Supermarkets in Shetland - prices, ethics and experiences

[Ghostrider]

^^ Does a certain decorating supplies firm at Grantfield not stock some "hodgie-esque" type electricals etc? They always advertise them in the shiny junk mail brochure they send out a few times a year.

 

P.S Try dismantling a Panasonic or Sharp product, and then an Alba or Goodmans product, and you'll find there's a big difference between them. On ascale of 1-10 I'd put Panasonic or Sharp around 5, but Alba or Goodmans no higher than a 2.

[filskadacat]

On a scale of 1-10 I'd put Panasonic or Sharp around 5, but Alba or Goodmans no higher than a 2.

In principle, and following on from my meanderings about dishwashers and washing machines, I would tend to agree with Ghostrider that you get what you pay for. But… it occurs to me that the last two printers I have bought have been relatively good ones. An Epson – recommended in Which as being excellent for photos. Carefully chosen with assistance from local Jessop’s. After 3½ years it started to put a 1 cm white stripe up the side of everything. Verdict from Jessop’s; no point in repairing it – get a new one. This time a Canon - carefully chosen online. Yep - after 3½ years it refused to load. Husband talked nicely to it and it loaded - but straight lines became all wiggly. Took it in to work and technician fiddled with it. Now straight lines are straight; but photo emerged resembling a Monet which had encountered a bucket of water. I’m told it is unreasonable to expect anything to last any longer than that (I don’t make heavy demands on it). Why is that unreasonable? And in a determined attempt to get back on topic – can we have regular updates on how long the cheap electricals last?

[Ghostrider]

^^ Maybe I've just been lucky, but my sole printer, ever, is a Canon that's just shy of its 10th birthday and still clicking away as sweet as it did on Day 1.

 

Certainly the first few years of its life it did very little, but for around the last 6 or 7 years its printed up to a dozen+ sheets daily, and occasionally runs of a hundred or two.

 

That said, I once bought a small Canon photocopier that had to go back under warranty for a blown bulb, and even then it only lasted for a few months beyond the warranty expiry before the bulb went again. However the well worn but factory refurbished one they gave me to use while my own was away, then told me to keep as it wasn't worth their trouble of paying for it to be collected and shipped back, lasted several years for the same workload.

[khitajrah]

Our Canon is 3½ and no longer recognises the brand new colour ink cartridge. Apparenty this is a common fault as this type of printer ages.

[filskadacat]

Our Canon is 3½ and no longer recognises the brand new colour ink cartridge. Apparenty this is a common fault as this type of printer ages.

MP610. It had a fit of refusing to recognise one of the black cartridges about a year ago - eventually, halfway down the ink, I gave in and put in a new cartridge. It was OK after that. Until it started being not OK.

[JustMe]

The interesting thing with Epson printers is that they have some sort of counter built into them that will decide the printer has reached the end of its life and it will just stop working. See this http://www.epson.co.uk/Printers-and-All-In-Ones/Inkjet/Epson-Stylus-Photo-R360/Drivers-Support?target=article&extn=.html&articleId=1094 for details. But no need to despair as there are ways to reset the counter if needed.

 

Have to admit that I also have an HP printer which will cost as much for a set of ink cartridges as to buy a new printer although the ink cartridges will come with more ink than a new printer.

[khitajrah]

Ours is an MP460. We're just going to invest in a wireless printer instead of trying to fix it. I've been printing my coursework in grayscale to get the use of the black ink cartridge (and this is why, in case anyone can see it under the piles of other posters at the shop, the Big Lunch poster was coloured in by my eldest son).

[filskadacat]

Have to admit that I also have an HP printer which will cost as much for a set of ink cartridges as to buy a new printer although the ink cartridges will come with more ink than a new printer.

Hmm - that's interesting. I was informed last week that HP was the way to go. But when I bought the Canon, Which was praising it to the skies! It has 5 cartridges - cyan, magenta, yellow and two sizes of black - and I think the full set costs over £70 although I trade in the empties and buy two at a time to get discount. Snort.

 

Khitajrah - would it be worth buying it a new colour cartridge in case it's just that one? Don't suppose it makes any difference whether it's wireless or not - it's the mechanical stuff which seems to go wrong. If I weren't on the mainland we could collaborate...

 

Sorry mods - but Tesco sell printers too! (I bought my son's Epson there and it's 4 and still working...)

