Hey, I want to customize a new pc to a lot of the specs I found from reading posts on here. I need a place that will build it for me after I pick everything out in Canada. I checked directcanada but I don't see that they build the system, anywhere else I can shop at? I was looking at etccomputer.ca but they lack some of the stuff I need. My budget is about 3k canadian.
Did you try a local Computer shop?. Give them a list of what you want in your build and have them give you a price quote. If everything looks good have them build your system. Just have them stick to the list of components and not swap out cheaper items for quality parts. If they can't get everything for you, try ordering in harder to find parts from online sources and take them into the shop for assembly, they are billing you for their time anyway.
Trunkz_Jr
Distinguished
- Feb 1, 2007
- 332
- 0
- 18,780
Yeah i'm in the same spot he is, I'm gonna spend about $3000+ CDN for a new computer. I am worried that if I go to my local computer store that they will order the parts from their own place that costs more for the parts or something. I have a feeling that they won't look online or whatever to find the cheapest prices without buying the cheapest product.
Would it be cheaper to buy all the stuff myself from a store then just give it to them to build?
Would it be cheaper to buy all the stuff myself from a store then just give it to them to build?
I don't think locally would be a lot cheaper, on the net you can look around and find the best pricing. I just need to find a good solid online store in Canada that will cuztomize the pc for me and has a good selection of parts. So if anyone has experience with one pleaset let me know, thanks!
Three places to check out:
DirectCanada.com which you've already mentioned. Not sure if they do the assembling but I would strongly suspect they would.
NCIX. They definitely will assemble for you. Note that DirectCanada.com and NCIX.com are related. Sister companies at least, and they ship from the same warehouse. In my experience, DirectCanada.com is cheaper.
MemoryExpress. Sometimes they have better prices but recently, their prices have been a little high. They will also assemble.
You should generally expect to pay a bit for assembly. I've been building computers for twenty years, at times professionally, and I would happily pay someone a reasonable amount to assemble the system for me.
DirectCanada.com which you've already mentioned. Not sure if they do the assembling but I would strongly suspect they would.
NCIX. They definitely will assemble for you. Note that DirectCanada.com and NCIX.com are related. Sister companies at least, and they ship from the same warehouse. In my experience, DirectCanada.com is cheaper.
MemoryExpress. Sometimes they have better prices but recently, their prices have been a little high. They will also assemble.
You should generally expect to pay a bit for assembly. I've been building computers for twenty years, at times professionally, and I would happily pay someone a reasonable amount to assemble the system for me.
CNeufeld
Distinguished
- Jun 26, 2006
- 267
- 0
- 18,780
I've bought from MemoryExpress (www.memoryexpress.com), NCIX (www.ncix.com), and TigerDirect (www.tigerdirect.ca).
MemoryExpress is local to me (Alberta), and they've had a great 7 day return/exchange policy. Saved my bacon a few times. They were the cheapest local store usually as well, and were competitive with NCIX usually. Plus, MemoryExpres is right on the way home from work, so no shipping charges or delays.
I've had good service with NCIX and they've got a good selection, but I prefer to deal locally unless there's a big difference in price or I can't find the product I want locally. NCIX is one province away (Vancouver B.C. based)
TigerDirect sometimes has some good deals, but often their best deals are due to rebates (which I've gotten; they just take awhile), and their shipping charges have been high.
Both TigerDirect and NCIX will send out e-flyers with some good deals, which is nice.
My $0.02 CAD.
Clint
MemoryExpress is local to me (Alberta), and they've had a great 7 day return/exchange policy. Saved my bacon a few times. They were the cheapest local store usually as well, and were competitive with NCIX usually. Plus, MemoryExpres is right on the way home from work, so no shipping charges or delays.
I've had good service with NCIX and they've got a good selection, but I prefer to deal locally unless there's a big difference in price or I can't find the product I want locally. NCIX is one province away (Vancouver B.C. based)
TigerDirect sometimes has some good deals, but often their best deals are due to rebates (which I've gotten; they just take awhile), and their shipping charges have been high.
Both TigerDirect and NCIX will send out e-flyers with some good deals, which is nice.
My $0.02 CAD.
Clint
Under no circumstances should you order from TigerDirect.ca. Their customer support is beneath contempt, they may fraudulently charge your credit card for extra charges weeks after shipping your products (as they did me, cleared up by filing a dispute with Visa), and they refuse to stop mailing you when you request it (all the while lying to you, telling you they have).
On top of which, tigerdirect.ca don't have that great a selection and virtually never have good prices, particularly when you take into account their excessive shipping charges.
