Big stores, model numbers, and apps that compare prices

[micky]

Crazy Eddie advertised that if you could find the same model cheaper somewhere else, he would give you the difference, or maybe more than the difference.

But Crazy Eddie was big enough that manufacturers used different model numbers for him, so iiuc no one could ever find the same model, cheaper or not.

There are phone apps that compare prices from store to store. 1) Are they not stymied by this practice?????

I'm thinking BestBuy is big enough to have its own set of model numbers so there is no point in installing one of those apps or even looking on a competitor's webpage to see the price of a model I'm interested in. 2) Is that true????? Or do the apps know the set of model numbers for the same item at different stores????

It's not the 5 or 10 dollars that interests me so much, just learning more about marketing, showing the more expensive store can't fool me, and proving I can find the cheapest price if I try.

Of course, since bestbuy normally hands it to you then and there and Amazon for example makes you wait a a few hours to a few days, the comparison is already ruined. But questions 1 and 2 above still remain.

[Peter]

In my experience, most technology manufacturers seem to require all their authorized retailers to sell most or all of their merch at the manufacturer's list price and don't play the custom model numbering game. I doubt if Best Buy could work the deal you mention although their "Insignia" brand of items usually seem to be identical or only trivially different than more expensive items made by better known manufacturers. My old 5.1 Insignia AVR has the same specs and almost the same cabinet as an Onkyo AVR that was manufactured in the same time period. I wonder who makes Monoprice's "Monolith" brand of products?

The most egregious example of custom model naming/model numbering is in the retail mattress business. They are notorious for intentionally using name/model numbers that are unique to their store's inventory even if the mattress is made by Sealy, Beautyrest, etc. No way to compare apples to apples from one store's "sale" price to another.

[rbowman]

Sometimes the model number isn't enough, and you really need a SKU. I bought an Acer monitor at CostCo that I used at work. A couple of years later I set up a new machine at home and was having problems with the sound output. I looked up the Acer model number and it said it had speakers so I swapped monitors to try the HDMI output. That's when I found it didn't have speakers. Some do, some don't, and the CostCo ones didn't.

That's not a complaint about Costco. It's a good monitor, the price was right, and the box didn't mention speakers. I solved the sound problem at home so I didn't need the option.

I try to avoid Walmart but they tend to have their own variants that are often cheaper, as in poorer quality.

[micky]

Thanks. Monoprice has great prices.

Well, Black Friday ends in 2 hours, at midnight, although maybe I had until it ended in California. But I forgot all that and thought I only had until the store closed at 10.

I did look up 3 models for sale at BestBuy on Amazon, and all three were there but none had prices, almost as if they were old models but probably not. I wanted to see what Amazon would charge for the same thing, and I like their photographs and description, questions and ratings better.

But they were there and the pictures matched. None of that Crazy Eddie stuff.

I wanted to get a fancy one, but they all had problems and I ended up gettting the 2nd cheapst, $100. It occurs to me that if Iget my act togeher for a better one, I have a friend who could probably use this one.

I waneted to get sensor cook/reheat, but the ones I looked at you had to tap in what kind of food it is. Thinking is not my strong suit. I can guess at the right cooking time on my own.

A couple could connect to Alexa! I'll never use that. Another had scan to cook. You use your phone to scan the barcode from the food and it sets the oven. I'd have to turn on my phone to use that.

But why do so many things have the mw cooking time in dark red letters ona medium red background? Why is the print for cooking time the smallest on the package?

And why do they say to slit the cellophane atop the frozen food when it's easier to pick up a corner with your fingers? I think one said to make several slits, but I guarantee, only one was needed.

Why am I not in charge of these things?

Good to know.

I should probably buy a mattress, but my stairs are too crowded with stuff to bring a big mattress up the stairs. I'll bet that, and small cars, is one reason roll-up foam mattresses have become popular.

