asianxcore

Silliness!!

On a positive note, I'm glad all the grumble was for Farscape

I haven't seen the show in years, but I am extremely excited to finally own this series. I really like the individual keep cases as well as the foil artwork.

Cubicle Morlock

Hit the same issue with a Bay Area BB. After stopping by one and finding they didn't have it in stock (appears that most of them short stocked this set), I looked up on the site to find two stores remaining with stock, and set off for the store with 2 copies listed.

Walked in the store, went straight to the DVD TV section, and found one copy remaining. Walked to the check out line, and that's when the Bizarro world time warp started. After waiting way too many minutes in a line that had only 3 people in it, I get to the cashier to find the set rings up at $99.95. I tell the cashier their own website has it at $69.99, and the cashier says he can't price match - I have to go to customer service.

So I go to customer service, where I wait another 5 minutes in a line with 2 other people before realizing the line isn't moving at all - and from the signs of the front customer's hand motions to the one person handling customers (2 other people apparently doing everything but), it isn't going to soon. So I decide the ridiculous situation of getting Best Buy to match their own sale price is something to take to a manager.

As I walk up to the manager, someone else walks up with some sort of gift-discount card that they can't seem to get BB to honor. Seems sale prices isn't the only thing BB tosses out that they don't accept. Another 10 minutes goes by before that resolves (sort of - the manager told them their 20% discount card really means they get $5 off their next purchase - and the customer actually accepted that story). Finally I get to talk to the manager - only she swings to the other side of the podium, actively avoiding me, and calls someone to state she needs to be relieved for something. I wasn't having any of it, I held the set up and stated their web site has it on sale, their register doesn't ring up the right price, and I want it matched.

She grabs the set and hurriedly walks off, disappearing behind a cubicle wall. Another 5 minutes pass, and then I'm directed to another register where she finally sets the price. At long last I'm able to hand over the cash, get the set and receipt (marked 'match competition price' - BB is so screwed up its not hard to imagine they might indeed think they're in competition with themselves), and walk out.

Over a half hour after I'd first picked the set up in the store, with no stops to browse, I was able to actually purchase it. All in all another reminder of why I avoid doing business with Best Buy. Exclusives they short stock (or not stock at all), special sale prices they don't honor, regular release day sale prices that are several bucks more than the Wally World down the street, and DVD selections with little beyond the best sellers everyone else stocks. If it weren't for exclusives like this Farscape set, I'd never walk into a BB again. And most of the time I go to get such exclusives (the last ones being Phase IV and Dr. Horrible), I'm invariably reminded of why.

kstublen

For what it's worth, you should have just gone to customer service to price match the website in the first place. Assuming you had a print out of the ad and the cashier was willing to price match it for you at the register, they would have had to call over a manager to override the system; this would not only take longer for you than if you had gone over to customer service in the first place, but it will also hold up the line and affect the people behind you.

If you go to customer service first you avoid the above scenario and deal with people who are much more accustomed to dealing with price adjustments. It helps when you have a printout, but they can also check over there themselves (if they don't just take your word for it). Either way, I don't think the set wasn't supposed to ring up at $69.99; it was on sale in-store for $99.99, which was still less than the sticker price.

EDIT: Also, if stores seem "under-stocked" on this, it's probably because this was only limited to 5,000 copies (the version with Peacekeeper Wars).

asianxcore

Wow, I didn't know it was even limited to that many. Store Exclusives always seem to vary between being really limited (BB's Exclusive Friday The 13th Boxset) to "limited" sets that are still sitting in some BB stores.

In Cubicle Morlock's defense, when I got my copy tonight I went to CS first and that's where I ran into my issue. Didn't even bother to go to the register lanes and still got the same hassle.

spainlinx0

Damn wish I had sold my complete set of the first editions at one point. Doubt I will pick this up for a while though.

Cubicle Morlock

You're making the huge assumption that I got in line knowing there was going to be a price honoring issue. Your scenario works if the psychic hotline tells you the DVD set is going to ring up wrong on the register before you get to the register to find out. Yes, if I had checked this forum for more recent posts before going to BB to see the reports of a price match issue, I would have known there could be an issue. Even then I'd find myself in the situation of needing to wait in line at customer service *just in case* there might be a pricing problem, and as a result possibly standing in multiple lines anyway. Not exactly a stellar customer service model.

WallyOPD

Wouldn't the posted price of the set tell you that it was going to ring up "wrong" at the register?

Cubicle Morlock

Sure would have. Too bad there wasn't a posted price - the only indication that the thing would ring up $99.95 was the register display. The sticker on the set itself said $129.95. Did someone forget to put up a display sale tag? Or was a tag put up, but the set itself mis-shelved away from the tag (some BBs put new releases - and their tag - in a new release section, this set wasn't in that section when I found it)? Or was there no tag put up at all (again, BB puts items on sale without necessarily puting up a sale tag)?

Now I could have hunted down some store drone, asked about the marked price vs the sale price, mentioned there was no display tag, and tried to get confirmation (via how ever many personel *they* forward the question to). Again, basically assuming up front the transaction is going to require spending extra time and resigning myself to that fate. But frankly I'm amazed at the idea that people are actually defending the idea that the *customer* should automatically assume they need to pre-confirm a store's own advertised price before even thinking about going to the register to purchase the item.

