 2001
1,747
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<< I can't believe this thread has survived this long!!!!
Are you that desperate to get a laptop? My god...if you get ripped off, you better not come in here and moan about it because you are plain stupid to assume that anyone can get a sony laptop for $500 bucks..I doubt even wholesalers can get the laptop for $500 from Sony..Sony is very strict on their retail prices..Man..get with it...Just because one guy supposedly got his, you all think gps will give you one too? America is going to hell in a handbasket with all of these naive people...
>>



HeHe speaking of naive.. This is no such thing as a Sony wholesaler Sony sells directly to retailers. The retailer markup on Sony products is between 3-8% depending on the retailer's sales volume. As a general rule, margins on computers and associated equipment is very small compared to other retail channels such as clothing, consumer electronics, or software (compute,Music, and video).
 

rdog57

Member
Apr 22, 2000
168
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I will give it a shot i don't mind fighting to get my money it looks like its worth it. I emailed them and got an email the day after which shows promise. Besides all you have to do is tell the CC company your money was stolen and they won't charge you no matter what company it is. stealing is stealing. I will keep you posted if i get the sony or not.
 

DoubleN

Senior member
Aug 8, 2000
577
0
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Just my 2 cents...no matter how much I'd like to have a great laptop for next to nothing...if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Some people say that they got their laptop or other item, which is fine for them, but risking $500 and waiting months with a company that has numbers BBB complaints and refuses to take CC numbers, but only takes paypal? What more need I say...if any of you are willing to go for it, then good luck to you, but this is one deal I definitely consider to by iffy at the very least...and one that I'm definitely avoiding.
 

Verby

Member
Dec 7, 2001
28
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0
my bank gave me 60 days from the purchase date to dispute the charges, your milage may vary, so check. And no matter what they promise you, dont let it go past that 60 days without doing something.

and for those that are actually considering this one, keep in mind that you are sending your money to a company with a lot of bad press. I cant say i would have jumped on this deal if i knew who i was dealing with from the beginning. I do consider myself lucky. I keep checking the feedback left for the seller on yahoo warehouse, and it does look like im the only one. This could very well be a case of "the squeeky wheel gets the grease"

Verby
 

dp004i

Golden Member
Apr 24, 2001
1,872
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They probably did ship one or two laptops, just so everybody would think they are legit and flood them with orders (and $$$.) As soon as they amass enough money, they'll conveniently disappear. I mean, $3000 or so they paid for those two laptops isn't that bad of an investment, especially if they get a few millions in return.
 

colonblow

Member
Jun 10, 2001
44
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any word from the people who were going to go there in person and try to buy this laptop? I would also be willing to pay $600 + all shipping costs if someone would get me one...

thanks
-cb
 

hk29

Senior member
Jan 28, 2001
262
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They responded by email telling me that there is a 40 day waiting period. What is a waiting period? Am I getting a gun licence too?




<< Tried calling them ... message box was full. I'm trying to see if I can confirm picking up my laptop. I think it'll be worth the 5 hour drive (compared to the 3 months of waiting:)).

I'll keep you guys posted.
>>

 

bonk102

Diamond Member
Oct 23, 2000
5,473
2
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i'd like to see if verby is legit too, and GPS for that matter, but if he/they are, i will offer $100 + shipping to anyone who's willing to physically go pick one of these up for me, or i can drive to your house and give you the cash in person (as i'm in buffalo, and it's only a day trip), lmk if anyone's interested
 

dp004i

Golden Member
Apr 24, 2001
1,872
0
0


<< They responded by email telling me that there is a 40 day waiting period. What is a waiting period? Am I getting a gun licence too?




<< Tried calling them ... message box was full. I'm trying to see if I can confirm picking up my laptop. I think it'll be worth the 5 hour drive (compared to the 3 months of waiting:)).

I'll keep you guys posted.
>>

>>


They have a 40 day "waiting period" b/c most credit card companies only give you 30 days to dispute the charges. That way, they just take you money, and there isn't anything you can do to get it back.
 

Verby

Member
Dec 7, 2001
28
0
0
i would question a waiting period on this laptop. Ive shown you guys packing slips, so at least 1 has shipped. In theory, they should have a whole bunch of them right now. That is, if they do that "collect orders, then order in bulk" trick.

 

Sitinh

Member
Dec 1, 1999
46
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It it be that they have some connection with PCMall employees and these are stolen laptops? I would call up PCMall and see if the SN of the laptop were actually sold.
 

crypticlogin

Diamond Member
Feb 6, 2001
4,047
0
0


<< It it be that they have some connection with PCMall employees and these are stolen laptops? I would call up PCMall and see if the SN of the laptop were actually sold. >>



You know, that could explain the order number not being in their database. Somehow get the item shipped without having a record of it? Verby: What else is on that packing slip that wasn't in the pictures you posted to Yahoo? Are there shipping numbers, dates of sale, payment terms, etc.?

Maybe this is a bigger scam than GPS itself... HMMMM...

edit: I just took a closer look at the invoice and it says "WIRE TRANSFER - 12/13". I assume that means a wire transfer was completed on the 13th and from the comment left by verby, was delivered on the 14th. What about the shipping tracking number? Is that still on the box or on the slip?
 

esun

Platinum Member
Nov 12, 2001
2,214
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supernova sounds like that this guy needed 3 months of scamming to make enough money to send one real order out.
 

Verby

Member
Dec 7, 2001
28
0
0
theres a po number, quantity, item#, description, unit price(blank), extended price(blank), and WFL (whatever that is)

it also has the name of an account executive, phone number, e-mail addy and theres a date on there of 12/13/01. That date is on there twice, maybe once for the day gps ordered it from pcmall, and once for the day pc mall shipped it here.

The bottom half apparently used to be a sticker, possibly a shipping label that gets applied to the outside of the box with the shipping address on it. I dont have the box it was shipped in anymore, and never bothered to look at it since i was at work when it arrived and i had someone else open it up.