Choice (Chippendale, Australia) articles from November 2006

Choice (Chippendale, Australia) archives from November 2006

Spotlight on childcare.
November 1, 2006... "I had to accept a centre I'm not comfortable with, as it was the only one available." "When I looked at childcare facilities I was alarmed at the small number of staff catering for a big number of children. So many babies and toddlers...

Cots.(Correction notice)
November 1, 2006... CHOICE, October 2006 In What to look for on page 43, the text should have read: "Any large space between adjacent components must be between 50 mm and 95 mm to avoid the baby's head getting trapped." This ensures the gap is wide enough not...

Selling your property.(Can you help?)
November 1, 2006... If you're thinking about selling your home or investment property (or know somebody who is), CHOICE would love to hear from you or them. We're researching the property sales process and gathering information about sellers' experiences. To...

Borrowing against your home.(Can you help?)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... We need your help with research into reverse mortgages. A reverse mortgage allows someone aged 60 or over to borrow money against the value of their home. The amount you owe increases over time as interest and fees are added. It usually...

Vegetarian benefits?(choice cuts)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Vegetarians in western countries tend to enjoy a good level of health, partly because they have reasonably healthy diets in terms of factors like fat composition, and partly because they have a tendency to be more health-conscious than average...

ASIC watches credit card advertising.(choice cuts)
November 1, 2006... The Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) recently held discussions with two credit card companies over concerns about their advertising, with the following good outcomes for consumers being agreed: * GE MONEY will refund...

Rubbing it in.(choice cuts)(applying sunscreen)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Most people don't use nearly enough sunscreen to properly protect their skin in the sun. But new research confirms that it's not just how much you put on, but how you apply it counts too. Researchers in the UK, keen to protect the...

Reporting problems with medicines.(choice cuts)(Adverse Medical Events)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... You'll still be able to report your negative experiences with medicines following the Pharmacy Guild's decision to provide funding for the Adverse Medical Events (AME) line. The AME line was established in 2000 and is staffed by...

Coffee without a bitter aftertaste.(choice cuts)
November 1, 2006... In a January 2003 article on fair trading, CHOICE reported that Europe and North America were ahead of Australia for availability of Fairtrade products and a labelling structure. Happily, the situation here has improved significantly. ...

If there's no fresh air.(WORLD CONSUMER SNAPSHOT)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Our counterparts in the US recently reviewed Whirlpool's $US250 'fabric freshener', a garment-bag-sized, fold-out steam chamber designed to remove odours and wrinkles, just with steam, no chemicals. They put in several rumpled dress shirts and...

Watch care for psychics.(WORLD CONSUMER SNAPSHOT)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... India's Insight magazine gives its readers 10 tips on how to take care of your watch--good advice, considering a watch can be expensive and tends to get a fair bit of wear. However, while we fully agree with tip number 10 (never leave a drained...

Typing by stealth.(WORLD CONSUMER SNAPSHOT)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... The movie Das Boot is about a "black and mysterious" submarine that glides beneath the waves sinking enemy ships. Now comes the first stealth keyboard, reports Which? magazine in the UK. 'Das Keyboard' is black all over and has no markings on...

Saving water.(your letters)(Letter to the editor)
November 1, 2006... I wish to draw your attention to an omission from your article In hot water (CHOICE, September 2006). There's no reference at all to low-pressure gravity-fed hot-water systems. Low-pressure hot-water systems usually last between 12 and 20...

Co-payment confusion.(your letters)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... I recently had a minor surgical procedure in a private hospital. I walked into the operating theatre, climbed onto the operating table and, when the procedure was over, got off and walked to the waiting room. I had to wait for an hour...

Cutting it fine.(online money transfer)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Whenever possible, I arrange to have my bills paid by direct debit from my account. I always leave it until the day the payment is due before I make the transfer. But I was just wondering what happens if there's a glitch in this transfer...

Chris, of Monterey Keys, Queensland, awards a 'Thumbs up' to Jarvis Walker.(THUMBS UP!)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Chris, of Monterey Keys, Queensland, awards a 'Thumbs up' to JARVIS WALKER. After his kids tried out their new fishing rods, the reels became stiff and hard to use. He sent an email to the company and received two brand-new (and more expensive)...

Elizabeth, of Sydney, awards a 'Thumbs up' to The Swatch Group for waiving a $120 repair fee and fixing her watch free.(THUMBS UP!)
November 1, 2006... Elizabeth, of Sydney, awards a 'Thumbs up' to THE SWATCH GROUP for waiving a $120 repair fee and fixing her watch free, even though it was out of warranty.

