Austin360 blogs > Digital Savant > Archives > 2006 > December > 26 > Entry
Stuff Don’t Work Day
Happy “The Gadget I Got for Christmas Doesn’t Work” Day!
As the complexity of our digital cameras, game consoles, TVs and music players grows, it’s not enough just to read the manual. You practically have to have a post-grad degree from MIT to set up that new HDTV set.
I was going to write an entry about how to give gifts to the non-gadget inclined, but since we’re way past that, let’s focus on what to do when the gift you received (thanks, gift-givers!) doesn’t work the way it should.
First … deep breaths. If you rushed to open that digital camera and take pictures while the gift wrapping was still weeping its torn tears, you may have realized that it doesn’t come with a memory card or you were given the wrong kind of memory card. That’s OK! Memory cards are easy to return and a decent-sized card (about 1 gigabyte is good if you’re not taking poster-sized photos) isn’t too expensive. Most run about $20-$50 now depending on speed. Also, make sure to charge that camera or get the appropriate batteries before you start complaining about that flash failing to go off.
If you’re setting up a home theater, you may need professional help. There’s some good advice for calibration and chronic problems with certain TV sets at the ever-reliable AVS forums. Go ahead and register and post questions in the appropriate areas if you need guidance. AVS geeks love to help and offer advice. But do a search first to make sure your question hasn’t already been asked and answered.
Setting up an MP3 player’s not as easy as it sounds. You’ll need to hook it up to a computer and set up the appropriate software to get tunes from your hard drive to the player. IPods use Apple’s iTunes software, which you’ll need to download. Other devices use programs including Windows Media Player or MusicMatch Jukebox. You’ll definitely need to check out the manual unless you have one of those easy-to-use USB players that allow you to just drag-and-drop MP3 files onto them. Bless these little devices for their simplicity. You’ll also need to either download some music (hey, it’s Sufjan Stevens’ five-disc Christmas epic!) or import music to your computer from CDs you own. Don’t worry. Doing so is perfectly legal. It’s your music!
If something about your gadget is genuinely defective (say it spontaneously combusts or comes pre-loaded with pornography), you can try calling the tech support number in your manual (or hitting up the manufacturer’s Web site) or simply taking the item back.
If it’s an open video game, DVD or music CD and there’s no actual defect, you’re out of luck trying to return the item, even if it’s awful. But if there’s a scratch on a disc or some other defect that happened before you opened the product, most stores will take the item back.
Most hardware (printers, TVs, cameras, computer accessories) is returnable within the retailer’s grace period for returning merchandise, though gadgets like cell phones sometimes have a much shorter window for returns. Last year, I got the run-around on returning a defective Razr phone because I took it back to a store a day after the 15-day return period had passed. I had to contact Cingular directly to get mine replaced.
If you feel a bit overwhelmed by the holidays, wait until the weekend or when you have a few spare hours to start using your new toys. There’s nothing worse than trying to get something to work when you’re running late to meet relatives or have to get up early the next morning for work. Relax: that GPS navigation device isn’t going anywhere (until you take it with you).
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