Passengers view space shuttle launch from plane

Filed Under (Consumer Interests) by Admin on 28-02-2011

Passengers aboard a flight from Orlando to Richmond were treated to a sky show last week when space shuttle Discovery lifted off from Cape Canaveral, just east of the central Florida airport. Apparently the flight was delayed, so I guess this was their reward. I’ve certainly never seen anything this cool from my window seat. On the other hand, I prefer a boring, uneventful flight.

Oscars? In our labs, products, not stars, get the red carpet treatment

Filed Under (Consumer Reports) by Admin on 26-02-2011

On the red carpet

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Oil rises and so does cost of airline ticket

Filed Under (Consumer Interests) by Admin on 26-02-2011

I don’t normally write about gas prices, but I’m getting just a tad nervous. Last night on my way home, the gas station closest to my neighborhood showed $3.43 a gallon for regular. That’s why I regularly avoid it and go to Costco, even though I have to drive 20 miles to get there. (Not sure that makes sense or cents.)

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A new spin on the Heinz ketchup bottle

Filed Under (Consumer Reports) by Admin on 25-02-2011

Heinz Coke bottles

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Food prices are rising but there are ways you can save

Filed Under (Consumer Interests) by Admin on 25-02-2011

Food prices are expect to rise 2 to 3 percent this year.

But you don’t have to survive on peanut butter and crackers to deal with the higher prices.

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Five ways to soften the blow of rising oil prices

Filed Under (Consumer Reports) by Admin on 25-02-2011

The price of oil hit $100 a barrel on Wednesday for the first time since September 2008, amid ongoing unrest in the Middle East. Analysts quoted in Bloomberg today say prices could surge as high as $220 a barrel. The spike is already being felt at the pump, where the national gasoline average of $3.19 per gallon is up 53 cents from this time last year. If you heat your home with oil, and you didn't lock your rate at the start of the season, you should expect prices to climb over the remaining weeks of winter.

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Southwest offers free iTunes download

Filed Under (Consumer Interests) by Admin on 25-02-2011

This month, Southwest Airlines is introducing "InAirtainment"on southwest.com, which lets you browse "entertainment" options like music, movies, games, TV shows and more from the iTunes store. It’s basically a partnership with Apple that will encourage fliers to download stuff before a flight - or while inflight - aboard Southwest.

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USDA invests a bunch of green to grow broccoli in the East

Filed Under (Consumer Reports) by Admin on 24-02-2011

Broccoli

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Cutting gas costs: Cheap Trick Thursday

Filed Under (Consumer Interests) by Admin on 24-02-2011

Gas pricesGas prices have already breached the $3 level in many areas and may continue upward, given the ripple effects of Libyan turmoil that BaltTech blogger Gus Sentementes and I wrote about in today’s paper.

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Will Sharp’s new refrigerator be a swing and a miss?

Filed Under (Consumer Reports) by Admin on 23-02-2011

Which?, the United Kingdom's equivalent of Consumer Reports, is reporting this week on the launch of the world's first "dual swing door" refrigerator. It's manufactured by Sharp, a brand known more for TVs and other electronics in this country, though Consumer Reports has tested several Sharp microwaves.

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