Cam I Am

If you have tried to call me recently on my cell, no doubt you’ve heard my message that says, “My phone doesn’t ring, so leave a message and I’ll call you back when I’ve noticed that you’ve called.” Yes, I get comments about how I should get my phone fixed/repaired. But it’s not for lack of trying.

I currently have an iPhone 3G that I bought about a year and a half ago. Sadly, I’m a little hard on cell phones, partially because of my job. About 2-3 months ago, I had my cell phone in my hand and went to put it on the kitchen counter, but missed it and it fell on the floor. This hasn’t been the first time that I’ve dropped the phone, but I usually have a case on it. I didn’t this time. The result was that the phone completely functions, short of the fact that the speaker on it no longer works. This means that I can’t use the speaker phone or hear the phone ring.

So, I decided to wait for the iPhone 4.. I knew that there would be hype about it and that it would be hard to find. I have a friend that went to the Apple store in Toronto the day it came out and had a prolonged wait even after the store opened just to get one. I’m eager to get it, but not that eager!

So, since then, I’ve been popping into various Fido retail locations to see if it’s been in. The first couple weeks I expected it to not be in. But it’s been a month since it’s been released and stores are getting very few in.. And there seems to be no sign of a mass release in the near future..

I went to school for marketing, so I understand the rationale behind building demand and hype about a product such as this. But seriously! For me, this is now becoming an annoyance. Here I am, a customer willing to give money for a product that is being withheld by the manufacturer. I like Apple products, but I’m getting a little pissed. I tried asking the rep in the Fido store in Coquitlam Centre today when did she think that they would have a regular supply. Well, she kept cutting me off and not letting me finish my question. I tried to say that I have no problem waiting, but am I likely waiting a couple weeks before the market is adequately supplied with the phone or am I looking at 3-4 months. I’m sure she gets similar questions all day and every day, and I don’t envy her having to explain it over and over.. But I just need a new phone. One that rings!

So.. If someone from Apple happens to read this, I just want a damn iPhone 4! Stop withholding the product and release it outright. Demand doesn’t need to be built up for a product that you KNOW is going to be in high demand. You are just pissing off a lot of people and wasting their time by going to various retailers looking for it. I do have better things to do with my time than to chase down a product that you apparently want to sell.

START SELLING IT!

I just got the most entertaining e-mail.  I thought that I’d share it with everyone!

As I posted yesterday, I’m trying to track down and buy a Nintendo Wii for Christmas this year.  In addition to me calling store upon store, I thought that I’d put an “item wanted” ad on Craigslist and Kijiji.  While on those sites, I came across an ad stating that he had a total of 6 for sale.  So, I e-mailed him to say that I was interested..  Here was his reply:

Price: $300.
Free shipping.
This is new in sealed box and with 1 year warranty.
Shipping method: eBay Courier.
Time delivery: 3 days.
 
I’m from Romania and in my country PayPal service is not available yet.
We can use eBay Exchange Package.
I’ll send the product via eBay Courier 3 days Air.
After that you will receive the instructions for payment via email and you will send the money via Western Union to an eBay agent.
eBay will inspect the goods and will confirm the payment and will make the exchange.
This method is ok for you?
 
I’ll wait for your reply asap!
 
Best regards!

Well..  Let me tell you..  I laughed my ass off!   I then replied that I know a scam when I see it… 

That should take care of that! 

Today, I’ve implemented an idea I’ve had for a while..

About 3 years ago, I made a growth chart for my kids…  It’s wood, with five objects on it.. my kids love it.. 

So, I’ve decided to try selling them.. and more..

I’m working on a few ideas, but I’ve got a webpage just for these things that I make..

http://camscraft.eagleinbc.com.. 

We’ll see how well I do…  Fortunatley, the majority of it I can do sitting, so it shouldn’t be too hard on my back..

A couple days ago, I left the house to go out, armed my alarm, and left..  I came home a couple hours later, disarmed it, and then proceeded to my dining room. 

Now, I live close to some train tracks (within 300 feet), so it’s common place for me to hear trains going by, even with the doors and windows closed..  But as I was setting down the bag from the grocery store on the table, I noticed that the train going by seemed a little louder today..

I had gone out, armed the alarm with the sliding patio door open.  This door has a wireless sensor on it..  But it appears that I left, and the alarm never detected that the door was open.  Alarmforce never contact my cell (like they claimed they would) to notify me of an alarm if there is no answer on their two-way voice technology….

Another reason that Alarmforce is a bunch of crap…

I’ve decided to devote a page to recalls. This can be found at (http://blog.eagleinbc.com/canadian-recall-list/).  As I’ve stated in a previous post “Getting Tired of Recalls“, I think that the recall situation is getting out of hand.

So, this is for recalls that I come across.  By no means is anyone to assume that this is a complete list.  Also, this will be mainly a Canadian List (But very often, Canadian/USA ones are the same).

If you have one to add, please feel free!  My main source will be from Health Canada, but I may use others as well..

Overall, I think that awareness is key.  The more sources that list the info, the more likely that it is that more people are going to  get the message.

Thanks!

Cam…

(Please note that this list is effective as of today, October 9, 2007.  I may refer back to older ones though)

I thought I’d leave a follow-up comment on AlarmForce.  A few weeks ago, I put a post up about my disatisfaction with how AlarmForce handled my back-up battery replacement.  The battery arrived, about three days after this post.  It was simple enough to replace, but I am now stuck with this dead battery that contains lead.  At some point, I’m sure that I’ll find a place to dispose of it.

Overall, I am not impressed with Alarmforce’s service or technology.  The system (at least in Canada), is a joke.  It’s a small box that plugs into the phone jack.  It isn’t integrated into the phone system to ensure that it has priority over the dial tone.  (I work for Shaw Cable. Part of my job entails hooking up phone service for customers; I know how alarm systems SHOULD be hooked up).  It’s very “mickey mouse” really.

In short, if you live in Canada at least, I would NOT recommend AlarmForce as an alarm company.  You can be sure that when my contract with them is up, I’ll be switching.

Since I seem to be on a bit of a rant this morning, I figure, why stop at toy recalls!

I have had an alarm system from AlarmForce for a couple years now.  Overall, I’m not very impressed with there alarm system.  They advertise a free alarm system, but there “free system” doesn’t include much, so you end up buying lots of add-ons to actually make it worth having an alarm from them.  Without getting into the technical details, I’ll just say

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