# I Am An Infomercial Sucker



## Lon (May 13, 2015)

I am always intrigued with those damn commercials. Buy One and get One FREE.

In the past couple of months I have made two disappointing purchases from the TV Infomercials.

"MY PILLOW" was the first. After all, I had not been sleeping well and my stiff morning neck was due I am sure, to  the inferior pillow I was using and I was sure this NEW "MY PILLOW" would make all the difference. Did It? No it did not and it was a $50 poor purchase. When will you learn Lon?

The second Infomercial purchase was the "One Second Food Slicer which I hauled out one hour ago to chop some onion and cheese for my home made chili con carne that I wanted for lunch. I found it quicker and simpler to use a regular kitchen knife for the job.

That's it-------No more infomercial purchases.


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## Don M. (May 13, 2015)

Most of these Infomercials, and As Seen on TV products are positive proof that P.T. Barnum was correct....when he said, many years ago, "There is a Sucker born every minute".


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## Pappy (May 13, 2015)

Lon, A few years back, wife and I were into QVC. Some purchases were pure junk. I guess some of their jewelry is okay, but our buys were similar to yours. Household things.


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## Falcon (May 13, 2015)

Yeah, I know what you mean Lon.  They make it look so easy, but when you get it home it's a different  story.

And, If you act RIGHT AWAY, you can get another one FREE !

Also, If you wait a bit, you can usually find the same stuff @ Walgreens stores......("As seen on TV").


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## Falcon (May 13, 2015)

Yeah Don.  Bundle up all your purchases and head for the door marked "To the egress".   LOL


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## Son_of_Perdition (May 13, 2015)

While my working days before cell phones & personal computers I was on swing shift.  I had nothing better to do with my time during the winter months than watch TV.  My weakness was Home Shopping Network, yep, porcelain dolls and other can't live with outs.  I was hooked and couldn't put the phone down.  I bought dolls for the wife & stupid items that sold later at yard sales for pennies on the dollar.  I had that brown UPS truck making daily stops.  I finally reached my saturation point after about 90 days and more than a $1,000 dollars, (that's what I'll own up to).  I started watching CMT instead, after a few depressing months listening to country music my wife suggested I shut it off entirely, get a hobby, that's when I decided to do woodworking.  While limited profitability it was better than buying garbage.  As Seen On TV, is a marketing gimmick that works.  I diagnosed myself as a suffering from ICD (Impulse Control Disorder).


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## SeaBreeze (May 13, 2015)

I bought My Pillow from Bed, Bath and Beyond, after seeing the infomercial.  I don't care for it at all, you put your head on it, and the sides billow up alongside your cheeks.  When I use it, I'm constantly punching it into shape for that particular position, or flipping it over because the other side is caved in.  I do switch back and forth between that and my regular shaped memory foam pillow, but use the memory more.

Another thing I bought from a TV infomerical years back were those glass plant watering bulbs.  The ones that you fill with water and stick them in the soil to slowly water your plants if you're on vacation.  Well those are somewhere buried in my garage, completely useless, the water just ran into the plants quickly, nothing like they said, no matter what position I placed them in.

As seen on TV exercise equipment like the EZ Crunch and Ab Roller ended up in the trash too.  I have bought two of those hoses that shrink up and do not kink.  I bought the first green one at Bed, Bath and Beyond, and although it is cheaply made, with plastic fixtures, I really liked the way it didn't kink and was lightweight and easy to use.  I've used it lightly and it's been just fine.

Recently, I bought another one at Target, a black heavier duty one with metal ends, happy with that one too, it's longer and I use it in my back yard.  I bought hubby some colored special teflon type tape years ago, don't even remember what it was called, but that worked well too.


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## Don M. (May 13, 2015)

"$19.95 plus handling and processing, but if you act now, we'll double your order...just pay the processing and handling"  That $19.95 quickly becomes over $30...for something that is probably not worth $5.  The item is probably made in China for $2, and the TV air time consumes half of the price.  My favorite is Flex Seal....that stuff is nothing but automobile undercoating...at twice the store price.


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## Ken N Tx (May 14, 2015)

Don M. said:


> "$19.95 plus handling and processing, but if you act now, we'll double your order...just pay the processing and handling"  That $19.95 quickly becomes over $30...for something that is probably not worth $5.  The item is probably made in China for $2, and the TV air time consumes half of the price.  My favorite is Flex Seal....that stuff is nothing but automobile undercoating...at twice the store price.



