TV's, Remotes and Blu-Ray DVD players

What happens when you take your blu-ray DVD player with you on vacation and forget to bring the remote?

For one thing, you can't do a thing without it.

We have a www.netflix.com account and you can stream movies from your blu-ray DVD player if it has the Netflix connection. (I had written about this a while ago.)

But without the remote we could not watch a DVD or stream movies.

Since we subscribe to www.directv.com, we tried to program the DirectTV remote.  Hours went by without success.  Each code given was tried, failed and made us frustrated.

I called www.directv.com and was told that they have another remote, a newer version, which may work with our specific blu-ray player. Nothing was promised but we decided to get the newer remote.

We are expecting the new remote tomorrow.  Hopefully it will work.  I will let you know. 

As an aside, I would like to commend the customer service department at www.directv.com.  I had originally called about programming their remote and was not completely satisfied with the answer I had been given. I then sent an email stating my concerns.  I was called the next day and my problem was resolved.

In the meantime, while waiting for the remote to be shipped, we called Sony, the brand of blu-ray player we own.  They were not forthcoming at all. They would not give us a code to work with our remote.  They said that we would have to call the manufacturer of the remote to get a code.

How is that for customer service?  Why would this information be "classified?" Is it because they only want you to use Sony equipment?

Since this is the only blue-ray DVD player we own, I can't test the Directv remote to see if it would work with other brand blu-ray players.

Something to ask about when purchasing your next blu-ray player.  That is, if you want to reduce the number of remotes you can misplace each day.

www.retailmenot.com, Why Not?

Who wouldn't enjoy a discount on something they would have bought anyway at "retail?"

Which is the exact reason I signed up for emails from www.retailmenot.com.

There are so many merchants registered with www.retailmenot.com, that finding one of your favorites should not be difficult.

When you arrive at the site, www.retailmenot.com, you will see "Today's Top Coupons" listed.  For example, you might see coupon offers for www.victoriassecret.com, www.oldnavy.com, www.lands'end.com, and www.vitacost.com (my favorite,) to name a few.

You can also search by a specific merchant.   The "success rate" is listed for each offer although the most recent ones usually work.  Most of the time I find that the secondary ones do not work if there is no "expiration date" posted.

There are many other sites out there which offer coupon codes.  I found that this one is hassle-free, is easy to search through and usually works.

And truthfully, you don't even have to sign up for emails - just go to their site when you are shopping.  Better to cut down on inbox clutter.

Where to search:  www.retailmenot.com

Call Safelite Repair When a Pebble Hits Your Windshield or Worse!

Just my luck, my new car gets hit with a pebble while I was driving on the highway. That same week, my sister mentions that her new car got hit with a pebble.  In the past 7 years, I have not had anything like this happen. Now I need to repair it before the crack spreads.

I visited the local auto glass shop and was told I would need to leave the car for about 45 minutes and it would be repaired. Not really a problem, but it was a very warm day and I didn't feel like walking to the nearby supermarket.

Who hasn't heard the radio commercials for Safe Lite Auto Glass Repair, considering they are run all day and night?  I guess the advertising works, because I decided to call.

On their site, www.safelite.com, I filled out a request for an appointment and a service rep called me back in the exact time frame I requested.

There was a choice for me to either go to one of their service shops or have their mobile service van come to my home.  Of course I chose someone coming to my home - otherwise I would be in the same situation as the local auto glass repair shop.

For my appointment, I was able to choose a time, morning or afternoon, for the very next day.

What was really nice was that I received a call from the serviceman letting me know he was on his way and how long it would be for him to arrive.

The repair took about 10 minutes due to the fact that it was a very small crack and he was on his way to his next appointment.

I was pleased with the work and very happy to have it repaired at home.  I could have driven to the shop and another pebble could have hit my car!

Where to look:  www.safelite.com

Where to call:  1-800-877-2727

Midas Offers an Oil Change and More

The time had come for an oil change and tire rotation.   I also thought I may need new tires because that is what I was told at my last service.

After calling for an appointment at my car dealership, I decided I didn't want to drive the 26 miles which I usually drive, just for an oil change and possible tire rotation.

I saw an ad for a special at Midas for an oil change and tire rotation for less than I would have paid for an oil change. And the Midas shop was only 12 miles away.

I do not remember ever having gone to Midas for anything, ever, but I thought I would try. After calling to schedule an appointment for the following day, I began to have some doubts. The security I feel when going to my usual dealership, where I know everyone, means a great deal to me. I still decided to try Midas.

When I arrived at Midas the next day,  I was greeted and taken care of right away.  There were many cars already there, and people kept coming in.  I felt it was a good sign.

I asked them to check my tire tread and they told me it was good - no tires needed - so I could have my tires rotated.  What a relief - they even showed me how they checked it.

