Just wondering like, does anyone know when the next computer fair/market at Don Valley Stadium is likely to be happening?

I thought it would be this weekend, but apparently not following research via Google.

If not, damn! Wasted 64p on 2 copies of The Star because the Star usually has a free ticket to the computer do's, and I wanted 2 tickets so as me Dad could get if for nowt as well.

So yeah, does anyone know the date of the next Don Valley Stadium bound computer fair?

Someone told me they had been suspended

I think its this weekend

see www.redratcomputerfairs.co.uk


Organiser Redrat Leisure
Date Sunday February 1, 2004
Venue SHEFFIELD ( Don Valley Stadium )
Admission Fee Please Call Organiser
Directions Click here
Parking
Opening times 10.00am - 3.00pm

They only have dates for October and November listed on that site :confused:

Their site is not working but according to the showguide,there is one on sunday only as posted above.

Tomorrow and Sunday according to a mate of mine...supposed to be going there with him so I can pick up some dvd-rs

Hmm, might nip down tomorrow then, I need some blank CD-RW discs and I want to see if I can aquire a copy of either Nero 6 or Easy CD creator 5, I'm also after either one or two more of the cool American DVDs they were selling at the one I went to a few weeks back.

its been advertised on peak 107 today as bing on this saturday and sunday hope this helps ....

Yeah thanks for that, there was a small ad in the Star about it as well, which said it was on both days.

Can't get till Sunday though, something more urgent has come up that I need to do tomorrow.

Oh well, I'm sure they'll still have a few bits I'm after.

I just got back...nothing much there really. Was looking for a router, but they were asking stupid prices for them, I could have got the same ones they had there for 20 quid cheaper online. DVD-Rs were cheap though...£16 for 25 Ritek printable. Other than that it was the usual stuff, and a lot of it seemed really overpriced to me.

Originally posted by slh73
DVD-Rs were cheap though...£16 for 25 Ritek printable.


25 pack of printable DVD-Rs are £11.19 on Ebuyer (http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/products/index.html?action=c2hvd19wcm9kdWN0X3Jldmlld3M=&product_uid=56243) .

Yes, I am on commission....

Yes, but they use cheap dye. The ones I bought use Ritek dye, more reliable and less likely to end up as a coaster.

And theyre not actually printable, theyre just generic white tops. Theyll work in the TDK thermal printer, but thats no good to me. I need inkjet printable discs, theyve got a special matt surface on them so my epson printer can just print direct to the surface without the need for sticky labels.

Me Dad paid a tenner for a PS2 keyboard (not playstation 2) and mouse for his laptop, got it home and discovered that the drivers for it were on floppy disc, and he doesn't have a floppy drive on his laptop due to being a relatively new model..... this wouldn't've been a problem if it were not for the fact that my DVD/CD writer wasn't a piece of **** that hasn't worked for about 3 bleedin' months, as I could've just chucked the contents of the floppy onto a CD and then he'd be sorted...

So yeah, the above didn't work, so I tried to email him the small files, that didn't work cos of crappy Hotmail which sucks for emailing files.

Eventually we got the keyboard working, in a fashion, but on MY computer rather than his laptop, which was the point of the thing, only good thing was that the mouse worked fine and dandy on his laptop, no problem at all.

The moral of the tale is DON'T buy hardware from computer fairs, no matter HOW cheap it is, cos the sodding thing NEVER works when you get it home!

Apologies for any and all naughty words posted in this message.

To be fair Rich, you could have bought the same keyboard from a shop or mail order company and you'd have had the same problems.

You could have just downloaded the drivers from the internet?

Also why send files through hotmail, use a proper email account.

If the laptop is relatively new as you say, I guess it would be installed with Win XP, keyboards are normally just plug and use with XP.

No.

The laptop is powered by Windows 2000 Proffessional, same as my desktop, as the laptop was built by my brother who is an IT Proffessional with a Degree in the subject from 4 years at Sunderland Uni.

