No More Panasonic Deals at HHG

For the first time in years, regional retailer HHGregg will not carry Panasonic televisions in its stores this year. No 2012 plasma or LED/LCD models will be available this year, as a wholesale distribution purchasing price could not be satisfactorily negotiated this year. So in many Southeastern markets, that leaves Best Buy as the sole retailer offering the upper ST-GT-VT models, and Sears offering the UT. Except in Atlanta, where Fry's and Brandsmart also carry Panasonic. And supposedly Panasonic has cut back on production facilities, partially due to storm damage in Japan last year. So don't stop in HHG looking for a deal on Panasonic this year; for plasma your choice there will be limited to Samsung and LG.

Well, the ST30 and S30 were very reasonably priced last year, and the UT50 and ST50 seem to be affordably priced this year. As for Best Buy, too many people are using their stores only as a showroom to browse and decide what they will eventually buy from Amazon or some other online vendor. They need to offer more competitive prices and better customer service. In my case, I have browsed in Best Buy to decide if I want to drive 2 hours to Georgia to get a better price on a TV at Fry's or Brandsmart. My local Best Buy is very reluctant to price match with Amazon, and will not match Fry's here because they have no nearby local store. But HHG is more willing to negotiate price, and they agreed once to match Fry's for me , so it saved me a trip to Ga. So itis a bit disappointing that HHG will no longer offer Panasonic, but maybe this will eventually change.