Advertisers?

[GregH]

I am in the market for a new gaming class PC - Core i7 or Core i5, 295 graphics 6GB DDR3 RAM - all the bells and whistles. Prepared to spend 20K on the box alone.

So I grab a copy of the latest PCF to check out not only the latest hardware but where I can perhaps buy this stuff. Well, no luck there. Not a single computer hardware shop advertising their products and services in the magazine. Not even one! Surely this is the best and most well read magazine in its class in this country? PCF tests and reviews in great detail some good looking stuff but the only reference to a supplier is the manufacturers web site, probably in China. Where can one get this stuff?!

One conclusion I am playing with is that either PCF Magazine is sooooo expensive for advertising, business for hardware shops is so great that they have more business than they can handle or perhaps such shops simply don't exist in S.A? If only guys like Rectron would sell direct to the public. I am not asking for special prices, normal retail would be just fine.
This is the kind of thing I want to buy face to face, getting the right advice in the process - not simply with a credit card on the web and then waiting up to two weeks or more for delivery.

Or am I wrong? I stay in JNB.

[Stuart]

The November issue was strangely devoid of advertising, wasn't it?

So you want to walk into a shop and buy stuff? You don't want to buy online? If you want to walk in, put together a list of what you want and order it from your local PC Shop (Matrix, MR Computers, Inter Computer, etc.). To be honest, though, you'll probably get a far better deal shopping online. There are some well-reputed dealers with whom our members are familiar. Check Here for a list.

[GregH]

Thanks Stuart - seems online shops are the only way to go.

I did try a Matrix and requested a quote. Nice bunch of guys and helpful but after three days they are struggling to find a 295 grahics card and WD VelociRaptor 10K rpm HDD, so do not even have a complete quote yet. Also getting advice thru online sites can be a challenge. For example, the current PCF has opened up a whole new question for me - Core i7 or Core i5. Then the motherboard becomes an issue as the two processors use different platforms. Decisions decisions!

[Stuart]

Thanks Stuart - seems online shops are the only way to go.

I did try a Matrix and requested a quote. Nice bunch of guys and helpful but after three days they are struggling to find a 295 grahics card and WD VelociRaptor 10K rpm HDD, so do not even have a complete quote yet. Also getting advice thru online sites can be a challenge. For example, the current PCF has opened up a whole new question for me - Core i7 or Core i5. Then the motherboard becomes an issue as the two processors use different platforms. Decisions decisions!

Most of the guys on that list will give you solid advice. Probably your best bet, however, is to start a thread in the hardware section here, get some advice from the guys (and take it!) and then order once you've settled on what you want. Maybe give us a breakdown of what you were thinking of and get some of the guys to give input. Build from there, and once you're settled place your order.

Edit: In terms of Matrix in particular, you'll have far more joy going directly to their head office in Alberton, but even there some of the sales staff are a little on the dodgy side.

[Sojourn]

Are you against the idea of buying parts from various vendors and then building the setup yourself? If not, why settle for one vendor?
Make your hardware list, compare prices, buy parts from the winning shop for each component. Once you have everything, piece it together (which for me is the most fun anyway), make the cables vanish as best you can and there you go... some pride in a setup you can call your own not just because you paid for it.

[Prime]

Are you against the idea of buying parts from various vendors and then building the setup yourself? If not, why settle for one vendor?
Make your hardware list, compare prices, buy parts from the winning shop for each component. Once you have everything, piece it together (which for me is the most fun anyway), make the cables vanish as best you can and there you go... some pride in a setup you can call your own not just because you paid for it.

While I agree with you and tend to vote with my wallet, one must always take shipping into the cost difference. often, the cost difference to buy from multiple stores will be nullified by the shipping

[Sojourn]

His location is Jhb.... 90% of the vendors are here or have free shipping above a certain value.

[Stuart]

New thread started as suggested.

Locked.