Choice (Chippendale, Australia) articles from December 2006

Choice (Chippendale, Australia) archives from December 2006

CHOICE in the media.
December 1, 2006... In the past few months you may have noticed that CHOICE and its ground-breaking research have been mentioned in the media more often. This is part of a new strategy to give us more prominence in the media by sometimes releasing information to...

Nothing for something.(choice cuts)(mobile billing scheme)
December 1, 2006... Jennifer from Queensland is a busy working mum with two teenage boys. Like plenty of parents she's given her kids mobile phones so she can easily stay in touch with them. Recently Jennifer was shocked to receive a phone bill showing her...

All froth and bubble?(choice cuts)(new espresso machine by MUKKA Express )(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... The MUKKA Express Cappuccino Maker sounds like a great concept in theory. Rather than fiddle about with a full espresso machine at home or queue up in a cafe for your morning fix, the MUKKA promises a frothy cappuccino or smooth Latte, all from...

LG air conditioner troubles.(choice cuts)
December 1, 2006... If you bought an LG air conditioner between 2002 and 2005 you may be entitled to a rebate after a number of models were found not to comply with their claimed energy efficiency labels. Three years after CHOICE first raised concerns about...

Household budget stress reliever.(choice cuts)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... Interest rate rises and high petrol prices have put the average household budget under stress. Knowing how to beat the supermarket sales tactics and when to buy 'no name' brands can save you hundreds each year. Use these CHOICE shopping tips:...

Buying diamond?(choice cuts)(certification required)
December 1, 2006... If you have an engagement or special anniversary coming up and want to indulge your significant other with a significant diamond, you may have heard of the 'four Cs' that determine the price of diamonds: carat weight, colour, clarity and cut....

Multitasking can backfire.(WORLD CONSUMER SNAPSHOT)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... Next time your boss or significant other wants you to do more than one thing at a time, you could tell them of the findings of a 2005 University of Oregon study. In the US, Consumer Reports on Health reports on the study, which found that: ...

Teatime in England.(WORLD CONSUMER SNAPSHOT)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... With 165 million cups drunk a day, you could well call tea a national obsession in England. But the English don't just love their tea, now they're also growing their own, in Cornwall, reports Which? magazine in the UK. However, it's unlikely to...

... And in Germany.(WORLD CONSUMER SNAPSHOT)(using boiling water for herbal tea)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... Also on the subject of tea, Germany's Test magazine reminds its readers to use only boiling water when brewing herbal teas, which include camomile, mint, fennel, hibiscus and anything that isn't based on black tea. Herbal and fruit teas may...

Credit card fees.(Letter to the editor)
December 1, 2006... Recently, with my wife overseas and using one of my two VIRGIN MasterCards, my card wasn't accepted at the grocer's. I called VIRGIN and was told my card had gone over its limit. I sent a cheque, and with the weekend and processing taking a...

Salon smells.(Letter to the editor)
December 1, 2006... I am writing about your article Nail file (CHOICE, September 2006). We have nail salons in two of the large indoor shopping centres near us and in both cases there are terrible, eye-shattering smells coming out of them. In one case the salon is...

Medicines information.(Letter to the editor)
December 1, 2006... Thanks for picking up the problem of Consumer Medicines Information (CMI) leaflets (Choice Cuts, August 2006). Health consumers know the present system isn't working for us. What we need is a fail-safe system, so that if one source of CMI fails...

Letter of the month.
December 1, 2006... We want to hear from you--your experiences help our research and often let other readers know about scams and rip-offs. Positive outcomes you've had to a complaint you took to a manufacturer, retailer, importer or tradesperson interest us too....

Thumbs up!
December 1, 2006... * When the 15-year-old TUPPERWARE in Samantha Meynert's pantry started to smell strange she thought she'd have to throw it away. But after she contacted TUPPERWARE it checked one of the items and agreed to replace the lot free.

