Your first impressions may be that this site looks as if it is just what the power tool buyer has always wanted. It describes itself specifically as a power tool online store.
Where can I find the website?
The home page of the website is found at www.angliatoolcentre.co.uk.
A Selection of the Best Selling Mitre Saws from The Anglia Tool Centre
How do I find the mitre saws section of the site?
It is not that intuitively set out and unless you use the search facility it can be a little confusing. The left hand vertical set of buttons prioritise apparently random branded things like ‘Makita Shears’ and work wear made by De Walt for example.
It would be easier to group tools by category so that site visitors can simply pick the line of tools they are interested in buying. After all, you don’t tend to browse a tools site with no idea of what you want. However with a bit of perseverance you will get there and be able to browse the items you want to see – namely the mitre saws.
It says volumes that the tool click ons only come underneath an invitation to take a ‘virtual tour’ of the company’s shop, which is fine if you enjoy looking at racks of tools you can’t make out.
To find the mitre saws you actually need to look down until you spot Mitre Saw, although you won’t find it alphabetically. This review ended up slogging its way there via the corded tools section!
The URL for this part of the site can be found on http://www.angliatoolcentre.co.uk/mitre-saw-cid43.html.
What types and brands of mitre saw do they offer?
There is actually a very good range. There are compound and dual bevel mitre saws, crosscut mitre saws, sliding compound mitre saws and table top mitre saws.
The range is weighted towards the top end products and seems to be aimed at the serious DIYer or trade professional.
In terms of brands there is also wide range inclining towards the top end, including Makita, De Walt, Bosch, Metabo and Festool.
Are there any buying guides or useful sections of information about mitre saws?
Yes, although as with many sites you need to click the product as there isn’t a meaningful paragraph to look at by the thumbnail picture. The product information is extensive and written very clearly. It sounds as if it comes from the relevant manufacturer but this is not necessarily a bad thing since the differences between the completeness and professionalism of the information provided tell their own story about the product being offered.
The site does not offer peer reviews of products, or any other information about the product line. Having said that Anglia Tool Center make it very clear they welcome enquiries via their local rate telephone number – “call us now for professional advice” – and to that extent you could say their buyer support was better than most. This line is open until 7pm, so is useful for those who are at work and cannot get to buy within working hours.
Anything else I should know about?
This company seems to offer all sorts of disconnected treats, such as a free iPod Nano with certain models. Also, when you go to a specific item or deal, there is a habit of the site sticking a banner above what you are interested in buying, containing other offers such as radios. Make sure you don’t put the wrong thing in your basket by mistake!
The special offers section is easy to browse, although it does not show the original price from which the item has been reduced. This is a pity as some of the deals are quite good but people using the site will only realize that if they know the ‘normal’ price of the relevant item.
There is a clearance power tools section, which should be checked out before buying just in case; however it is not clear exactly what differentiates the special offers from the clearance section.
In conclusion
Ultimately, this is a hardware shop and it’s a pity the site half-heartedly goes for a bigger image. Although the general impression of the Anglia Tool Company is that they care about customers and they are there waiting at the end of the phone to help, someone has dropped the ball conveying that on the site.
It’s impossible to find any logic to how the navigation is set out, and various pop-ups just get in the way of buyers buying what they want. No amount of free iPods or virtual tours round a shop make up for the failure to enable one to search by sensible categories!