but lately it's been screamin' in my ear

Te odio, Best Buy!

For Christmas in '04, I received a Sony CyberShot digital camera with a four-year service plan from Best Buy in case something broke, so that I would hopefully have a working camera for 4 years. I then purchased a 256 mb Sony MemoryStickPRO to use with it.

Recently, this camera started acting up. The lens wouldn't open; instead, I could hear a nasty grinding sound. I took the camera in to Best Buy and they sent it out for service. A few weeks later, the verdict was that the camera was "junked out" by service because it would cost $175 to repair, which meant, I thought, that I was entitled to a product of equal or lesser value.

But apparently, the "product" part isn't true.

Best Buy will only give me $100 towards a new camera because Sony had an additional $50 rebate at the time my mom paid $150. That would be fine, except that they don't even have any cameras for less than $129.99. They don't have any cameras that use the Sony MemoryStickPRO other than one for $199.99, either, so with any camera besides that one, I would also have the cost of a new memory card.

So, without paying a minimum of $50 (difference of camera plus the cheapest memory card at the moment), I don't have a camera. And if I wanted the service plan again, even though there is at least 2.5 years left on the one I purchased for my old camera, I'd have to buy a new service plan altogether.

Part of me is annoyed with how this went down, and really doesn't want to get another camera from Best Buy because of the way they handled this. So, a salesperson told us he thought we'd be able to get store credit so that I could just use the $100 on other random stuff I wanted at Best Buy, and go elsewhere for a camera if I decided to. We asked at customer service, and found out that we can't even get store credit- that $100 absolutely has to go towards another camera within the rest of my 4-year service plan, or I can't use it at all.

Grrrr. I'm mad. We spent about 2 hours in there, first looking at Sony cameras thinking I'd have $150 to spend towards one, finding out I'd probably have to get a new memory card and looking at all cameras, then being told I'd only have $100, then looking at cameras again, and then being told I couldn't get store credit. Also add in some waiting for people to wait on us.

It is just frustrating to me that they won't give me at least enough money to get a camera. I could understand if they'd give me $129.99, the cost of the cheapest camera, and tell me that if I wished to upgrade to any other camera, I'd have to pay more. But it bothers me that because all they carry now are, at the very least, 4 megapixel cameras (even online), I can't get *any* camera. I understand that I will be getting a better camera, at least megapixel-wise, with anything at their store (mine was a 3.2). But mine was fine- I could use the pictures as a desktop background without them being blurry! I don't need more megapixels. If they had a 3.2 megapixel camera, I would take it. I'm not trying to screw them over and get a way better camera. I just want some kind of camera that works, and, if at all possible, one that doesn't require I spend another $20-50 on a new memory card when I have one that works just fine. Wanting a camera that works is why I got the service plan, and the service plan is only saving me $60 ($40 was paid for the service plan in the first place); it's not getting me a camera that works.

Grrrrrr. I miss my camera. :(