Should “apps store” really be “Apps Store®,” a trademarked phrase tied exclusive to Apple and its application store for its devices? Amazon didn’t seem to think so. But when it opened the Amazon Appstore for Android, the online retailer still got slapped with a lawsuit from Apple. [More]
Retail Services
Rising Gas Prices May Lead To Fuel Surcharge Increases On Shipments
By 4.27.11
Surging gas prices affect not only those with gas guzzlers, but potentially just about every product you buy. Rising shipping costs will likely be passed on to consumers, who will have less money to cover the costs because of other ways expensive gas is sucking them dry. [More]
Will Women's Clothing Sizes Ever Be Standardized?
By 4.26.11
The good news: clothing manufacturers have figured out (again) that perhaps they should standardize women’s clothing sizes. The bad news: multiple companies are working on different systems, so this standardization won’t be standardized any time soon. [More]
Unhappy With Sears' Service? Please Do Not Threaten To Blow Up The Store
By 4.26.11
We’ve probably all been driven to the point of anger by horrendous customer service. Some of us have probably even said things in the heat of this anger that we didn’t mean. But in a day and age when taking a photo on a plane is considered suspicious activity, you can’t just go threatening to blow up a Sears because you’re ticked off. But that’s exactly how the police ended up at the house of an 80-year-old California man over the weekend. [More]
Proposed NYC Law Could Send Buyers Of Knockoff Handbags To Jail
By 4.26.11
The sidewalks of lower Manhattan, especially Chinatown, are filled with vendors selling genuine faux Louis Vuitton bags “Ugggs” boots and Ronex watches. One city councilwoman from that neighborhood is so fed up of trying to fight the problem from the supply side that she’s introducing new legislation that would attempt to curb demand by making it illegal to purchase counterfeit merchandise. [More]
The Easter Bunny Has Very Poor Math Skills
By 4.26.11
Is it an Easter miracle, or just fuzzy math? Reader Elgog sent in this photo of a chocolate bunny, wondering, “Apparently ¼ of the bunny equals about 5 servings. Does this make it a diet chocolate bunny?” No. If there are five servings, each of which consists of one-quarter of the bunny, that means that the fifth person is on a diet. Obviously. [More]
Is Walmart Or Target Cheaper?
By 4.25.11
Ok, so the official studies are telling us that Target is now actually beating Walmart on price, but is it for real? Rob Cockerham decided to put the superstores to the test. He shopped for the identical shopping list and compared the final tally. Who won? [More]
Bank Of America Charged Me A Fee To Ask A Question
By 4.25.11
Something is rotten in the state of Georgia! Or at least, it would seem that perhaps the state is in cahoots with Bank of America, which is acting like a brat and charging fees for anyone who dares to question what the deal is. [More]
Analysis: Most Of The Worst Cars On The Road Are Made By U.S. Companies
By 4.25.11
Although American car manufacturers have taken strides to improve the quality of their products, they still produce their share of clunkers. [More]
The Story Behind Easter Candy Favorite: Peeps!
By 4.24.11
Let’s take a moment, and put down that 11th Peep to be smushed into your mouth today, to consider the rich history of Easter’s favorite marshmallowy, sugar-coated bird (or bunny or other various springtime shape). [More]
Woman Sues Target Over Credit Card Debt Collection Practices
By 4.21.11
A woman in Pennsylvania has filed a lawsuit against the retail chain, alleging that it used false affidavits to collect debts on Target-issued credit card accounts. [More]
Customer Catches Best Buy Breaking Law, Gets Banned From Store
By 4.21.11
Some companies sure are sore losers. Take for example the folks at Best Buy, who were not only caught violating consumer protection laws, but who then banned the customer who called them out in court for doing so. [More]
Is It Amazon's Fault They Still Have My $200, Or Mine?
By 4.21.11
David ordered a Kindle and cover from Amazon shortly after Christmas, but it disappeared in transit and was never heard from again. These things happen in commerce. What David doesn’t understand is why, after he was too busy to respond after an initial e-mail exchange, Amazon didn’t try to contact him or just automatically issue a refund or replacement for the missing Kindle. [More]
Soap.com Wants To Fill A Different Kind Of Easter Basket This Year
By 4.21.11
Jim stopped by online personal-care superstore soap.com (now part of Amazon) and typed in the seemingly innocuous search term “Easter.” The site returned a page full of sex toys are are decidedly rabbit-themed, but not traditional Easter gifts. (This post contains small images that may not be safe for work, depending on where you work.) [More]
Sears Helpfully Pre-Assembles Your Grill So It Won’t Fit In Your Car
By 4.20.11 — Updated: 5.2.16
The bad news: Sears has started channeling the Geek Squad, pre-optimizing all merchandise in stock before customers have a choice in the matter. The worse news: they’re failing at it terribly. Ron tried to purchase a gas grill on sale at Sears. He placed his order online for instore pickup, only to discover that all of the grills in stock were already assembled. Fine, except an already-assembled grill won’t fit in his car. The only bright spot for consumers: unlike Geek Squad, Sears doesn’t even have the foresight to charge for the optimization service. [More]
Have You Been Signed Up For Bank Of America's Customer Years Program?
By 4.20.11
Have you ever heard of the Bank of America Customer Years program? Patricia hasn’t, which is interesting, because she apparently consented to sign up for it. She saves all paperwork that her financial institutions send her, and can’t find any trace of this program: or any valid reason why she would have signed up for it. [More]
T-Mobile Upgrade Error Leads To Unwanted Data Plan
By 4.20.11
Were Michael’s troubles with Target and T-Mobile due to miscommunication, or did someone intentionally mislead him? Everyone’s pointing fingers at each other, but the lesson is clear: if your mobile phone company tells you that you have an upgrade available for which you’re not eligible, it’s probably a good idea not to take it unless you’re able to quadruple-verify that taking the upgrade won’t lead to a data plan you can’t use and don’t want. [More]
Downloadable Video Games Will Be Rated By Computers Instead Of People
By 4.19.11
Up until now, the Entertainment Software Rating Board has used a three-person committee to assign video games ratings that determine the age groups for which they’re appropriate. To lighten the load, the ESRB will hand some of their duties over to computer software. [More]
