So first, buy a $1000 TV, and second, cave in to your child's every whining want and spring more than twice as much for a rental than if you just waited a month. Good luck with that, Sony. This one's destined to be a windfall.

I could understand it if this were The Dark Knight or something, but Cloudy didn't do anywhere near that kind of business. Of course, the studio's biggest hit in the US this year has been Paul Blart, so there's not a hell of a lot of choice for this kind of bold and rather silly promotion.

Now Sony just waits for customers to decide to pay more to rent a movie than it costs to buy a DVD or buy two tickets at a movie theater, sits back and watches the profits roll in.

Sony's 'Cloudy' with a Chance of Corporate Stupidity [Get The Big Picture]

He writes:

While channel surfing this evening I happened to skim by the QVC channel (around 6:50pm CST Sunday night) and noticed they were selling Wiis for the holiday season. The only thing that struck me as weird was the insane price they were selling this item.

Looking at the prices (on tv):

$349.00 + $13.97 S&H = $362.97

for the following items:

Nintendo Wii console retail (with Wii Sports)
Go Play Circus Star Games
Handgun Accessory
Golf Accessory
Tennis Accessory
Baseball Accessory
Steering Wheel

but seeing what these items are retail:

Nintendo Wii console: $199.00 MSRP
Go Play Circus Star Games: $14.99 (new at GameStop)
Wii sports pack (has all accessoies sans handgun accessory): $19.99 (new at GameStop)
Handgun Accessory: $5.99 (new at Sears)

All of these is $239.97 plus tax.

I wonder where they are getting this $140+ amount from. :|

Is QVC trying to cash in for the Christmas rush? All through out the show they were saying that the wii was going to be "rare". They were also saying that the Wii had true HD output which is totally untrue (unless 480p is considered HD). It just seemed unreal to me. Oh, and they sold about 2800+ of these.

To confirm what Joe/Mordecai suspects, the Wii is not in HD and Nintendo has repeatedly said the slumping-sales system will not be hard to come by this holiday season.

In the time since he sent the email, QVC got crrrrrazy and slashed the price to a low, low $318.20 before tax, shipping and handling. Only an $80 markup?! They're practically giving it away!

Our favorite part of this, of course, is that the $5.99 markup is the sale price that Target concocted in its ongoing quest to offer low prices. Just think, when this sale's over next week, "FREE" is going to be a lot more expensive.

Thanks, Michael!

Here's a bigger picture demonstrating how many times someone was forced to announce this worthless sale. We should be surprised that the employee didn't notice the error, but we're not.

Zach says:

I was shopping at my local (Chicago, IL) Jewel-Osco this past Friday when I came upon this gem. Not being a very discerning wine drinker I was looking for something inexpensive and already chilled to bring home to my girlfriend. Imagine my surprise when I saw what "Big Relief" Jewel-Osco had in store for me! Needless to say I passed over this deeply discounted bottle of wine and settled for something more in my price range.

I'd say this price tag pretty much sums up the Jewel-Osco shopping experience as I remember it. You know, there are a lot of things I miss about home now that I live in Brooklyn, but you'll be shocked to discover that "coming with to the Jewels" isn't one of them.

Do not fall for this.

It is a trap.

http://dealnews.com/Airlink101-Digital-to-Analog-Converter-Box-for-0-free-shipping/292372.html

I recently came across this ad for a digital converter box which uses language to suggest that it has HDMI capabilities. They suggest this by saying that they will ship a free hdmi cable with purchase of the unit.

What makes this a concern is that there are many people out there that are looking for digital converter boxes with more capabilities than RF out. There are many LCD televisions out there that do not have an ATSC tuner thus they would need another way to receive digital broadcasts via sources like DVI or component.

What Meritline is doing is cashing in on this unending quest by a small group of people by including the words HDMI with search terms for the converter box. Upon inspection of the box, it has no HDMI output capabilities.

