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Range of goods:
Comet stock a good range of items,and each item is stocked in a variety of makes and models to suit just about all budgets and requirements.I don't think there has ever been an appliance I have been unable to find in their stores ... Read review
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A review by babajane32 on Comet (Shop) August 9th, 2002
Author's product rating:
Price
Very low
Value for money
Poor
Selection & range
Good selection
Quality
Satisfactory
Staff knowledge
Poor
Advantages:
low prices,wide selection
Disadvantages:
service,stock and service again
Recommend to potential buyers:
no
Full review
Store description:
A large electrical store,selling a wide range of household appliances,audio and video equipment.They have nation-wide stores and an online store. The stores are well laid out,with plenty of room to negotiate the isles when it is a family visit.And the goods are displayed well and are easy to loacate.
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Range of goods:
Comet stock a good range of items,and each item is stocked in a variety of makes and models to suit just about all budgets and requirements.I don't think there has ever been an appliance I have been unable to find in their stores yet.
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Availability of goods:
This is where Comet start to have problems.Whilst smaller items kettles,fryers,videos etc are almost always in stock..nearly all larger items,washers and fridges etc, require a minimum of 7 days ordering and sometimes a lot longer.This also means that you have little choice but to have them delivered at a charge of around 15 pounds.
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Prices:
The highest point of Comet stores is their pricing,and just about without exception you will struggle to find a more competative price for any of their goods.The only store I have ever found as competative being Currys, which still does not always compare on prices.But please not this does not nescessarily mean value for money..read on and make your own mind up on that point!
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Service:
Oh my gosh,I do hate to be so negative,but on this point I have to say "what service?".Their service is diabolical to say the least.If you can find an assistant,nail them to the floor quick! Their sales staff are generally hard to find,have little knowledge of the goods or availability,and generaly have one aim and that is to sell you expensive added insurance or to get you credit on everything. Their telephone system is just about as usefull,being unable to directly ring a store you are passed to a central information unit,who despite having computors access to details,are again low on knowledge and are not best known for their accurate information. Their after sales service is worse still,so much so I will keep that to another catagory..read further..
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Warrenties:
Comet offer the usual statutary 12 month warrenty on most items.They also have 2 other notable options.. Firstly the extended warrenty..covering a five year span..bearing in mind that your first year is already covered(so realy only a 4 year extended warrenty).This option has an added bonus..if you do not use the warrenty during the extra 4 years then you will be entitled to a refund of the full premium payed for the cover.However you can pay a very high price for the cover (nearly as much as the appliance) and therefore it could still work out cheaper to pay for a repair yourself.And you need to retain all your documants from the time of purchase as the refund is not automatic and can be difficult to actually get if you do not have all your documentation.Having said all this it is still worth considering as you are entitled to a rebait if unused. Secondly they offer a "new for old" scheme,where on small appliances you can pay from 10 to 30 pounds at the time of purchase,this then gives you the option to trade in the appliance in 2 years time for a brand new one at no extra cost.For high users of appliances this could be a very worth while option. They also advertise a "no lemon" exchange..where upon an appliance going wrong more than once they will replace it with a comparable(of equal spec) item.
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After sales service:
He he he... now,now I shouldn't laugh as it realy is not funny.They have the most atrocious after sales service.If you buy a small item and it is immediately faulty then take it along to your store with the reciept and they will usually exchange it no probs.But this is where the service stops dead.If you have a larger appliance or an appliance goes wrong after a little while then forget all your statutary rights unless you are prepared for a court battle!! They will fob you off,pass the book and ignore you,anything but deal with it. If you have an item delivered..INSPECT it before the delivery men leave,if you find anything wrong or missing, refuse delivery!!Otherwise you could be a very long time waiting for a working replacement.And if the deliverymen do not want to wait for you to do this then do not sign the delivery slip until you have,they will have to wait then. And if you feel like quoting their "no lemon" offer..printed on the back of all reciepts..you may well be told that they do not have to honour it. You will also find it extreamly difficult to speak to anyone in management.
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Value for money:
If you want a reasonably priced appliance then this could be the place for you,but value for money should include other factors and I feel that they are not so good,hence I cannot say you would get value for money here,but you do just about get what you pay for.
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Summery: An excellent source of low cost household appliances.Service that is abismal,but a fair range of warrenty options . The range of goods is great,but availability on large items can be a problem especially if you are in a hurry to replace a major item that has just gone kerput on you. My personal experiences with this store on several occasions has been so disaterous that I am very loathed to shop here again for anything bigger than a toaster,but it does have it good points and the staff have their good days,so it can be worth a try if you keep a mental note of what you actually want from your purchase.
COMET claim these days that they don't have sales, just permanently low prices and state on TV that they price check around 34,000 prices every week (or some silly such figure) and are deemed to be one of the cheapest and best large electrical dealers around - having said all this, with the exception of Currys, alternative choice these days seems to be limited to small local companies who provide the personal touch, but charge the earth, or mainly ... ...I would never shop in Comet again. Well, they do say never is a long time. STORE CARD Despite being reluctant to give me credit, a couple of weeks later I received a Comet store card giving me £x,xxx credit; The TIME card can be used in Woolworths, MVC, Comet, NEXT, B&Q and Superdrug, and operates on the same basis as a credit card, allowing you up to a maximum of 7 weeks interest free credit, a minimum payment (which is actually set at 5% of your ...
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Advantages: Vast range Disadvantages: Where do I begin? See op...
