Slashdot Mirror
Wal-Mart to Offer Components for DIY Computers
FearTheFrail writes "Reuters reports that Wal-Mart is preparing to put "build your own computer counters" in 1200 of its 3200 stores, with plans to do so in at least 1400 by the end of the year. Maybe this will bring on an influx of new hardware enthusiasts, along with plenty of horror stories about attempted computer assembly. Do you think this will have an effect on the OEM parts market? And what about the operating systems to be offered? Will Wal-Mart shoppers migrate to Linux in order to save a hundred bucks or more, or will they even have the chance?"
I can see it now:
Customer - "The computer memory won't upgrade."
Walmart - "What was the problem?"
Customer - "I put it inside the CDROM drive and didn't get any more hard drive space."
Walmart - "Alrighty then."
Saskboy's blog is good. 9 out of 10 dentists agree.
For years, we shipped assembly off shore to factories where people would work for 20 cents an hour. From these economic theory, Wal-Mart was born.
Now, they're shipping the labour back here.
Perhaps in future, Wal-Mart will offer sew-it-yourself clothing as well? They could market it as a sweat shop tourist attraction!
Skot Nelson music is my saviour / i was maimed by rock and roll
I wish Walmart would start selling self-assembled microwaves for $10. Talk about a quick way to clear out some of the genetic driftwood in this country.
I Am My Own Worst Enemy
Wal-mart already offers computers without windows (with linspire, last I checked), so that's not an issue. What is an issue is that everything that wal-mart sells is on the, shall we say, low-end. I strongly doubt that Wal-mart will offer any hardware that people who are DIYers will find compelling, and if by some chance they do, the DIY crowd will probably look at other, cheaper outlets where they can get quality hardware for less than what walmart offers it (assuming, as I've said, they offer it at all).
Why wouldn't Wal-Mart customers "have a chance" to install Linux? Do they connect to a different internet than everyone else? Are they banned from entering computer and book stores?
Or are you asking if Wal-Mart will be carrying boxed RedHat distros?
It's never been about consumers having a CHANCE to install Linux, it's been about them having the CHOICE to, and like it or not, most consumers CHOOSE not to.
-l
Walmart is going to sell Towers, Monitors, Keyboards, Mice, and Speakers seperately. Not the individule hardware pieces of the tower. Can't anyone read articles before posting them?
~~ Please keep your arms, legs, and outright stupidity inside the ride at all times. Thank You ~~
Cheap clothing, food, plans to open a bank, computers.... Is there nothing Wal-Mart doesn't provide aside from living wages, benefits, and dignified to its employees?
It's a girl!
From the article, this just sounds like the "customize it" button on Dell's web site, not the PC Club style, "here's your parts, go fo it." Moreover, this could be really good for small computer shops. I don't see anything about Wal-Mart supporting those PC's. So, a few months after purchase, and two kids who know computers later, the owner will still have to go get the adware removed by someone.
Necessity is the mother of invention.
Laziness is the father.
The good news is that Walmart porbably can. The bad news is that the standard will likely suck.
If brevity is the soul of wit, then how does one explain Twitter?
I live in Fremont, CA where we have a brand spanking new Walmart accross the street from a Frys store. I can't imagine they can compete with a major chain store like Frys at component level sales?
This would be interesting.
Have you compiled your kernel today??
Comment removed based on user account deletion
. . . millions of voices cried out in terror, and then suddenly silenced.
as long as they sell major brands (like HP/Compaq or Gateway).
In fact, I MUCH prefer this model where you can semi-customize your own PC from a range of well-defined options. Beats the hell out of CompUSA or Best Buy where you have to take whatever configuration they have have on the shelf.
I'd bet they get exclusive distribution rights to some major brand like Gateway and then sell them at 30% below everyone else's computer.
Don't underestimate the power of WalMart to sell anything to the masses.
"good for Wal-Mart".
I know that lots of people are going to give theories about what nefarious motivations Wal-Mart might have for doing this. (and then a lot of people are going to fire back saying 'this is how the market works, pinko!)
But I see this as just trying to create a new market for something that people might want. It is weird that we don't have more computer parts stores: after all, it is easy to find mass-marketed auto parts stores, and working on a computer is a lot easier than working on a car. This is just giving people a chance to be able to practice some new technical skills themselves.
