Chad's News

June 12^th is the US government’s official cutoff date for wireless microphones that transmit in the 700MHz band. Turns out that these microphones, employed by quite a few churches, schools, and sporting venues, have been “squatting” in the upper regions of the UHF television spectrum (specifically channels 52 through 69). As part of the whole DTV transition, those channels are no longer being used for broadcast television, and rights to that part of the spectrum have been sold to various telecom companies. Starting June 12^th it will be illegal to use the old microphones, forcing many organizations to purchase new equipment.

Link: http://arstechnica.com/…

From the article: “An AP investigation has found that, barred from using lead in children’s jewelry, some Chinese manufacturers have substituted cadmium — which is more dangerous.”

Link: http://consumerist.com/…

Amazon has a free promotional code for MP3 downloads, worth $3.00 (essentially three songs). There are no limitations on which songs you can choose, but the code is only valid through November 30th—so use it or lose it.

Link: http://www.amazon.com/…
(via Lifehacker)

Campbell’s has embarked upon an advertising campaign that claims each can of its chicken noodle soup has 32 feet of noodles. A Seattle TV reporter put it to the test, on a football field no less! The linked video shows the result.

Link: http://www.king5.com/…
(via The Consumerist)

The linked article has the best days and times to buy 14 different products.

Link: http://www.billshrink.com/…

I’ve previously heard bad things about the Grand Canyon Skywalk, but the linked article has a very precise explanation of why you don’t want to go there during your vacation. One item being that it will cost you at least $75 per person. The Consumerist did some followup and verified that it’s as bad as the linked article says.

Link: http://travelonthedollar.com/…
(via The Consumerist)

A nice Wendy’s coupon is making the rounds via email, but it’s a fake.

Link: http://consumerist.com/…

If you have an older, less fuel-efficient car and are thinking about buying a new one, then the US government’s CARS program may be for you. It effectively raises the trade-in value of your clunker to either $3500 or $4500, plus whatever you can negotiate for the scrap value. My 1996 S-10 pickup qualifies and is normally worth about $1200, so this program can save some serious money.

Link #1: http://www.cars.gov/

Link #2: http://www.abcactionnews.com/…
(via digg)

Update: The program has been suspended as of midnight on July 30^th, because the government thinks it may have already run out of funds (based on pending sales).

Update #2: The US House of Representatives has allocated an additional $2 billion for the program. This still has to be approved by the Senate and signed into law. I’m not that impressed, however, considering that it took less than a week to burn through the initial $1 billion.

Update #3: An additional $2 billion has been added to the program. Note that CARS is popularly known as “Cash for Clunkers”.

Amazon has an affiliate program where members refer traffic to Amazon for specific products. The members get a percentage of sales made by the referrals. Regular Chad’s News readers will recall that New York state recently decided that an in-state affiliate was sufficient cause to require Amazon to collect state sales taxes on purchases by New York residents. Amazon is challenging this in court as being unconstitutional, but is collecting the tax in the meantime.

Now North Carolina is in the process of changing its tax laws, such that anything purchased through Amazon affiliates in that state would be subject to sales tax. Amazon has preemptively responded to this by shutting down its affiliates in North Carolina. This is an overreaction on the part of Amazon, but the company is very serious about not having to collect sales tax for states in which it doesn’t have a physical presence. State legislatures, however, are reasonably upset over the loss of significant tax revenue to internet retailers. Residents are supposed to voluntarily pay “use taxes” on internet purchases, but that rarely happens.

How this will all end is anyone’s guess. Amazon is up for the fight, however, and the final outcome will be decided in court.

Link #1: http://www.news-record.com/…
(via Slashdot)

Link #2: http://www.news-record.com/…
(via The Consumerist)

Update: Amazon has banned Rhode Island affiliates as well.

If you own a GM vehicle, especially one that’s under warranty or belongs to a soon-to-be discontinued brand, here are some answers on how the bankruptcy will affect you. On the plus side, if you’re up to taking a little risk you can probably get some good deals. All I can say is that I’ve had my Chevy truck for nearly 10 years, and I bought it used. Definitely got my money’s worth.

Link: http://consumerist.com/…

A journalist went “undercover” at a local Wal-Mart to see just how bad of an employer it really was. To his surprise, it was a positive experience. From my time at UPS, I know that labor unions absolutely hate Wal-Mart, so I was a bit surprised as well.

Link: http://www.nypost.com/…
(via Neatorama)

Quiznos is giving out a million coupons for free subs, today. Go to this link to sign up for a coupon.