Also, Dad doesn't have an email address other than his Hotmail address.

Originally posted by Andy
To be fair Rich, you could have bought the same keyboard from a shop or mail order company and you'd have had the same problems.

That's as maybe, but I have NEVER bought a piece of computer hardware from a computer fair, brought it home and got it to work without any problems.

Problem is though, is that unlike if you buy from a proper on or offline shop, you don't get a warranty, and you can't take it back to the next computer fair cos you can't garauntee that the particular seller who you bought it off is going to be there every time, especially if he's the "sell a piece of **** and scarper" type.

I've always found computer fairs to be a good source of bargains. As long as the hardware's in working order, it's easy to download the missing drivers from the internet.

Bought my computer for a ridiculous (low) price from a fair around a year ago and have never had any problems. Most people who have stands have web addresses and physical shop locations - there aren't many here-today-gone-tomorrow traders. Some do offer warranties.

As I understand it the main problems you've had are:

1. No email address other than Hotmail - doesn't your dad's ISP provide one?!

2. Your CD writer doesn't work - you can hardly blame the trader who sold you the keyboard/mouse for that!

No.

He shares my broadband connection via a router.

I did set him up an email address on my account, but all his contacts from work etc only ever send stuff to his Hotmail, so he doesn't have the mail address I set up for him configured on his laptop.

And I know the DVD/CD writer problem isn't the computer fair man's fault, but it has been ******* me off for months, and as much as I love him, my brother is no help in the matter, he keeps saying it's my fault for buying crap media, but what can you do when you're restricted to buying from the likes of Dixons/PC World cos I don't trust the likes of Amazon for delivering etc?

Since when was computer software/hardware restricted to being sold from

PC World
Dixons
Amazon
Computer Fairs

There are millions of computer shops out here, and reputable websites offering computer software/hardware for sale.

N2C on west street is okay for most things.

Plus it only takes a matter of secs to set up a email address account on your dads laptop. Its not rocket science

Skatie

There's also ebuyer.com, who often have some quite amazing bargains. They have a warehouse in Sheffield, too.

Originally posted by Skatiechik
Since when was computer software/hardware restricted to being sold from

PC World
Dixons
Amazon
Computer Fairs

There are millions of computer shops out here, and reputable websites offering computer software/hardware for sale.

N2C on west street is okay for most things.

Plus it only takes a matter of secs to set up a email address account on your dads laptop. Its not rocket science

Skatie

I've been let down by small computer shops in the past, which kind of puts me off going into anything with another one such as N2C.

And as for places to get stuff from, I'm fully aware that there are other sites/shops, but as mentioned I don't trust the smaller shops due to a bad experience with one of them a few years back, and I do sometimes go on dabs.com and 7daydshop.com which is one my brother uses, but I mostly tend to stick to Amazon/PC World/Dixons et al as I know what to expect with their services, even though I probably end up paying a bit more than I perhaps aught to.

A bit more? the phrase "through the nose" springs to mind! Have you SEEN the cost of leads at these places?!

Seriously, ebuyer is the way to go - read the reviews on their site if you're unsure about a particular product. I use them all the time and have never had any problems ith them or their goods.

Originally posted by Greenback
A bit more? the phrase "through the nose" springs to mind! Have you SEEN the cost of leads at these places?!

Seriously, ebuyer is the way to go - read the reviews on their site if you're unsure about a particular product. I use them all the time and have never had any problems ith them or their goods.

I second that. I've made about 10 separate orders from them in the last year and all have been on time and correct, and on some occasions I've even modified my order AFTER I've paid for it (but before despatch, obviously) and ebuyer coped perfectly well. If you're worried about quality, just order brand names from them and you will still save a lot of money.

He shares my broadband connection via a router.

insted of e-mailing it or writing it to disc why not just access it through your LAN ?

Originally posted by PENGUIN
insted of e-mailing it or writing it to disc why not just access it through your LAN ?

