Comcast, Circuit City try retail experiment

MEDFORD -- Comcast and Circuit City Stores Inc. will officially throw open the doors to a retail experiment tomorrow, a consumer electronics boutique called Connect where customers can buy gadgets and schedule installation of cable TV and other services in a single shopping trip.

The Medford store will be the first of its kind -- an intimate shop that is more electronics spa than big-box gadget supermarket. Customers can relax on stools, sip coffee, watch local cable channels on massive television screens, and work with consultants who help outfit their digital home with both hardware and content.

Cori DiDonato , who recently moved to the Station Landing development from San Ramon, Ca lif ., came into the store, which has been open for a week before its official launch, to sign up for cable service yesterday, but left with plans to return for her first new television set in years.

"That's really why I didn't want to buy a new TV -- I don't want to hook it up," DiDonato said. "This is a great idea. It's like rent-a-boyfriend."

The reasoning behind the partnership is simple: As consumers navigate an increasingly complex jungle of technological choices, they may need some help taking full advantage of their new devices.

"This is a store that demystifies technology and services," said Joe Caparella , director of US Operations at small stores for Circuit City Stores. "This store is all about education first, and we believe with education we'll tie into future buyers."

Store staff members help consumers untangle the difference between plasma vs. LCD screens and high-definition vs. digital cable. They will also take time to demonstrate Comcast's features, showing customers how to navigate the thousands of programs offered by Comcast On Demand, or demonstrating a Comcast digital video recorder that allows them to pause and save live television shows.

Circuit City and Comcast plan to use the store as a test , trying out new ideas and gauging its success before making a decision about whether to open similar stores in other cities. "This is ground zero for assessing how the market is, and what works," said Kevin Casey , president of Comcast's northern division.

Satellite television providers have long offered installation services through retailers, and some big-box stores already offer "stores within stores," like Best Buy's Magnolia home theater stores.

But Jim Penhune , an analyst at Strategy Analytics in Newton, said that it is an unusual strategy for a cable company and electronics retailer to create a stand-alone store.

"Back in the day, the model was very very simple -- the products were bulletproof, and whatever service you need to tie into was ubiquitous," said Penhune. "Fundamentally, you took the set home, plugged it in, put up the antennae, and you got your channels."

Penhune said that Connect makes sense because products like high-definition TV require consumers to buy both the set and the signal in order to take full advantage of the product.

Kent Gonzales of Carlisle, for example, visited Connect yesterday with plans to upgrade from a decade-old television and dial-up Internet access.

The sales staff was able to warn him that since he was planning to install his new television in a sunroom with skylights, he should buy an LCD display instead of a plasma set to avoid glare. He scheduled installation of wireless Internet, a high-definition television, high-definition cable, and high-speed Internet in his hour long visit.

The companies decided to deploy the first Connect store in the new mixed-use Station Landing development in Medford because Boston has been a strong market for both Circuit City and Comcast, Caparella said.

"Boston is one of the top-10 markets in the country" in terms of embracing new digital media and broadband penetration, Casey said. "This is really one of the key markets where early adoption of new technology happens."

Boston was among the first markets where Comcast made its digital telephone service available in early 2005, and late last month Boston became one of two markets nationwide to have access to Comcast's new wireless phone service, Mobile Access.

The prices for the electronics are the same as at regular Circuit City stores, and the Comcast prices are the same as offered by Comcast directly. Home installation of equipment and services starts at $169.

Carolyn Y. Johnson can be reached at cjohnson@globe.com.