[rbowman]

Alexa might be history soon. It's been a loser for Amazon, with the hardware selling below cost many times. The theory was people would use Alexa to order stuff from Amazon. In practice most of what goes on is 'Alexa, what time is it?' or 'Alexa, play Taylor Swift'. It may be convenient for the users but there's no way to monetize it.

The division loses about 5 billion a year. Employees in that are should be polishing their resumes as Amazon looks to cut costs.

[Ed Pawlowski]

Alexa controls a couple of lights and it plays music for an hour when I go to bed. In the four years for so I've had it, I've not done anything the involved money in any way. Alexa, turn off bedroom

[rbowman]

People like you are exactly why Amazon has lost billions on the damn things :) House automation on the cheap wasn't in the game plan.

[micky]

Me too but only ssometimes. I bought an early model -- I think that's the reason -- of the one shaped like a cylinder of salt, and it has only

10 volume levels. And one will be too loud and the next too soft. and I dont' think the speaker is good either. Lucky me, I noticed the radio right next to it is bluetooth, and that solves those two problems, but with the radio on FM, I have 5 stations and can change with the push of a button. With alexa, it's not so hard but it's much harder than tapping a button.

Sometimes Alexa claims it does't have a radio station even though it had it yesterday. "I can't help you with that" or something like that.

Once in a while it can't find the internet, even though wifi is on.

Me neither. The Alexa mw enabled one to control the mw oven with voice commands from any room. Well, only if the room has Alexa and I have only one, upstairs. Don't I have to be in the kitchen to put the food in the oven? That's when I'll turn it on!

[Cindy Hamilton]

You don't know what kind of food you're eating?

What brand of highly processed food do you eat? (Just curious.)

They want the company name and other advertising to be large and the picture of the food to be appetizing. The instructions are squeezed in where they fit.

Perhaps you need a magnifying glass.

Probably to keep the opening from being near the edge of the container, where boilovers are more likely to happen.

You said it yourself: "Thinking is not my strong suit". Nobody would put such a person in charge.

[micky]

I have to think about it. An extra, challenging step.

This might have been Campbell's soup in the single serving almost-metal container. But a lot of them are hard to read. I'll try to get back to you with more of them.

I guess that's it.

I have several, but none in the kitchen. When I'm a tourist, I keep one in the car and one in my room. The words are bigger; it's some sort of witchcraft.

Maybe, but none of mine ever boil over.

It didn't stop them with trump!

[Cindy Hamilton]

It's good when your brain gets exercise.

Campbell's looks like white on red, unless I'm not finding the "almost-metal" container.

Amazingly, there's a difference between being hired and being elected. Hiring generally requires evidence of competence.

[Clare Snyder]

One person is generally responsible for hiring - and GENERALLY that person is in that position fue to some level of expertise. Presidents are elected -by many people - people like Micky - - -

[rbowman]

And if you don't think that scares me... I don't have a solution other than decentralization to limit the damage to a local area but look around the next time you're in Walmart and consider that is the electorate on the hoof.

[Wade Garrett]

Yeah, and also the jury pool.

I had a side-gig for 25 years as an expert witness and testified many hundreds of times. Damned scary who sits in judgement...

[Frank]

The mickys of the world let others do their thinking.

[hubops]

Pardon the dig at Americans - we have a deep need to do that - often - in order to feed our smarmy smugness.

John T.

[micky]

That was a very mild dig. No problem.

I've only missed one election in the last 54 yeers, counting school board (even when I had no kids in school) and constitutional convention.

The one i missed, I couldn't get out of work in time. There was no early voting then and I retired so it won't happen again.

[rbowman]

I don't find the Canadians from our neighbor, Alberta, smarmy. In fact, they seem to hate the eastern city-slickers as much as we hate ours. Trudeau couldn't find Alberta on a map and I doubt Biden includes Montana in his 54 states.

[rbowman]

I've only been on one jury. About 15 minutes in the judge called the prosecution into his chambers, ripped him a new one, came out, and apologized for wasting our time.

The lawyer for the state must have missed the part about knowing what your star witness is going to say before putting her on the stand.

[Clare Snyder]

Good one, John!!