Top Guns Fly To The AV Shop For Gear

Even if your cockpit experience is limited to marathon sessions of piloting your computer through Microsoft’s Flight Simulator, there is plenty to like at The AV Shop. Frequent travelers, especially air travelers, will find the site especially helpful.

The selection is diverse, ranging from books to sunglasses to stuff that apparently real pilots use in real planes. Prices range from less than $20 to hundreds of dollars.

I visited The AV Shop looking for the Bose noise-canceling headphones that sprout across people’s heads on every flightt. I chose a pair of Jensens the site was touting instead and paid a fraction of the price. The headphones’ quality was good, although they were not as durable for the rough schedule I put them through.

My order was automatically acknowledged on a Saturday via email. Customer Service phone numbers for a call center staffed weekdays were on the email — a nice touch. I received a shipping confirmation email Monday.

Amazon Prime has spoiled for almost any shipping cost, but nearly $8 for small package residential delivery seemed high, as if the merchant had completely unbundled the costs and passed shipping directly to the consumer. The pricing structure worked, but I think those specialty headphones could have taken an extra $3 or $4 each and a more standard shipping cost. Price is all perception, of course, but my perception was that this was a small merchant offering decent fulfillment and service in a niche area with slightly higher shipping.

The Bottom Line, Clicks and All

AV’s selection is very specialized, but don’t think you have to be Tom Cruise in Top Gun to find useful items at The AV Shop. Using a comparison shopping site led me to the site. Visiting is worth your time, and pricing perceptions aside, there is something here for most folks, even those who don’t fly the friendly skies.

Five Things To Remember From This Review

1. Easy to navigate site with good selection.

2. Shipping is unbundled and a little more than other stores.

3. The order acknowledgment includes customer service phone numbers – a great service touch!

4. Delivery was fast for an in-stock item.

5. Since my order, the site has been great about not spamming and being responsible mailers on their own sales.