I went for lunch across the street and the car was just about ready when I returned.

Everything was painless, my car feels great and I saved money.

Where to shop:  www.midas.com

When you are on their site, put in your zip code and find the location nearest to you.  Don't forget to sign up for special offers.

Good Morning America finds Real Estate Bargains

On February 16, 2010, Good Morning America's Consumer News division published an article, which I found on www.Zillow.com, listing the 10 cities where one could find a deal on real estate.

Even though this list is a few months old, it is a starting point if you are considering a move or possibly purchasing a second residence.

You can also check recent sale prices, after the information is on the public record, on  www.propertyshark.com.

Where to look:  http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/ConsumerNews/top-10-cities-bargain-house/story?id=9847598

Where to compare prices: www.propertyshark.com

American Airline's Miles Can Fly Away!

Not sure about you, but my vision, even with glasses, precludes me from reading really small type on anything. This happened with an email I received from my American Airlines Advantage account.

For the purpose of this posting, I am using the word "I" in lieu of the actual person's name to provide privacy in exchange for the story.

Also, in this posting, I am not recommending any airline or credit card.  I only want to share what happened so you can be pro-active.

On the email I received, among all the promotions being advertised, it showed my mileage.  Directly below the box where the mileage appeared was, in the smallest type you can imagine and in a very light color type, a notation that my miles had expired. When I looked back and re-read the older emails, the notation was that they were going to expire. Yes a warning, but not to be noticed.

We are not talking about a few thousand.  We are talking about 277,000 miles!

I called AAdvantage Customer Service and after giving them all the reasons why I never saw this notation, or any other notation on all their emails, they basically said that they were sorry, but rules are rules.  When I mentioned that I have been an AA client for 22 years and have flown 1M miles, they thanked me for my business, but said that rules were rules.

When I asked why they couldn't send a letter, especially since so many miles would be lost, they claimed that they had too many customers and couldn't send letters out.

I am still pondering how, in this economy, an airline wants to alienate its loyal clients.

Maybe they can't send letters out to those clients with under 100,000 miles or something like that, but this was insulting.

Now you may ask, what would I have to do to regain the miles? Their answer was to  apply for a "Re-engagement Challenge."

Not sure you will believe this one, but here goes:

I have to open a Citibank AAdvantage card, charge a minimum of $750 dollars on it, take at least one round-trip flight, each way not less than 750 miles and I can get back 200,000 miles.  If I want to get it all back, I have to take another round-trip flight, same requirements, or earn 10,000 miles on any 3 of their many partners. And you have 6 months to complete the mission.

So one has to do the math to see if it is worth spending money on these flights.  The credit card is not a problem because you would only charge on the new card what you may have charged on your existing one. But, one caveat, the card is not free. It costs $85 a year.  The first year may be waived if you go through AAdvantage customer service who then connects you to Citicard.

Why am I telling you this?  If you have miles accumulating, always check the expiration date.  I was advised that as long as you use miles in your account, even if you shop with your miles, your account automatically extends the expiration date.

Why didn't I know this? Was it a matter of reading that fine print, which I cannot see anyway?

Fios TV vs Cablevision

 

How much television do you watch? If you are living in my house, the answer would be too much. That said, I like knowing that I have the choice to watch as much or as little as I would like, when I please.

I have had Cablevision for many years. Not too many complaints and their customer service is pretty good, but there were some issues with Cablevision which I didn't like.

When you change the channel, there is a delay before the new channel you selected shows up.

And, unless you have a DVR in more than one room, you can only watch what you had recorded in the room with the DVR.

There are additional differences between the two, including all these widgets offered with Fios TV, but the two I mentioned were what bothered me most about Cablevision.

Enter Fios TV from www.verizon.com. One DVR is needed and you can then watch whatever you recorded in any other room which has an HD box and your TV.

Switching channels is faster.

If you have the Ultimate package with Fios TV from www.verizon.com, which is similar to the Gold package with Cablevision, you will find that you receive some channels not available with Cablevision or which would cost even more to get.  For me, having these additional channels makes having Fios TV much better. In fact, there seems to be many more choices with Verizon's Fios TV.

I understand that some people will not like the contract which lasts for 2 years when you subscribe to Fios TV.  There is a pro-rated cancellation fee of $360, and no contract or fee with Cablevision.

I already had my internet and phone service with Verizon Fios so now I have all three which also saves some money.  In the past I had internet service with Cablevision, but had problems with it.

For those of you with Cablevision, especially if you aren't taking advantage of the Triple Play pricing, I suggest you take a look at Verizon Fios TV, Internet and Phone package.

Now I just have to learn which numbers correspond to the stations!

Where to inquire:  www.verizon.com