iyo Design is a well known OS/2 only store in the Annapolis, Maryland area that has taken its show on the road so to speak. Realizing that many of us aren't as fortunate as those in the Annapolis area, Kiyo opened the Kiyo Design Web Store -- essentially an extension of their walk-in retail store where users all over the world can browse some of their prices and order products.

The owner of Kiyo Design is a frequent poster to comp.os.os2 newsgroups and well known OS/2 advocate so it is no surprise that our readers were generally pleased with both Kiyo's Promptness and Reliability (4.53 out of 5) and Customer Service (4.48 out of 5). Prices at Kiyo are comparable to other direct retailers with our sample shopping list coming in at US$438.45 for an average price of US$73.08.

An interesting idea offered by Kiyo Design to alleviate high shipping costs often associated with single item mail order purchases (especially internationally!) is to break down the original packaging of some software before shipping. Apparently great shipping rates are available through the US postal service if packages can fit in certain sizes of envelopes and with creative repackaging this can save substantial amounts on software orders. In some cases the original boxes can be folded and sent along with the order. Of course this doesn't work for items like ColorWorks V2 with its monster manual, but it may save you some money on selected items.

Despite the fact that Kiyo is the only company in our survey without a toll free number for at least the US, we found that our readers who have used their services were quite happy. Understandably, many commented that they enjoyed the personal attention they felt they received dealing with a smaller operation. One customer wrote that he, "liked [Kiyo Design] because I felt sure that my order wasn't going to be misplaced or delayed."

Still, its relative size may be a disadvantage in other ways. Certainly Kiyo does not have the resources of IBM or Indelible Blue, so you probably won't see the same types of full page magazine ads for them as you will with those other companies. But if you're more concerned about and just getting your OS/2 applications on time than with glitz and toll free numbers, Kiyo might be a good solution for you.

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