Hit the nail on the head there. :rolleyes: :loopy:
Rich stop being so narrow minded with regard ot buying computer parts, I would rather buy from an smaller store or the likes of ebuyer than Pc world etc...
But each to there own...

Originally posted by PENGUIN
insted of e-mailing it or writing it to disc why not just access it through your LAN ?

Cos he shares my connection, but the firewall blocks us from being able to share files.

Originally posted by Bookey
Hit the nail on the head there. :rolleyes: :loopy:
Rich stop being so narrow minded with regard ot buying computer parts, I would rather buy from an smaller store or the likes of ebuyer than Pc world etc...
But each to there own...

If it wasn't for the fact that last time I bought a computer from a small shop which was based at Commonside, I had no end of problems with the company, who eventually went bust... I wouldn't be so against them, but I've had my fingers burnt by the small trader before, so I'm reluctant to get involved with another for fear of history repeating itself.

Originally posted by Rich
Cos he shares my connection, but the firewall blocks us from being able to share files.

O come on! Then configure the firewall so it does not. Or turn it off for the 1 min it will take to move the files across.

Hi,
I am a student in Sheffield, I am interested in going to the computer fair at Don Valley Stadium this weekend. I was just wondering if anyone had any information about it, like if you have been before or know how much the admission price is. Also where abouts is it held, I presume its not actually in the stadium.


Thanks
Howard.

I had been there twice.
The admission fee is about 1 pound 50p something, can't remember. But the fair quitely disappointed me, since it is not as big as I expected, neither cheap. I ususally shop www.ebuyer.co.uk now when I need computer components. Hope it helps.

Been to a couple of these fairs and they are not particulaly cheep, but they do have a lot of stuff to choose from, including a lot of older, second hand stuff that would be difficult to obtain elsewhere.

Although the new retail side of it is usually not much less than the going rate because the retailers are all in one place at the same time you can compare easily and quickly. Some of the traders have also formed buying groups to get the big discounts from the wholesalers and enable themselves to be quite competetive as well.

So in short you can pick up a few bargains you can also end up with a load of crap if you do not know what you are doing, and you can pick up some good advice from some of the traders there as well.

Hmm, computer fair... Don Valley... Anyone know what day it's on? Saturday or Sunday?

Definitely go and check it out, but personally scan.co.uk, overclockers, ebay and ebuyer satisfy my hunger!!

I went once, waste of a Sunday morning.

it's held in the indoor track, downstairs.

it is on both days, sat and sun.

the entrance fee is £2 with no discounts for oap or disabled.

PT

Originally posted by Plain Talker
the entrance fee is £2 with no discounts for oap or disabled.


Erm... Why should there ?

I put that because many people would go along, expecting to get a discount on the entrance fee.

It was to fore-warn folk......

(Remember the phrase "Fore-warned is fore-armed"?)

PT

'No concessions' would be a better phrase

I'm going on the sunday, I've run out of photo paper for the printer, and I ain't paying Dixons/PC World prices to get some more, sod that!

Might have a look for some more of those American *ahem* backup *ahem* DVDs as well, they're region 0 usually so they'll work on my Xbox DVD player, got a couple of good films at the last one I went to back in March.

Originally posted by Rich
I'm going on the sunday, I've run out of photo paper for the printer, and I ain't paying Dixons/PC World prices to get some more, sod that!

Might have a look for some more of those American *ahem* backup *ahem* DVDs as well, they're region 0 usually so they'll work on my Xbox DVD player, got a couple of good films at the last one I went to back in March.

theres a place on the more (right hand side with fargate behind you) that does cheap, brand name photo paper - its an office stationery shop I think

name anyone?

Originally posted by Phanerothyme
theres a place on the more (right hand side with fargate behind you) that does cheap, brand name photo paper - its an office stationery shop I think

name anyone?

Think you mean'Stationery Box'.You could also try Disc Direct down at the bottom of the moor,just on the corner before Staples(opposite side of the road to that Decathlon Store).They do a range of different printing papers.Hope thats of some help.

stationary box by the sounds of it.

