I need to vent about my horrible Best Buy experience. I went to Best Buy on Thursday and purchased an iPod. It was (what I thought) a 20 gig 4th generation display model marked down to $219. It was the last iPod in the store. I bought the iPod and walked out the door. After I got home, I realized that what the lady behind the wireless counter had packaged up for me was a 40 gig 4th generation iPod. I got a great deal.

The next day, Julie from Best Buy (their manager on duty) called me at work to inform me that they had sold me the wrong item and asked me to come back to the store to exchange the item for the "correct" one. She offered me $30 for my troubles. I explained to her that I could probably come out much further ahead if I sold the 40 gig iPod on ebay... She told me that if I don't bring it back in, that my product replacement plan would be void.

I considered my options, and decided that I really didn't need 40 gigs and the extra cash would be nice. So I went out to Best Buy with my iPod. When I got there, Julie told me that they didn't actually have a 20 gig iPod for me, so she told me I could just keep the one I have. I walked out of there a little upset because I just wasted time on a trip out to Best Buy that I didn't need to make. I realized when I got out to my car that product replacement plan is probably still void because it specifically states on it that it's for a 20 gig iPod. I called Julie from my car on the way home. I was probably on hold for 45 minutes, and finally gave up.

I called again in the morning and talked to their General Manager, Lee. Lee told me that I need to bring the iPod and the paperwork back in and they'd straighten out the product replacement plan. So, I packed my iPod back up and went out there again, for what would be a very loooong afternoon.

When I got there, I went up to the service desk. Lee, the most evil man on the face of the planet, came up to the desk with a 3rd generation 20 gig iPod in hand. He told me that he's ready to make the swap and snatched the 40 gig off the counter. I told him that wasn't the reason I was there. I was there to straigten out the replacement plan. I told him that what Julie had told me the night before. He basically told me "that's not the product you purchased" and refused to give it back to me. He offered me a $50 gift card "for all the hassle" and started processing the swap. I told him that I needed the data off the iPod transferred over, he said that isn't a problem and gave both iPods to one of the technicians to take care of. The tech told me that it may take 30-45 minutes to transfer 4 gigs of information over fire wire from one iPod to another (he's completely full of shit, it doesn't take that long). So..... I waited.... and waited...... I walked around the store and talked to Rachael about it. She was there to purchase a new monitor and a few other items (approx. $600 worth of merchandise). She also applied for a Best Buy card. I also called my dad. He was irate over the situation and told me that I absolutely should not settle for less that what I thought I had purchased.

While walking around the store, I ran into Lee. I told him that when he had a minute, I wanted to talk to him again up and the service desk. We went up there and I told him that I wouldn't settle for a 3rd generation iPod. He said that they don't have a 4th generation in stock and he could order one. He offered to let me go home with the 3rd generation iPod and when they got the 4th generation in stock I could come back in and exchange. I agreed to that for some reason.

After waiting another 45 minutes, I went up to the tech bench and asked them what was taking so long to transfer the data. They said that they couldn't do it because they don't have a mac back there to do it with. I asked them what they're going to do about it... I wasn't going to walk out of there without the data that I walked in with. They told me that what I would need to do is go home and get my computer and bring it in so they can transfer the data. I absolutely refused to do that. I'm not going to spend all afternoon cleaning up a problem they caused. I continuted to note to Lee that Julie (the manager from the night before) agreed that I could have the 40 gig for the price I paid. Lee wouldn't listen to a word I said. All he could say is that he couldn't let me leave with the 40 gig iPod (even though it was technically mine). After spending all afternoon at Best Buy, I was getting angrier and angrier. My dad came out there to back me up, but I eventually gave up. I returned everything and Rachael tore up her credit card slip.

We drove to CompUSA in Woodbury and made our purchases.