z70v refresh just arrived! - Page 8  

Well, this actually made me laugh. You and your cronies are so convinced I lied/deceived/misinformed, do what I asked of you and PROVIDE PROOF. Thats all that is needed to put this to rest plain and simple.
Maybe, just maybe things will turn out differently than what you think.

Rick

Hello world.

I've been lurking for about a month or two, mostly looking for constant updates on the z70va although thats not why I came here originally.

Anyway for what it's worth I ALMOST was among those to preorder a refresh in the first group (only thing that held me back is the fact that I'm a cheap bastard and I live in Charlotte, NC meaning I'd have to pay sales tax if I ordered from IST). I've been reading pretty much every post in every thread here and other places regarding the refresh and from what I've seen, I have to say in my opinion, IST seems to not have done anything wrong but become the envy of various other resellers. Whenever anyone asks them to back up their claims that IST has done shady, it's all "believe me, we have the evidence, but we feel revealing said evidence isn't necessary. That may cut the mustard when you want to lead the US to war, but we're talking about computers, damn it. We need cold hard facts man!

Not to mention that the people that are saying such things DO have something to gain by doing anything from stretching the truth to flat out lying in this case. Besides, I would think that if what they are saying is true, and ASUS had any legal recourse (which the resellers seem to think they do), ASUS would have done something about it by now, or would already be in the process of doing so. They are the ones that would potentially be losing a substancial amount of money if said notebooks were purchased at a discounted price and then resold at retail prices, and they (ASUS) would also be the ones to look like an ass-hat if they let some tiny reseller do it to them without taking action. In closing let me just say that I'm no way beholden or affiliated with IST or anything like that. If anything, I'm kind of adverse from buying from them (for the before-mentioned reason of sales tax) and probably won't buy my refresh from them unless A) they get a second shipment before anybody else gets some in, or B) other places prices make the sale tax negligable.

Anyway, seeing as now at least a second store is taking z70va pre-orders, I would think the whole controversy is moot. BTW, anyone know if those prices are US$ or C$? I know at the top is says they'll be $120 US more that the z70v, but those numbers ($1700+ for a 2Ghz P-M) look a little high if they are US$.

If you just denied all the allegations put forward, especially by ProPortable, that would put all of them to rest much quicker than waiting around for 'proof' and letting everyone wait and speculate and come up with their own, possibly incorrect, conclusions. You say they have no proof, yet you continue to wait on the proof before responding to any accusations.

If you think ProPortable is lying about their communications with Asus on notebookreview.com, just say so. If it wasn't an educational sale, just say so. If you received an early exclusive from Asus, so much the better for you as a reseller.

You've already wasted your time explaining how you won't address any claims without proof, so do us a favor and waste another moment by denying all of proportable, G2P, discountlaptops, powernotebooks, and others claims and end the whole issue.

If someone said "CoffeeShark is gay", I would probably come forward and say "actually, no I'm not", rather than "hey, show me proof, then I'll respond". (Not that there's anything wrong with it, of course.)

and it's cool if you don't respond, I'm sure time will expose whatever happened or didn't happen. I just think it would be easier with an explanation rather than a request for proof.

Excellent point, CoffeeShark.

It reminds me of the classic detective movies, where they can't get the guy because they don't have evidence, but common sense dictates the obvious. As long as I'm able to get the notebook, its fine with me; but I find it odd that several resellers would take these actions based on whims. Of course, I guess we'll just have to wait and see if Rick is still selling Asus laptops in a few months.

I'm confused. What is the claim being made against ISTNC, and by whom?

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=23761

It's a thread on Notebook Review.

Yeah, I just read it. It confuses me.

1.Why are resellers making claims that they call “fact” without having all the information at hand?
2.Why won’t Rick and his company address these accusations?
3.Why is Asus not addressing this problem either?
4.Why are certain resellers pulling their Asus line in a seemingly obvious bluff to make Asus conform to their wishes? I mean, common fer godsakes. They still have stock sitting in their storerooms that needs to be sold off before they drop Asus. Pulling the line now is clearly a crybaby knee-jerk reaction that is only meant to bend Asus to their will.

To me, it sounds like Asus let through an initial shipment before it’s intended release date. On purpose or by mistake, who knows? Then the recipient (probably seeing the opportunity to draw up business by showing he had “first dibs”) let his initial pre-orders get what units he was given. The other resellers got angry (and rightfully so), but decided to act in a childish manner by pulling the Asus line from their shops.