If the products are as good as stated on TV, they would be in the retail  stores..IMHO..Their money is made on the shipping and handling..


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## Warrigal (May 14, 2015)

I am absolutely immune to infomercials because I won't watch them. 
I even hate the normal commercials and spend most of my time on  ABC TV and radio. 
If I am on a commercial channel I zone out as soon as a commercial begins,
I can be enticed to watch if they use puppies or a cattle dog.


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## Ralphy1 (May 14, 2015)

"But wait, if you call right now, we will double the offer!"  Yup, and when I got two neither one of them was worth a damn...


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## Pappy (May 14, 2015)

I can understand paying postage, but handling? If you want to sell me something, you have to handle it to get it to me. Just another fee plus inflated postage.


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## QuickSilver (May 14, 2015)

I fell for one one time... and that was for Hydralyze...  a supposedly miracle cream for eye wrinkles and dark circles.   After I gave them my credit card info, I found out that I had signed up to receive a jar of this stuff EVERY MONTH...... for eternity!  The only way to cancel the deal was to accept the first shipment and then return it.  Which I did.   I have sworn off buying stuff seen on TV..  It's always a scam..


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## Bullie76 (May 14, 2015)

Never watch them. Just flip to the next channel.


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## Don M. (May 14, 2015)

Ken N Tx said:


> If the products are as good as stated on TV, they would be in the retail  stores..IMHO..Their money is made on the shipping and handling..



Quite often, many of these "As Seen on TV" products Do show up in a display at some of the stores.  A cursory examination of these things on the shelf quickly shows that they are mostly overpriced Junk.


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## Busy Bee (May 17, 2015)

My husband was a sucker for info commercials. There are things here and I don't know what they are for. I found a pressure steamer it is suppose to clean your grill, your counter tops etc. I know you won't be surprised to know it was a complete failure. I  found at an auction, a pillow. I had a level 2 whip lash from a car accident that still causes me untold grief. Anyway the pillow is partially filled with flax seed. I can shape it to support my neck, hollow out a place for my head and pack it on either side of my head to keep my head from moving in my sleep.  I also use a cpap machine. I have been using this pillow for 10 years. It does discolour pillow slips so use at least two to cover the pillow. Flax seed can be purchased from any bulk food store. It really works and that's no infomercial.


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## John C (May 17, 2015)

"Addiction" may be the correct word in some cases.  The producers of these ads understand human motivation very well and know precisely how to make their appeal.  Years ago, I worked in an office where one of the ladies was very perturbed because her husband couldn't resist these commercials.  It may be that some people are much more receptive to the ads than others.


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## SeaBreeze (Aug 8, 2015)

I've been using My Pillow more now Lon.  I put a smaller pillow case on it, one that tightened up the foam stuffing inside, and it makes it much nicer to use.  There's no extra room around the pillow case, once the pillow is inside.  I think part of the problem was the stuffing spreading out too thin.


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## AZ Jim (Aug 8, 2015)

First clue "TV SPECIAL, Not available in stores!!  Translation:  No stores would buy it to put on their shelves, kinda like self published books......


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## oakapple (Aug 8, 2015)

No, never bought anything that way, from TV . I like to see what I am buying, but if you can't get out, for any reason, I suppose it could be good.


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## Pappy (Aug 8, 2015)

Our CVS drug store has a large shelf of As seen on TV products. Gives one a chance to see how this stuff really looks. Last time I was at our large flea market, they also had a lot of this junk.


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## Cookie (Aug 8, 2015)

I never do, as I don't watch TV, but an older friend bought tons of cheap jewelry on the Joan Rivers shopping show. Addicted maybe.


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## Meanderer (Aug 8, 2015)

Hey, they gotta fill those 500 channels with something!


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## Linda (Aug 8, 2015)

I don't buy from TV but I do look through the "As seen on TV" at Wal-mart, Target and CVS.  A couple years ago I bought a battery operated ear wax removal plastic hand held vacuum.  It was the biggest waste of money ever!  A couple months ago while cleaning out my dressers and closet I came across that and decided I better toss it before I died and my kids were wondering what in the world mom used that thing for.


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## AZ Jim (Aug 8, 2015)

I wonder how many men and women have things in their drawers, night stands, etc that would embarrass hell outta them if they were discovered.  I read a story where a dog brought out an "adult toy" from a woman's bedroom and flopped in on the carpet hoping some of the visiting company would toss it for him.


