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Camophoto: Low Prices, Expensive Returns

While searching for low prices on a Sony Bravia 40V2500 LCD TV a while back, a net seller called Camophoto came up as having the lowest price: $1389.99. Considering that Sony charges $2299 for this TV, that is quite a savings. Of course, we don’t know how much Camophoto charges for shipping unless you go through the entire ordering process.

That is one problem. Two others are lurking on the “policies and terms” page:

*MOUSE PRINT:

PAYMENT POLICY

At this moment we accept all payments through MoneyGram money transfer. MoneyGram is an instant money transfer service that enables individuals to send and receive cash either domestically or internationally in just 10 minutes. Our sales team will give you the exact information of where MoneyGram agencies can be found in your city.

…

RETURN POLICY

…

All merchandise should be returned to our Order Processing Department:

Camophoto
Rehhagstrasse 79
CH – 3018 Bern
Switzerland

I wonder what it would cost to send a 53-pound 40″ TV back to Switzerland?

No need to be concerned anymore, the company’s website appears to have gone bye-bye.

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Land in San Bernardino, CA: $115 an Acre?

We all know that real estate prices are falling, but this is ridiculous. Here is a land auction ad that appeared recently on eBay:

land auction ad

Actually, the auction began at $1.00, and quickly zoomed to a $1.25. A week later, the five acres of land in San Bernardino went up to $570. Still a bargain by any standard. Or is it?

*MOUSE PRINT: Tucked away in the description of what you are bidding for is this further disclosure:

land auction small 

Translation: You are only bidding on the downpayment, and then you must also pay about $300 a month for the next 15 years. That comes to $54,000 including interest at an unspecified rate.

Of course, you need to make sure the advertiser really owns the property, that it is not located next to a nuclear power plant, and you will own more than just mineral rights.

Update: The auction ended on September first with a winning bid of $1525.

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Laplink PCMover: Use Once, Throw Away?

pcmover small Getting a new computer is always a hassle because of the difficulty of transferring your programs and files from the old computer to the new one.

To make the task easier, some programs are for sale that do the heavy lifting for you. You install it on both the old and new computers, connect them together, and woosh… most programs, files and setting get moved over automatically.

There is just one problem. Not likely noticed by most purchasers of Laplink PCmover, is the little asterisk on the product’s cover to the right of the words “Move All Your Programs, Files and Settings to a New PC*”. That leads to a fine print disclaimer on the side of the box that says:

*MOUSE PRINT:

disclaimer

Translation: The product is in essence for one time use only. Even if you uninstall it from your old computer, you cannot reinstall it on another old computer you want to migrate without violating terms of the licensing agreement. For that, you have to buy an additional license (albeit at a 25% discount).

At a list price of $59.95, you should be able to use the program at home one set of computers at a time as you probably expected you could.

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