A Journey Back to November 2000
A video purported to be authentic, original 360p footage captured inside a CompUSA retail store in New York City has been shared on YouTube, allowing retro computing fans to step back in time to November 2000. This was the Windows Me, Pentium III, and Athlon era, dominated by computers constructed using a lot of translucent plastics and beige boxes already a distant memory. However, computer stores like this bulged with displays and fast-selling stock before internet shopping would start to eat many of these businesses away.
The video reveals a nostalgic CompUSA, greeted by a wall of CRT monitors. The store looks crowded and almost chaotic with peripherals, PCs, and devices, with boxes filling a lot of space in the aisles.
Classic Hardware and Subnotebooks
The first item is a noteworthy trio of laptops. It looks like three stylish Sony VAIO machines in a line. In the center of this display is probably the most interesting device from the time, identified as a Sony VAIO C1 Series PictureBook PCG-C1VN subnotebook. Searches indicate this device was powered by the Transmeta Crusoe TM5600 processor running at 600 MHz, supported by 128MB of SDRAM, and a 12GB HDD. The tiny form factor, weighing in at around 2.2 pounds, was built around an 8.9-inch TFT display of 1024 x 480 pixels and an ATI Rage Mobility GPU with 8MB dedicated VRAM.
Above this trio of laptops, a spec card for one of the larger portable systems indicates an Intel Pentium III 700 MHz CPU, S3 graphics, 128MB of RAM, and a 20GB HDD.
Desktops of the Turn of the Millennium
Next up, the video shows shoppers browsing desktop machines including Compaq Presario PCs with characteristic translucent accent faceplates inspired by the iMac. These systems featured Celeron or Pentium III processors, or AMD Athlon and Duron chips from that era, paired with Nvidia RIVA TNT2 or GeForce2 MX graphics cards.
Later on, the video shows a significant amount of store space stacked with boxes for approximately 100 Compaq Presario desktops. On one box, the model number 5WV294 corresponds to an AMD Athlon 1.0 GHz system with 128MB RAM, a 30 to 40GB HDD, an optical drive, and Nvidia GeForce2 MX or S3 Savage4 graphics.
Apple Hardware and Peripherals
The footage also highlights Apple Mac desktops powered up next to matching monitors. A spec card shows that one of the Apple displays is the Power Macintosh G4 Dual 500, featuring twin 500 MHz G4 processors, 256MB memory, a 40GB HDD, a DVD RAM drive, and a 16MB video card, priced at $3,500. An in-store wall displaying roughly 50 boxed iMac computers is also visible.
A 21-inch ViewSonic A110 monitor displaying a demo reel is featured alongside high-end Apple hardware with a price tag of $750. Various HP printers, mice, mouse mats, and a Windows Me promotional in-store display also appear throughout the tour.
The Retail Legacy
The video concludes with a scene at the checkout, where customers purchase sundries and peripherals, with one individual inquiring about a mail-in rebate for an HP printer.
CompUSA ultimately collapsed due to increased competition from big-box stores, the ascent of online retailers, and various corporate missteps. The store brand suffered mass closures and liquidation in 2007 and 2008, before the retail identity was finally retired in 2012.
