All this could be yours, human.
(Credit: Sam's Club/Epic Games)Looking for the perfect holiday gift for an Xbox 360 owner? When a signed copy of Gears of War 2 by creator Cliff Bleszinski isn't enough, Sam's Club has up for auction a 19-inch-tall replica head of a locust drone--you know, one of the several thousand or so that you must take out on your way to finishing the latest blockbuster title.
This svelte little number, sure to delight your significant other with its presence on the fireplace mantle or dining table, was designed and sculpted by Epic Games Art Director Chris Perma. If you're a winner of its cold, dead stare, it's worth noting you won't be getting your grubby mitts on it until "Q1 2009," which is when it'll be shipped out.
As of this posting, the price is hovering around $20, and the auction is due to end in just over seven days. If for some reason you lose, you can always drop $650 to get it right from the source.
Related story:
Gears of War Locust gets busted (GameSpot)
(Via Joystiq)
If you're going to be serious about electronics retail in the U.S., it looks like you have to be serious about employing professional geeks.
Beginning Saturday, 20 Sam's Club stores in Virginia and Maryland will offer tech support from PC repair services company Geeks on Call as part of a pilot program set to last three months. Sam's Club has 394 stores in the U.S. with several similar pilots running right now, according to a company spokesperson, who declined to elaborate.
Just last week, parent company Wal-Mart announced it would offer Dell-branded PC repair kiosks in 15 Dallas-area stores, also as part of a trial run. It's similar to the Geek Squad services offered by Best Buy, and the FireDog service offered by Circuit City.
Unlike those three repair outfits, Geeks on Call won't have its own kiosk because they don't do in-store support. Instead, a sticker on every computer sold at those Sam's Club stores will direct the purchaser to call Geeks on Call, who will send a technician to the person's home or business.
(Credit:
Sam's Club)
Geeks on Call gives a discount to Sam's Club members; PC set-up service will run $98, instead of the normal $160, for example.
Geeks on Call CEO Richard Cole put it this way, "Today's technology causes a lot of angst. If you're going to be in the business of selling technologies...you have to have a solutions provider."
You don't have to, but it's certainly convenient. Quality of service is a different story. Last year a Canadian news outlet did an undercover investigation of PC repair services at major electronics chains and found a high incidence of incompetence, and frequent overcharging of customers.
But both customers and electronics retailers need these kinds of services. The average PC buyer doesn't have the knowledge to repair their own computer, or even set up a wireless home network, and many understandably don't want the hassle of learning. And services like repair and in-home set-up are one of the best ways to actually make money in the electronics retail business, where profit margins are notoriously thin.
For those of you who want an electric car and a trip to the Kennedy Space Center, head on down to Sam's Club.
The club store branch of Wal-Mart Stores is selling a 2007 lithium-powered smart car from Hybrid Technologies this year as part of its once-in-a-lifetime packages. For $35,000 you get the car along with a trip to the NASA Kennedy Space Center to watch a shuttle launch. Some of the technology inside the car comes from NASA. That's the connection.
George Clooney owns one of these. Sam's Club will put the car on sale on November 8.
Let's go drive over to see Paula Deen.
(Credit: Hybrid Technologies)If you're down there picking up a case of Swiffer wets and some Hungry Jack buttermilk pancake mix, why not get a car? That's my thinking.
Last year, Sam's Club offered a $2.7 million Cessna Citation aircraft. It sold in 60 seconds.
Here are some other packages for 2007:
For $75,000, you can get a four-person package to the Beijing Olympics. It comes with exceptional seats for the opening ceremonies and other events.
For $24,000, you can get a travel-sports package to go to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in Charlotte, N.C. Richard Petty will come by to meet you. No word on if it comes with a flame-retardant suit to take home. If you bought the car too, you could maybe race him in it. There's a family memory for you.
And for you cheapskates, there is the $3,800 package where you go to Savannah, Ga., and meet Food Network star Paula Deen and eat lots of food with mayonnaise in it. That woman loves mayo.
Dell made waves in the PC industry last month when it announced it would sell two of its desktop computers in Wal-Mart stores. On Friday, the company said Sam's Club would carry two Dell models, a desktop and notebook.
Beginning in mid-June, 580 Sam's Club stores will stock Dell's Inspiron E1501 Notebook, which will sell for $899, and Dimension E521 Multimedia Desktop for $829. More than 3,000 Wal-Marts will have two versions of the Dell Dimension E521 Multimedia desktops--for $698 and $498--on its shelves starting this Sunday.
All models will ship with Windows Vista Home Premium edition and a 1-year warranty.
Dell has been trying to steady itself after being knocked off its perch as the global PC leader. As part of that strategy, founder and CEO Michael Dell said his company would, in addition to its traditional model of selling directly to consumers, give retail a try.
Industry observers criticized Dell's decision to sell just low-end desktops because it wasn't a demonstration of a long-term commitment to a new strategy. Dell insisted that the Wal-Mart announcement was just the beginning, as the decision to sell at least one notebook model retail would seem to indicate.
- prev
- 1
- next
