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Last week I set out on a mission to purchase a Motorola XOOM tablet, in an effort to compare it to Apple's iPad 2. We Three Guys were going to put the XOOM through its paces and deliver test results. We were ready to do live side-by-side video app and browsing comparisons between the two devices. Unfortunately, after five days of line squatting and Apple Store stakeouts for an iPad 2, we are still without an iPad 2. In contrast, finding a XOOM took little to no effort, there are plenty in stock at any Verizon or Costco location.

That said, finding a Xoom and purchasing one is a completely different story. The strings attached to buying a Xoom makes doing your taxes seem like fun. We'll spare you the test results of just the XOOM (after all, there are plenty of benchmarks out there showing the iPad to be vastly superior), and simply let you know the pain you'll be in for if you decide to buy a Xoom.

1. LOCATIONS: Strickly speaking brick and mortar. Verizon and Costco are the two choices you have in acquiring a Xoom. That may seem great, but don't assume then going to your local Best Buy or Walmart, Sams's Club or Fry's Electronics is going to do the trick — it won't.

2. FROM WHOM ARE YOU PURCHASING?: When stepping into a local Coscto, I wandered over to their cell kiosk/booth, where to reps greeted me. The Xoom was front and center between a host of cell phones. Understand, this is not Costco's own cellular store, this is a company called Cellular Advocates, which operates within Costco. Thus, I was not purchasing from Costco, as much as I was from Cellular Advocates, or was I?

3. REQUIREMENTS: I explained I wanted a Xoom and at that point I needed to give them my credit card and my drivers's license. I explained I just wanted to purchase the Xoom outright for $789, and did not want a plan or to subsidize the product. That made no difference. Each Xoom sold must have an account registered with Verizon. I inquired about this a bit further as to what that meant, and it specifically means that each Xoom, whether I wanted to use 3G or not, requires a line activation with Verizon. Even though the device cannot make calls as a traditional cell phone would, it requires a phone line, and thus a quick credit approval. Really? Yes, really, even though I'm purchasing it in cash.

4. BACK AND FORTH: Before I could complete the process at Cellular Advocates booth, I was walked over to Costco's secure products area, where the physical product was stored, and then walked back to Cellular Advocates to finalize the purchase and activate the device. I left the store with Costco, Verizon and Cellular Advocate receipts and instructions in-hand. The entire purchasing process took around 20 minutes.

5. VERIZON'S STICKY FINGERS: If I thought I could simply get away with buying this device and using it as a Wi-Fi solution, I guessed wrong. I was given clear and strict instructions by Cellular Advocates as to which phone number to call at Verizon to disable my 3G account. At that point I would be off their month-to-month plan (yes, that's a default no matter how you purchase the products), and I would be charged nothing — zippo — as a result. But when on the phone with Verizon they said I would be charged at least $35 for the process, because I had activated a line, and all lines are charged a $35 activation fee. After working with the Verizon guy for 20 minutes I asked to speak to a manager. At that point he said I would not be charged anything... We'll see.

6. CONNECTIVITY ISSUES: As I stated earlier Three Guys are not doing a full-on review on this contraption, but here's a quick sniff of the thing (yes, "thing" means Xoom). It took nearly two hours to connect to the Wi-Fi network. There were two local networks at our test location, and the Xoom couldn't figure out which one to join, and was clearly having connectivity issues. We searched online and found a host of issues with the Xoom being unable to connect to Wi-Fi. "Try a Linksys router, those work better...." or "Expand the available IP addresses on the router, or force a manual IP address." These techniques were all tried, and nothing worked. The next morning I turned on the Xoom and presto, it connected to my Wi-Fi router, go figure (more like, "Whatever...").

7. THE RETURN: Returning the Xoom was a bit easier than actually purchasing the product. Taking it back to Costco and getting a receipt was a snap, and then finishing the process at Cellular Advocates was simple and pain free. To Cellular Advocates' credit, they gave me no grief in returning the product. When asking about whether they were selling any, their sales representative said their location was not selling any but two other locations sold some.

Bottom Line

If you want to buy one of these devices as a Wi-Fi-only product, then you must really hate Apple or iPads for some reason. If you wait for the Xoom Wi-Fi version to arrive, that's probably a better choice. (Note: the interface Google designed for tablets is a free-for-all convoluted mess). If you can find and iPad 2 instead, go for it. You just walk in, buy one and leave - Wi-Fi or 3G. Be happy.

6 Comments

1. Paul ~ March 24, 2011 17:10
   I guess a blog dedicated to "all things Apple" couldn't be less biased. But you really do your readers a disservice with such a hatchet job. You think this information adds value to your readers? Why not simply ignore the XOOM instead?
2. brock ~ March 24, 2011 18:33
   My sister had the same story. She returned it the other day. Now doesn't want anything to do with tablets. Yep. She hates Apple. @Paul. You're one funny dude.
3. TheMacAdvocate ~ March 24, 2011 19:59
   Costco returns are usually some of the most painless in retail. I can't imagine how many people must be thinking that after experiencing the pain of owning a Xoom first-hand.
4. Hahleq ~ March 27, 2011 15:44
   My purchase experience was simple after I found a store that still had any. Best Buy gave me no issue with Verizon network as I will only use this with wifi. I was not forced to activate the 3G or give them any info at all. I've since given my father-in-law my ipad as the Xoom is a superior experience IMHO.
5. Mark Reschke ~ March 28, 2011 21:35
   RE: Hahleq, Interesting, since the XOOM 3G was only available via Verizon and Costco - and I believe still is. When did you purchase your 3G XOOM from Best Buy? And which Best Buy? How did you purchase the 3G version without the Best Buy phone group signing you up with a phone number and Verizon? That must be done on every 3G XOOM. Up through last week Best Buy carried no XOOMs...
6. Eliot Ware ~ March 31, 2011 19:25
   Actually, I purchased my 3G XOOM on the day it was released from the Best Buy on Georgia Avenue in Silver Spring, MD. No Verizon paperwork of any type. The entire process took about 2 minutes from the time I asked for the tablet until I walked out of the door. Not sure where this Verizon and Costco thing came from.

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