The deal circuit has picked up the item and results are at the top of google searches.

We don't know if Meritline is doing this intentionally or not, but be sure to read the specs of any converter box closely before buying one.

(Thanks to Michelle!)

Capcom Unity Card - Part II: Things are Looking Up ^_^ [Cheap Ass Gamer] (Thanks to Josh!) (Photo: friskytuna)
PREVIOUSLY: Visa And Capcom Announce Street Fighter Hyper Fee Edition Card

From the card's fee page:

• $9.95 activation fee
• $4.95 monthly fee
• $0.25 per debit use
• $1.50 per ATM withdrawal (not including whatever fee the ATM charges)
• $10 to close the card (and you can't just stop using it, because besides the $4.95 monthly fee, there's a $5 dormancy fee

Know the rules of the game before taking Capcom card [Defend Your Dollars]

Here's what AJ found yesterday:

Forsyth, GA has very few places to eat. When I don't bring my lunch, I end up having to eat at the same places over and over again, and many of them are fast food. So, typically, I tried to find something that I can at least pretend is a bit healthier, like grilled chicken wraps.

Yesterday, I went by Dairy Queen and ordered two grilled chicken wraps. The chicken wraps are $1.39. However, they also happen to be on Dairy Queen's "Sweet Deal" menu, a promotion which I was unaware of. (I hadn't really looked at the promotional poster. I knew exactly what I wanted.)

With the Sweet Deal, you get any two items for $3.00. So, of course, Dairy Queen charged me $3.00 for two $1.39 chicken wraps. I didn't even notice until they handed me the receipt and I had driven off.

(Photo: KellyK)

(Thanks, Brent!)

Reader Chris saw the following offer at a Walmart in Athens, GA. Not very persuasive, is it?

Justin says:

I really think Target hates people with poor math skills. The consumerist has shown us how terrible Target's "Price Cut" and 2-for-1 deals can be, but now it appears that Target has a holistic approach on retail suckiness with regularly-priced items.

My wife and I spotted these gems yesterday at the Target in Sugar Land, Texas (see attached, apologies for iPhone photo quality). While it may appear from the price tags that these are different brands of cotton swabs, they are indeed the same brand (Target's generic brand).

500 Cotton Swabs for $1.94 (0.388¢ per swab), or, if you buy in bulk, 750 Cotton Swabs for $3.69 (0.492¢ per swab). Wow, that's a savings of -27%!

Target is edging closer to Wal-Martitude in my book of awful.

Not all states have unit pricing laws, so if yours doesn't, you might want to bring a calculator with you when you shop. It might seem weird, but if it saves you money — who cares?

I know you guys have been getting plenty of shots of the “liquidation sale” items and well I got one for you. A 14” HP laptop with a Celeron M processor, 512mb RAM, 80 GB hard drive, 802.11b/g wireless, and a DVD burner for a bargain price of $705.99…down from $829.99!!!!

We Googled the model number and were unable to find this little beauty for sale anywhere else — though we did see a broken one on eBay and a few users reviews from 2006.

What a find.

Consumer Reports says:

For example, at the liquidation, a 50-inch Panasonic plasma TV was discounted to $1,800, a $200 savings. That might sound like a bargain, but if you check the circular you’ll see that Circuit City had planned to cut the price this week by $500. What’s more, we found the same model online for $1,365, including free shipping.

An HP all-in-one printer, at the liquidation for $270, was scheduled to be on sale for $150. And we found it as low as $135 online. A Garmin GPS system, discounted to $225, was $160 in the circular and $141 online.

Despite the modest discounts, the checkout counter was mobbed. We repeatedly overheard salespeople telling customers that they had run out of merchandise. Shoppers were undeterred by signs proclaiming that all sales are final; that the store no longer was accepting the Circuit City credit cards, personal checks, or coupons; and that it wouldn’t match competitors’ prices.

