In many parts of the US, PC enthusiasts take the availability of Micro Center retail stores for granted. Until just a few days ago, Micro Center stores were open in 18 states, with New York having the most locations (the state has four compared to three for Ohio). One additional state officially joined the fray on June 7: North Carolina.
Micro Center’s first North Carolina location is in Charlotte, one of the big financial hubs in the southern United States. It’s also about a 2.5-hour drive from where I live in Garner, NC (just on the outskirts of the state capital of Raleigh). I’ve always wanted to visit a Micro Center location, but I never bothered making the trek, given that the closest one had been over four hours away in Fairfax, Virginia.
That’s not to say there haven’t been many reasons to visit a Micro Center. I have sat by for years, seeing deal after deal posted online boasting huge discounts on PC hardware. Then I’d click the link only to find out that it’s a Micro Center deal and in-store only — no shipping available. The too-good-to-be-true promotions were often priced far below what I’d find at Newegg or Best Buy. And the open box and refurbished deals were even better. After years of missing out, I finally tried out a Micro Center for the first time in my home state.
Granted, a 2.5-hour drive (that's 5 hours roundtrip) still isn’t a cakewalk. But I was going to be in the Charlotte metropolitan area for a family function this past weekend anyway, so it only made sense to drop by and see what all the hoopla was about. The 41,000-square-foot Micro Center store is located in what amounts to a strip mall at the intersection of Woodlawn Rd. and South Blvd., sandwiched between a Family Dollar and a Home Depot.
I went on a Sunday two days after the public grand opening, and parking was still horrendous. Many Charlotte-area residents descended upon the store to get a closer look. After I struck out trying to find a parking spot near the store, I ended up parking in the lot in front of the Home Depot and made my way inside the store.
As a Micro Center newb, I didn’t quite know what to expect, but it was a bit overwhelming at first. The first thing I saw after walking past the security guard at the front door was Knowledge Bar, situated at the front right of the store. Similar in concept to Best Buy’s Geek Squad, the Knowledge Bar is your go-to place to get help for all your PC questions (or ailments). The retailer offers consultation, data recovery services, and even authorized warranty repairs for select big-name PC makers including Lenovo and Apple.
Walking deeper into the store, I found large tables and entire aisles dedicated to major computer brands. One big wooden table was stocked exclusively with Apple computers and tablets. Adjacent aisles had Apple accessories like cables and AirPods. Aisles were dedicated to Asus, Lenovo, and HP laptops, desktops, and their assorted accessories. I was equally impressed by a single, tall shelf devoted just to Asus wireless routers (some of which I had recently reviewed here at Tom’s Hardware).
But perhaps the biggest surprise was seeing a massive Dell Technologies “wing” in the rear right corner of the store. It was by far the biggest section dedicated to a single brand. Dell’s consumer and business PC offerings were on display (including Alienware), as were other big-ticket items like gaming and productivity monitors.
I just walked around in a daze, overwhelmed by seeing this much current-generation hardware that I cover daily in one place (outside of trade shows). Yes, my local Best Buy store in Garner has some PC gear in inventory, but nothing to the scale of Micro Center.
I walked by dedicated displays of products as varied as Bambu Labs 3D printers or Raspberry Pi products and accessories. I strolled aisles of gaming headsets, keyboards, mice, cases, power supplies, and every imaginable component you could need to start a new PC build or upgrade your existing one. And, of course, dozens of GeForce RTX 4090 cards were staring me down, locked in a display case, as I sauntered past the “Build Your Own PC” booth.
As I surveyed the store, I saw eager enthusiasts with carts full of hardware and big grins on their faces. Some ignored carts altogether and simply carried their goods in their arms. One shopper I spoke to from nearby Monroe, NC, cradled an Asus Z790 motherboard and a Corsair RMx SHIFT Series RM1000x power supply. He relished having a store so close by to get PC hardware without needing to rely on the usual online stalwarts like Newegg and Amazon.
As for me, I didn’t walk out of the store with any new hardware in hand. My PC hardware needs are set for at least the next year or so. But if I somehow need a system upgrade in the near term, I’ll be sure to keep my eyes on the countless Micro Center in-store deals and adjust my family visiting schedule accordingly.
Or better, yet, Micro Center could open a location right here in North Carolina’s tech center: the Research Triangle Park (i.e., Raleigh-Durham) area. It’s the most logical expansion point if Micro Center wants to grow its presence in the state, and I’d reckon that the number of tech enthusiasts in the area dwarfs that of Charlotte.
Are you listening, Micro Center executives?
