Here's a little blend of 2012 insanity for you...
Mobile Phone's: Crapitalism at it's best?
Why's that then? Hokay ... we ready?
First, any mobile you get on a pay monthly is locked to that network. Doesn't need to be. If you had a good network and decent bill's you'd be happy to stay with them. Right? And when you upgrade and get a new phone, what does the old one become? A brick? You can't just stick a sim in it and use it on another network without (usually) an unlocking charge.
Then there's contract length. Every upgrade, every buy in, you get locked in to a contract length. Semi fair enough. They need to cover the cost of that lovely new mobile they just gave you for peanuts. But why isn't there a "minimal payback" option? Why can't you say "Hey I want to move to a different provider and not use any of your services, what's the monthly charge for that then?".
It gets better! "Pay As You Go". I don't know if any of you noticed, but that is now a mythical beast. It's now, pay monthly for a bundle as you go, which is pretty much the same as a monthly contract, but you don't get tied into a contract length .. yay! Er. No. You end up paying as much for a sim over the months and unlocking an old phone as you would going for the pay monthly by contract with upgrade option.
It's a locked in model of crapitalism, from the throw away phone culture to opaque package deals, hidden costs to keep your number, unlock your phone, close the contract, add more data, and mr or mrs happy at the end of the phone line selling you the next fantastic contract, will always without fail try and sell you a contract that costs more and provides more than you need.
Ideal world? The one that doesn't exist? Pay as you go *does* mean something. You pay a flat rate per minute voice and data, if you run out, it stops, you don't get smacked with a huge charge with no warning. No contract to worry about. Absolute transparency. Also? You get your phone on a monthly contract unlocked or free to unlock. Sure let them have a shot at reducing the stupidly expensive monthly deal they sold you to keep you on. Fair enough. But ring this number and free unlock with a sales pitch and we're sorry you want to leave us.
Ink
Got a printer?
Think again.
You've actually got an ink sales device.
For a vast number of printers you've had for a year or so, when it comes to buying a new set of ink cartridges, you may just dig around, swear at how expensive they are and buy a set.
Did you think of checking how much an equally good printer is these days including a first set of ink? Hey! Guess what! Probably cheaper or around the same price you just paid for a set of ink cartridges.
Wait what?
Nope. Doesn't make any sense at all does it?
Oh ok, so I'll refill the cartridges I've got with cheaper ink. Cunning plan! Except ... all ink jet printers I know of now have chipped cartridges, not only do they tell you they have run out very often before they actually have run out, but if you take one out, drill a hole, fill it and replace it? The printer will still say it's empty. It's ok you can get around this. You can buy a complete set of resettable chip cartridges and the ink. YAY! Oh. Wait. That costs more than buying a new printer again.
Ink jet printers are a superb example of crapitalism at it's very worst. Discard-able culture, inventing value in what should be the cheap consumable and a mountain of "dead" printers in the junk yards of the world.
Computer says "No".
In a way, it's not the poor soul at the phone help desk's fault. They just get to deliver a shit service dictated by the company and financial limits... Let me explain...
Phone support for pretty much any company you want to mention is a crap paid job. It's front line against pissed off customers and not very rewarding. The churn rate is generally horrible even if it is off-shored.
So when you and your complex little world meets the phone number of customer support doom? You're basically dealing with someone who has a little more than the FAQ you just had access to on the webpage to ring them, very little company loyalty, and no reason on earth to really care about how the company works because that doesn't pay extra, and "Hey I'm applying for different jobs already!", who can blame them?
So what you get is a little maze of "press #". If you're lucky, that actually matches up with your particular problem. Fairly often, you don't quite fit. You've got a couple of questions that fit more than one menu option, or you just don't fit the template. You end up with generic support person at the end of the phone.
Generic support person cares sometimes that they don't get flak for being crap and unhelpful. That next job application hasn't come back yet, so polite is built in to the pay packet. Sadly knowledge, an urge to actually help beyond the script and FAQ they have, or the time to spend 30 mins on your particular problem, isn't on the menu.
I tend to find, the end result is that the only way to get anywhere with a problem that doesn't fit exactly the cookie cutter answer sheet is to threaten legal action and get very pissed off until they escalate the case to middle management and someone who half gives a shit. Ok. That's generous. One hundredth gives a shit. They may have to add to the company FAQ manual with a non-conformance issue if this gets logged and that means work! Way easier just monitoring the phone pit peons for throughput, length of loo breaks and attitude to earn a living. That stuff is automated.
Basically. It's the crap cleaning, toilet washing glamour end of the industry. You buy the product? It all works fine in 75% of cases? Fantastic. Give us the money. You're in the 20% of foul up that easily fit a problem we know about or don't want to kick up a fuss? Fantastic. Computer FAQ via a voice line that you could have read up on the website for yourself is here to help. You're in the 5% that wants to kick up a fuss or doesn't fit the template? ... Get angry and try and make waves if you like. It'll take legal action to make a difference or you can just bin the company and move on to the next, exactly the same phone support model company in the same industry.
It sucks.