Across the country, hidden away on clearance shelves and junk bins, there are piles of inexplicably outdated and overpriced electronics that should have no place on a store shelf. Our readers who scour the nation’s big-box stores in search of these retail antiquities are the Raiders of the Lost Walmart. In their latest field report, we see a modestly old PC, an iPod Touch and iPhone case that charges your device from 2011 or earlier from AA batteries, and the hottest media player Microsoft had to offer in 2009. [More]
Philips
Raiders Of The Lost Walmart Have Just The Thing For Your iPhone 3G
By 3.1.16
Hey, do you remember 2008 and 2009? There was a presidential election, and many people still thought the Blackberry was a fabulous smartphone. The second generation of the iPhone, 3G, debuted at the same time as Apple’s App Store. And sometime between then and 2010, this iPhone speaker hit the shelves of Walmart, where it has stayed ever since. [More]
This 9-Year-Old MP3 Player Is Ready For The Latest Tunes, Costs $300
By 7.10.15
If you weren’t all that familiar with technology, this “portable media center” that reader S. found in the clearance section at Walmart might seem like a reasonable enough purchase. What isn’t obvious until you look more closely is that the $300 price tag has been on the box since 2011. What isn’t obvious until you perform a quick Google search is that the PMC7230 has been on the market since 2006, which would explain why it’s still languishing on the shelf. [More]
We Want This Netflix Hack That Adjusts Color Of Room Lights To Match Screen
By 8.21.14
Engineers at Netflix have figured out a way to connect the streaming video service to new “smart” lightbulbs so that the lights in a room respond to color changes on screen, providing a much more immersive experience. Alas, we might never get to try this for ourselves. [More]
June Recall Roundup: Not Even Buff Baby Can Save Us Now
By 6.28.13 — Updated: 12.18.13
In this month’s recall roundup, we bring you a chicken dance that will hurt your ears, buff babies, toppling bath seats, and machetes so sharp that they slice through their own sheaths. [More]
Philips Takes Headphones Back For A Refund, Check Has Been ‘In The Mail’ Since August
By 1.23.13
Adam bought a set of really nice Philips headphones, but they wouldn’t play nice with his Nintendo DS. He ended up sending them back to Philips for a refund. While it was good that they offered him a refund in the first place, what they had trouble doing was actually getting that refund to him in a timely fashion. Or ever. [More]
Why I Won't Buy Any More Electronics From Woot …Or Philips
By 4.5.12
Consumers love Woot.com because they’re able to get neat and occasionally even useful items at good prices. The great deals are great for a reason, though. Items from Woot can be surplus, older models, or refurbished. (Sometimes all three.) This is disclosed at the time of purchase and part of the deal. But Erica was under the impression that when you pay $550 for a television set, it should obey its own power button and not stop working entirely after a little more than a year of service. She’s learned her lesson, and won’t be buying any more electronics from Philips. Or from Woot, for that matter. [More]
Philips Recalls 1.86 Million Potentially Plummeting Compact Fluorescent Flood Lamps
By 8.22.11
Philips and the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a few weeks ago the recall of about 1.86 million compact fluorescent floodlamps sold under the EnergySaver and Marathon brands between 2007 and 2010. The reflector around the lamp can come unglued, shattering on the ground or floor. This actually happened to a Consumerist reader, who sent in photos of the glass-shard carnage. [More]
Light Bulb's Promises Are True Only Where Nighttime Lasts Three Hours
By 2.4.10
Rick bought a light bulb at Home Depot that turned into more of a geography test. The question it poses: is there anywhere in the world that has an average of three hours of darkness year-round? The answer: no. Which means that the claims on the front of this light bulb package contradict each other. [More]
Secret Credit Card Backdoor Numbers To Get Your Credit Increased, APR Changed, Etc!
By 1.14.10
Want your credit line increased, APR lowered, or your declined credit card application approved? Begging and pleading with customer service not getting you anywhere except front row seats to your personal puddle of shame? Then give some of the “backdoor numbers” a shot. [More]
Inappropriate Mother's Day Gifts: Bikini Perfect Deluxe
By 5.1.09
No matter how close you are to your mother, a Mother’s Day gift that says, “Mom, I think your bikini line needs some help” will probably not be well received.
No More BPA Baby Bottles In US?
By 3.6.09
Philips Avent, the nation’s largest seller of baby bottles, announced today that it will voluntarily stop selling bottles containing the controversial chemical bisphenol A (BPA). Attorneys general from Connecticut and New Jersey had written a letter to several bottle makers asking them to stop, and the Washington Post says the six largest baby bottle manufacturers in the country have voluntarily complied.
Morning Deals Round-Up
By 12.9.05
• Woot‘s pushing their own wine again. As homebrewers, we have nothing but empathy for their project. As drunks, we find the price of $55 for three bottles buzz prohibitive.