They did find a few deals on items that are rarely on sale, such as the Nintendo Wii Guitar Hero World Tour bundle — but ultimately decided that the sale just wasn't worth it.

Meanwhile, Flickr pool member lanenem provided us with these photos of the liquidation mob. Sad.

Good deals hard to find at Circuit City’s liquidation sale [Consumer Reports]
(Photo:lanenem)

Buying two single bottles of Old Spice body wash at $3.54 each would cost $7.08. Buying the bulk two-pack of Old Spice body wash at $8.59 would cost $1.51 more. As Kevin puts it, "The bottles have the same amount in them, the only difference is the fancy shrink wrapping of lies."

This is not the first time on the Terrible Twofers list for Target or Old Spice: we've pointed out negative savings on orange juice at Target, negative savings on Old Spice at Walmart. The Venn diagram is completed.

Like our similar story about Kohl's, we're struck by the half-assed sloppiness of the whole thing. We see only two explanations: the original $59.50 tag was a mistake, and the real price should have been $69.50, or it's a careless attempt to ripoff customers. We tried to guess what pants these were by looking around on gap.com, and we found no dark pants that were originally $69.50.

Michael says:

My fiancé stopped by the going out of business Circuit City in Parker, CO yesterday. We’ve been considering purchasing a Sony BDP-S350 Blu-Ray player and just the day before had seen it for $299 at a local Best Buy, and Amazon.com has it for $249. Thinking there was a chance to find a good deal, she stopped in and found one in this Circuit City with a 50% off sign. When she asked a salesperson the price they quoted her $309! She asked if that was the sale price and was told yes. The salesperson continued to tell her what a great deal this was. She asked “So, the list price of this device is more than $600?” Yes, the salesperson insisted and that this was an amazing discount. “Stop bullshitting me,” she finally replied and walked out.

Circuit City's own website says the list price of that DVD player is $299 — but that doesn't really matter, because the Circuit City your fiance was visiting isn't being run by Circuit City anymore. The inventory is being liquidated by a company that paid a lump sum for the whole thing — and is trying to maximize its profits by squeezing out every penny. Often, this means raising prices before applying discounts.

Most so-called "liquidation discounts" aren't that great. Before you go, make sure you've done your homework like Michael's fiance did.

(Photo: analogkid281 )

I went to a local Sears to return some parts (don't get me started) and the attached [photo] amused me.

They're just so enthusiastic about it. Sale! No, Really! Don't look too closely! Keep moving along! Nothing to see here!

Don't fall in!

If only their heart was in the right place, they would combine the sale price with the Buy More, Save More deal, and we'd have our Father's Day gifts for the next decade.

(Thanks to Dominic!)

Reader Roberto says:

This past August 6th, I was in one of my local Target stores (Craycroft and Broadway) in Tucson, Arizona. I snapped a picture of a “buy two and save” item that I thought you guys might like. The difference is only a five cents, but it’s still more expensive to buy the twin pack of deodorants instead of two.

From now on "buy 2 and save" really means, "pull out your calculator."

Reader Austyn, who found the deal at the Layton supercenter in Utah, adds:

Great to know if I go to Walmart I can "Buy 2 and Save!" a grand total of -32 cents.

This isn't the first time we've seen stores futz with unit pricing to screw careless consumers. If you see "Buy 2 And Save," slow down and look for the unit price.

PREVIOUSLY: Target's Degree Deodorant Pricing Scheme Rewards Those Who Pay Attention
Target: Buy 2 And Save! Sort of!

While shopping at Safeway today I noticed something odd about the "O" Organics Milk. After I listened to a mom tell her daughter she buys "whatever is on sale" I went to purchase my own milk and realized that's not such a good plan. A half gallon was on sale for 2 for $7. Or if your a savvy shopper you could buy a gallon for $6.59. The Safeway website confirms it.

In other news, damn, organic milk costs $6.59 a gallon now? No wonder everyone has been so grouchy lately.

