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Canadian Gaming Deals and Discussion Thread 2

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C

Cactus

Banned
This might be a stupid question, but does EB Games gut pre-orders?

It's been a very long time since I bought a new game from there and even longer since I pre-ordered, so I just want to be 100% sure before I head there tomorrow for Xenoblade.
 
C

Cheerilee

Member
Cactus said:
This might be a stupid question, but does EB Games gut pre-orders?

It's been a very long time since I bought a new game from there and even longer since I pre-ordered, so I just want to be 100% sure before I head there tomorrow for Xenoblade.
Click to expand...

Sometimes. They're not exactly great about setting the game aside for you when you preorder.

If they gut half of their copies and put them on the shelf, and then they sell half of their copies (they usually sell their sealed ones first), and then you come in, they might say "Oh right, we still have tons of new copies. Just grab one off the shelf." My brother recently had it happen. He showed up after work on the first day and all they had was shelf copies, so he bitched and they tried to call around to other stores and find him a sealed one, but it was completely sold out. He ended up with an angry cancel and overpaid on eBay.

But preordering definitely increases the chances that they'll put one aside for you and not gut it.
 
Mikey Jr.

Mikey Jr.

Member
Whats the best e-reader for Canadians?

The e-reader itself is of course important, but also the book selection on which the US and Canada differ.

Basically the Kindle touch versus the Kobo touch.

Which is better for a Canadian factoring in device and selection? Price of e-reader is irrelevant.

Or should I update to this Kindle fire/Kobo Colour? Mainly for reading, though a couple videos on there wouldn't be bad, but not my primary focus. Is colour/device worth the upgrade?

In essence, I'm confused.
 
F

firehawk12

Subete no aware
Depends what you need. If having free 3g is a feature you want, the 3g KEYBOARD (IMPORTANT) Kindle with ads is the way to go.

If you want a mini tablet, apparently the Barnes and Noble Nook thing is worth looking into. Or just wait until the next Fire revision.

Not that I have anything against the Canadian company... but, I don't think it can really compete.
 
C

Cactus

Banned
ruby_onix said:
Sometimes. They're not exactly great about setting the game aside for you when you preorder.

If they gut half of their copies and put them on the shelf, and then they sell half of their copies (they usually sell their sealed ones first), and then you come in, they might say "Oh right, we still have tons of new copies. Just grab one off the shelf." My brother recently had it happen. He showed up after work on the first day and all they had was shelf copies, so he bitched and they tried to call around to other stores and find him a sealed one, but it was completely sold out. He ended up with an angry cancel and overpaid on eBay.

But preordering definitely increases the chances that they'll put one aside for you and not gut it.
Click to expand...

Hmm. I'll try to get there early, then. Thanks for the warning.
 
T

TheExodu5

Banned
I've never had EB gut any pre-order. I've pre-ordered from 3 EBs in Ottawa, and they specifically put everyone's pre-order copy aside with their bill. No gutted copies for any pre-orders.

The only issue I've had pre-ordering at EB is when they never got enough BlazBlue to cover stock. Also, their midnight launches are horribly slow. Otherwise, no issues.
 
A

AlphaTwo00

Member
Cactus said:
This might be a stupid question, but does EB Games gut pre-orders?

It's been a very long time since I bought a new game from there and even longer since I pre-ordered, so I just want to be 100% sure before I head there tomorrow for Xenoblade.
Click to expand...
It would make no sense for them to gut a pre-order, because the assumption that the would sell it. If they gut it, then they're doing extra work (filing the game away, putting it on the floor, etc)
 
F

firehawk12

Subete no aware
Mike Works said:
I don't think they sell the Kindle Touch in Canada.

I bought a Kobo Touch because I get a huge online discount from the Kobo store.
Click to expand...
Yeah, you'd have to import it.

Kindle Touch with ads is probably cheaper though, even after shipping. It used to be the case that the Kindles had the better eink screen, but this was before all the revisions, so I have no idea if that's the case anymore.
 
L

Lone_Prodigy

Member
I think EB would only gut a pre-order if you pick it up after 48 hours from release (they assume you won't pick it up so they put the copies on the shelves).

Sometimes, for a rare limited game (like the Zelda SS bundle) they'll sell the pre-order copies after 48 hours to the public. I heard that some EB's had a lineup of people waiting to do that.
 
E

ElNino

Member
ruby_onix said:
Sometimes. They're not exactly great about setting the game aside for you when you preorder.