On top of which, tigerdirect.ca don't have that great a selection and virtually never have good prices, particularly when you take into account their excessive shipping charges.
Trunkz_Jr
Distinguished
- Feb 1, 2007
- 332
- 0
- 18,780
Im getting that Extreme and I noticed something, Price difference! lool
Tigerdirect.ca:
Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 2.66GHz
Price:
$1409.99
Directcanada:
Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 2.66GHz
Price:
$1,178.99
thats a pretty big difference in saving money x_X
Tigerdirect.ca:
Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 2.66GHz
Price:
$1409.99
Directcanada:
Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 2.66GHz
Price:
$1,178.99
thats a pretty big difference in saving money x_X
rushfan
Distinguished
- Mar 2, 2006
- 268
- 0
- 18,780
Agreed - online shopping is usually NOT cheaper. Sure, you'll get occasional deals but brick and mortar shops are less expensive, in my experience. Parts are often priced about the same - it's the shipping that's a killer.
One thing to consider - if you have a problem with a machine that was purchased online, you'll probably have to pay $50-$75 to ship it to the vendor for repair. Do that just once or twice and your "savings' are gone.
Check out some of the free computer magazines that are offered in your area (supermarkets, book stores etc) for local supplies who advertise their component prices. You can do some comparison shopping simply by flipping a few pages.
If you are asking about online retailers, I have personally bought from cdw.ca, frontierpc.com and ramstore.ca and I can give you my take on them if you like.
With all three, I received my orders in good order and without much hassle.
cdw.ca is sometimes a bit more expensive but they have a pretty wide selection. Of the three, I was most impressed with cdw's customer service. I placed my order and a representative actually called me within 15 minutes to confirm and make sure everything was good. If nothing else, this made me feel like my business with them was valued. My last order from them arrived in two days with express shipping, which made me quite happy since I needed it quick - fast shipping was a bit costly with them though.
frontierpc.com also has a lot of stuff on their website. Sadly, since my last order with them they seem to have removed some of the enthusiast type gear they used to carry. I would have bought from them again but they didn't have any of the stuff I was looking for. That being said, when I ordered from them I was wary but I received my order fairly promptly (1 week, BC to Manitoba) and everything was on the level in the end. Personally, I do not find their website very user friendly for shopping.
ramstore.ca was a place I just recently bought from. I was looking for a Thermaltake Toughpower 850 and there were only a few places to get one from in Canada. Of those, ramstore was rated higher by shoppers in PriceCanda than the others. The prices were competetive on what I was looking for and being in Alberta you save a bit because you don't pay any PST. For certain items I've looked at, they have very good pricing actually - I ordered my Striker Extreme locally and paid over $500 (expected), I later noticed on ramstore.ca the board is listed at only $410. Unfortunately, they do not have a terribly wide selection. Anyways, my order arrived in 2 or 3 days and express shipping only cost me $5 more.
I typically order from a local place or from another place here in the province but occassionally have to go elsewhere for something specific. I think, if you want a whole system and don't want to "do it yourself" you'd be better off buying local. Still, these are my experience with a few canadian online retailers, hope it helps.
-dolynick
With all three, I received my orders in good order and without much hassle.
cdw.ca is sometimes a bit more expensive but they have a pretty wide selection. Of the three, I was most impressed with cdw's customer service. I placed my order and a representative actually called me within 15 minutes to confirm and make sure everything was good. If nothing else, this made me feel like my business with them was valued. My last order from them arrived in two days with express shipping, which made me quite happy since I needed it quick - fast shipping was a bit costly with them though.
frontierpc.com also has a lot of stuff on their website. Sadly, since my last order with them they seem to have removed some of the enthusiast type gear they used to carry. I would have bought from them again but they didn't have any of the stuff I was looking for. That being said, when I ordered from them I was wary but I received my order fairly promptly (1 week, BC to Manitoba) and everything was on the level in the end. Personally, I do not find their website very user friendly for shopping.
ramstore.ca was a place I just recently bought from. I was looking for a Thermaltake Toughpower 850 and there were only a few places to get one from in Canada. Of those, ramstore was rated higher by shoppers in PriceCanda than the others. The prices were competetive on what I was looking for and being in Alberta you save a bit because you don't pay any PST. For certain items I've looked at, they have very good pricing actually - I ordered my Striker Extreme locally and paid over $500 (expected), I later noticed on ramstore.ca the board is listed at only $410. Unfortunately, they do not have a terribly wide selection. Anyways, my order arrived in 2 or 3 days and express shipping only cost me $5 more.