Can you explain to me Target's bulk pricing on their Degree deodorant? As you can see in the attached picture - I could buy one deodorant for $1.82, or a two-pack for $3.89 from my local Target here in Chicago! Am I paying for the plastic they use to keep them together? Neither one is on sale, this is their regular pricing.

This is either Target trying to take advantage of people not paying a lot of attention and fairly assuming that two together will be cheaper than buying two individually, or just bad pricing!

People write us all the time about Target doing this with all sorts of products. We're pretty sure they're banking on you not paying attention.

I was in the grocery section of my local Super Target today and noticed the pricing for Heinz Ketchup. They had a 2 for $4 "deal" for the 32oz bottles (64 ozs total) which I almost just threw right into my cart until I saw the 64oz bottle for $3.39. The exact same quantity of ketchup, but one is $0.61 cheaper. Had I not been an avid reader of this site, I might have been suckered into the 2 for $4 deal without even looking at the prices. Thanks Consumerist! Every penny counts these days, and you just save me 61 of them!

If you spot any deals that aren't really deals, snap a picture and send them to us at tips@consumerist.com.

Five-piece set includes headboard, footboard, wood rails/slats, dresser and mirror.

That's right, the bed is actually three pieces. That nightstand and other dresser must have wandered onto the set accidentally.

Scott, who tipped us to this, writes, "So to Value City, a bed = 3 pieces? Sheesh! Why not consider each side rail a piece and call it a 6 piece set!?!" Great idea! We think we've discovered a whole new way to increase profits without raising prices: segmentation. Why, that dresser can be listed as a 7 piece storage system by itself, a pizza with twelve pepperoni slices on it is suddenly a 12-topping pizza, and KFC's 2-piece chicken meal immediately doubles to a 4-piecer if you count the bones as individual units.

The important thing to remember is to use misleading photographs, though, or else your customers might not take the bait.

"Classic Cherry Queen 5-PC Bedroom Package" [Value City Furniture] (Thanks to Scott!)

Here's the story:

Today I was interviewing one of my clients and she said that one of the loans she that she had should have been illegal. I asked her what she meant and she said that the loan she received should never have been permissible. Turns out she had a car loan with Volkswagen with an interest rate of about 3% and a loan balance of approximately $23,000.00 Because she had her home mortgage with Wells Fargo (or at least that is what she thinks is the reason) she received an offer from Wells Fargo for an equity loan on her car! (i.e. just like a home equity loan except the collateral is a car instead of a house) I had never heard of such a thing before. In any event, she agreed to do the deal with Wells Fargo (she needed to money to pay her bills and was much too embarrassed to go to family and friends) so she agreed to the refi and at closing she received $4850 in cash, Wells Fargo received $1300 in fees and the total amount of the debt went from $23,649 (the amount owed VW on the original car financing) to, hold on to your seats, $48,852! The interest rate on the new loan was a mere 16.24% (remember the old rate with VW was approximately 3%). Of course she defaulted and Wells Fargo repossessed the car and is now seeking its deficiency balance. Amazing to see an equity loan on a rapidly depreciating asset but when she received the loan Wells Fargo told her that she had paid down her car loan so quickly she had accumulated equity and they had a way to get the equity now.

The Wells Fargo loan was made in 2006 – the cost of the new financing was $17,900 – almost as much as the balance (i.e. $23,649) then due on the original note with VW. Also, the term of the new loan with Wells Fargo – 72 months, on a 2005 VW Passat!

Just say "no" to that loan!

Why Is This Legal? [Credit Slips]
(Photo: spidra webster )

I saw this today at the Toy"R"Us store in Elizabeth, New Jersey and though you folks would be interested. This Lego kit (the Exo Force Sentai Fortress Battle Set) has a sign that indicates its original price was $19.99 and that it is on sale for $69.98. The sign helpfully indicates that this is a savings of negative $49.