Its weird that this hasn't caught on before. When I was in Taiwan, two years ago, I visited the computer market in Tainan, and in most of the stores, including some major ones, they had about as much DIY stuff (that was labelled DIY), as they had pre-made stuff. I feel Americans should be at the front of the world in gear-headism.
Hopefully I didn't put any [] around my words.
I have a friend who will remain anonyous (oh, but he reads slashdot) who tried to put together his own omputer one time.
I told him to wait till I got there, but no, he had to "get started" on it
When I got there, I found the motherboard screwed to the side of the case. As in, he hadn't screwed down the little "riser" things you put in first. When I pointed out to him that his whole computer would exploode in a glorius display of sparks the second he applied power, he stated incredulously, "i wondered what those were for"
I expect that telling everyday people they can build their own computer will get a lot of idiots who just want to save a few bucks trying it, and making all kinds of mistakes which, to the uninformed seem perfectly logical.
Maybe this will bring on an influx of new hardware enthusiasts, along with plenty of horror stories about attempted computer assembly. ...Will Wal-Mart shoppers migrate to Linux in order to save a hundred bucks or more, or will they even have the chance?
Yea, yea! And maybe they will all be nympomaniac blondes with huge bimbos that will be ready to do anything if you show them how to properly install a SLI video card setup on their home-made PC-s?
And they will be easily impressed when you show them your mad Perl skills?
----
Or maybe it'll create a small niche market for the already existing geeks and not change much of anything.
We can always dream though, that's what Slashdot is for.
Many years ago, when I was growing up, lots of Wal-Mart-like department stores had extensive fabric departments...
If you want news from today, you have to come back tomorrow.
"so if you do put a memory module into the CDROM, it will install it for you, and spit out the old stick if there isn't enough room."
They already make it able to hold your coffee, you can't expect miracles you know.
Your joke had me laughing louder than I should in an office, even though I'm done work for today.
Saskboy's blog is good. 9 out of 10 dentists agree.
I think we should all bow our heads in silent prayer for the poor fools working at the wal-mart returns and electronics desks. Then next time you start to think about how much you hate your job remember that there are people who would probably kill someone to be as free from stupidity as you are.
Slashdot: Where anecdotes and generalizations can be freely substituted for facts, logic, or intelligence
And on that same note...
Just because someone shops at WalMart, doesn't mean they're poor.
For some disposable items, such as baby formula & diapers, the WalMart brand is every bit as good as name brand items, costing nearly twice as much.
>I don't think you'll get a whole lot of hits on a
>open source OS at the same place that has a gun
>counter and offers hunting licenses.
Eric would disagree.
So would I.
-l
(former sys/net admin, drives a 4x4 with a gun rack (with at least one gun in it), hunts regularly)
How is that bad math?
3200 stores exist. 1200 stores are getting it now. 1400 will have it by the end of the year.
seems clear enough to me, there isn't even any math involved!
On /., reading first is **cheating**!
Engineering is the art of compromise.
Making me feel thin again.
Slashdot: Failed Car Analogies. Amateur Lawyering. Anecdote Battles.
I hate buying from Wal-Mart, but sometimes they carry things that no one else in the area sells.
I live in a pretty rural area. The nearest actual town has no CompUSA, no Best Buy, and in fact no stores that sell significant computer hardware. There have been many times when I wished there were at least one such store.
Even in the sticks, there's a number of computer guys out here who wouldn't mind having a hands-on place from which to buy hardware. Why not buy online? Because often I want to look at the box and read the specs and such. Not to mention, it's much easier to return something to a physical store than it is to return something bought online.
So Wal-Mart has a chance to snag a pretty untapped market in my opinion.
The Internet is full. Go away.
....this will be helpful. It may end up being crap, but it will be crap that will get your machine running on a late sunday afternoon when nobody else is open.
The problem with quotes on the internet, is that nobody bothers to check their veracity. -- Abraham Lincoln
The absolute best however was the idea to combine solid-fuel model rocket engines, large toy cars, and almost abandoned parking garages. A very stupid and dangerous activity of questionable legality was made all the more fun by seeing the checkers faces at that ungodly hour, trying to figure out why we were buying:
The conversations were always hilarious - and considering our share was coming from a bunch of "punk kids" with a random assortment of hair colors, piercings, stages of (un)dress, and associated stereotypes - we always had a good time.
