My fax machine imploded one Saturday. Luckily I was at home when it happened. I could smell something burning, melting or whatever that smell is when plastic starts emitting little plumes of smoke, then there was a little fizz, a plop and all the lights went out. Well, they would have gone out had it been night time, but it was the middle of the day. But it blew a fuse.

First call of action, unplug offending item, then restore electricity in the flat and thank my lucky stars that nothing had a chance to catch fire. Phew, it could have all ended in tears, or worse.

So, off I went in search of a new fax machine. yes, there are still some people who need this old fashioned type of device.

I started off locally at Argos. Although they had fax machines in their catalogues, I didn't like any of them. Well, Argos had one I wanted, 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 without a little dance, trying to avoid bumping into each other.

To the right, and taking up about three quarters of the store were the 'white goods', fridges, freezers, washing machines and dryers - and combinations of these. I can't even remember if there were signs above the goods to point you in the direction you needed to go to find what you were looking for. I don't think there were. You either had to go on an excursion yourself and find the right section or ask a member of staff to point you in the right direction.

Then straight ahead from the entrance, you could find the rather small telecommunications area. Two rows of shelves with phones, mobiles and fax machines, if I remember correctly. Not exactly the biggest selection in the world but it was sufficient. At the end of one aisle I found the fax machines. They had a few to choose from. A lot of the cardboard labels had dropped off from the front of the products so you couldn't really see what the machines had to offer. Someone had thrown them back on the shelves in no particular order. I picked one of them up, looked at it and then used it like a little fan. But they had two fax machines I quite liked.

Enter young sales assistant from my right. Wow, I didn't even need to call out for help or try and make eye contact while everyone was busy pretending they didn't see or hear me.

I told the young man which machine I wanted to buy, so he walked off to get it for me and returned empty handed. It wasn't in stock. 'Shame', I said. 'I rather liked that one, in particular the fact it came with an answer machine that could take up to 30 minutes of messages', 'Oh', he said, 'does it?' Not exactly what you want to hear from a sales assistant. But I never held up too much hope that he even knew what fax machines were used for. So, off he went again to look if he could find the second one I had chosen. He didn't look too happy that he had to leave the safety and cool breeze from the fan to look for a fax machine in the hot store room. I wondered if all the sales people had played a game and he had drawn the short straw and was sent to help me. But he found the machine and proudly presented it to me.

We proceeded to the checkout. I handed over my card and the following conversation took place:

This fax machine only comes with a 12 months warrantee.

I know, and I don't want to buy your insurance.

But it will help you when the machine breaks down.

No, thank you.

You won't need to buy a new one or pay for expensive repair.

I said no. I don't want to buy your insurance. I told you right from the beginning. And if you don't want me to walk out of here without buying anything then you better not say another word about it.

Oh, okay. Please sign here, m'am. Thank you.

I then asked to have the box to be put into a carrier bag. The poor guy looked as if I had suddenly spoken in a different language. He looked around and a rather bored looking young female passed a bag over the counter so I could pack up the machine. I don't have the luxury of a car at the moment and have to rely on public transport. And there was no way I would carry the box on the bus without a carrier bag.

I don't normally buy at Comet, or any of the electrical superstores for that matter. But in this case I couldn't avoid it. I found the whole experience very impersonal, no effort was made to assist me properly and explain the products to me. If I hadn't done my homework and knew what I wanted, and needed, I'm sure they would have tried to sell me the most expensive machine available without really taking an interest in my needs. The lack of interest in the customer could be felt the moment I walked through the door and I don't think I will go back any time soon.

My tip for shopping at Comet - and any other of the electrical superstores - do your homework. Know what you want and need, make a list of everything that is required. Don't bother asking any of the shop assistants, most of them won't even know what you are talking about. Don't fall for the extra insurance trick. If you have a high value good and want to have an extended warrantee, contact the manufacturer direct. Most of the time they will be able to offer you extended insurance at a much better price. If you pay by credit card and the value of the item is over £100, contact the credit card company. A lot of them, if not most or all, offer some kind of extended warranty scheme and you might not have to pay anything.

I don't think I'll be entering one of their establishments any time soon. I didn't get much use out of the fax machine in the end and sold it on Loot for just under what I had paid in the first place.