- Coldwater Creek : [Apparel] 40% Off Entire Order w/ Coupon WKH6745
- Amazon: [Blu-ray] LG BD370 Network Blu-ray Player (Netflix/Youtube streaming) $160.60 + free shipping
- west elm: [Home & Garden] West Elm Sale: Up to 70% off select items
Retail Services
Morning Deals
By 10.5.09
Soon-To-Be-Ex Bank Of America CEO Has $53 Million Pension
By 10.3.09
Ken Lewis is probably a little bummed out that he will no longer be the CEO of Bank of America — but how sad can he be with a $53 million pension?
Men's Retailer Begs For Customers
By 10.2.09
Here’s a new take on direct mail that we’ll call the “painfully honest but kind of sad” approach. George Anderson at RetailWire writes that a local men’s retailer sent him the following plea via snail mail.
Walmart Manager Is Super Helpful, Saves Dead TV
By 10.2.09
A few weeks ago, Kaleb wrote to us with a tale of television woe. The Polaroid TV he purchased at Walmart on Black Friday 2008 simply died, and Polaroid wouldn’t perform warranty service without his receipt. All was lost, until a Walmart manager went above and beyond to save Kaleb from his defective television.
Amazon Clarifies When It Will Remove Kindle Books
By 10.2.09
As part of a settlement with the customer who sued Amazon over the 1984 fiasco this past summer, Amazon has clarified under what circumstances it can delete your books. Notably, Amazon is not saying that it will never again delete books, which keeps the Kindle in the “do not buy” list for consumers who want unequivocal ownership of the items they purchase. In fact, despite the muted praise Amazon is receiving for doing this, the best we can say about the clarification is that it’s about time, but that it still doesn’t address the fundamental ownership issues raised by the Kindle licensing system.
Morning Deals
By 10.2.09
- REI Outlet: [Outdoors] Diamondback Sorrento Mountain Bike $250
- Buy.com: [Automated Cleaning] iRobot Roomba 415 with 2 Virtual Walls $119.99 + free shipping
- NewEgg: [HDTV] LG 42LH30 42-inch 1080p LCD HDTV $699.99 + free shipping
Target Must Pay $600,000 To Settle Lead Paint Charges
By 10.1.09
Looks like the CPSC can afford donuts tomorrow for their office: Target has agreed to pay $600,000 for selling toys with too much lead on them from May 2006 to August 2007, reports Reuters. The fine “resolves allegations” over the issue, so now Target can focus on what it does best, which is act crazy.
Arizona Target Store Really, Really Can't Wait For Christmas
By 10.1.09
On September 27, 2009, there were 89 days until Christmas. But not at the Target in Peoria, Arizona. Reader Chris noticed that the twin phenomena of Christmas Creep and Target’s creeping insanity converged on one glorious, confusing, Santa-filled point where there were suddenly only 53 days until Christmas.
BoA CEO Resigns
By 10.1.09
Bank of America CEO Ken Lewis resigned yesterday after becoming a lightning rod for criticism after his controversial takeover of Merril Lynch. Even though BoA has appeared in our Worst Company in America contests each year, it’s kind of sad because his office had a good record of solving our reader’s problems they sent in to the executive office. Too bad that ethos couldn’t have flowed downhill more.
Morning Deals
By 10.1.09
- Armani Exchange: [Apparel] New Armani Exchange STACKABLE Coupon Codes $25 Off $100, Free Shipping
- Guaranteach: [Online Tutoring] First month free for first 20 subscribers using code FREEOCT
- Quiznos : [Restaurant] $1 Off Each Sub Purchased w/ Coupon (Up to 3) w/ Printable Coupon
- NewEgg: [MP3] Recertified Microsoft Zune 4GB MP3 Player + Free Leather Case & Car Pack $49.99
- Amazon: [Water Bottle] 20% off Botl BPA-free Stainless Steel Water Bottles through 10/31
- Amazon: [Xbox] Xbox 360 Elite 120GB + Lego Batman & PURE games (2009 Holiday Bundle) $250 + free shipping
Call Drop Rate For iPhones In NYC Is 30%, Says Apple Genius
By 9.30.09
Hey AT&T, maybe you should offer some sort of congestion pricing on your iPhone plans in places like New York City. We’ve heard/read all sorts of anecdotal reports on dropped calls before, but today Engadget reported that an Apple Genius said a 30% drop call rate is average for the area. If that’s true, it seems like false advertising to charge for a full-time calling plan that you can only use about two-thirds of the time.
Why Even Bad Online Reviews Can Increase Sales
By 9.30.09
We’re generally quite critical of companies that try to squelch negative online reviews, astroturf them, or just bribe customers for positive ones. Not only is this behavior bad for consumers, but the experience of one company shows that it’s bad for businesses, too.
LG Looking To Buy Back 5 Phones For $10k Each
By 9.30.09
If you bought an LG Chocolate phone, compare its serial number to the ones on this site—if it matches then you can sell it back to LG for $10,000. We’re not sure if this is just a fancy way to hold a contest, or if those 5 phones accidentally shipped with alien technology inside. Either way, it’s a bit more than you’d get through Craigslist. Hurry though; the offer/contest/coverup ends today.
Morning Deals
By 9.30.09
- Shop4Tech : [Computer] 17% Off Entire Order w/ Coupon TM17
- iTunes Music Store: [iPhone / iPod Apps] Ping! for iPhone (free text messaging using iPhone’s push service)
- NewEgg: [Monitor/HDTV] Auria EQ2488F 24-inch 1080p LCD HDTV $260 + free shipping
JCPenney Tries Out Mobile Coupons In Houston Stores
By 9.29.09
If you live in the Houston area, you can now use your mobile phone to redeem coupons for JCPenney through a trial-partnership with Cellfire. You have to register with Cellfire in order to receive the promos via SMS or email, and if you register today you’ll receive a mysterious “$10 in$tant gift” [sic].
Amazon Does A Solid For Student Who Suffered Bungled Textbook Orders
By 9.29.09
Robert ordered a defective textbook from Amazon, which let him return the book outside its 30-day return policy. Amazon let him do so without trouble, but that wasn’t even the coolest thing the e-tailer did for him. When Robert received the next book, with the same defect — it too was missing codes he needed for his lab — he decided to go to the school bookstore to buy a copy with the codes he needed. The CSR told Robert he could keep the second book and gave him a full refund. He writes:
Rumor: Game Crazy To Close 200 Locations
By 9.29.09
Joystiq reported last night that Game Crazy “plans to close 200 of its approximately 680 locations at the end of October.” There’s no official list of which stores are closing yet, so feel free to ask your local Game Crazy employees and see if you can scare them.
