I have just purchased a Sony Vaio computer from The Laptop Shop in Queens Road, Brighton.

Like most people, I had looked at dozens of brochures and handouts and checked the specifications of lots of machines before making my decision.

Strangely, most of the laptop computers on sale did not fit my requirements and very few machines actually offered the features I consider essential.

I needed a computer that would allow me to work both at home and on the move.

It had to be light enough to carry comfortably and have a big enough screen to display a PowerPoint presentation adequately.

I wanted it to be powerful enough to handle graphics and tough enough to withstand some hard usage. This should all be pretty standard stuff for a laptop.

Like many local people, I started my search at PC World in Hove.

Having looked at all the laptops on display and picked a few likely suspects, I really needed to ask a few questions before finally making up my mind.

The salesman was very pleasant but, by his own admission, knew diddly-squat about laptop computers, although he tried very hard to convince me one particular machine would be perfect for my uses and had all the features I specified.

I was assured by the salesman the machine in question came complete with a floppy disc drive (which happened to be essential for my purposes).

I insisted on seeing the machine running - I bought a laptop that didn't work once. But I was told I had to pay before the computer could be demonstrated to be working.

Ten minutes, a few grumbles and a £1,000-plus credit card transaction later, I had personally unpacked the machine in the showroom and assured myself it really did work.

Then I discovered a floppy drive was an optional extra PC World did not stock.

The salesman tried to switch the sale to a much more expensive machine that it transpired was out of stock but I was told that I could have the display model. Scratched, scuffed and well-thumbed, not what I wanted at all.

After some delay, the manager was called and he somewhat reluctantly agreed to give me a refund even though the goods had never been out of the store.

The whole abortive process took more than an hour and I was seething with frustration by the time I left the shop.

My point here is, although I knew what I was doing when I went out to buy a new computer and was able to recognise the inexperienced salesperson in PC World was merely shifting boxes and had little real knowledge of the products he was selling, I was forced into parting with cash before seeing the product.

I refused to be pressured into buying the more expensive and shop-soiled product even though the store manager offered me a piffling discount as an incentive and I went through an unpleasant experience trying to get my money refunded even though the fault lay firmly with the store and not with me.

The experience has left a long-lasting and rather bitter impression of PC World.

My feelings improved later in the day when I was able to buy the machine I wanted at an excellent price, slap bang in the middle of Brighton. No hassle and no worries.

Best of all, it was cheaper than the machine I had been looking at in Hove.