Stationery Box Ltd
86 The Moor
Sheffield, South Yorkshire S1 4PB

I was disappointed by the fair too. It was nothing like how i expected. I expected some real bargains but there was nothing that couldnt have been cheaper to buy on ebuyer (even though their p&p is high,)


I was worried when i got there at 3.10 and it shut at 3 but i kept walking round and round the small room and could have been in and out in 5 mins were it not for the fact i wanted my entry fees worth!

Mod: Posts related to disabled discounts and discrimination have been moved to a new thread here (http://www.sheffieldforum.co.uk/showthread.php?s=&threadid=12071).

Originally posted by Rich

Might have a look for some more of those American *ahem* backup *ahem* DVDs as well, they're region 0 usually so they'll work on my Xbox DVD player, got a couple of good films at the last one I went to back in March. [/B]

They were very busy with an acceptable copy of Harry Potter , and Van Helsing showing prominent.

What you got to lose for 4 quid.

Originally posted by Internetowl
They were very busy with an acceptable copy of Harry Potter , and Van Helsing showing prominent.

What you got to lose for 4 quid.

You mean the new Harry Potter?

Might have a look then tomorrow.. Might treat meself to a copy of Van Helsing as well if they've any left :)

Note to the Mods: Apologies if the discussion of *ahem* backup movies *ahem* is against the rules.

New HP, Van Helsing, Troy and a whole host of others including Shrek 2.

The HP is spot one - well my backup is *ahem* I've watched the film at the cinema and this copy is pretty much spot on...

Originally posted by Internetowl
New HP, Van Helsing, Troy and a whole host of others including Shrek 2.

The HP is spot one - well my backup is *ahem* I've watched the film at the cinema and this copy is pretty much spot on...

Excellent stuff...

**ahem* backup films are the way forward... Erm not, evil pircacy, evil :D :D :D

I see it as providing cinema entertainment to people who wouldn't otherwise go to the cinema...ie the disabled, people with lots of kids, chavs, etc etc

I bought the HP DVD, would've bought Van Helsing and Shrek 2 as they had an offer of 3 for a tenner but I only had enough money on me to get one..

Oh well, maybe I'll save up and get them at next month's fair :)

See the question in the subject bar.

Just wondered as there's usually one the first Sunday of each month, I'm after going this time if I can cos I need some cheap ink cartridges for me printer, and some blank DVD+RW discs.

and Saturday too...

Originally posted by Rich
See the question in the subject bar.

Just wondered as there's usually one the first Sunday of each month, I'm after going this time if I can cos I need some cheap ink cartridges for me printer, and some blank DVD+RW discs.

have you tried disc direct at the bottom of the moor,next to staples...100 discs £18 epson ink £4..not bad at all

Originally posted by kirky
have you tried disc direct at the bottom of the moor,next to staples...100 discs £18 epson ink £4..not bad at all

Hmm, ta for the tip :thumbsup:

Might pop down there at some point when t'buses are back (it's a bit awkward getting down that end of Town you see with no buses).

Originally posted by kirky
have you tried disc direct at the bottom of the moor,next to staples...100 discs £18 epson ink £4..not bad at all


ooooo thought it was only the fair that did them prices......

Originally posted by Rich
Hmm, ta for the tip :thumbsup:

Might pop down there at some point when t'buses are back (it's a bit awkward getting down that end of Town you see with no buses).

didn't realise they were still on strike.....:D

Originally posted by kirky
have you tried disc direct at the bottom of the moor,next to staples...100 discs £18 epson ink £4..not bad at all

They can't be much cop if 100 DVDs are £18.

I would think that they'd be cd's not dvds at that price?

HMMM...
IM AFTER A DVD-WRITER

ANY1 KNO WHERE I CAN GET HOLD OF A REASONABLE ONE AT A DECENT PRICE OTHA THAN A COMPUTA FAIR ?