Late Night Checker: Soooo... what are you fellas up to?
Punk Kids: We're building rocket cars.
LNC: *vacant expression*
PK's: We're going to attach these motors to the cars, and shoot them up ramps in parking garages.
LNC: Right, so the goggles are for protection... uh, the barbies?
PK's: Someone has to drive, dude.
LNC: And the liquid graphite is for the axles? (Every now and then we got a bright one)
PK's: Nah, that's just "personal lubricant".
Now, that's all gone. With self-checkout I can buy any assortment of bizzaire and crazy crap with no-one to question me with the exception of the few flagged items that require "customer service" checks - although this may not be true depending on how late the self-checkouts are open in your area.
In any case the idea of Wal-Mart doing this has Dell beat on one thing, if not price: instant gratification. A lot of times I'll dump an extra couple of bucks on something I can get right now as opposed to waiting for delivery. And if I can custom configure a box, get it at a competitive(ish) price with quality hardware, and pay say $50 bucks more to take it home and commence the fiddlin' associated with a new computer purchase - I'll probably do it.
On the same note however, if they can't beat the prices available online by a good margin or stay very close to prices available online - the only added incentive to me becomes: ease of return and instant gratification. I've become more savvy with my online shopping to accomodate for shipping times, returns, etc. My matra has become buy before you run out and have scheduled purchases. Which brings up yet another issue with selling locally and cutting in on the online sales of computers:
Taxes.
Where I live in Tennessee (By force, not by choice) we pay a "fair use" tax on internet and out of state sales, i.e., if you buy it online or in Kentucky (no sales tax) you're supposed to voluntarily give the State the sales tax. I am very dubious as to how often this actually happens by anyone who is not forced to do so by their employer, as I am.
I think for the people that are interested in spending the time to research best prices and save a buck are not going to be lured into buying their computers from Wal-Mart (especially the "high end" gaming market) or anything other than emergency peripherals. (If you ever need that kind of thing,. I have a box so full of mice you could choke a thousand donkeys with it.) But the sheer volume and monlith that is Wal-Mart is so saturated and in so many markets that "Average Joe American" cannot help but notice that their best friend and retailer of everything is now selling custom configuration computers.
hi mom!
What the hell are you talking about?
-Dave
Somehow, I don't think that the people who can't tell the difference between a hard disk and RAM are the ones that are going to be buying their own parts. If they do, they're most likely going to learn the hard way. At that point, there's basically two roads. One, they'll NEVER try to put together their own computer ( and probably discourage all future generations from doing so, since they couldn't) OR two, they'll figure out what they did wrong and try again. If they take the second path enough times, they'll become a geek.
Instead of being dismissive of this Walmart thing, I'm interested in how they're going to do it. (Not that I like or shop at Walmart. I pretty much despise them.)
Anyone from the Bay Area remember Domino Computers? I forget exactly what their model was, but it was a build-your-own-computer. They provided the parts, the tools, the facilities and the advice. I think they offered classes/seminars, but I don't remember if those were free, or if you paid a fee.
Home Depot and Lowes sell diy materials, tools, and instruction books. They also offer free seminars on a variety of diy topics. Don't see why Walmart couldn't follow this example.
Another thing Walmart could do is use color coded packaging. This Red CPUs and Red RAM work with Red MBs. Green CPUs and Green RAM work with the Green MB. Oh, look the packaging on this PSU is Red and Blue. It works with the Red MB and the Blue MB, but not the Green. And look, this HD is in a purple package. It only works with the Purple MB and other Purple parts. So, the uneducated user need never know that his computer's HD is SATA; he only knows it's part of the Purple group. He doesn't need to know that his MB has an AGP slot, only that Yellow video cards work with Yello MBs.
I could also see Walmart being able to tailor you linux install based on what parts you buy. They scan all your parts, and their Distro distro system picks the right ISO for you and spits out a CD.
It's not offtopic, dumbass. It's orthogonal.
And Wal-Mart intends to pay me NOTHING AT ALL while I assemble my computer, which is a violation of my rights.
And don't get me STARTED about HEALTH CARE. Suppose I become injured or sick while assembling my computer?
