We get a lot of complaints here at Consumerist HQ about Best Buy and its Geek Squad group. Prolonged repairs, bizarre diagnoses, pre-optimized laptops, and banning people who successfully sue them. But you wouldn’t know any of this from a new, in-depth piece by the folks at CNBC. [More]
Retail Services
EECB To Amazon's Jeff Bezos Results In A Very Happy Ending
By 1.19.12
The first step in resolving a customer service issue isn’t to email the CEO of a company, but if nothing else works, why not? Lia used Consumerist’s Executive Email Carpet Bomb listings to get in touch with Jeff Bezos of Amazon and lo and behold, success! [More]
Need Comically Oversized Boxes? Don't Worry, The Stupid Shipping Gang Is Here
By 1.19.12
It wastes resources, money, and shipping companies’ resources. It generates extra trash and annoys customers. What is it? Companies’ insistence on employing members of the Stupid Shipping Gang to send packages!
[More]
Survey: U.S. Consumers Are Feeling Pretty Darn Optimistic Right About Now
By 1.13.12
We’re all a bunch of optimistic Spendy McSpendersons lately, according to a new survey that says consumer sentiment is remaining high in the new year. As more jobs are being created, consumers have lifted their collective spirits for the fifth consecutive month. [More]
Car Auction Company Says It's Selling Off John F. Kennedy's Hearse
By 1.13.12
Many admirers of President John F. Kennedy have tried to walk in his footsteps, but now a car auction company says it has the hearse that drove his body from the hospital to the airport after his assassination. Which means you could ride in his deathmobile, if that’s your kind of macabre thing. [More]
Don't Bother Getting A Kindle Fire Unless You Have A Credit Card
By 1.13.12
Heather really likes her new Kindle Fire, once she got it working, but she’s sending it back. Why would she do that? Because the Fire isn’t a very fun device without Amazon Prime, and you need to have a credit card to sign up for Prime. She doesn’t have any credit cards, and she doesn’t want any. So back the Kindle goes. [More]
Why Don't We Have Color E-Ink Readers Here In The U.S.?
By 1.12.12
While there are a number of full-color devices like the Kindle Fire or the Nook that are sold as e-readers, there is a segment of the e-book reading world that views them as dumbed-down tablets with too-bright backlit screens that suck up battery power. Many of these people have been waiting for a color version of the E-Ink technology used in all the non-Fire Kindles and a few other readers to eventually become a reality. Well, now it is, but you won’t be seeing it stateside in the near future. [More]
Jenny Craig And Purina Team Up To Slim Down Your Pudgy Pet
By 1.12.12
Has your pooch just been longing to fit back into her skinny leash? Or perhaps your cat is well, too fat for your lap. Jenny Craig and Purina don’t want your furry friend to languish in chubbiness, which is why they’ve teamed up help you slim down your pet. [More]
It's So Hard To Say Goodbye: Dublin Dr Pepper Is Now Just A Collector's Item
By 1.12.12
‚ÄãIt’s a sad day for Dublin Dr Pepper aficionados, unless they happen to have a stockpile of the stuff ready for eBay. The fallout of a legal battle between Dr Pepper Snapple Group and the Dublin Dr Pepper Bottling Company, both based in Texas, means no more neat throwback bottles with Dublin on the label will ever be made again. [More]
Best Buy CEO: Feedback Is The Gift You Don't Always Care To Open
By 1.11.12
This afternoon at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Best Buy CEO Brian Dunn got the chance to talk about the state of his company and the recent spate of reports declaring the beginning of the end for the nation’s largest chain of electronics stores. [More]
Paying $800 For A Premier Gym Membership Means Nothing To Bally & L.A. Fitness
By 1.11.12
If only being given the runaround countless times could burn calories and build muscle, then maybe Iram wouldn’t be so mad at Bally Total Fitness and L.A. Fitness for keeping her out of the gym. She writes that she’s at her wit’s end with Bally since her location was taken over by L.A. Fitness. And as a Premier member who paid out big bucks, Iram is beyond frustrated. [More]
Best Buy Upgrade & Save Promo: Upgrade, Don't Really Save All That Much
By 1.11.12
It seemed like a pretty solid promotion: bring in one of your old DVDs to Best Buy. Trade it in at the customer service desk. Receive a coupon for any $5 off Blu-Ray with a price of $9.99 and up. Step 4: Savings! Except, according to the employees on the floor while Carl was shopping, the deal changed while he ran out to his car to grab another DVD. [More]
Coors Light Dethrones Budweiser In Beer Sales Battle For No. 2 Spot
By 1.10.12
After a brewing battle, Coors Light is celebrating as they’ve passed up Budweiser in 2011 for the No. 2 selling beer in the country. Bud is the only full-calorie beer in the top five, so to lose ground to a lighter offering is kind of a big deal. [More]
Would You Pay $20 At An Electronics Store For A Fitness Progam Offered By An Insurance Company?
By 1.10.12
Riddle me this: Where can you buy into an online fitness program run by an insurance company? Why, at an electronics store, of course, and more specifically, Best Buy stores in certain Chicago locations. [More]
Why Is It Taking So *&%# Long To Get Good 3D Content On TV?
By 1.10.12
Anyone who owns a 3D TV probably knows that there is not exactly an overwhelming amount of 3D programming available to merit putting on the glasses. The media and manufacturers keep saying that 3D is the next big thing to be coming-at-ya, but will there ever be content that justifies buying a 3D TV? [More]
Hostess Prepares To File For Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Protection
By 1.10.12
Gird your Twinkies, Hostess lovers: The maker of those frosting-filled yellow logs is preparing to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection this week, says a new report. It’s the second time in recent years that it’s attempted to restructure in court. [More]
Walmart Asks You To Come For The Free Tax Prep, Stay For The People-Watching
By 1.10.12
In what seems to be an effort to lure customers, especially those in the mood to spend after procuring a sizable tax refund, Walmart is offering free tax preparation services for those whose finances aren’t complicated. [More]
You Can Pay Gwyneth Paltrow $425 For The Honor Of Using Her Goop Brand Cleanse
By 1.9.12
Have you felt plugged up and like you just haven’t done your part to pad Gwyneth Paltrow’s pocket? You’re in luck! The movie star and “goop” blogger has slapped her brand on a colon cleanse for the low low price of $425 so her fans can start the new year off fresh. [More]
