topic Retail Availability in Archive

Retail Availability

idata — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 13:34:19 GMT

I'm a frustrated consumer. I'd like to purchase a new 160 meg G2 SSD. I was willing to pay a premium, knowing that it is in short supply. I can't seem to find any authoritative information on the availability of this drive.

I ordered from one vendor who assured me on the phone that they had the drive in stock. As those of you who buy on-line (I never have) might have predicted, they contacted me a week later to tell me that they couldn't fullfill the order.

Is there somewhere where I can get accurate information from Intel on the status of this product? Is it available anywhere? What is the roll-out status? When should we expect to see it available? What vendors will get deliveries first, etc.

Perhaps Intel is happy that the scarcity of this product is creating some demand. But it's also creating a bit of ill-will among those of us who are accustomed to making informed buying decisions.

Re: Retail Availability

idata — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 22:43:35 GMT

The recall / delay that got fixed via firmware probably altered Intel's plans a bit.

If you monitor major online retailers religiously, they do now come in on a regular basis but then sell out pretty quickly.

If you go to Amazon right this second, there are 2 of the 160GB shown as available via ANTOnline.

NewEgg currently has them in stock (but they're indeed charging a premium).

ZipZoomFly just got in the 80GB -- I'd keep an eye on them getting the 160.

And Buy.com has them right this minute via Electronica Direct and with minimal premium (and certainly less of one than NewEgg).

Re: Retail Availability

idata — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 23:37:32 GMT

Thanks, D99X. I guess I was a little steamed because AntOnline, IMO, jerked me around. I called them last week to confirm that they had them in stock. I was told yes. I asked if I could order on the phone and was told not to bother. I immediately ordered online. While it's certainly possible they sold out in the minute or two interim, I figure they misled me to get my order. It took a week for them to notify me they couldn't deliver.

I figure that at the $499 I was charged, I'd be pushed to the bottom of the list while they sold at the higher price they now list. With Win7 about to hit, I expect there will be an enormous demand as people decide to bite the bullet and build new machines rather than upgrading their current machine. I didn't want to get caught in that crunch (and I want my new toy -- first new machine in four years!), so I paid the premium at NewEgg.

Anyway, to AntOnLine's credit, they easily refunded my card.

Thanks for the informative reply.

Re: Retail Availability

idata — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 02:43:47 GMT

For what it's worth, I wouldn't assume they misled you to get your order.

I got my own by monitoring tightly, signing up for alerts various places, etc., and jumping in as soon as I saw one priced decently. I indeed saw (and see) any number of places suddenly show them in-stock or send a notice, and they're cleared out in minutes. Assumably most places don't know just how fast they'll get new ones either, so it would make sense to give it a week to let you know it could be awhile. ETA has jumped all over the place at sites like NewEgg and ZipZoomFly. I mainly got miffed by the extreme premiums some places (cough cough) started charging and by places that listed a good price and an ETA then never got anything in stock, briefly delaying me buying elsewhere.

Anyway, good luck with the new drive.

Re: Retail Availability

MJohn29 — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 22:11:06 GMT

I ordered mine from an etailer around 21 or 22 days ago. They said they were in stock when I ordered. Then almost immediately after ordering I got the dreaded backorder notice. After a week I emailed and they said they would be in stock by the 28th. Emailed them yesterday and now they say by the end of next week. /cry

Re: Retail Availability

idata — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 01:34:27 GMT

I had EggHead email when they had some in stock. Two weeks ago I got an email and immediately ordered and received it as promised in a few days.