The Sales

Mrs EP wanted to go to the John Lewis sales. She had nothing particular in mind other than possibly getting some new bed linen, and I thought I would look round the electricals as I want a new radio for the lounge because the CD player and the cassette recorder in the existing one have decided to die on me.  On the way back, we would pop into the nearby Asda and get some milk.
So much for the plan.
We were about three-quarters of a mile from our destination when traffic came to a crawl and then almost to a dead stop. Perhaps there is an accident ahead, we thought. But realistically, traffic going to anywhere else but John Lewis was maybe a few dozen cars an hour, and after waiting for about ten minutes and moving a few cars lengths we decided that even if we got to John Lewis, shopping wouldn't be a pleasant experience.
So down the next side turning to Asda for the milk. But not only did we get the milk, but Mrs EP found a duvet set she liked, all without all the hassle of the scrum at a sale.

I still haven't found my radio; I want a FM radio with a CD player and some means of recording so that I can record programmes and listen to them later, usually in the car. The cassette recorder served me well over the years, but it seems modern radios record to memory cards, and I need one that records in a format that will be recognised by my car radio if the recording is transferred to a memory stick. Some apparently encrypt the recording in a format that can only be replayed on the original radio, and it is difficult to discover which record in MP3 format which the car radio requires (most claim to re-play MP3 recordings, but that is a different matter!). Hence my willingness to visit JL where one can normally get good technical advice, unlike some of the other majors who sell such items.

Oh well, clearly further research on-line is necessary.

Advertising Standards

I recently purchased a TomTom GPS unit from John Lewis,
I did so after searching the Web for and comparing the various makes and models which were available, and of course the prices.
 The TomTom appeared to have a good reputation, and I chose the latest model "XXL IQ Routes" after deciding that I didn't want live updates to warn me of traffic jams and re-route me if necessary, as I don't do a big enough mileage these days to justify the subscription. This was the top of the range model without this facility.
One of the features that I liked as shown on their web site was the latest map guarantee

I tried out the unit on a couple of short trips, and a few days later decided to connect it to my computer and update the maps. This was the message that came up:

(click image for larger version)

In other words, although I had complied with the requirement of downloading the updates well within 30 days of purchase, they wanted £15.90 for the update, as there had been two quarterly updates since this model came out. Not quite what their web page said! 

I complained to John Lewis (as the retailer), and without any hesitation they refunded the cost of the update, which is the reason that I usually to shop there as I have found their customer service is second to none.

I also lodged a complaint with the Advertising Standards Authority, but it would appear that they can't take any action against this type of statement on a company's web site, as one has chosen to access it much in the same way as when one walks into a store an asks the salesman for information, which they also don't control..

In that most technical information about most products is now generally only available on the web, it seems that the only way of ensuring one gets what one wants is to specifically ask the salesman about every feature in which one might be interested and not to be fobbed off with "have a look at the manufacturer's web site".

Full marks for John Lewis; Zero for the ASA.

And the moral?

Don't believe a word that you read on a manufacturer's web site!