And what about workers' rights... Suppose I want my domestic partner to help me assemble my PC? Will there by any support from Wal-Mart? NO?
It's just another way for Wal-Mart to screw over the consumer, make obscene profits, force small businesses to close, and discriminate against lesbians.
The lesson we can draw from this is perfectly simple. Wal-Mart is the earthly incarnation of Evil.
Fortunately, the local mom-and-pop store is PURER than the HOLY MOTHER VIRGIN.
What you're seeing is market segmentation. The companies which make the "branded" formula sell it under their brand at every possible location, and at full price, and then license it out to the people like Wal-Mart, Costco, Sam's Club, etc.. to sell as a generic, at a much lower price. Given the choice between not selling it at all at the full price to a section of the market, and selling it at a lower price, they're going to go for selling it at a lower price every time. You can read an interesting explanation of this technique in the context of software over here.
The same is true for most of the "generic" items you're going to find at these stores. If you can get over the fact that you're not buying the branded item, you can save a boatload of money while not sacrificing quality one iota.
Does anyone else think this is just a 'life-hack' so WalMart can sell software at OEM prices? Buy that usb cable, sure now you can get XP for $45.
Some more conservative people than the neocons in office now are concerned about loss of privacy too. Thus we like open-source when we know about it. Some of us are also against other things Liberals are against,like animal abuse (which is not hunting, it's factory farming), we just disagree on what constitutes such things.
Sounds like the kids clothing line where you matched zebra to zebra, lion to lion, etc.
Gee, all I did was put the LAMB memory in the LION motherboard and POW.... it all went blewie.
This is good news on two major fronts:
1) Computer parts source that's open 24/7. There have been many times when I needed a part urgently in the middle of the night or even on weekends when the local computer stores, Frys, Compusa, etc, just are not open. Walmart never closes.
2) Price competition. I support my local computer shop when I can but he wants $80 for the same PSU Newegg sells for $40. Frys will sell me one for $60, if they actually have it in stock. Walmart is likely to bring parts to market at the lower end of that price scale and there won't be shipping costs.
Now before people jump up and down and say that doesn't support the local guy, yeah, I agree. But he's already priced himself out of the market when I can order the same thing from Newegg and pay for next-day shipping and still get it it for less money -and get it delivered early in the AM before the local store even opens.
The main question is, WHAT brands is Walmart going to sell. If they go low-end, then it will only be useful for basic parts. I'm not going to buy much less use a no-name $15 PSU. Fans and parts, OK, but I want decent brands for drives, cases, motherboards, videocards, etc.
Sig for hire.
My kids are a lot older now but I still remember arguing with my mother-in-law about why I should buy "baby" apple juice. It was like $1.50 for a 8 oz glass bottle of Kerber Apple juice for babies. The ingredients were Apple juice from concentrate and filtered water. I could buy a damn gallon of regular premium 100% pure apple juice for $2.50 and add my own filtered water to reach the same concentration level of the baby version. My estimate was the baby version was 75% Apple juice and 25% water based on my unscientific color and taste tests. I probably could have busted out my deluxe pool water test kit and ran a series of pH, alkalinity and total dissolved solids tests on my mixtures and got more accurate results but I gave up trying to convince her.
Bad boys rape our young girls but Violet gives willingly.
AMEN! And boxed parts are likely to appear in stores if this works. If computer parts companies who aim for enthusiast are smart, they WILL hold out against the WalMart-cheapening of their products. There would quickly be advice on the 'Net pointing out which sound cards, or video cards or speakers used low quality parts under the brand's high quality name, so enthusiasts could avoid them. The use of low quality base parts (like no-name MB/RAM/power supplies/etc) in barebones computers is pretty common, so maybe they are safe there, but thhat seems like it would lead to more boxed parts next to the computers eventually.
There was this Slashdot article http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/03/28/223524 6 about a man taking his products OUT of WalMart to avoid the cheapening of his high quality lawn equipment (the cheapening of the brand, and the price gap/struggle in WalMart lawn centers without knowledgeable staff to enable the high-quality products to shine)
WalMart is also known to leverage additional censorship upon movies and music sold there, leading to those works being issued in WalMart-censored and everybody-else versions. (ex.the comic-book-animated movie Spawn.http://imdb.com/title/tt0118475/alternatever sions There was also a live action version with John Leguizamo)
There are very few computer parts that I wouldn't worry about getting a YET CHEAPER part than whatever the manufacturer manages to create for their margin vs. my brand expectation. As it is, those who care have to read a lot of benchmarks and tests to put something together a la carte that will be stable under pressue.