So, is Asus a crooked dealer that plays favorites? Well, if this were a common problem, I’d say yes. But since this looks like a one time deal, then I don’t understand the problem. If the resellers are so pissed, then why not just ask Asus for restitution? Something like: “Yeah we deserve ten free units for that BS,” and then let Asus and Rick work things out between them.

I’ve seen soap operas with less drama than this. LOL

I think the other resellers know how you can get an earlier shipment because they've been selling ASUS notebooks way longer than ISTNC has. So they're accusing ISTNC as pulling a fast one, since they guessed that they could only get 35 limit. And that's what they got. Also 35 out of 200+ preorder. Feel sorry for the peeps still on the list especially the ones on the end of the list.
The other resellers feel betrayed that ASUS isnt doing anything about it. Eventhough it's illegal to do something like that. That's why they took the line off their sites. I'd feel betrayed too. That's just what I picked up from the posts from.

are we sure that there won't be any more shipped off the preorder until when the rest come out?

in answer to your (numbered) questions...
1. they believe they have all the info they need
2. see his post earlier in this thread
3. nobody knows
4. most say they don't actually carry stock, so they don't have anything extra to sell off. it may be a "crybaby" move, but they think it will work

we are not sure about that. the preorders may continue to roll out, or they may not. The only way to find out is to wait and see...

To simplify it, ISTNC told them they had an educational (bulk) order, and Asus sent out a few; however, for whatever reason, they got caught with their fingers in the drawer. So basically, they ordered the laptops under a false premise, which is why they're in trouble now--and why there won't be anymore preorders from them.

Asus's behavior in their US branch has been a little questionable, especially in concern to this mysterious "asusnotebooks" seller on eBay. Many of the resellers are questioning Asus's motives... the eBay problem was known beforehand, but the fact that Asus is backing down instead of taking action with Rick is what seems to really be ticking people off. Basically, Rick did something that was not entirely legal or professional, and Asus is backing down. THAT'S why they're upset.

Don't forget that the resellers also have an issue with an ASUS employee selling ASUS notebooks on eBay in direct violation of ASUS company policy unless ASUS is actually sanctioning the sales which is even worse in the resellers' eyes.
Word is that ASUS will soon be selling through mass market mechandisers such as Best Buy and Circuit City. Whether this has an impact on the resellers remains to be seen.

Justin, at ProPortable states that the mucky mucks at ASUS have all been on vacation recently which is why nothing has been addressed yet and possibly why this situation developed and has deteriorated to the point it has.
It would help a bit if Rick would post a statement of sorts at NotebookReview where all the resellers are discussing this. They aren't being censored and having their posts deleted or threads closed there. Yet.

And none of what you just said is fact.

The alternative explanation is that the other resellers are upset with whatever deal Rick has with Asus (he is the #1 reseller of their products in the US) and are making a concerted effort to discredit him and make up for what they just lost out on.

Now I dont KNOW if that's true either. However, what we do know is:

the other resellers said no one would have the refresh until september for a number of reasons... and rick got them out to a bunch of people already, as he said he would back in JUNE.

Correct in the sense that none of it is CONFIRMED. It is all currently either rumor or hearsay.

There is a third option as well, that the resellers posting on Notebook Review truly believe what they say, and that they are mistaken because they were given incorrect information.

And as this thread has developed into a kind of reaction thread to that one, it will also continue to stay open, as long as the rules of the forum are followed and it does not turn into a flame war. We (smilepak & myself) encourage healthy discussion and will not randomly close threads unless it is necessary.

A laudable attitude! Thank you!
Now, back to the regularly scheduled programming.

A fact is a fact. There is no such thing as a unconfirmed fact (being that the phrase itself is contradictory). An "unconfirmed fact" is also knows has a theory, which is all they publicly have. The word FACT should stay out of this discussion all together (being that all way know for a FACT is that resellers are pissed and early people on the preorder list are getting Z70Va's).

So Redmumba, please… give us all a break. You have a right to your opinion (just as I do with my opinion), however I don’t pass it out as fact (because that could misinform other members which is deconstructive to the community). "Simply put", think before you post.

Sorry if I was confusing. I will edit my post to make it more clear.