Food of the gods? Those with a sweet tooth should be satisfied with many of these selections of boxed chocolates, but overall they're not top-notch, according to our tasters.(TASTE TEST: Chocolates)(Cover story)
December 1, 2006... You'd be hard-pressed to find someone not happy to rip the wrapping off their Christmas present and find a big box of chocolates inside. It's the kind of gift you can grab from the local supermarket at the last minute, or agonise over at a...

Top dollar drugs: are you paying over the odds for prescription drugs?(PHARMACIES: Prescription drugs)
December 1, 2006... The next time you pay for a prescription medicine, take a look at what it costs--you could be paying too much. In theory, there's only so much you should have to pay for PBS medicines (prescription drugs covered by the Pharmaceutical...

Dangerous dog leads: you really wouldn't expect a dog lead to cause a serious injury--but it can happen.(PRODUCT SAFETY)
December 1, 2006... Nothing out of the ordinary had led up to the terrible, life-changing injury nine-year-old Louise Hiatt of Caravonica, Queensland, suffered last January. She'd been walking the family's dachshund when the dog responded to another dog's barking...

Affordable fizz: sixty-six sparkling wines on test, with many costing less than they did two years ago. All the more reason to toast--cheers!(TEST: Sparkling wines and champagne)
December 1, 2006... You'll no doubt have noticed that prices of Australian wines have dropped considerably over recent years. Many of the sparkling wines we bought for this report cost us less than two years ago; in fact, in the lowest price bracket up to $10, two...

Christmas credit deals: low-cost deals for those who pay on time, exorbitant interest rates for those who don't--and a warning about deals to avoid.(MONEY: Store finance)
December 1, 2006... Joanne from Melbourne wished she'd paid closer attention to the fine print in her store finance contract when she was debited more than six monthly payments after her two-year lease payment term ended. The problem was she forgot to notify the...

Staying afloat: choosing and using kid's flotation aids.(SAFETY: Children's flotation aids)
December 1, 2006... Kids love splashing about in pools and at the beach, so for their own safety it's important that they become competent swimmers as early as possible. Many parents use kids' flotation aids--often just called floaties, after the popular...

What will digital TV mean to you? Honey, I shrank the TV!(REPORT: Digital TV)
December 1, 2006... In its latest announcement about digital TV the Federal Government decreed that analogue TV will be switched off sometime between 2010 and 2012. This means your normal analogue TV will go blank if you haven't invested in a set-top-box by that...

Home loan tips.(hip pocket)
December 1, 2006... The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) increased interest rates by 0.25% to 6.25% in November, the third increase in 2006. Banks and other lenders followed suit and standard variable home loan rates went up to about 8% on average. If you're on a...

High-definition hype: is it worth paying more for a high-definition plasma TV?(TEST: 106 cm plasma TVs)
December 1, 2006... If you believe the current marketing hype, anything with the words 'high definition' plastered across it is necessarily a better-quality product. It's easy to be impressed by a salesperson quoting pixel counts and tuner types, but what does it...

Summer sizzle: summertime means barbecues: we put the latest to the test.(TEST: Barbecues)
December 1, 2006... It's summertime--long days, warm nights, backyard cricket and some steaks and snags sizzling away on the barbie. Aussies have always loved their barbecues and it seems nothing has changed; they're just as popular as ever. But one thing...

Safer than safe: all the tested models meet the stringent requirements of the standard, but some offer extra protection.(CARS: Child car restraints)
December 1, 2006... Every year, many children are injured or killed in car crashes. Many of these could be prevented by the use of a correctly fitted child restraint of the right type for the child's size. All child restraints sold in Australia must meet...

The end of tape? The majority of models in this test record on a system other than tape. How do they compare?(TEST: Digital camcorders)
December 1, 2006... Traditionally, camcorders have used various tape formats to record your videos. However, the days of the tape may be numbered--Digital8 is already a system of the past, and at least some manufacturers have started to reduce their range of...

Recalls & bans.(defects in food items)
December 1, 2006... Nowadays there are so many product recalls we may not be able to print all of them in CHOICE. For comprehensive recall information go to the Product Recalls Australia website: www.recalls.gov.au. If you don't have web access, call the Product...