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Review Bunker is a review blog where the goal is simply to review everything. Below are the latest reviews. In the About section you can read more about this blog and it's author. Comments are always appreciated, so if you've got something to say, please feel free!

Archive for the 'Services (offline)' Category

Review: LaptopsIntoCash.com Laptop Buying Service

laptops-into-cash.jpgA few months ago, I realized that I had quite a few old/broken/used laptops piled up around my office, and I went on a quest to get rid of them.  I have heard quite a bit about recycling old computer equipment in the past, so I knew that was an option, but being the thrifty/cheap/profiteering person that I am, I first looked for ways to cash in.  I quickly found that there is indeed a market for old and used laptops, even the incredibly old or incredibly broken.  In my search, I found a number of brokers online that promised to send me a check for my laptop computers, based on my evaluation of the laptop’s quality.

broken-laptop.gifI decided after a quick overview of the available brokers that LaptopsIntoCash.com looked like my best option (despite the annoying sounds on their website).  They quoted me a higher price than some others, as well as offered to send me a pre-paid shipping box for the laptop, so I decided to try them out.  As a test, I first sent them my oldest and most broken laptop - for a promised price of $10.  That may sound like a horrible deal for me, but this was a very old computer with few working components, so it was better than giving it away at a recycling drive (or allowing it to continue to gather dust in the corner of my office).  The pre-paid box showed up on my doorstep within two days of submitting my shipping address and laptop specs on their website, and I had my $10 check within a few weeks of dropping off the box at a FedEx/Kinkos location.  The first successful transaction gave me the confidence to send them 2 more laptops over the past few months.  Each of those two transactions was successful, with LaptopsIntoCash.com sending me the quoted amount for each computer, without any delay or argument.  All communications I’ve had with the people at LaptopsIntoCash.com were courteous and friendly.

I have one more laptop to send them, and their service has been perfect so far.  I recommend them to anyone holding onto an old laptop that’s taking up space.  I can attest that they do in fact send out checks, and they haven’t yet tried to lower their bid once they have my equipment (a common problem people often run into when trying to sell old electronics to brokers online).

LaptopsIntoCash.com Laptop Buying Service: ★★★★★ 5/5

Have you ever sold a laptop or other electronics to an online brokerage?  What was your experience?

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Review: Best Home Cleaning Systems Carpet Cleaning (Northern Colorado)

carpet1.jpgAs I mentioned in my previous post, we just bought a house last month. Since the house was a foreclosure property, it needed a bit of work before we could move in and start our life of domestic bliss. The first thing on my list after painting the interior, was getting the carpets cleaned. I don’t know who lived here before us, but I can say that they were quite messy - they left no room unstained. The dining area was the worst, but the entire house had some pretty nasty looking carpet. I wasn’t sure it was salvageable, but after assurances from my Dad, a man with experience in the industry, I decided to give steam cleaning a try.

After attempting to find reliable reviews of local companies online, I was a bit disappointed. There isn’t much information out there about the plethora of carpet cleaning services in the Fort Collins area, so I was basically taking a stab in the dark, and hoping to find someone good. Of course, I could have called Stanley Steamer, or some other national brand, but this time I decided it would be best to keep it local. Fortunately, I was able to find a company listed on Tom Martino’s troubleshooter referral list - as close to a review as I was going to get, so I went with Best Home Cleaning Systems.

The Best Home Cleaning Systems rep that dealt with my carpets, Eric, was very punctual - I was told that he would arrive between 8 and 9 am, and he was at my door at 8 am sharp. He was a very professional and courteous individual, and I felt comfortable with him in my house. He surveyed the carpets, and without pressuring me, suggested that I may want to do more than a basic steam cleaning. We talked about Best Home’s services for a few minutes, and finalized my ‘order’. After a quick call to the office to report my credit card information, he got to work.
Eric was able to work quickly and do good work. The steam cleaning process did a pretty good job on the carpets, although a few stains have since returned. I certainly didn’t expect the carpet to look anywhere close to brand new, so I was surprised at how well the cleaning turned out. Only after the heavy traffic of my painting volunteers and moving volunteers, did I start to see the return of a few of the old stains in some of the worst areas. As of now, a few weeks later, I am still satisfied with how most of the carpet has remained nice and clean.

As far as I can tell, Best Home’s steam cleaning is competitively priced. Their services seem to reflect the same structure and pricing as most other steam cleaning outfits in town, as well as nationally recognized brands. Their equipment seemed to be modern enough to do the job correctly, and didn’t cause any problems for me or my neighbors besides the loudness of the truck mounted motor. Basically, I have no complaints about their service, and I think they did a great job, so if you are looking for a Northern Colorado steam cleaning company, you can be confident that Best Home Cleaning Systems will come through for you.

Best Home Cleaning Systems Carpet Cleaning (Northern Colorado): ★★★★★ 5/5

Have you ever had Best Home clean your carpets? Do you have info about any other Fort Collins/Northern CO steam cleaning companies that you would like to share?

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Review: Walmart.com’s Site to Store Shipping

site-to-store.jpgI purchased the Danby “designer” portable dishwasher, model number DDW1805W from Walmart.com for a little more than $300. I had it shipped free with Walmart’s “site to store” program (basically they ship the item from the warehouse to the store for you to pick up). Although free, this service is a bit slower than traditional shipping services, and definitely not perfect. The dishwasher box was received in damaged condition. The box itself had numerous holes and smashed corners, and the dishwasher was actually damaged during the shipping process - the back left wheel is bent so that it doesn’t stand level. This is a minor enough detail that I am not going to bother taking it back to the store to get a replacement. I am hoping that I am able to re-bend the metal on the wheel back to the original position, fixing the damage, but I am very disappointed that my order wasn’t able to arrive at the store undamaged. If I did decide to return the item, it would be a big hassle for me, so for now I am going to live with the damage.

On the up side, the order arrived when expected - the projected shipping time was given as 7 to 10 days, and it arrived in 10. Also on the up side, I had no problems picking up the product, and the store employees were quick in retrieving my item from the back storeroom.

This is the second time that I have used the site to store program at Walmart - the first time went very smoothly with no damaged products, but that order was only a DVD, and easier to handle.

Bottom Line: Walmart.com is able to ship items in a timely manner, and get them properly inventoried and ready to go at the store, but they can’t necessarily be trusted to ship large and oversized items safely.

Walmart’s Walmart.com Site to Store Shipping: ★★☆☆☆ 2/5

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