If they gut half of their copies and put them on the shelf, and then they sell half of their copies (they usually sell their sealed ones first), and then you come in, they might say "Oh right, we still have tons of new copies. Just grab one off the shelf." My brother recently had it happen. He showed up after work on the first day and all they had was shelf copies, so he bitched and they tried to call around to other stores and find him a sealed one, but it was completely sold out. He ended up with an angry cancel and overpaid on eBay.
But preordering definitely increases the chances that they'll put one aside for you and not gut it.
Click to expand...
I can understand being angry about it, but cancelling his order then paying more (and waiting longer) just so he can remove the plastic himself? This seems particularly OCD to me.
 
R

radiantdreamer

Member
ElNino said:
I can understand being angry about it, but cancelling his order then paying more (and waiting longer) just so he can remove the plastic himself? This seems particularly OCD to me.
Click to expand...

It's more a matter of principle, I believe. I can understand the OCDism on it though - having to peel off that shitty sticker and leave sticker gunk really sucks. Plus you no longer get that "new game smell". (mmmmm...)

It mattered more in the past when games actually felt like it had value, not so much anymore with these flimsy cheap cases, but you still get that feeling and excitement opening the game yourself.

I don't know if I personally would have gone that far, especially when it was sold out everywhere else, but I would definitely voice my concern, or even ask for some sort of compensation for the clerk's idiocy.
 
H

Hero of Legend

Member
Cactus said:
Thanks.
Click to expand...

As Firestorm said, I wouldn't worry, as I pre-ordered Little King Story and Spectrobes Origins on Wii and got them spick and span in their cellophane wrapping.

I placed my pre-order of Xenoblade a couple of weeks ago at my local EB, so I'm set. :)

...

I was told after asking that I was only the first one to pre-order. :( *sniff* Things seem to be going really well according to the EB website though.
 
Z

Zing

Banned
Mikey Jr. said:
Whats the best e-reader for Canadians?
Click to expand...
I just bought my friend the Sony T1. It seems the overall best reader. I based my decision on direct comparisons to the other models, plus my excellent personal experience with the prior Sony PRS-505. The screen is not in colour, but if you want video and colour, I'd just get an iPad. The screen is crystal clear, though, since it is "touch" but not capacitive touch, so there is no extra touchscreen layer on top of the panel.

As I said, the Sony is the best reader. As in, the hardware and software are great for actual reading. Not for purchasing. If you want to purchase your content instead of just downloading it for free from any of a dozen potential sources, then I guess you have to look elsewhere.

I personally don't know of anyone who buys ebooks instead of downloading. I don't own an ebook reader (I prefer physical books), but I don't blame them. The quality I have seen of legit ebooks is often embarassing. I think the publishers often just slam the book through an OCR reader and click "publish" without any editing or proofreading.
 
E

ElNino

Member
radiantdreamer said:
It's more a matter of principle, I believe. I can understand the OCDism on it though - having to peel off that shitty sticker and leave sticker gunk really sucks. Plus you no longer get that "new game smell". (mmmmm...)
Click to expand...
I understand that some people will think this way, that you should always stand up for principles you think are right, but I think there are far bigger things to worry about than if my game from EB has a broken seal or not.

I guess I'm just getting older, and wiser ;). I used to buy the LE versions for the games I liked, but since I just end up trading/selling them later anyways I've started to not pay extra up front unless it comes with in-game extras I want.
 
T

Tiktaalik

Member
Mikey Jr. said:
Whats the best e-reader for Canadians?

The e-reader itself is of course important, but also the book selection on which the US and Canada differ.

Basically the Kindle touch versus the Kobo touch.

Which is better for a Canadian factoring in device and selection? Price of e-reader is irrelevant.

Or should I update to this Kindle fire/Kobo Colour? Mainly for reading, though a couple videos on there wouldn't be bad, but not my primary focus. Is colour/device worth the upgrade?

In essence, I'm confused.
Click to expand...

Marco Arment, the developer of Instapaper, wrote up a good article pre-xmas comparing all the ereaders http://www.marco.org/2011/12/02/kindle-touch-vs-nook-simple-touch-kobo-touch-kindle-4 and a library comparison http://www.marco.org/2011/10/28/ereader-library-comparison.

