Top Ten Plus Four Equals Fourteen Fry's Electronics Moments

Techies who live near a Fry's Electronics store reminisce the good memories and the bad memories. It's inevitable Fry's went out of business officially announced on Wed Feb 24, 2021. The store was the number one source for computer goods and more for techies and non-techies. Fry's sold more than computers, laptops, electronics, printers, phones, software programs, and monitors. The store sold video games, music, movies, TVs, appliances, toys, books, magazines, personal grooming, stationary, light bulbs, batteries, snacks, drinks, and more non-techie goods to satisfy most consumers. Fry's was a one stop store for techies. Bad management and online commerce caused Fry's to shut down.

Fry's posted ads in the local newspaper. Fry's released a seven-page ad every Friday. Loyal customers looked forward to Friday's ads. What's the hardware on sale? What's the video games on sale? What's the DVDs on sale? What's the non techie goods on sale such as stationary, flashlights, food, books, and toys? The trouble signs were clear and present when Fry's stopped the newspaper ads. Fry's was no longer the best buys. Parking lots were full on weekends. No more long lines the next customer looking at the cash registers' green lights or numbered signs for the next open cashier.

A knew a friend who worked in the tech support department wearing the blue lab coats. Most people thought working in the department was the least stressful because they spent more time repairing computers and less time interacting with customers. He said tech support was the most stressful because 99% of the customers were idiots. They didn't know how to operate computers. Tech support taught customers how to operate computers. The technician ran a diagnostic CD every time a customer brought a computer or laptop knowing most of the time the technician already knew how to fix the computer quickly. Fry's policy was all technicians must run a diagnostic CD charging the customer $24.99. Easy money.

Here are the top ten plus four equals fourteen Fry's Electronics moments:

14. Last Fry's Purchase (Jan 2020). I purchased the Arctic Silver Thermal polysynthetic silver compound for my second built desktop PC.

13. 4K TV (Jun 2013). I saw a Sony 4K television for the first time. Sale price was $6,999.99. I purchased a 4K monitor at Black Friday 2018 for $249.99 as a comparison.

12. Last Black Friday Shopping (Nov 2017). I purchased the Logitech Z313 2.1 speakers. Fry's price matched Amazon at $24.99.

11. Non-Fiction Book (Aug 2008). I purchased I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell by Tucker Max. It was my only non-computer book.

10. The Movie Outbreak (Dec 1995). I went Christmas shopping after I took my last final which was Physics 62 Electricity & Magnetism at San Jose State University. I saw the movie on a large screen TV. I watched the second half of the movie in its entirety. I turned around when the credits were shown. There was a large crowd behind me.

9. Celine Dion's Falling Into You CD (Spring 1996). I purchased the classic Celine Dion CD.

8. Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill (Fall 1995). I purchased her first CD.

7. Targus Laptop Cooler (Nov 2006). It still works today. The cooler prolonged my two previous laptops.

6. $3.99 DVDs (Fall 2008). I purchased Mad Max, The Graduate, Mr. Mom, X-Men II, Die Hard, and Revenge Of The Nerds.

5. First USB Memory Stick (Summer Or Fall 1998). I purchased the Soyo Cigar Pro I 128MB for $49.99.

4. Michael Jackson Died (Summer 2009). The entire Fry's store played Michael Jackson music on the store speakers, played his music on the stereos, and showed a Michael Jackson concert on TVs. All customers stopped at any TV when they were nearby.

3. The Orange Box (Oct 2007). Many video game publications declared Valve Corporation releasing five video games in one the best deal in a century. The video games are Half-Life 2, Half-Life 2: Episode One, Half-Life 2: Episode Two, Portal, and Team Fortress 2.

2. My First Desktop PC (Fall 2008). I built my first desktop PC named my Gaming PC. I purchased the hard drive, case, thermal polysynthetic silver compound, DVD+RW, monitor, cooling fans, and RAM.

Honorable mentions: I purchased a Spyder3Pro Monitor Calibration in Jul 2011, a Sony cassette adapter to play mp3s in Mar 2014, and classical music CDs each containing 25 songs for $1.99 each in 1998 and 1999. I ate astronaut ice cream for the first time in Dec 2008. I purchased a 7-UP soda in a collectable 7-UP bottle in Mar 2011.

1. A NES Game (1986). My brother and I purchased Rygar for the Nintendo. We purchased the video game at the original Fry's store in Sunnyvale.

Update On A Past Blog

I remember the movie Major League starring Tom Berenger, Charlie Sheen, and Corbin Bernsen released in 1989. The movie plot is the new owner of the Cleveland Indians wants the team to tank to move the team outside Cleveland. I wrote a blog on tanking titled Is Tanking The New Way To Succeed? on Oct 16, 2020. A few professional sports teams tank intentionally to receive number one draft picks to rebuild.