...Shopping » Electrical Shops » Comet (Shop)
I’ve thought long and hard about writing this opinion. I try to ensure that all of my opinions are balanced and show both good and bad sides of whatever it is that I am reviewing. Having stumbled across this category when looking for something to write on, it occurred to me that I really should write about an experience I had with Comet last year when I bought a new cooker.
Firstly, let me give you a little ... ...many years before. However, Comet were in the process of moving from their existing site, at the end of an Industrial Estate, to a bigger site based at the entrance of the same estate. This meant that they were running down the stock in their current store, which in turn meant that there were several goods available at knockdown prices.
Bearing in mind that by this stage Mel was expecting any day, and we had a 21 month old who was quite happy to ...
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...really explain why I chose Comet for some recent large electrical purchases - probably convenience, lack of available time to go checking prices elsewhere and a lower than average IQ.
My first big purchase, at the end of last year, was a JVC television, video, DVD package which came with a half priced offer on a digibox. The whole package was on a special offer so I felt reasonably happy with the price that I paid. I had to wait awhile until a knowledgeable ... ...I took it back to Comet expecting to have to wait a few weeks while they sent it off for repair.
I nearly fainted in surprise when they offered to exchange it for a new one on the spot. It was absolutely beyond belief when finding that a replacement was out of stock they gave me another in the same make but with a much higher specification. This replacement digibox was actually worth £100 more the my original one. Clutching my replacement I headed ...
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Advantages: None Disadvantages: Apalling service, delivery and accuracy
...at 1.00pm - I ring Comet customer services to be told they will call me back. No call back. I ring again. Told to await a call. No call back. Ring work to inform them I will not be able to return. Call Comet - now 2.20pm. Informed they have no record of my delivery. Angry conversation follows. Phone put down in anger. Call back, (in calmer tones!) Told they had made a mistake and the items would have to be delivered on another day, involving a further ... ...delivered - they are missing the printer. They have to return to the store and get one.
When I set up the computer, the printer does not work properly. I have to return to the store and argue with a 20-year old manager before I am given a replacement. (He initially tried to offer me the same printer supposedly 'repaired').
To end the story of my computer purchase, I exchanged several phone calls and letters of complaint with Comet, only to receive ...
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Advantages: plenty of products to choose at affordable prices Disadvantages: Slagging-off the manufactors I've just bought a product from
...and then nipped down to Comet to buy a fridge, dishwasher, and washing machine. I'd already done some price comparisons and felt Comet were going to offer the best deal (rightly or wrongly) and so in I went. It was a Tuesday afternoon and as one might expect the store was not bulging with customers, although several were milling around. So I just got straight down to it, measured up and made my choices. So far so good. But I still had to ask someone ... ...you might have invested in Comet into a savings account so if something did go wrong something has been put aside.
Ironically Comet did come round and install everything quickly and efficiently. By then though my perception of them had been tainted forever. Decent enough shop, with plenty of products but let me walk out of there without breaking all my limbs just for insurance next time please guys! ...
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Advantages: were able to sell me a fax machine Disadvantages: bored staff, not much choice, still flogging warranties
..., but they couldn't find it in the store room. They refunded my money but I was still without a fax machine. I needed it so all I could do was brave some more shops. I went over to Mill Hill where there's an Argos Superstore and Comet next to each other. Argos, again, didn't have what I wanted so the only other option was Comet next door.
The place is the size of a small airport hangar and all the sales personnel looked very, very bored and harassed. At least I knew where to call for help if I ever needed some.
The layout of the store didn't look very appealing to me. It was kind of the "stack 'em high, sell 'em cheap" kind. There was audio-visual to the left of the store. Televisions and stereo systems were cramped into a small space, the shelves too close together. It would have been difficult for two people to pass each other...
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Advantages: Not all stores are the same in the chain Disadvantages: Might have to shop around to find the best
...I recently purchased the PC I am writing this on from Comet. A Hewlett Packard Pavilion 8770, and well pleased I am with the performance of this particular model.
But that is not the purpose of this opinion. I had first seen the aforementioned PC pre-christmas and after Christmas went to my local Comet based in Kirkcaldy retail park in Fife. After enquiring about the PC and agreeing with the salesman that this was the model I wanted of he went only to return to say there were three base units in stock but the monitors that had been delivered were the wrong size!
I waited to see if he would offer me the display monitor which was the proper one for the package, but no, 'We can get you one in7 to 10 days if you would like to pay now' was the reply. I thought not.
I was heading home when I thought I would try the Comet store in...
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Advantages: Better warranty deal than Dixons Stores Group Disadvantages: Same calibre of staff. Getting them to pay up when the warranty ends is akin to getting blood out of a stone.
...I’ve decided to update a nearly 4-year-old opinion for two reasons really.
Firstly to show new Ciaosters what we used to be able to get away with and still get paid 10p for having written it, and 5p every time a member read it.
The opinion below serves as a monument to this generosity, and as such I haven’t modified it, more as a curio rather than any misguided impression that I might have gained that it was perfect!
Secondly, to build on what I wanted to bring to everyone’s attention at the time i.e. that Comet’s extended warranties could work out to be better value for money than say one from Curry’s because you’d get your money back if you never had to claim.
Even on today's Ciao, you can’t really pick out one specific feature of a retailer/service without someone commenting ‘you could have told us more about the shop...
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Production Year: 1992 - Comedy - Director: Peter Yates - Original Language: English - Classification: Parental Guidance - Starring: Penelope Ann Miller, Timothy Daly, Louis Jourdan, Ian Richardson
15.01.2001