[TeeAyBee]

Don't go to Tesco for print cartridges - go to eBay. Much cheaper. lower quality too but you get what you pay for and it isn't *that* much lower quality.

[Oddrun]

Da Auld En had a Canon he bought a couple of years ago, combinaton thing with scanner...also with the 5 cartrdiges...it worked perfectly until a little more than two weeks ago...suddenly it was DEAD...no light anywhere...checked all connections....DEAD ...and ofcourse he had just bought new cartridges....!!

Well, one of the local shops had a newer model of the same thing for about £80, and it could use the same cartridges, so he bought one and set it up....

...the day after I should trow away the old one, but decided to try it first...connected it....and.....it came to life with the first touch....Trowies ????

Well, now we have a spare one sitting here.....

[Ghostrider]

^^ You'll get genuine OEM ink cartridges on ebay, for almost as little as Tesco branded compatibles.

[Spinner72]

^^ Does a certain decorating supplies firm at Grantfield not stock some "hodgie-esque" type electricals etc? They always advertise them in the shiny junk mail brochure they send out a few times a year.

 

Good point, they do, and they seem to turn them over quite quickly too so there is definitely the market (I don't think thats ever in question, judging how busy the delivery companies are). Could it be that they only stock such items in relatively small batches so as not to upset the LTCA?

 

P.S Try dismantling a Panasonic or Sharp product, and then an Alba or Goodmans product, and you'll find there's a big difference between them. On ascale of 1-10 I'd put Panasonic or Sharp around 5, but Alba or Goodmans no higher than a 2.

 

Agreed, but my personal experience is that build quality doesn't necesasarily reflect reliability. People who decide to buy cut priced goods always accept that it needs to be treated with care.

 

More interesting (to me) is what people are prepared to pay for "Fashion Brand Names" like Ministry of Sound iPod docks and Nicky Clark hair products. Both are made by Alba, yet I bet the kind of people who are vain enough to buy them would be horrified to be found with an Alba product

 

Trying to keep on topic - I wonder what would happen If Tesco are barred from selling these additional items, and were to rent an empty property on the street like the former Crystal Cave and sell them from there?

[Ghostrider]

More interesting (to me) is what people are prepared to pay for "Fashion Brand Names" like Ministry of Sound iPod docks and Nicky Clark hair products. Both are made by Alba, yet I bet the kind of people who are vain enough to buy them would be horrified to be found with an Alba product

 

Agreed. When all sorts of varied merchandise is cashing in on a "name" bandwagon like that, you just know 99% of it has to almost certainly be a badged up something. More fool anyone who gets sucked in by what is no more than a marketing ploy.

 

Trying to keep on topic - I wonder what would happen If Tesco are barred from selling these additional items, and were to rent an empty property on the street like the former Crystal Cave and sell them from there?

 

It would make for a curious scenario, thats for sure, and would be very interesting to see what stance the LTCA took, and why. On one hand you could suppose that as "south chains" have been allowed to establish themselves on the Street for a very long time in competition to local independent retailers, without a whimper, the same would apply again. But having objected to Tesco right down the line, their credibility would go right down the tubes if they didn't continue to do so, yet its difficult to imagine on what grounds they could muster credible objections.

[BounceBounce]

well I see there is a Turkish 2!!! Eatery opening on the street, there's been no complaint about this, if I was the guy who owned Turkish Eatery 1!! I wouldn't be too happy, where is the local traders backing when you need them, god forbid Tesco's open a kebab shop

 

Every little helps

 

Taxi...............................................................................

[MuckleJoannie]

Trying to keep on topic - I wonder what would happen If Tesco are barred from selling these additional items, and were to rent an empty property on the street like the former Crystal Cave and sell them from there?

 

It would make for a curious scenario, thats for sure, and would be very interesting to see what stance the LTCA took, and why. On one hand you could suppose that as "south chains" have been allowed to establish themselves on the Street for a very long time in competition to local independent retailers, without a whimper, the same would apply again. But having objected to Tesco right down the line, their credibility would go right down the tubes if they didn't continue to do so, yet its difficult to imagine on what grounds they could muster credible objections.

 

The view of the LTCA on Mackays opening their shop was that it was a shop on the street so it helped encourage to come to the other shops there.

 

well I see there is a Turkish 2!!! Eatery opening on the street, there's been no complaint about this, if I was the guy who owned Turkish Eatery 1!!

 

Its the same people who own both. They've had that shop for some time but previously rented it out.