Technologizer

The Press Releases of the Damned!

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

In the land of the press release, all news isn’t good news–it’s fantastic news. Every product is revolutionary. Each corporate merger is historic. Even layoffs are masterstrokes that will turn around troubled companies. When the stuff announced in press releases hits the real world, the results can be surprising, disappointing, and occasionally catastrophic. Yet the [...]

Systemax Scoops Up another Big Brand in Circuit City

Monday, May 25, 2009

2 Comments

Thought you heard the last of Circuit City? Think again. Systemax completed the acquisition of the rights to the name on May 19, and relaunched circuitcity.com over the holiday weekend. Old customers will begin receive e-mails from the new owners beginning June 9, although they are being given until that time to choose to opt out. All [...]

5Words for April 15th, 2009

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

0 Comments

My taxes? Filed. Whew! You? More about Zune HD. Maybe. eBay: we’re spinning off Skype. Net neutrality? Now now, please! Amazon.com: a third of e-commerce. AT&T wants more iPhone exclusivity. Microsoft patches up Office holes. Philips: Two dimensions are enough. I’m afraid to use ATMs. Miss Circuit City? Just wait.

“Whatever Happened to…?”

Thursday, March 26, 2009

39 Comments

Old computer products, like old soldiers, never die. They stay on the market–even though they haven’t been updated in eons. Or their names get slapped on new products–available only outside the U.S. Or obsessive fans refuse to accept that they’re obsolete–long after the rest of the world has moved on. For this story–which I hereby dedicate [...]

The Last Will and Testament of Circuit City

Saturday, March 7, 2009

67 Comments

For Circuit City, it passed for good news: On Friday, a press release trumpeted the “record shopper turnout” at the failed retailer’s going-out-of-business sale and said that the liquidation proceedings were ahead of schedule. All U.S. stores are therefore closing forever as of tomorrow. And so I made what will almost certainly be my last [...]

Circuit City To Close Down March 8th

Friday, March 6, 2009

1 Comment

All remaining Circuit City stores still open will shut down on March 8, the company said on Friday. While a few stores blew through inventory rather quickly, some still have a decent amount remaining (including mine, which had a lot of TVs and computers left). Liquidators originally planned to shut everything down by the end [...]

The Tragic Last Days of Circuit City

Monday, March 2, 2009

30 Comments

Liquidation: It’s an ugly word for the ugly process of shutting down a retailer by selling off stuff little by little until there’s nothing left that anyone’s going to buy at any price. And my most recent visit to my local branch of the soon-to-be-defunct Circuit City in the Bay Area was…ugly. Literally. The place, [...]

Can’t Anyone Do Tech Retailing Right?

Friday, February 20, 2009

9 Comments

These are strange times for the retailing of computers and other technology products. Some of the most venerable and best-known names in the business are going out of business, or severely contracting: Sixty-year-old Circuit City is much of the way through the liquidation sale that will end with the closure of all its U.S. stores, [...]

Circuit City Under Siege

Sunday, January 18, 2009

20 Comments

They’re the grim reapers of failing retail chains, except they brandish going-out-of-business signs instead of scythes. And they were surrounding the Circuit City a couple of miles from my house today, which, like the rest of the company’s 500+ U.S. stores, is liqidating its stock as the company goes out of business. When I drove [...]

Circuit City Closes Up Shop Once and For All

Friday, January 16, 2009

8 Comments

It’s hardly surprising, but now it’s official: Troubled consumer-electronics merchant Circuit City has failed to find a buyer and will therefore be liquidating all its stores. It’s lousy news for its more than 30,000 employees, its stockholders, and anyone who was a fan of the chain, which started with a single store six decades ago. Even [...]

The Twelve Weird Old Electronics Commercials of Christmas

Thursday, December 25, 2008

3 Comments

I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m kind of addicted to watching old TV commercials on YouTube. Especially ones involving computers and electronics. And today, I have an excuse to share a bunch of them with you, in no particular order. 1. Mattel Electronics, early 1980s. Hal “Otis the Town Drunk” Smith plays a Santa who [...]

Not-So-Black-Friday Preview: Circuit City

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

2 Comments

Okay I’ll admit out of all the retailers that we’ve profiled so far for Black Friday, I was looking forward to Circuit City’s offerings the most. This is a company that is in some serious, serious trouble. As Harry has covered so well over the past few weeks, the major electronics retailer has filed for bankruptcy, [...]

A Brief History of Defunct Electronics Chains in the Form of Old TV Ads

Monday, November 10, 2008

17 Comments

Today’s news that Circuit City, American’s second-largest electronics retailer, has filed for bankruptcy left me sad. And, oddly enough, nostalgic. The City isn’t going out of business, but as I reflected on its woes I thought about all the electronics chains I’ve shopped at over the years–the vast majority of which are no longer with [...]

Is Circuit City’s Bankruptcy the Beginning of the End?

Monday, November 10, 2008

7 Comments

A week ago, the bad news about Circuit City was that it was closing 115 of its locations. New week, new bad news: The company has filed for Chapter 11 voluntary bankruptcy, a move that will will let it continue business without having to pay all its creditors all the money it owes them. Bankruptcies aren’t [...]

Is There Any Way to Save Circuit City? I’m Not Optimistic–But I Hope So

Monday, November 3, 2008

4 Comments

Engadget is reporting a rumor that that the venerable Circuit City chain is planning to shut down 155 of its stores, which would amount to about a quarter of its locations. If true, this is sad news for the folks employed at those outlets, not to mention the ones who like to shop at them. [...]