Maybe case screws? Floppy drives? Air in a can?
I would worry about the advice employees give too, except that the big computer chains usually give out their share of ignorant advice via their staff. http://hardware.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/04The Walmart near me has gone from having one boxed HP in a corner shelf (with no one there that knows anything about it) to having a fair selection of laptop computers (in bulletproof see-through displays). Undoubtedly all Windows preinstalls, no way they would have anything with Linux preinstalled in a retail outlet here.
As far as the DIY counter goes, I would guess that they would station geeks there to do it for you, similar to what CompUSA does. Probably need a nice sign behind the counter to give the walk-in customer some idea of what to ask for. Sounds to me like each customer, if they buy, would take at least 30 minutes to process, and then the machine could be picked up "the next day" at a certain time. Might have a back room with less-presentable geeks, but with talents, putting the boxes together, and getting them working.
Really does not sound anything like what Walmart does best, that is, put the stuff out there, and let the customer self-checkout, and exit the store, no sales clerks needed. Just stockers. And of course, lots of anti-shoplifting staff stationed in the ceiling.
The other idea would be to handle this like the satellite storefronts at the front of the building, like the Banks, Baby Photographers, Pharmacists, etc. that work more like mall stores, rather than like the main Walmart store area. So, they just put the "computer store" under the same roof, but it really is not "walmart" any more than the Bank or Eye Doctor there is.
Walmart would still offer boxed desktops and laptops in traditional walmart shelf areas, in the Electronics area.
Sure, the "computer store" would do linux installs, but with the Windows OEM setup, those would not be any cheaper.
Microsoft does discourage that, or so I hear. Since Vista is many months away, XP is what everyone will want/get, and dual booting an option, maybe.
With a livecd linux, they would get "dual booting" instantly, and a super-secure linux system at that.
Rapidweather's Linux Screenshots.
The summary is bogus. As far as I can tell from the article, all they're doing is unbundling the monitors (and possibly keyboards and mice) from the computer.
The preferred solution is to not have a problem.
Anyone know which stores were the test-markets? I never went to Wal-Mart until the Army stationed me in Hawaii, and all the ones around here have stuff like (basic) video & sound cards, networking equipment, keyboards & mice, and random stuff like screwdriver sets & CAT5. When I visit home, I never bother with Wal-Mart, so if the HI stores would carry more stuff than now, I for one welcome our corporate overlords. What difference does it make if you buy a [insert well-known hardware company] from Wal-Mart or from CompUSA/Frye's/online, if the prices are similar? I've seen the same Linksys networking gear at Wal-Mart & CompUSA. I think Wal-Mart is trying to cater to people like my mom; she's -starting- to use her computer for more than just word-processing, but places like Frye's are still intimidating. Wonder if she'd like The Sims... lol
"Make cyberlove, not cyberwar!" -Khaed(544779)
Wait until you start seeing things like this on system requirements for games:
Requires an ORANGE computer or warmer, with at least two yellow RAM thingies. =)
Something like this could work, if it was kept really simple. I'm surprised no one has yet posted, "I'm color blind, you insensitive clod!!"
It's not offtopic, dumbass. It's orthogonal.
"Not that I like or shop at Walmart. I pretty much despise them."
You know, if you don't shop at walmart, you are getting ripped off twice. Your taxes are paying for their employee's benefits. Other companies pay for benefits for their employees, and you pay for that by higher prices.
Since you pay for walmart employee benefits anyway, don't let them screw you more: shop there.
A slashdotter who didn't build his own computer is like a Jedi who didn't build his own lightsaber.
since there's nothing to indicate you're being sarcastic, there are wal-mart gas stations at some wal-marts and Sam's clubs. I think they're outsourced to somebody else, but they are branded as wal-mart.
11 was a racehorse
12 was 12
1111 Race
12112
To me (I'm from Germany) this sounds funny. I did some shopping in Walmart before, but comparing the prices there are much more affordable offers from other competitors. Walmart prices just can't compete in most cases with Aldi, Kaufland, Real or Lidel. No wonder it's losing market share here. Now I just wonder if Walmart is more expensive here than it is in USA or if there are not so many competing discounters in USA?
