When your iPod, Zune, CueCat, HP printer, DVD player, or game console goes on the fritz, you no longer have to put it in that closet where you store all the stuff that doesn’t work but that you don’t think you should throw away. There’s now a whole world of self-help forums and repair advice websites online where you can trade tips with other owners of consumer electronics—weird things companies would never tell you, like using a piece of folded paper as a shim to get a failed hard drive working again in your iPod.
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"Planned Obsolescence" Is A Waste: Where To Repair Your Electronics
By 8.12.07
The consumer electronics industry doesn’t want us to know this (especially Apple, considering how frequently they update their iPod product line), but with care and a little maintenance, you can make your recent electronics purchases last longer than a couple of years. We should know: in the past five years, we’ve had large scale malfunctions (all out of warranty) with an iPod, a Tivo, a laptop hard drive, and an Xbox. Here is a short list of some places that can help you get your product back in working condition, so that you don’t just toss it out and buy a new one unnecessarily.
US Airways Numbers That Don't Work Quite Right
By 6.12.07
US Airways’ phone system is jacked up and many publicly provided numbers don’t seem to go to the right place. Par example:
- 866-523-5333 – Customer care. Press 3 to leave a comment or complaint about a previous flight, stay on hold for 30+ minutes and/or get told they’re really sorry but there just doesn’t seem to be anyone around to help you.
UPS Breaks Package, Won't Reimburse Shipping Charges
By 3.10.07
UPS smashed a gift package containing wine Ryan sent to his father-in-law-to-be, but won’t reimburse Ryan for the shipping charges. We instinctively fear fathers-in-law, especially the ‘to-be’ variety. Like throwing salmon to a bear, Ryan’s gift package, worth about $100, contained fine chocolate, wine, and a leather wine holder. Ryan prominently labeled the package “FRAGILE” before shipping.
About a week after Christmas I receive a call from the manager of the UPS store informing me that my package was destroyed along with the “cider” inside (they decided it was no longer wine at some point). The manager (in very very broken English) requested me to come in bearing receipts for the products or advertisements for items close there to
Ryan brought in his advertisements and told them that they shipped wine, not cider. UPS adamantly declared “this store does not and will not ship wine.” That would be nice, expect they did ship wine. They broke it, too.
US Food Safety Is Broken: Different Agencies Oversee Open-Faced vs Closed-Faced Sandwiches
By 2.1.07
A report was released Wednesday by the Government Accountability Office that designated Food Safety as a high risk area “because of risks to the economy and to public health and safety.” The report finds that: “The current fragmented federal system has caused inconsistent oversight, ineffective coordination, and inefficient use of resources,” and they’ve recommended a fundamental reorganization of the entire system.
What To Do With A Broken iPod
By 12.20.06
They even have next day repair and data recovery. Because a broken iPod deserves a second chance. Sniff. Does anyone have any non-repair ideas for broken iPod fun? Hockey puck?—MEGHANN MARCO
ShopNBC Demands Money For Broken TV
By 12.16.06
The McKenzies ordered two TVs from ShopNBC three months ago. The boxes arrived damaged and the family sent them back for a warranty replacement, which has yet to materialize. As such, the McKenzies haven’t paid for the tv sets.
Meghann Will Ship Her Broken DVD Player Back
By 12.7.06
The people have spoken. Meghann will ship her broken DVD player, not make a video of her smashing it. Spoilsports.
What Should Meghann Do With Her Brokeass Woot DVD Player?
By 12.6.06
After Meghann pitched her woe about getting a Woot!ed DVD player that wouldn’t turn on, we tried to convince her to do ship it back to Toshiba.
Woot: Thanks for the Broken DVD Player
By 12.6.06
We’ve been a member of Woot since Feb ’05, but until the other day, we never saw anything we needed. Then our DVD player broke, and Woot had one, and it was like 40 bucks, and so we finally tried Woot!
TSA’s Multimillion Dollar Ion Sniffer Is “Out Of Order”
By 11.29.06
A sign on this multi-million dollar terrorism sniffing device reads, “Out of Order.” Spotted this morning in Charlotte’s airport. From the Smith’s website:
Crappiest Laptop Table in the World
By 6.15.06
Jason obviously didn’t read the warning label on the bottom of the “Freedom Laptop Table ii” informing him the device also doubled as a trebuchet. Too bad for his week-old high-end Acer Ferrari laptop.