These articles are well worth the read and it's strongly worth considering what use cases are relevant to you as the little details can change everything. For example Arment found that when picking a random selection of his recently read books the Kobo and the Kindle libraries were essentially the same, however if he considered periodicals, then the Kobo really suffered as it was really weak in that area.
 
M

Mike Works

Member
Zing said:
I personally don't know of anyone who buys ebooks instead of downloading. I don't own an ebook reader (I prefer physical books), but I don't blame them. The quality I have seen of legit ebooks is often embarassing. I think the publishers often just slam the book through an OCR reader and click "publish" without any editing or proofreading.
Click to expand...
Hiding behind the "quality of legit ebooks is often embarrassing" excuse is embarrassing. The chance that there may be some formatting issues does not magically grant you the right to pirate and steal content from authors. For the record, everyone I know who has an ebook buys their content, myself included.
 
K

kennah

Member
GUYS I FOUND THE BEST DEAL ON CONSOLES

Pe01Q.jpg
Click to expand...

COMES WITH A BONUS GAME!

And check out that every day low price!

(Flyer from Aarons in Winnipeg, whatever that is)
 
Z

Zing

Banned
I presented my own objective opinion to the person seeking advice. I do not have any vested interested in ebooks or a particular reader. I leave it up to that person to decide if a superior hardware/software experience is worth having an inferior proprietary online shop.
 
S

Samara

Member
kennah said:
GUYS I FOUND THE BEST DEAL ON CONSOLES



COMES WITH A BONUS GAME!

And check out that every day low price!

(Flyer from Aarons in Winnipeg, whatever that is)
Click to expand...

Holy shit, why would anyone pay it off at 2$ a month? This is such a good screwup haha. Price match! Price match!
 
S

SupaNaab

Member
Mikey Jr. said:
Whats the best e-reader for Canadians?
Click to expand...

Bought my mother the Kobo Vox on release date. I really wanted to get her the Kindle Fire but they just aren't in Canada and if you get them through another means, they don't function very well. In my research before purchasing I found a lot of E-Readers lacked a lot of basic functionality I would hope them to have. The Kobo Vox in the end had an SD Slot for expandable memory, ran Android and had some really cool social reading features (it has progress percentages and achievements for reading). It's pretty much a low-end tablet pc.
 
G

Guesong

Member
Is the BestBuy website screwed or something?

Trying to add Soul Calibur 5 to my cart to get 5 $ off and the exclusive DLC, but the button does nothing. Neither Chrome nor IE6 works.

Hoping they get it resolved before the release date!
 
F

Fuzzy

I would bang a hot farmer!
Guesong said:
Is the BestBuy website screwed or something?

Trying to add Soul Calibur 5 to my cart to get 5 $ off and the exclusive DLC, but the button does nothing. Neither Chrome nor IE6 works.

Hoping they get it resolved before the release date!
Click to expand...
Just tried it in Firefox and it works perfectly.
 
S

SickBoy

Member
Honestly, for those considering an e-reader primarily for books, I don't think the colour devices are the best choice. E-ink displays are the way to go, IMO, and the power use for a Kindle or similar device is really low.

I might read a little on my iPad, which has a nice screen, but all of a sudden it's not so hot outside on a sunny day.

That said, I do have a few digital magazine subs that I read on the iPad when I have time to read a magazine :)
 
B

BKXB

Economist
I love my Kobo Touch, but it's not the perfect device. The touchscreen isn't 100% reliable; sometimes you have to tap twice for it to turn the page.

Had the new Kindle (with the hardware buttons) been available, I would have chosen that.
 
F

Firestorm

Member
I agree. If you want just an e-reader, go with something that does e-ink. My PlayBook has been pretty good for reading manga though. It also has a Kobo app pre-loaded but I'm just not a fan of reading text on a screen like that.
 
F

Fuzzy

I would bang a hot farmer!
SickBoy said:
That said, I do have a few digital magazine subs that I read on the iPad when I have time to read a magazine :)
Click to expand...
I don't like knowing you read your iPad while on the toilet. ;)


On more serious note, no weekly flyers posted? I saw the BB and FS flyers but I'm too lazy to go looking for everything.
 