Oh, by the way: I was mainly comparing products of their brand SmartPrice to similar products. For other brands they give a price guarantee: If You find another seller offering the same product for a lower price they will go down to the same offer. Unfortunately this does not mean that Walmart takes care to always have the best offer by default, as many customers assume. It's still up to the customer to run around and collect the price lists of the competitors.
Trolling is a art!
This isn't always the case! One example of this not working to the customer's advantage is the 1/2 pound bar of Jaques Belgian chocolate Wal*mart used to sell. Months ago (probably over a year by now, I've lost track), they suddenly stopped carrying it, replacing it with a generic "Sam's Choice" thing.
Since chocolate is one of those things you just do not skimp on, I decided immediately not to bother trying it, at least for a while. The thing is, it wasn't until I got a (very quick) reponse to my email to the Jaques chocolate company, that I learned that that generic chocolate was in fact Jaques brand. The representative said that they had signed a contract with Wal*Mart so they could continue selling it for cheap, or some such.
It was at that point that I started buying the generic. It was introduced at the same price ($2/pound) as the branded version, but now, ironically, the generic-labelled version is about 76 cents a pound more expensive, at least in this area. So much for prices going down when you go generic!
Consider the possibilities if Walmart partnered with newegg.com, kinda of like the old egghead sections in staples.
2. This is probably a good thing.
3. Because. . .
4. When WalMart gets into a market, they start dictating how and where things get manufactured, thus turning whole industries into lopsided affairs regulated by WalMart's decision-makers.
5. This is bad, because. . .
6. WalMart, the morally upright entity that it is, (*cough*) will have the ability to flood the market with a bunch of DRM hardware and force manufacturers to follow suit.
Do you want that? DRM hard drives and memory sticks and flat screens that won't display anything unless the RIAA hardware filters let it through?
Didn't think so.
-FL
Sort of hard to describe it as a "coin", when the one side (lower quality items) is much more prevalent than the other side (same quality-lower price).
Think about it. If the company could AFFORD to sell their product for a lower price, why do it just for WalMart? Why not lower their price in EVERY STORE EVERYWHERE, and increase their profits by making it more affordable to everyone, not just WalMart shoppers?
The reason this doesn't happen, is that companies are ALREADY selling their products for the lowest amount possible. If they want to make the product cheaper, they need to use cheaper materials, or pay the people who make those products less (fewer benefits, etc).
Wal-Mart is not a magic low-price fairy, they're the demons of low quality, low wage, no-benefit society. By buying stuff at Wal-Mart, you encourage companies to cut benefits to their employees, and move to countries with fewer worker rights - creating even more people who are poor and think they need to shop at Wal-Mart.
is that companies are ALREADY selling their products for the lowest amount possible.
That is true in a few very highly competitive markets, but for the most part, companies sell their products for the HIGHEST amount possible. This means the price point where raising the price loses them money due to lost sales. Name brand recognition plays a huge factor in a lot of people's willingness to purchase. A lot of people will gladly pay $75 for a shirt with a cool logo on it, but will never purchase the identical shirt for $25 w/o the logo. Of course, clothing in an extreme example of this particular phenomenon, but it exists in a watered down version in a lot of different product markets.
...sometimes, in order to hurt someone very badly, you have to tell that person terrible lies. - PA
I noticed headding was "build your own computer counter". Could it be there will be people there to assemble the system as you pick out the parts. It really wouldn't be that difficult, all the Motherboards could be pre-mounted on a platter which could be easily attached to the outer casing or an internal frame of course. You point out what you want, almost like ordering a cheeseburger. Most semi-knowlegeable know that each part actually installs very quickly and easily if the parts are known. Laptops are tricky of course, but Walmart's pull could possibly make a universal body or frame that all manufacturers could base a design.
Maybe Wallmart could do for hardware what OSS is doing for software?
A loop, by its nature, continues. If that didn't make sense, start reading this sentence again.
The reason non-union automakers pay so well is because theirs is a traditionally unionized industry, and they know if they're not competitive, the workers will likely vote in a union. So it's thanks to the unions that they have decent jobs.
Serving your airship needs since 1995.