I'd recommend Datawrite Yellow top dvd-r as I have never had a problem with them yet if anyones interested!

And also you could probably pick up a Pioneer A06/A07 for cheap on the tinternet - possibly eBay

I've heard rumours of the 8x speed Pioneer writer going for nearly £50 -- which is the next item on my shopping list if its true!

Originally posted by ANGELUS
And also you could probably pick up a Pioneer A06/A07 for cheap on the tinternet - possibly eBay

52.49 + VAT on scan.co.uk :

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=109778

Originally posted by Untouchable
HMMM...
IM AFTER A DVD-WRITER


Pioneer 8x DVD DUAL R/RW IDE Burner - OEM £47.86 inc VAT
http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/products/index.html?action=c2hvd19wcm9kdWN0X292ZXJ2aWV3&product_uid=58754

Pioneer DVR-107 8x DVD±R/±RW Dual Rewriter - OEM £56.98 inc VAT
http://www.tekheads.co.uk/s/category?manufacturer=25&orderBy=0&category=14&inStockOnly=false&minPrice=0.0&maxPrice=0.0&name=&minRating=0&page=0&modelNumber=


You can buy over the counter at Tekheads, - they're on the little industrial estate off Newhall Road.

DON'T buy a writer from Ebay unless it is definetly brand new. The lasers only have a limited life and if it's been used for hundreds of disc burns, you'll soon start to get disc failures.

I can strongly recommend the Pioneer 107. Got mine from Microdirect for £52.

I use Infiniti DVDs, also from same place.

Bitt off the topic here... but anyone know a decent place to buy large (160-250gb) hard drives in Sheffield? Would the computer fair be a good starting point? Also are disc direct and tekheads open on Sunday?

Thanks in advance.

I personally wouldn't trust the fairs. I'd rather get something from a proper physical shop that has existed for a long time and isn't going to suddently disappear leaving me with a faulty part.

You have to also remember that some traders come from out of Sheffield and if something goes wrong, you may have to pay a fair bit in posting it back to them.

I buy a fair bit of computer stuff and am very thankful for the fact I live within 20 minutes drive to Scan and Microdirect!

I went down this morning, bought a couple of printer cartridges, some glossy photo paper and Dad bought a 3 handset digital phone system.

what were the prices like ??

give us a few examples

dont forget all you computer buffs its the don -valley comuter fair at don valley-stadium £2.50 to get in its on sat-sun 5th&6thopen from 10am to 4ish steve...:clap:

hey guys a quick reply is needed here, do u kno if the donvalley computer fair is today and what time it finishes? i think i heard something on the radio but not sure..

as some of u already know im in desperate need of a new keyboard..

Acccording to the Don Valley website the next one isn't until the 7th and 8th of of May

http://www.sivltd.com/donvalley/Events.asp

it was advertised in thursday's star - it is this weekend...

oh thanks guys, i better set off then :clap:

hehe made it :clap: nice new keyboard but i think i was ripped off just looking on froogle :rant: ah well got me out of the house for a bit

I'm thinking of going down to the computer fair tomorrow (7-5-05).

Can you buy full systems down there? Are the prices of stuff any good, or is it just like PC World? (i.e. rip off!)

sounds goot to me

Originally posted by gremlin_mick
Can you buy full systems down there? Are the prices of stuff any good, or is it just like PC World? (i.e. rip off!)

Early last year (Feb 2004), I got a full system with:

ePox EP-8RDA+ nForce2 Ultra 400 motherboard
AMD Athlon XP 2200+
256MB DDR2700 RAM
80GB Maxtor 7200RPM hard disk
52x48x52 CD/RW + 52x CD-ROM
GeForce4 MX440 64MB graphics card
Nice black and silver case with a side window, three fans and blue lights

for £279 (no monitor). For the time, that was incredibly cheap. I'm not bothered about the side window and lights but seeing as they were included at no extra cost, I thought I may as well. I never see them anyway ;)

So, yes, you can get complete systems and they are good and cheap.