L

Lone_Prodigy

Member
There hasn't really been anything worth posting, but here they are:

Futureshop

Trade in 2 games, get any of these pre-order games for free.
- Final Fantasy, Soul Caliber 5, UFC 3 ($10 gaming credit Jan 20-26)

XBL 12 month - $39.99
Xbox Wireless Controller -$39.99
Xbox Bluetooth Headset - $49.99
Chatpad - $24.99
XBL Gold Starter Kit- $59.99
320GB Lego Star Wars 3 Hard Drive - $129.99
250GB Holiday with COD4 - $299.99

MW3 - $49.99
Red Dead Redemption, LA Noir - $39.99
Zumba Fitness 2 Wii - $29.99

Bestbuy

XBL 12 month - $39.99
Xbox Wireless Controller -$39.99
Xbox Bluetooth Headset - $39.99
Chatpad - $24.99
XBL Gold Starter Kit- $59.99
320GB Lego Star Wars 3 Hard Drive - $119.99

MW3 - $49.99
2 for $30 (60 titles)

Final Fantasy, Soul Caliber 5 (800 rwz)

Walmart

XBL 12 month - $49.99
Xbox Wireless Controller -$39.99
Xbox Bluetooth Headset - $34.99

RCSS

360 12 month $39.97
360 12 month live kit $59.97
360 Silver controller $49.97
360 controller $39.97
360 headset $39.97

Nothing at Toys R Us or Zellers
 
Z

Zing

Banned
Any suggestions as to cheap Sanyo Eneloop AA batteries? I use them for all my gaming needs and want another four. The last time I bought some, they were part of a dell deal.
 
Z

Zing

Banned
Firestorm said:
Dell and NCIX are usually your best bets I think. Dell still has sales on them frequently.
Click to expand...

Thanks. I noticed that canada computers has a 4 pack for $15, the same price as NCIX. Dell currently has the 4 pack on sale for $13. Now to decide if it is worth $2 to risk the batteries not coming before I go on a trip next thursday. I want them for my original Game Boy.
 
F

Firestorm

Member
Zing said:
Thanks. I noticed that canada computers has a 4 pack for $15, the same price as NCIX. Dell currently has the 4 pack on sale for $13. Now to decide if it is worth $2 to risk the batteries not coming before I go on a trip next thursday. I want them for my original Game Boy.
Click to expand...
NCIX should price match if you have a store nearby.
 
C

Cheerilee

Member
Zing said:
Thanks. I noticed that canada computers has a 4 pack for $15, the same price as NCIX. Dell currently has the 4 pack on sale for $13. Now to decide if it is worth $2 to risk the batteries not coming before I go on a trip next thursday. I want them for my original Game Boy.
Click to expand...

Those aren't really on sale. Sale price is around $10 for a four pack and maybe a bonus charger if you're lucky.

Since there's no sale right now, you might want to check Superstore. They have President's Choice brand pre-charged batteries that are actually re-branded Sanyo Eneloops. Superstore's ordinary price might beat other guys' ordinary price, and then you'd have them right away.
 
L

Lone_Prodigy

Member
Shoppers Drug Mart has Duracell rechargeables (4 AA) for $7.99 every so often. I believe they're also rebranded Eneloops (if the top of the battery is white). Also get the ones made in Japan.
 
C

Cheerilee

Member
Lone_Prodigy said:
Shoppers Drug Mart has Duracell rechargeables (4 AA) for $7.99 every so often. I believe they're also rebranded Eneloops (if the top of the battery is white). Also get the ones made in Japan.
Click to expand...

Didn't Duracell switch from Sanyo Eneloop (white top, made in Japan) to Rayovac Hybrid (black top, made in China) a while back? Eneloop is measurably better than Hybrid, but the average user shouldn't be able to tell the difference. They use the same chargers and everything.

I figure at $7.99 for four, you should get them regardless of which type they are, but yeah, it's obviously a good idea to glance over the shelf and see if any of them have the white tops and grab those ones instead.
 
R

radiantdreamer

Member
Zing said:
Any suggestions as to cheap Sanyo Eneloop AA batteries? I use them for all my gaming needs and want another four. The last time I bought some, they were part of a dell deal.
Click to expand...

Aren't President's Choice batteries rebranded eneloops? Or has that been changed?

.. actually I found my eneloops run out pretty damn fast, and they're new! Just doesn't perform as well as regular AA batteries. :(
 
F

Fou-Lu

Member
Any ideas where I can find some cheap GBAs and link cables for some FF:CC multiplayer action? Most of the ones on ebay are missing battery covers and/or are scuffed to hell, and that just drives me insane.

Also, while I'm here, where should I preorder my Vita from? Anywhere offering special deals?
 
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