Best Buy

This Best Buy store kind of reminds me of a typical Circuit City store while they were swirling the drain. Most notably, a lot of items were out of stock. That always makes me wonder whether a store is having cash flow problems. Of course, it also can be poor inventory management, so it’s hard to say.
I was there a few days ago looking for a dash cam, and most of the cams that they were supposed to have were out of stock. The stock of vehicle navigation systems also seemed sparse (although in fairness, those devices are not very popular any more, so maybe they just have empty displays that previously were used for devices that are no longer manufactured).
In terms of more general product variety, as is the case with most chain stores, don’t expect to find anything that’s in the least bit out of the ordinary in Best Buy. They only want to sell stuff that will sell out quickly. Unless you’re one of the herd of lemmings who follow the latest product fads, don’t count on finding what you need in Best Buy.
For example, the Kingston Best Buy stocks roughly two bazillion hard-​shell iPhone cases. But don’t expect to find one for any other phone except maybe the Samsung S7. They only want to stock what they’re going to sell out of this afternoon. If you want anything that deviates in the least bit from the current fad, lotsa luck with that. They’ll try to sell you some «universal» item instead.
Regarding the staff, they’re typical Best Buy caliber. By that I mean that they’re nice enough, but not especially knowledgeable. Don’t even ask them any intermediate-​level tech questions. The chances that they’ll know the answers are really, really slim.
Granted, I’m a long-​time I.T. professional who’s been farting around with computers since the 1970s; so yeah, it’s unfair of me to compare myself to some pimple-​faced kid with a runny nose who doesn’t shave yet. But they should at least know about the products that they sell. And all too often, they simply don’t. They try to be helpful. I’ll give them that. But they lack product knowledge, most likely because Best Buy never bothered to teach it to them.
One thing I will say is that if you look up an item on Best Buy’s Web site, and they say the store has that item in stock, then they probably do have it in stock. I’ve never had them not have something in stock if the Web site said they did. They do seem to have a handle on that, at least. So if you’ve already decided on a particular item, you don’t need any help, and you don’t have any questions, then you may as well check online for Best Buy’s price and availability. Their sales, at least, are usually good deals; and if they have the item in stock, then you don’t have to wait for it to be shipped.
Other than that, however, there’s really very little to like about this Best Buy. I frankly wouldn’t bother with them at all if the nearest Micro Center weren’t so far away. But alas, as solidly mediocre as the Kingston Best Buy is, they’re what we have.
Richard

It is amazing the difference in customer service, inventory, and knowledge difference between this store and the one in the Poughkeepsie Galleria. Get in the car and go there, skip the Kingston store. Hard to find a salesperson and when you find one the knowledge level is almost none. Made another purchase yesterday, at checkout the 2 employees were busy talking to each other about going to the Gym and their work schedule and ignoring me. I was the only one checking out!

If I could give this place negative stars I would. So, please consider the actual rating to be negative ten stars. One of the absolute worst retail experiences I have ever had. After this last incident, I will NEVER ever shop at this joke of a store again. They could offer me a free 80-​inch plasma TV with surround sound and I would not ever go in there or do business with them again.
Where do I begin? Well, first, the store is woefully understaffed — always. Whenever we’ve gone in, there was never a salesperson available anywhere. It’s frustrating to walk around in circles looking for help. The last time I wandered around the store for a few minutes, but the few employees around were helping other customers.
Finally, I went to the front of the store and there were two employees just standing around having a personal conversation. When I asked if either of them could help, they said, no, but that they would send someone over. Five minutes later, someone finally showed. This should not happen. If they need to hire more staff, that’s what needs to be done.
Their computer system — for other than in-​stock items — is incredibly slow and antiquated. You will spend five or ten minutes just to be rung up if you’re buying an appliance. It’s incredibly slow. We ordered appliances and it took forever for them to find the correct model numbers and fiddle about with their computer system.
Worst yet, they LIE, repeatedly: they set up delivery times and don’t honor them; always with some lame excuse about trucks breaking down, etc. There is no coordination between the store and the outside delivery company they use. The delivery guys actually told me how awful Best Buy was to work for! They also told me that they deal with upset customers all the time, but Best Buy doesn’t care.
The store will set up a time, give a robo-​call the night before, but then not come AT ALL when they say they will. I have wasted three entire afternoons waiting for a delivery that was never made. When I called the store and asked to speak to the manager, he had no explanation for why the deliveries weren’t made.
Also, expect to be on hold forever waiting to speak to a manager. Oh — and one employee who claimed she was the manager was actually not a manager. She offered me a credit and promised to email me the info, and then never followed through. When I called back to follow up, I found out that she was not a manager at all. The real manager, though, was quite unprofessional and got defensive when I complained about the failed deliveries. Finally, on the FOURTH try, I finally got the delivery, only a full three hours after I was told it would be here! All in all, I must have called the store a dozen times to figure out why my appliances were not being delivered. It’s like they take your money and don’t care at all whether you receive your products.
When I purchased the last item, I was told by the salesman at the store that it would be set up for free, but when it was finally delivered — one full MONTH (!!) later than I was told, the delivery men said set-​up was NOT included. So, now I will have to get someone and pay extra to do what the store employee assured me would be done for free.
As my husband said, they should call themselves Best Buy, Worst Customer Service! Never again! Save yourself a lot of time and aggravation and choose another retailer.

Needing to find an electronics or entertainment item? Try Best Buy. There is a Best Buy place here that is not overly priced (although not cheap either), the employees (who used to be stand-​out more (and be more available)) are almost always available to answer questions (are only near the doors nowadays) and service is borderline okay. Register lines tend to extend back a long distance, but with the amount of money this store is racking in, it’s worth the extra hassle.
The aisles are almost always clean and clear, so walking isn’t such a hassle. Finding things that are of most essence isn’t such a nuisance either. Things are well-​marked, as to price signage and store’s layout is well-​organized too.
Since my last big purchase here, I don’t tend to walk into this store a whole lot. I just like browse, to see what new stuff is in store for me. I don’t feel this store is very worthy of my business. If they want my money, they have to have a run for it, as the amount of purchases I make here, is few and far between.

This place is typical of most chain stores. The products are overpriced and the service is indifferent bordering on nasty.
I bought a printer a few weeks ago and had to return it. I got attitude from the customer service staff and walked away cursing under my breath. It was a bad experience that repeated itself last week when I went to get a smartphone. This time I could not bite my tongue and was forced to walk out without my new phone
I will never shop at this Best Buy again.