Tomeh's Profile

Hey Chris, I do think that the Microsoft ads are bordering on deceptive and when I am going to spend 1000 or more on just about anything, I shop as you describe. I spend a lot of time doing research, going and looking, and will sometimes take weeks to make a decision. But I think that there are a lot of people out there that shop just as the Microsoft ads are portraying. I worked retail when I was in college and I saw customer after customer accept as truth just about anything the salesman would say to them, especially when it came to electronics and appliances and they would make sales because of it. I have been on the other end of this and been told completely erroneous information when shopping for larger purchases and known it because of the research I have done. When I have asked people why they have bought a certain product, I have heard things like "Because the salesman said it was good" or "Because I liked the color" more often than "Because after looking and comparing a number of models, I found this one best suited my needs" For many years, there were many people who bought cars (Dodge, GM, Ford) only because it was what their family had always bought even though the quality of those brands went further and further downhill. I do believe that there are many people that do their research. Otherwise companies like Consumer Reports would not survive. (Although one could argue that simply taking Consumer Reports at their word is no different either) But, there are also a lot of people that don't and it would not surprise me at all if those same people are taking the Microsoft ads at face value as well. How many people picked up an iPod or an iPhone for the first time not because it was the best made, or did the most things, or for any other reason except it was cool or their friends had one? Personally, I am glad what those people did for Apple with their purchases, but I think many of them weren't much different than those in the Microsoft ads. Ultimately, I think that Microsoft is aiming for a target audience and probably scoring hits with many of them.