Maybe from past experience I should take your suggested approach, and just assume that Best Buy is going to invariably screw something up and that I should spent extra time making sure all the ducks are lined up in a row. Rather than make the unheard of assumption that sales items should actually ring up with the advertised sale price.

But then again needing to hold that level of check and recheck cynicism in order to do business with Best Buy is precisely why I *don't* want to do business with Best Buy. The idea that others are actually considering that to be acceptable business organization and customer service practice frankly boggles me.

bsmith

Actually, no. I've purchased several DVDs over time from BB where the item itself did not have the sale price on the package but it did ring up with the correct sale's price at the register. You just never know until you actually get to the register.

More often then not, it has been that way with me. So in this case, I would have assumed the discount would be applied correctly and gone the register route instead of customer service based on personal experience.

JasonF

Got my set from Amazon yesterday. I have no idea when I'm going to have time to watch it.

Biggdog

The Starburst Editions did not have the "dolby surround" logo burned into them either. A quick comparison to the older editions, it seems the new version is a touch softer, perhaps filtered or just a different source, maybe both.

Jason One

How does season 4 look in this new set? Season 4 had absolutely horrible PQ on both the original ADV and Starburst releases (very soft and tons of edge enhancement).

WillardC

So none of the episodes from Starburst sets have them? Not even Season one?

I have only watched the first 7 episodes from season one from the new box set and they all have the Dolby logo. I'd hate for all four seasons to have that logo down in the corner. I know it's only on screen for a few seconds but still, it is annoying...

bsmith

If I remember correctly season 4 had its budget slashed so they had to go to cost saving techiniques to even get it down. As a result, the quality of the product suffered from a video perspective. It could never look as good as the previous seasons.

Josh-da-man

Picked this up at BB today. They had two copies, I got the one that didn't have a crushed corner.

There was a shelf tag that said $99.95, and it rang up as that. Told the cashier that I wanted to pricematch the BB.com website, and she called the new price up on her computer, and needed to get someone to override the price. Took about thirty seconds, and the manager who overrode it even mentioned that that's the second Farscape set she'd had to pricematch.

No problem for me. If BB was giving anyone a hard time about this, they were just being dicks.

bse

I will pick this up early next year when I have sometime to watch it, hopefully I can get a good deal on Amazon Marketplace at that time.

slop101

I did a back and forth with the old ADV dvds, and the 4x3 transfer of the first 3 seasons is slightly better on this new set (very slightly) and it looks pretty good - as good as a 10 year old low-budget TV show can look. The audio is about the same (which is a good thing, since F/S has some of the best surround sound design of any TV show). The the 16x9 transfer of the 4th season on this new set is the same as the old one, which was pretty shitty - all sorts of moire, ringing, halos, etc... And the ADV dvds didn't have the dolby logo.

Ajay C

I thought I saw it asked earlier in this thread, but don’t recall seeing an answer... do all the old Starburst extras appear on this new set?

bsmith

Thanks for the comparison. I sold my old Starburst collection with mixed double and single size cases over the summer for just under $200 to an online site that buys used DVDs (some people did better then that using eBay and market place options). For a saving of $125, less storage space requirements, and no more DVD-18s, I can handle a momentary dolby logo.

njwiv

Ditto. It can be like Russian roulette on the prices.

dlbsyst

Agreed. The logo is on the screen for only a moment. Doesn't bother me in the least. I'm working my way through season 1 and enjoying the hell out of it.)

WillardC

Yeah I can live with the Dolby logo. That's a shame about season four's picture quality but I doubt we'll ever get better transfers so I guess we will just have to deal with it. I can't imagine this show ever coming out on Blu-ray unless it's about 10 years or more down the road. I'm just glad to finally be able to own this show in one collection for a great price.

I'm up to episode 8 from Season one so far and loving it.

BrandonJF

You didn't do anything wrong (not sure why you're getting the third degree concerning have a horrible BB experience).

First, there was a time when BB.com prices typically matched in-store prices. That isn't as much of a sure thing any longer. I just do in-store pickup (which they have finally improved upon as far as the pick-up process goes at my BB). But, I very much used to see a price online, go to the store, and expect it to be the same.

Second, they also used to be able to price match right at the register. If it was a certain amount, they would need to get an override (and this one would've required it). Not sure if the policy changed, but I didn't used to have to go to customer service. Yes, if you are price matching after the fact, but not if you haven't even purchased it.

I think you just have a crappy Best Buy with a bunch of people who don't want to be bothered. My closest one is actually pretty good. It surprises me how helpful and friendly almost all of their employees are.

rmick

2 episodes in, and despite the promise that it gets better, I can already tell this is decidedly not for me.

Not that the show is bad, but with my limited amount of free time these days, I find myself thinking of the other movies and series I'd rather be watching and re-watching.

bsmith

Ok...but after only two episodes when you bought the whole series? Obviously, if it isn't your thing then it isn't. I had issues initially with the muppet like aspects in the beginning (especially since I couldn't stand the muppets). Also the real villian doesn't show for a while yet.

You might want to think about those other shows you are rewatching and wondering if they hit pay dirt with you by the 2nd episode. I know I questioned Stargate SG-1 several times through the first season but ended up enjoying it enough to buy it and watch all the way through season 8.

Just a thought.