The 2006 Choice Shonky Awards: 10 products to make you weep in despair.(Choice magazines gives awards to best products)(Cover story)
November 1, 2006... CHOICE tests hundreds of products and services each year. Our articles usually emphasise the good performers with our What to buy list and Best Buy recommendations. But we also come across so many duds, bombs and failures, and uncover so many...

Caring for kids: available, affordable, high-quality childcare is still out of reach for many families, according to our recent survey of 1200 parents.(CHOICE SURVEY: Childcare)
November 1, 2006... In June this year CHOICE sent out an Australia-wide survey to people who have children six years or younger and who have used or looked for childcare, to find out their experiences of the childcare system. Respondents told us what problems...

Endless summer: getting the bronzed look without the harmful rays.(testing tanning solutions, purchasing tips)
November 1, 2006... With summer just around the corner, it's time to toss off your winter woollies and get into your shorts and swimmers. But if the thought of baring your pale limbs fills you with dread, you might be planning to use a sunless tanning product....

Play it again: DVD/hard disc recorders can store a lot of TV, but are they easy enough to use?(testing and evaluation)
November 1, 2006... The landscape of home entertainment is changing fast. Heading into the sunset are the chunky TVs and video recorders of the past, and coming in are a seemingly endless line of fresh, new technological options. Plasma and LCD screens, digital...

Mixing it up: does paying more get you a better food processor?(testing food processors, purchasing tips)
November 1, 2006... A food processor can slice, shred, chop and blend foods; some can also mix cakes and knead dough. Add a blender and you can chop nuts and spices, make mayonnaise and crush ice. You can make soup with either of them. Is it worth combining the...

How much sugar? Iced tea isn't as healthy as it's sometimes cracked up to be.(TEST: Iced tea)
November 1, 2006... There's now good evidence that drinking tea can be good for your health. Tea contains a variety of antioxidants (mainly flavonoids), as well as a few other healthy micronutrients. So black and green tea alike can help prevent heart disease and...

I'll have some latex with mine.(latex gloves in food preparation, causes of allergy research)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... A study published recently found that people allergic to latex might have cause for concern from a surprising source--their food. The study found that latex, a type of rubber, can be transferred from food handlers wearing latex gloves in a...

Food safety week.(food bites)
November 1, 2006... It's on again From 13-18 November, and the theme this year is educating young people who are leaving home for the first time about food safety issues. Research by the Food Safety Information Council has found that young people have poor...

A lolly a day keeps the doctor away?(health or nutrition information in food marketing )
November 1, 2006... We know how much manufacturers like to latch on to the latest health or nutrition information in a bid to promote their products. The latest example of this tendency is the result of the recommendation to eat two serves of fruit and five serves...

Do as the cows do: mulching the grass you cut makes a lot of sense, and not just for environmental reasons.(test: petrol lawnmowers/mulchers)(Product/service evaluation)
November 1, 2006... If you want your lawn to look as green and lush as a cow paddock, you've got to do what the cows do--return the nutrients back into the lawn. But with a good mulching mower, you don't need to eat the grass. A lawnmower with a mulching plug...

Inkjet printers: they're cheaper to buy than run.(purchasing tips)(Product/service evaluation)
November 1, 2006... The most expensive thing about owning an inkjet printer is the running cost, and the latest batch of printers tested by CHOICE Computer magazine is no exception. But if you put the cost of their use aside, some are capable of producing very...

Best-value vacs: not too cheap, not too dear ... for best-value cleaning performance, mid-price vacuum cleaners are just right.(testing mid price vacuum cleaners)
November 1, 2006... If you're willing to spend a bit for a good vacuum cleaner but don't want to pay more than you have to, our latest test shows there are several good performers available for a few hundred dollars. Generally, the vacs in this test remove...

Keeping it cool: fridges have to be more energy-efficient than ever before--but this shouldn't come at the cost of good temperature management.(TEST: Fridges)(Product/service evaluation)
November 1, 2006... It may seem obvious: the first task of fridges is to achieve and maintain temperatures suitable to keep food safe and maintain its quality. But since January 2005 all newly produced fridges in Australia have also been required to conform to...

Recalls & bans.(defective products recalled)
November 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...

Hardword.
November 1, 2006... Um... not sure what the point of the antibacterial agent is then--sounds good, though... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Can you get the free mattress if you don't buy the bunk bed? [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Wow, modern technology, eh?...