I just got back from a long-overdue visit to the local vision-correction emporium, where I learned that for all these years, I’ve been fumbling through life only able to see 480 lines of resolution through my contact lenses. But now there are HD contact lenses. Bausch & Lomb’s PureVision2 HD lenses have been out for some time now, and I’m just learning about this upgrade to reality now. [More]
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When '50 Percent More' Means 'The Exact Same Amount' (Updated)
By 10.5.10
While on an almond hunt at Walgreen’s, Willard encountered this side-by-side display of Blue Diamond Almonds. Both contain 24 ounces and cost $6.99, but one bag claims to have “50 percent more free.” [More]
There Are No Nuts In Honey Nut Chex Mix
By 9.1.10
Sometimes you feel like a nut but Chex Mix don’t. Lynda was annoyed to tear into this bag of Honey Nut Chex Mix to discover not a single nut was in the bag. [More]
Dish Charges Fee To Cancel Free Channel I Wouldn't Have Ordered
By 8.31.10
A Dish Network rep convinced Tripp to add Cinemax for a penny on a trial period. When the trial ran out, Tripp canceled and said the company stuck him with a cancellation fee it never told him about. [More]
All HDMI Cables Are Pretty Much The Same
By 8.20.10
MSNBC’s HD Guru blog skewers the shifty HDMI cable industry, which is based on ridiculous, unsupported claims of higher data speed, frame rates and refresh rates in exchange for exorbitant prices. [More]
GameStop's StarCraft II Boost Pack Offer Seems To Be A Whole Lot Of Nothing
By 7.30.10
Sean has done some sleuthing and believes he has exposed a supposed GameStop exclusive game add-on is a fraud. The game-selling chain offered a “Boost Pack” for StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty to those who picked the game up at a midnight launch earlier this week, but Sean says the pack’s codes are unnecessary placebos that don’t give code-holders any more access than those without the Boost Pack. [More]
Apparently A Year's Supply Of Honey Nut Cheerios Is Only 12 Boxes
By 7.8.10
Have you ever dreamed of winning a year’s supply of Honey Nut Cheerios? No? Well, in case you did, you might have imagined a warehouse full of the honeybee-kissed circles of tedium. And you might have imagined incorrectly, because according to General Mills, just 12 boxes of the stuff should get you through a year. [More]
You Can Still Overpay For $2 Bills With Stickers On Them If You Want
By 6.3.10
Those doctored $2 bills the World Reserve Monetary Exchange advertises as collectibles via misleading newspaper and magazine ads aren’t going away. The ad ran again Monday in papers around the country. [More]
Best Buy Shorted Me $70 When I Returned Stereo Equipment
By 5.25.10
Ashley says she succumbed to a high-pressure upsell in car stereo equipment at Best Buy based on a free installation pitch, only to decide she wanted to return the stuff. When she completed the return she found out the installation wasn’t free, but discounted to accommodate a nonrefundable installation fee. [More]
Sweet-Sounding Deals That Are Actually Awful
By 5.24.10
Just because a deal sounds appealing at first glance doesn’t mean it will hold up to scrutiny. Yahoo digs up eight pieces of fool’s gold that don’t pan out if you’re looking to save money. Tops among these is unlimited long distance: [More]
Verizon FIOS Pulled The Old Switcharoo On Me
By 5.6.10
Dave says he was lured in by the promise of a low rate when he switched from Cablevision to Verizon FIOS, but the bills have been much higher than expected and when he called to complain he was told the promotion he signed up for didn’t fit anything Verizon offers. [More]
Best Buy Charging For PC Checkups They Already Give For Free
By 4.19.10
Anon says Best Buy’s $40 a year program going called Ask An Agent is a raw deal. The program lets customers bring in PCs for an annual checkup, and also gives takers 10 percent off of Geek Squad services. Anon says Best Buy checks out all computers for free, no doubt to offer them some spectacular optimization services. [More]
TurboTax Charged Me $60 For Not-So-Free Free Online Taxes
By 4.16.10
DaBears says TurboTax’s free online tax prep ended up sticking him with hidden fees totaling $60. He writes: [More]
AT&T Also Claims To Cover More Countries Than Exist
By 4.15.10
Competition is fierce in the mobile industry, so if your rival claims coverage in over 220 countries, you damn well better match him. Even if there’s only 192. “Our coverage goes up to 11…” (Thanks to Justin!) [More]
Here's The List Of 'Countries' Verizon Covers
By 4.13.10
Verizon may be exaggerating when it says it offers coverage in more than 220 countries, but at least it isn’t just making the number up. [More]
Verizon Claims To Cover More Countries Than Actually Exist
By 4.12.10
Verizon likes to boast that its coverage is ubiquitous, but it’s gone way overboard when it makes claims that it covers more than 220 countries, as it did in this ad the company sent to Justin, who writes: [More]
My Compost Barrel Was Made In The USA, By Which I Mean 'China'
By 3.25.10
Glenn bought a Suncast compost barrel that was labeled “Made in the USA” on the box. So it’s only natural that when he opened up the box he found another box that revealed the included hardware was made in China. [More]
Come September, Freecreditreport.com Must Come Clean In Ads
By 3.2.10
If you really love those Freecreditreport.com commercials just the way they are, take this next half year to pause and reflect on what they mean to you, because in September, the Huffington Post reports, owner Experian will have to start telling people their side business isn’t the real way to get free annual credit reports from the government. We had this story last year, but in the wake of CARD act reforms, it bears repeating. [More]