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## Linda (Aug 9, 2015)

Yep AZ Jim, I bet that could be a whole other thread.  There are things in dresser drawers and forgotten trunks and closet shelves that could not only embarrass us but shock, hurt and bewilder those left behind.


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## SeaBreeze (Jul 9, 2016)

Lon said:


> "MY PILLOW" was the first. After all, I had not been sleeping well and my stiff morning neck was due I am sure, to  the inferior pillow I was using and I was sure this NEW "MY PILLOW" would make all the difference. Did It? No it did not and it was a $50 poor purchase.



Lon, did you ever get a new pillow that you liked after the My Pillow?  I'm going to get one or two new pillows soon, I'm still using the My Pillow with the smaller pillowcase and my husband is not happy any more with his old memory foam pillow.  He's wanting something that is cool too.

Thinking of going to Bed, Bath & Beyond tomorrow and see what they have, a coupon just came in the mail.  Thought I'd see if you had any recommendations?


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## Butterfly (Jul 9, 2016)

SeaBreeze said:


> Lon, did you ever get a new pillow that you liked after the My Pillow?  I'm going to get one or two new pillows soon, I'm still using the My Pillow with the smaller pillowcase and my husband is not happy any more with his old memory foam pillow.  He's wanting something that is cool too.
> 
> Thinking of going to Bed, Bath & Beyond tomorrow and see what they have, a coupon just came in the mail.  Thought I'd see if you had any recommendations?



SB, I have neck and shoulder issues -- doc says mostly from computer use for hours and hours at work for so many years.  I've never found a pillow that really helps, though some make it worse.

One thing that worked that someone suggested back when it was really bad was to get a tube sock and fill it up with uncooked rice and then throw it in the microwave to warm it up.  You can then put it under the arch of your neck while lying on your back and going to sleep.  You can sort of scrooch the rice up at either end so it also helps your head from falling to one side or the other.  You can vary the thickness and hardness by adding or dumping out rice.  I found that to be very helpful.  Not good this time of year, though, but great in the wintertime.


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## jujube (Jul 9, 2016)

There's a "As Seen on TV" store at one of our local malls.  If I see something that looks fairly interesting, I wait til I'm going to the mall and check it out at the store.  I've yet to buy anything, though.  When I actually get it in my hand, it's usually obviously a piece of junk.  I wish I had a mirror that makes me look half as good as the TV set makes that junk look....lol.


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## SeaBreeze (Jul 9, 2016)

Butterfly said:


> SB, I have neck and shoulder issues -- doc says mostly from computer use for hours and hours at work for so many years.  I've never found a pillow that really helps, though some make it worse.
> 
> One thing that worked that someone suggested back when it was really bad was to get a tube sock and fill it up with uncooked rice and then throw it in the microwave to warm it up.  You can then put it under the arch of your neck while lying on your back and going to sleep.  You can sort of scrooch the rice up at either end so it also helps your head from falling to one side or the other.  You can vary the thickness and hardness by adding or dumping out rice.  I found that to be very helpful.  Not good this time of year, though, but great in the wintertime.



I had one of those rice things years ago that I bought at a health food store for my neck.  Didn't take long to leave it in the microwave too long when it started smoking, stinking and caught fire.  I had to get it out of the house, put it on the porch in an old pot filled with water.   I did like it, but the heat didn't last long and it was either burning my skin or too cool.

I have used the Therma Care heat wraps a couple of times on my neck back then, but they're so uncomfortable in that area.  My husband bought me a vibrating shoulder and neck massager.  It's like a big black pad you lay on with various setting.  That felt good but every time I used it my back started itching from the vibration, it drove me crazy, so it sits in my nightstand draw for years now.

My neck has been okay with the My Pillow, but I know what you mean about the computer.  I don't think I could every have a job where I sat at the computer all day.


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## SeaBreeze (Jul 9, 2016)

My husband saw this on TV and encouraged me to buy it, so I picked it up awhile back at Target for $15. Put in 4 AAA batteries and was eager to try it out, since my Labradoodle has hair that grows long and curly and tends to knot and mat even with regular brushings.

The unit works and blades turn if you press the button, but if there's any hair in it, it doesn't turn on at all, it jams. The teeth are so widely spaced on the "comb" part, that it couldn't locate a knot no matter how hard you tried. When we located a couple of tiny knots in the dogs hair using our fingers and tried to use this piece of junk, it didn't work at all.

Went back to the store for a refund, glad I didn't buy it online.  A one star rating for this useless piece of garbage would be too high. My advice to anyone thinking of buying this thing....save your money!

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