Thursday, May 27, 2010

Civilization and Its Discontents

I had to run to the store to get some cold medicine -- my wife and I have caught the current viral URI going around in our family, sneezing, coughing, so I figured, what the heck, I'll pick up a spare battery for my new cell phone since I have to go out anyhow. Switch 'em and batteries last longer when it comes to recharging, so the story goes.

Been a while since I went looking for cell phone batteries. Things have changed.

First, Best Buy and Office Depot not only didn't have the battery for which I was looking, they didn't have any cell phone batteries at all.

The AT&T store would order it for me. The Battery Store didn't have any in stock, but they'd order it for me, too -- for $38.00

Thirty-eight-dollars?

Not a prayer, I told the clerk.

What happened here?

I came home and got on the web and found prices all over the map, but the battery I need I can get from Amazon.com for $7.77, plus about three bucks for delivery. New in the package.

Want to guess where I buy my back-up battery?

5 comments:

  1. Similar battery-buying confusion when my garage door opener suddenly gave up the ghost. The battery inside is like a AAA cut in half. The guys at Best Buy were befuddled; though I eventually found a pack in the giant rack o' batteries they have in some random open space in the store.

    Amazon.com just has everything. I probably buy half my disposable-income purchases there. I found a used copy of Uriah Heep's Demons and Wizards on TAPE for my dad today.

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  2. Well believe it or not 38 dollars isn't too bad. i tried to replace the battery in my old phone and it was 70 dollars. Half the time it is cheaper to get a new phone! Probably why US Cellular offers free battery switching now. Langdon

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  3. Best place for weird batteries is, in my experience, Radio Shack. They can figure out what it is in "US" codes when you're only given "European" codes, or what the size of that weird battery is pretty reliably.

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  4. Amazon is good for some things, but often I can find the best price on good ol' Ebay.

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  5. Amazon is good for some things, but often I can find the best price on good ol' Ebay.

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