Reader Bang’s says his wife wanted to surprise him (on Valentine’s Day) with a game. She didn’t know what console he had so she asked Best Buy for some help. They said he “probably” had an XBOX and sold her not only a game, but a non-refundable XBOX Live subscription. When the couple tried to exchange the purchase (he actually has a PS3), they say they were told the game could be swapped but they were stuck with the unopened, unused XBOX Live card. [More]
Retail Services
Your Wife Doesn't Know Which Console You Have So Best Buy Sells Her Non-Refundable XBOX Live Card
By 2.16.10
Detroit Schools Teach Kids To Work At Walmart
By 2.16.10
Walmart is teaming with inner-city Detroit schools to offer classes on how to land entry-level jobs, the raw story reports, citing the Detroit Free Press. [More]
Brookstone Replaces Broken Electronic Thingy, Delights Skeptical Customer
By 2.14.10
Reader Deejmer had a lovely experience at Brookstone that he couldn’t help but share. He writes that he received a wireless speaker as a gift and grew to love it. When the device died, he couldn’t produce the receipt, but his local store was happy to exchange it out for him. Yay! [More]
How A $19.99 Flower Arrangement Costs $49.95
By 2.12.10
Craig writes that he found a great deal from Proflowers recently: a dozen roses for $19.99. Good boyfriend and sensible shopper that he is, he ordered them for Valentine’s Day, only to discover that the delivery charges and holiday surcharges made the cost more than double. [More]
Avoid Credit Card Annual Fees: Just Charge $2,400 Per Year
By 2.12.10
Jesse has a credit card that he doesn’t use, but keeps open to help his credit score. Citibank has foiled his brilliant plan by adding a $60 annual fee. He can avoid the fee by charging at least $2,400 on the card each year. [More]
How To Buy The Right Gift Of Underthings For Your Special Lady
By 2.12.10
Valentine’s Day is soon approaching. Whatever your feelings about the day, the cold capitalist fact remains: this is a holiday when people who are not women venture into stores and attempt to purchase underthings for women. This can sometimes end badly. Fortunately, blogger Treacle over at Wisebread has broken down the essentials of lingerie-buying into four simple steps that even the most fashion-impaired gentleman can use to find a suitable gift. [More]
If You Get Mad, Don't Smash 29 Walmart TVs With A Bat
By 2.12.10
Spring Training isn’t quite here yet, but a man at a Georgia Walmart decided to get into the swing of things by taking a baseball bat and smashing 29 TVs before he was arrested for second degree criminal damage, the AP reports. (Update: now with video.) [More]
Super Fart Spray Forces Walmart Evacuation
By 2.11.10
A Seattle area Walmart was evacuated this weekend after a man released “stink bombs” and “super fart spray,” according to the police. 75 customers and employees were forced to flee the stinky Walmart after the suspect threw vials of foul-smelling liquid onto the floor and sprayed a can of a product called “Super Fart Spray.” After apprehension, the 51-year old man said he did it as joke and he thought it would be amusing. He was not arrested. [Seattle P-I] (Thanks to GitEmSteveDave!) [More]
Thanks To Bank Of America's Crappy Online Payment System, Your House Is Getting Foreclosed
By 2.11.10
Sally is 20 years ahead on her 30-year mortgage. So why is Bank of America about to foreclose on her? [More]
Yes Virginia, There Are Taxes For Shopping Online
By 2.11.10
People of Virginia: Online shopping is great, right? High discounts, cheap shipping and no taxes… oh, wait. Looks like the commonwealth’s State Senate Finance Committee voted 14-1 to get the ball rolling on a bill that would levy a sales tax on some products purchased through online retailers. [More]
Gamers, Expect Less Guitar Hero, Zero College Hoops This Year
By 2.11.10
Kotaku dropped a couple bombshells yesterday, reporting that Activision will release only two “Hero” games this year — a new Guitar Hero and DJ Hero 2, after unleashing about a billion of them in 2009. Just about any band that wanted the Guitar Hero treatment in ’09 got it, including, uh, Van Halen. [More]
Come On Down To The Ugly Furniture Store!
By 2.10.10
Want ugly furniture? How about a teardrop filled with frog eggs? Want an ugly table to put ugly stuff on? We’ve got that! This is a parody commercial for a real store filled with hideous furniture. [More]
Target Pulls Lead-Tainted Valentine's Bears
By 2.10.10
The AG of California recently pointed out that some of Target’s Valentine’s Day plush bears contained unacceptable levels of lead. A nonprofit consumer watchdog group tested the bears and turned the findings over the California AG, who in turn wrote Target a strongly-worded letter. Target has responded by pulling the toys while they investigate. The company says the Chinese-made toys passed testing. [More]
Blame Manufacturers For Annoying Hidden Prices Online
By 2.10.10
Have you been noticing more and more lately that no matter which online retailer you visit, you have to add the item to your shopping cart to see the price? Blame it on manufacturers, who are taking advantage of a 2007 Supreme Court ruling to be more aggressive about controlling pricing online, writes the New York Times. [More]
Is That Credit Score FICO Or FAKEO?
By 2.10.10
Donny just bought a bunch of credit scores. But they’re all from different companies and none of them are the same. What gives? [More]
Receipt Checker Avoidance Tactic: Confuse Them With Extreme Politeness
By 2.9.10
Reader Matt wants to share his technique for waltzing past the Walmart receipt checkers with a minimum of hassle. The secret? Be super nice, but don’t stop walking. [More]
How I Maneuvered Through The Walmart Receipt Check Gauntlet
By 2.9.10
Jeff says he did what many dream about but few accomplish — he kept his receipt hidden from Walmart snoops at the expense despite stiff resistance. [More]
Bank of America Screws Even Ex-Employees Of 21 Years On Mortgages
By 2.8.10
How many different ways can you screw a man? Vince couldn’t make his Bank of America mortgage, because they fired him after 21 years of service in the due diligence department. Even after he did a short sale 5 months ago, Bank of America still hasn’t cleared it off their books. Now the illegal debt collection calls start. Is new CEO Brian Moynihan powerless to stop his own company from shaking down its own employees? Let’s find out! [More]
