Maplin reviews

Good Stock List

No complaints really, but just a bit lacking......

expensive and gimmicky

maplins is over 10x more expensive than suppliers like rapid, farnell and RS for leelectronic components. Their shop experience is pastic-y and gimmicky with the emphasis far away from quality

Adequate

Some staff have poor product knowledge. Stock levels are usually fairly poor. Website information not always correct. Some products of a very poor quality and not as portrayed in catalogue photos.
However, if you need resisters, capacitors etc quickly (and they have stock) then it's ideal. Better deals available elsewhere if you can wait and shop around. I've been a customer for over 20 years and have seen a decline in service.

good

never had any isses

A bit Geeky but likeable.

Staff are outstanding,they look undernourished and may be underpaid and may not see much sunshine but they are just great. Product knowledge is pretty good and I get what I want. Rarely do I leave with just what I went in for because the displays are good and the offers are good. Still buy stuff that I don't use for a while! Love the dated format of the stores there is nothing like it out there. Business wise its a shame that more people don't know about them.

Not Knowledgable

If they don't know they will make it up. Had this on more than a few occasions.

Man heaven

Out shopping with the wife? Give her the treatment she gives you by taking ages to ramble through some of the most interesting things with a plug on the end. Bliss

Good Compnay. I would recommend them.

Good Company. I would recommend them.

Cowboys - do not collect in store

if you order on-line and collect in store the price you're charged will be the store price, even though the price in your basket will be the online price. They get away with this because they don't include the price on your reservation email as per the screenshot, or on the final page you click on to reserve, so the first you know of this con is when you pay in the shop. I was not the only person in the store that commented on when I was there, this but the customer service advisor was more interested in practicing his training speech than listening to what i was saying.

This to me shows it's a common way that maplin misleads it's customers and on purpose (either the store staff could feed this back to head office but choose not to, or they do feed it hack and head office choses not to act, so misleading either way).

Avoid this store unless you want to be conned, especially if you need to travel to get there. No one likes a long journey, only for the shop to change the price once you get there.

Email has no price - convenient

For those things that aren't stocked in Supermarkets

Whenever I need a component for computing or similar, my first thought is always to check if Maplins have it. They nearly always do and while you're there you are also likely to find one of their special offers. I got a really useful light studio at way less than I expected to pay. The downside is that some of their generic leads and cables can be cheaper in supermarkets. I paid £17.99 for an Apple type connector and then found 3 for £10 in Asda, was a bit cheesed!

great

great site and service

My Alladins Cave

The best placce in the world to source those odd little bits of electronics. Great deals on main stream products too

Pop in store for my urgent cables

Maplins is my fave pop-in-store for my computer cables and accessories I cannot wait for. Very Knowledgable staff, at least in my store they are.

everything gadgetry and geeky you need

problem with maplins is the price....its inflated

Excellent!

Amazing place, people full of knowledge x

FREINDLY

FREINDLY,HELPFUL SALES.

Excellent

Good staff, quick delivery, even sent a replacement part for a weather station free of charge, even though I explained it probably was not their fault.

top for electronics

lots of electronics at fair prices

Does what it says on the label; good service, good products.

Maplin is one of those places which a need of a particular kind: "I need a cheap lapel microphone for my video camera," "I need an antenna for the TV in the guest room," and so on. Personally, I have been impressed that the staff seem to be able to deal with a variety of slightly odd queries with helpfulness and cheerfulness. A very useful, helpful firm.

Customer service, Sales jargon

About 3 month ago me and my boyfriend went in to Maplin, we were buying things to use on games consoles we had managed to rally up around £75 worth of items in about 10 minutes we only had 5 items.

One of which was a game console opening kit which normally retailed at £39.99 but was on offer for £25, which we thought was a bit much when there were similar products on the market a lot cheaper. as we went to pay for the item. i spotted a smaller kit for £5.99, £19 cheaper.

But according to the customer sales advisor "it doesn't have the correct sizes that you need" but sure enough after we had purchased the items. and had a closer look at the incredibly cheaper kit, it had the correct sizes.

Very bad customer service he just wanted the bigger sale.
items in the store are good but there sales is very bad.

Maplins

What a brilliant store, it's got every tech gadget you'd ever wish to have. I shop there a lot for all my computer stuff. The people there are always very helpful and knowledgeable.

A must go visit shop

Not the cheapest but they sell everything. For all those who remember Tandy electrical then this is the shop for you

FAULTY PRODUCTS AND SERVICE

I have purchased a number of products from Maplin over the years, lots of faulty items, I sometimes get a refund after a long argument, most of the time it is not worth the bother. I see they sell B grade items, to be honest I think all their products are B grade, there is always some defect with the products sooner or later and it is impossible or very difficult to get refunds or replacements. They will give any excuse, try to side track you, delay and argue to the sun goes down. Don’t trust them, be warned.

Great and inclusive.

I have dealt with Maplin for a number of years now and felt that the time has come to let you know how fantastic their Brighton Store staff members are. I am a disabled female who is largely self-taught regarding all matters computer related. My technical jargon is non-existent. However the staff members never seem to mind taking the time to help me unpack my thoughts and are always willing to go out of their way to make sure that we are talking about the same thing. On a couple of occasions I even ended up not buying anything as their staff member wrote out a work-around which saved me pounds.

It is absolutely fantastic how they do not make me feel a fool and I always end up being able to make decisions regarding purchasing or adjusting purchases with full confidence due to the willingness of the staff to help me decide – I always wheel away from the store feeling fully empowered and secure in the knowledge that I am a valued customer.

