Category: Gadgets

Costco Limits Return Policy for Electronics: It Was Only A Matter of Time

February 26, 2007August 20, 2008 Bob Caswell 10 Comments

Looks like your friend and mine, the amazing Costco return policy, is on its way out. Apparently, it did enough damage to the already razor thin profit margins of the company for management to take action. For those unfamiliar, it used to be that you could return anything whenever you wanted for a full refund (with the exception of desktop computers, which had a limit of six months). The policy was one of the reasons why I was an avid Costco electronics shopper (if the wanted gizmo was carried there).

But I always knew it would only be a matter of time before the too-good-to-be-true shopping scenario changed. Though even with the change, Costco likely still has the best return policy out there. Here’s what to expect:

Do-It-Yourself Tech, Gadgets, Just For Fun, Shopping, Tech News

The Year of Cellphone Advertising: Paying for Services through “Opt in” Ads

February 14, 2007August 20, 2008 Bob Caswell No Comments

The New York Times has an interesting piece outlining signs that advertising may be coming to our cellphones. The good news: guidelines have been established to limit ads to those who “opt in.” And by choosing to do so, cellphone customers may receive free services in exchange. The guidelines have already been agreed upon by Verizon, Sprint Nextel, T-Mobile, and others.

While some may not be too thrilled by the idea, I’m personally fine with it.

Gadgets, Tech News

Help This Woman Catch Her Cheating Husband Using a Cellphone

January 22, 2007August 20, 2008 Bob Caswell 8 Comments

I get all sorts of interesting emails being part of a site like TechConsumer, but I’ve never gotten a request like this. A woman contacted me — we’ll call her Tina — and explained how her husband is cheating on her. She knows this because she took a peek at his cellphone and saw some rather questionable text messages from his new, uh, “friend.”

So what’s she hoping to find is a way to setup his phone (obviously while he’s unaware) so that it forwards his text messages (sent, received, or both) to her cellphone or email address (without him knowing).

Do-It-Yourself Tech, Gadgets

Bye Bye Cingular, AT&T Name Taking Over Monday: Cool Traded In for Stuffy

January 12, 2007August 20, 2008 Bob Caswell No Comments

AT&T won’t say how much the rebranding will cost but claims it will benefit from having one name on all its services. But is it worth it? The company will have to change signs in around 2,000 stores. And let’s not forget the cost of letterhead and employee uniforms. Though perhaps the most difficult cost to calculate: young consumers who like the hip feel of Cingular over the stuffy AT&T brand of yesteryear.

Gadgets, Tech News

Apple Releases iPhone, Changes Name, and Gets Sued: All Smart Moves

January 10, 2007August 20, 2008 Bob Caswell No Comments

So unless you’ve been hiding under a rock the past couple days, you’ve inevitably heard that Apple released its highly anticipated iPhone, fusing the ubiquitous iPod with the even more ubiquitous cellphone. Apple Computer even went as far as changing it’s name to Apple Inc. to illustrate just how serious this move is. The company has officially graduated from computer company to consumer electronics superstar.

But Cisco, the company that owns the iPhone trademark (incidentally, the latest rendition of the Cisco iPhone was hurriedly released three weeks ago: a VOIP phone that was and is talked about more for its name than anything), is now suing Apple.

Apple, Cyberlaw, Gadgets, Music, Tech News

Samsung New Technology: Live TV on Your Cellphone at 170 Miles per Hour

January 4, 2007August 20, 2008 Bob Caswell No Comments

Samsung now has a way of delivering video and even live TV to on-the-go gadget-aholics: cellphones that get digital signals from local TV broadcasters. Cellphones with the new technology implemented will basically become portable television sets that will have the same reception as TVs with antennas.

Gadgets, Media, Tech News

AT&T Killing the Cingular Name & Avoiding Net Neutrality

December 30, 2006August 20, 2008 Bob Caswell No Comments

The FCC approved AT&T’s $85.8 billion takeover of BellSouth. Not surprisingly, the deal is the largest ever in U.S. telecommunications history. The newly formed company now has a market capitalization of over $220 billion which makes it more than double in size compared to its biggest competitor Verizon.

Gadgets, Media, Tech News

Apple Stock Near Record High: iPod Cellphone Rumors Trump Flawed iTunes Stats

December 22, 2006August 20, 2008 Bob Caswell No Comments

A cellphone that doesn’t yet exist has never been so popular. For the past few months, rumors have been flying about Apple’s entrance intothe multi-billion dollar cellphone market with a feature-rich iPod cellphone. Apple has been called “hypersecretive” and has refused to comment on the speculation which, of course, feeds the speculation fire even more.

Apple, Gadgets, Music, Tech News