I typically order from a local place or from another place here in the province but occassionally have to go elsewhere for something specific. I think, if you want a whole system and don't want to "do it yourself" you'd be better off buying local. Still, these are my experience with a few canadian online retailers, hope it helps.
-dolynick
krisz
Distinguished
- Nov 28, 2006
- 441
- 0
- 18,780
Buy everything from NCIX they are the best for prices, and they usually have everything you need, even the latest and newest in hardware. I was looking at the 8800GTX video card with AC3 cooling and they had it before anyone else in Canada.
I live in Ontario too and the shipping does not cost that much from them. Also because they are in BC the taxes are a lot less than if you buy from a place in Ontario. When i bought my headphones (Sennheiser) i went through them and with shipping and taxes i was $50 cheaper than if i walked into a local store to get them.
I spent close to $5000 CDN at NCIX so far and i highly recommend them. I had to RMA stuff with them and i was very satisfied at the end. They are easy to deal with and they are very reasonable.
I got my 8800GTX from them. I ordered it on a Thursday morning, i had the card in my hands on Friday afternoon. What else can i say?
I live in Ontario too and the shipping does not cost that much from them. Also because they are in BC the taxes are a lot less than if you buy from a place in Ontario. When i bought my headphones (Sennheiser) i went through them and with shipping and taxes i was $50 cheaper than if i walked into a local store to get them.
I spent close to $5000 CDN at NCIX so far and i highly recommend them. I had to RMA stuff with them and i was very satisfied at the end. They are easy to deal with and they are very reasonable.
I got my 8800GTX from them. I ordered it on a Thursday morning, i had the card in my hands on Friday afternoon. What else can i say?
Trunkz_Jr
Distinguished
- Feb 1, 2007
- 332
- 0
- 18,780
Everything I am gonna buy is right here:
Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 Quad Core
EVGA Nforce 680I SLI LGA775
XFX GeForce 8800 GTX 575MHZ 768MB
Corsair XMS2 Dominator TWIN2X2048-6400C4D 2GB 2X1GB PC6400 DDR2-800
Thermaltake VA8000 Armor Super Tower Case Black
Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 320GB SATA2 3GB/S 7200RPM 16MB Cache
OCZ GameXStream 850W ATX12V 24PIN SLI Ready Active PFC ATX Power Supply 120MM Fans
Liteon 48X24X48 CDRW& 16X DVD Combo Drive Beige W/SW Retail Box
Zalman VF900-CU LED Copper Dual Heatpipe 1350-2400RPM 18.5-25.0DBA VGA Cooler W/ Blue LED
Gonna use my Sound card from this CPU
Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 Quad Core
EVGA Nforce 680I SLI LGA775
XFX GeForce 8800 GTX 575MHZ 768MB
Corsair XMS2 Dominator TWIN2X2048-6400C4D 2GB 2X1GB PC6400 DDR2-800
Thermaltake VA8000 Armor Super Tower Case Black
Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 320GB SATA2 3GB/S 7200RPM 16MB Cache
OCZ GameXStream 850W ATX12V 24PIN SLI Ready Active PFC ATX Power Supply 120MM Fans
Liteon 48X24X48 CDRW& 16X DVD Combo Drive Beige W/SW Retail Box
Zalman VF900-CU LED Copper Dual Heatpipe 1350-2400RPM 18.5-25.0DBA VGA Cooler W/ Blue LED
Gonna use my Sound card from this CPU
Trunkz_Jr
Distinguished
- Feb 1, 2007
- 332
- 0
- 18,780
Why not get a Combo Drive? Price of the 850 was $168.85CAD at DirectCanada.
Final Price of Canada Computers: $3,572.60
Final Price of DirectCanada: $3,311.29
But I might just think about going to Canada Computers if their in Hamilton tho. Their Video Cards are pretty cheap but some are pick up only and can't order it online, wonder why that is x_X
Final Price of Canada Computers: $3,572.60
Final Price of DirectCanada: $3,311.29
But I might just think about going to Canada Computers if their in Hamilton tho. Their Video Cards are pretty cheap but some are pick up only and can't order it online, wonder why that is x_X
TRENDING THREADS
-
News Microsoft updates Windows 11 24H2 requirements, CPU must support SSE4.2 or the OS will not boot- Started by Admin
- Replies: 7
-
-
-
-
Discussion What's your favourite video game you've been playing?- Started by amdfangirl
- Replies: 3K
-
Question Can I just upgrade my graphics card or should I be upgrading my processor as well for UE5?- Started by Tolstoy1990
- Replies: 11
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram