31 January 2016

Phone Case Woes

When I'm upset or generally just "off" in any way, I tend to shop. Mostly, online, though it does tend to spill over sometimes. Anyhow, I go on Amazon and eBay and buy movies and books mostly, and wall decor and games, and clothes... anything and everything, really. 

I generally have very few problems with the purchasing and receiving of items. Except with one thing lately.

A few months ago I bought a new phone as the screen to my previous one was cracked. It's a nice phone and a relatively expensive one, so naturally I want to keep it protected. So I bought a case. It was a very pretty case made of wood. When it arrived it fit perfectly, huzzah! Except I noted that it was lacking a hole cut where the charging port would be. Obviously a problem. So I wrote to the seller. They told me it was a manufacturing error and that they would make more and send another. A couple weeks went by and I worried about my poor, vulnerable phone, so I contacted them again, asking for a refund and I continued looking for a case.

I decided to go with the super inexpensive ones that are mostly just decorative covers. I assumed that would be good enough. I had a hard time narrowing down the design I wanted, but settled for a map of Middle Earth. Obviously. It arrived from some far away land and I snapped it onto my phone. Not a whole lot of protection, but better than nothing. Until I dropped it and broke a piece off. I contacted the seller for a refund, and realized that though this case fits even with a piece broken, and moderately protects, I need something more sturdy and shock resistant.

I found a case similar to the first one but made of bamboo, that appears to have all the proper cuts in it, and ordered that. It was not as pretty as the first, but it looked nice. I slid my phone in and almost immediately dropped it. Good news: my phone survived without a scratch. The case, not so much. It split down the center and broke in two parts. So I contacted that seller and told them the product was basically useless and I got a refund.

So I thought, the LOTR map one is doing okay, but I needed real protection. Let's up my phone case budget and look at Otter Boxes. Definitely worth the price. Except my phone is the compact or mini version of a phone, so that company doesn't actually make one for my phone. I found a few similar ones, I am trying to keep it slim and small (hence: compact). I don't want the bulky rubber cases I kept finding. But finally I found one. Similar to Otter Box and more affordable from the Amazon Warehouse. I ordered. Package arrived. The case that was sent was for the normal size, not the compact. Bugger. I went through the returns process and after a couple weeks received my refund.

I figured that it was a simple mistake at the warehouse, so I decided to order from the same place again assuming that the mistake would not be repeated. I assumed wrong. Yesterday I received the second phone case. It is for the regular size and not the compact. I am annoyed and frustrated. It's not the money. It's the time. My poor phone is all but unprotected in this harsh world and Amazon is obviously toying with me. I wrote their customer service and they promptly responded, giving me a refund, telling me to order another and send them the order information and they would cover any shipping charges and any price change from the last product. Cool. Let's see if this works.

24 January 2016

I moved. Such a relief. It's been a bit stressful. Being told we had to vacate. A desperate search for a house and a different roommate. Success in both. It's more expensive than we were paying, but still affordable. And much larger. And much brighter. It's a very good change. I am still a bit stressed about the disarray from moving. I have a garage packed with odds and ends to sort through. I am closer to work and am excited to start biking to work again. Or even running. I am super close to the canal trail also, so I'll be utilizing that. After a rough start, this year is looking up!