iKaput.com now kaput? Internet repair service fails to return iPods
When Holly Figliola of Johnsburg, near McHenry, realized her iPod was broken, she searched the Internet for a repair service.
She found iKaput.com of Pleasant Grove, Utah, which bragged of specializing in repairing iPods. She sent her device via UPS in February. The company called quickly with the repair cost and expected her to decide immediately if she wanted it done. She asked first for a written estimate and got one - for about $200.
"I could have bought a new one for that amount," said Figliola. "So I asked for it back."
After months of calls and e-mails trying to get it back, Figliola filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau of Chicago.
She is one of about 80 people in 32 states and Puerto Rico who have filed similar complaints with the BBB in the last nine months. Five complaints were filed in Illinois. All of them alleged that the company gave a long list of excuses on why the iPods weren't fixed or even returned.
"People would send in their iPods and just couldn't get them back fixed or even unfixed," said BBB spokesman Tom Joyce.
The Web site for iKaput.com is down and its phone number has been disconnected. Also, the company has not responded to any of the BBB's requests for information about all those iPods gone missing.
As a result, the BBB is asking consumers to be cautious when dealing with unknown repair services on the Internet. More information can be found at www.bbb.org.
As for Figliola, she finally got her iPod back after she and the BBB continued to contact the company.
The device is still broken.
"I felt like they held it hostage," she said.
Surfing: Vernon Hill-based Zebra Technologies on Wednesday will receive an award from the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, a Department of Defense organization, for policies that support the National Guard and military Reserve employees. Zebra was nominated by an employee who was deployed to Iraq in the Air Force earlier this year.
•The North Amercian Die Casting Association in Wheeling has a new Web site, called NADCA Design at www.diecastingdesign.org. It provides die casting product design assistance, including videos and resources for designers, engineers and others.
•AT&T Inc., which has its Midwest headquarters in Hoffman Estates, has launched ConnecTech with full in-home technology services. For residential customers, the program offers TV and home theater installation and personal computer and home network set up, as well as repair. See www.att.com/connectech.
In addition, AT&T is offering its broadband at a guaranteed monthly rate for two years without a term commitment. New residential AT&T high-speed Internet orders placed before Nov. 15 will include the price guarantee. The guaranteed monthly pricing applies to residential high-speed Internet products, including the company's stand-alone and AT&T U-Verse and free Wi-Fi access.
•Comcast Corp., which has its Midwest headquarters in Schaumburg, has added 15 more high-definition channels to its network in Chicago.
akukec@dailyherald.com