I have never understood all this side window malarkey,what's to see in a computer?Unless it catches fire of course,or you put a hamster or some goldfish inside. :rolleyes:

One thing that really annoys me is the £3 entrance charge. If I'm just going for CDRs for instance it cancels out any savings to be made by going there in the first place.

Originally posted by SnailyBoy
One thing that really annoys me is the £3 entrance charge. If I'm just going for CDRs for instance it cancels out any savings to be made by going there in the first place.

Yes, if you're just going for one thing or to look around it can be really annoying. I usually only go if I'm after something in particular and I stand to save substantially more that the entrance fee. I usually come away happy :)

As for the side window, mine are especially useless; I haven't had the sides on my case for about 8 months!

:blush: I have a side window with lot'sa flashy lights and fans... in my defence the case came with the window, the fans are needed to stop my cpu from melting n the light up 1s cost about the same, and the lights and neon cables. umm, urr, look cool :D :thumbsup:

the computer fair is 50-50. you can get really good bargains, or you can be ripper off (as i did with this bloody keyboard I miss my old 1 :( ) - I enjoy walkin around it tho, they some times have interesting stuff like a gaming tent thingy'ma bob I once saw that looked fun.

'eard adverts for the Computer Fayre on Hallam FM...

Cheers for the replys.

However, I clean forgot the thing was on this weekend :blush:

I might give it a go next month though...

Originally posted by SnailyBoy
One thing that really annoys me is the £3 entrance charge. If I'm just going for CDRs for instance it cancels out any savings to be made by going there in the first place. Get your blank disks at SVP (http://www.svp.co.uk) they are normally cheaper than anywhere else, including computer fairs.

This fair was littered with rip offs until recently. There were pirated films, software, games, the lot for about £5 on each stand and then they got busted by trading standards :D

does anybody no about this and how often they are?

Mod: Six threads merged. Please search before starting a new topic

Are these fairs any good?

I'm after some of these...

http://www.wednesdayite.bb2.org/index.php?act=SF&s=&f=5


been told that I can get some from here for about £50.

One this weekend apparently!

ya can find some cheap discs on the net man try http://www.svp.co.uk an for ink, try http://inkemporium.co.uk

Originally posted by lalaland
This fair was littered with rip offs until recently. There were pirated films, software, games, the lot for about £5 on each stand and then they got busted by trading standards :D

Are the dodgy ones back again now then at the fair?
I had a load of quality buys from them over the years!

nope , well not the last time I went to one - its car boots now :( much less civilised....

6th and 7th january,2007 :)

6th and 7th january,2007 :)
I don't think I'll bother going this time.

It's only any good if you want pirated software, music or films and I refuse to buy that sort of stuff. The rest of the products on sale aren't normally any cheaper than the online retailers and in some cases are more expensive. The quality of some merchandise is also questionable with cheap chinese copies of popular products.

its on the 7 feb at don valley stadium

its on the 7 feb at don valley stadium

way to answer a topic thread from 27-12-2006 :huh:

way to answer a topic thread from 27-12-2006 :huh:

thats what we want, people answering and updating old threads about the same topic, instead of posting a new thread about the same thing...

well done :D

so ... as of saturday 08th May 2010 whens the next fair at don valley .... their web site isnt really very informative... or im blind.

Sunday 6th June, its on the website...
http://www.rrcf.co.uk/?gclid=CJ2Iit2nwqECFQhBlAodFW5I-A

click on show guide, then Don Valley Stadium.

It opens on the first sunday of the month.
Is on this Sunday
m

aladins cave sells same stuff 7 days a week for similar prices i got 100 dvds for a £10 and they also sell ciss for printers for about £30 which allow you to print 100,000's of a4 prints and refills are £2 per bottle are £10 for set....plus the quality is spot on theres no difference between original hp cartridges and the ciss pluss it also reset the expiry date so you can use the inks till there all gone