Today, I ended up making a purchase online as the item was rather heavy and I would need to have had it delivered. I was going to ask the Brighton Store to deliver it however when they heard that I would also need the inks they suggested I would be better off ordering it online as then I could order both the multifunctional printer and the inks at the same time for delivery at the same time.

The online staff was just as helpful, patient and accommodating as Brighton store staff.

Good for Components

Great place to get components & wires from e.g like transistors, cables etc..

Just buy direct from Hong Kong

Maplin used to be a great place for components. They seem to have decided that the electronics market isn't right for them and are now selling piles of cr4p imported from Hong Kong. You can save yourself a lot of money by buying that same cr4p direct from various websites in HK or eBay. The markup Maplin apply is ridiculous.
As far as the components range, I'm disappointed to say that they have been cutting it back to less and less every time I look for something. And adding more price. I'm sure resistors used to be 3p each. Now they're nearly 30p each. Similar products from Farnell are 5p each, but you need to buy 50...

Never shopping there again

I bought a Arnova 10 g2 tablet from Maplin's and after using it for 2 days I decided to take it back. I had bought it 16 days prior but had not used it because I was on holiday. Went to return it because I was not happy with it and they would not accept it as they said their was scratches on the back. I could see one minute scratch! I argued that they say that I can return it if I am not happy with it after 28 days but they said no they would not be able to sell it again. I took it back in origional condition (box, leaflets, plastic bags, etc)...absolutely outragious! Never buying anything from them again.

hubby heaven

my husband practically lives in this shop!! its great for gadget buying and computer geeks ;D (but I like it for the pretty disco lights!!) ;D

Great service

Couldn't say if the web site is as good as the shop I use (Poole) but the service and knowledge in the shop in Poole is brilliant.
I know what I need but sometimes not the best way to sort it out or what parts I need. The guys in Poole have saved me money and have never sold me anything I don't require.
Great service time and again, oh and the reserve function on the website is great as it gives you the chance to save what you "think" you want before spending.

Very Hit and Miss

Before I get onto a review of the site, I want to say something about the local maplin shop I use. The manager at the local maplin is unknowledgable and rude. On several occassions I have found it necessary to return goods which were unfit for purpose. Notably a card reader with a bent pin, and a wireless networking card that refused to automatically connect via dhcp. On both these occassions I had my money returned to me, but not before the manager had passed some comment to the effect that it was my fault. I take exception to such accusations and infact in the case of the wireless card I even found it highly amusing that he thought I must be one of the people who havent a clue how to set up a computer (I run several networks for various people as my vocation in life is a network engineer) He demonstrated his complete misunderstanding of how networks operate and what all the letters such as N & G mean and how to use them.

Now onto the website. I am frequently told that what shows as in stock on the website is incorrect at the store. My local store hardly has anything I need, and even when they do its overpriced. The site itself is substandard and shows results for totally random items. Fo example I searched for key switch and for some totally bizzare reason I was shown a few key switches and various toy planes etc etc etc

this company really must try a lot harder because they are rapidly sliding down the pan. GET SOME STAFF WHO ACTUALLY KNOW WTH THEY ARE TALKING ABOUT and get some new web designers the ones you employ are rubbish

Always pricey always rude

I like the fact Maplin as a load of stuff I can't get from elsewhere but I don't like their service very much at all and they are always ridiculously expensive. I get that a lot of their items are niche but gees spare my wallet some hammering.

Vivien found this review useful

Decent Company but...

Decent enough company in general, although staff are poorly advised and are not the best for advice.

They are usually more expensive than most too.

bad customer service

trash staff that know nothing but seem to think they do. and treat you like a fool. shop elsewhere its over priced anyway

take your money before checkout

maplins online took my order then i entered my card details then it took my money and then it says it has a delivery fault with their shut service and to choose a alternative payment. it already took my money from my card and left it in limbo /hold on the card and now i have to wait 3-5 working days for my money to go back on to my card, no item and still they want me to pay again. DO NOT BUY FROM THESE PEOPLE!!

Fail

Bad attitude

Bad attitude

I bought automatic centre punch that didn’t work. It didn’t punch. In the Manchester store the manager shows me that the punch do doing holes, and totally ignored the fact that it does not doing the punch effect. It was waste of time to explain that it is not the purpose of the tool, because of for his point of view it working perfectly well since it does doing holes.
I working with this gear and he only sales man that tells me how it works.
Other time i ordered microcontroller, and never received it. Other time ..... other time......
Maplin is waste of time go to RS component, cheaper next day delivery and higher selection. Or go to any other place at less you will not feel like an idiot.

over priced

Store is full of overpriced chinese junk.
Purchased a 4 amp multi voltage power suppy that gives off so much radio interference its useless.
Components & cables are so overpriced things like capacitors can be picked up for a 5th of the price.
A shop for non tech stupid people off the street.

Technology at affordable prices.

......great offers on batteries usually as well!

Not bad but unsure about value

Some stuff you can get really cheap but other stuff is more expensive than other retailers so please make sure you shop around.

Staff are fairly knowledgable though so they're a good company otherwise!

Impressed

...by the range of products, and often prices are lower than those online. Advice in store has always been very good.

Very Nice

Nicely designed site. Easy navigation. The option to pick-up or have good delivered is a big plus point!

Good prices and good service. Very pleased!