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In Depth

Consumers

Introduction

Last Updated September 26, 2006

From retail to e-tail, it's a buyer-beware world out there. This section is a guide to news and information that savvy Canadian consumers need to know.

Browse the links in the menu to the right to find out more about the issues faced by Canadian consumers. How can you tell the knockoffs and snake oil from the real deal? Is a product safe, or has it been recalled? Is the latest thing really something worth spending your hard-earned dollars on? What do the experts recommend? Get the knowledge you need to ask the right questions, avoid the pitfalls, find the bargains and make the smartest deals when shopping around for goods and services.

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10 tips for holiday globetrotters
Alternative gifts
Alternative winter getaways
Alternative presentation ideas for holiday gifts
Apartment hunting
Inside ARGs
Athletic shoes
Auto arbitration
Back-to-school shopping trends
Barbecue tips for food
Bargain flights
Bottled water
Carbon footprints
Minimizing a trip's CO2 impact on the planet
Cellphone breakout
The pros and cons of unlocked handsets
Cellphone chic
Phones have become a fashion accessory
Christmas tree safety
Citronella
Clear-out sales: How not to be taken
Compulsive shopping
Costly toys
Counterfeit goods
Cross-border shopping
Cruise crime
Cruise vacations
Cultural diversity
Dollar parity
Donated Clothing (Part I)
Donated Clothing (Part II)
Dropping prices?
Dryer safety
Eco-garden
Eco-friendly dying
Environmentally friendly entertaining
Father's Day
Food: Canada's cuisine comes of age
Funny fare
Hunting down Canada's national food treasures
Fireworks
Foie gras frenzy divides Chicago
Giving to charities
Going solo
Travel tips for women backpacking it alone
Green cleaning
Green gadgetry
Green packaging
Hearing Aids
Helium: A disappearing gas?
Holiday feasts
Holiday shipping
Holiday planning
Home alone
Hot destinations
Year of the Asian vacation?
Hot destinations
Warm getaways that are off the beaten path
Inflatable pools
Identity theft
Kids toys
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Legal fees
Long-distance flying
Making connections
Tips for getting online when travelling
Making connections
Phones to go
Mothers' Day
Pet food safety
Pet food, alternatives
Phone deregulation
Pickpockets
Plastic: What's in it, and is it safe?
Recalls and advisories
Redeeming rebates
Repelling mosquitoes
Santa's knee: 10 tips on preparing kids to see the man in red
Scooter sales rev up
School bus safety
School shopping
Second-hand sales
Student survival guide
Sunscreen
Sunglasses
Tips: Is your waiter playing mind games?
Toy stereotypes
Travel: Strategies to stretch your cash in Europe
Water safety for kids
Winterizing your car
Year in review: Consumer Life 2006
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World »

Karzai, Musharraf target Taliban
The leaders of Afghanistan and Pakistan have begun a two-day meeting to talk about co-operating in the fight against insurgents based in the lawless border area between the two countries.
December 26, 2007 | 4:16 PM EST
Couple arrested in deaths of 6 people in rural Washington
A man and a woman have been arrested in connection with the killing of six people believed to be family members at a rural property east of Seattle.
December 27, 2007 | 12:19 AM EST
French aid workers convicted of taking Chadian children
Six French aid workers have been sentenced to eight years' forced labour by a court in Chad for trying to abduct children from the African country.
December 26, 2007 | 2:31 PM EST
more »

Canada »

Canadians flock to Boxing Day bargains
Millions of Canadinas took part in the Boxing Day bonanza on Wednesday, although shopping malls may have been less crammed with bargain hunters this year.
December 26, 2007 | 11:32 AM EST
Dozens of carcasses discovered at Quebec quarry
Police and wildlife officers are investigating the discovery of dozens of pig, fox and coyote carcasses at a Quebec gravel quarry.
December 26, 2007 | 6:32 PM EST
Homolka's prison boyfriend could be freed in '08
A convicted killer, said to have had a relationship with Karla Homolka while the two were behind bars, could be released from a Quebec prison early in 2008.
December 26, 2007 | 8:20 PM EST
more »

Health »

Honey-drenched dressings touted as the bee's knees for wounds
Amid growing concern over drug-resistant superbugs and nonhealing wounds that endanger diabetes patients, nature's original antibiotic ? honey ? is making a comeback.
December 26, 2007 | 12:30 PM EST
Boxing Day dips wash away holiday excess, Europeans insist
Across Europe, people celebrated Boxing Day by diving into rivers, lakes and even oceans that challenged the threshold of humans' temperature tolerance.
December 26, 2007 | 3:16 PM EST
Woman's death marks 16th bird flu fatality in Egypt
A 25-year-old Egyptian woman has died of bird flu after she apparently contracted the disease from domestic fowl, a health official said Wednesday.
December 26, 2007 | 4:26 PM EST
more »

Arts & Entertainment»

Canadian jazz great Oscar Peterson dies
The jazz odyssey is over for Oscar Peterson: the Canadian known globally as one of the most spectacularly talented musicians ever to play jazz piano has died at age 82.
December 24, 2007 | 5:17 PM EST
Tributes pour in for 'giant in music' Peterson
Tributes are pouring in for Canadian jazz musician Oscar Peterson, who died Sunday at age 82.
December 26, 2007 | 2:49 PM EST
Broadway, Hollywood choreographer Michael Kidd dies
American choreographer Michael Kidd, who created dance for the stage musical Finian's Rainbow and the movie Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, has died.
December 26, 2007 | 11:41 AM EST
more »

Technology & Science »

Weather odds could become the norm
As man-made climate change continues, the world will experience more extreme weather, bursts of heat, torrential rain and prolonged drought, scientists say.
December 26, 2007 | 2:17 PM EST
Yellowknife looks to old mine for geothermal energy
The N.W.T. capital will soon begin studying what could become Canada's first large-scale geothermal heat plant. Experts say heat from the defunct Con gold mine could supply enough power to serve half of the city's residents.
December 26, 2007 | 12:18 PM EST
Toyota announces plan to sell 9.85 million vehicles in 2008
In a neck-and-neck race that could dethrone General Motors as the world's top automaker, Toyota said it plans to sell 9.85 million vehicles globally in 2008.
December 26, 2007 | 12:10 PM EST
more »

Money »

Canadians flock to Boxing Day bargains
Millions of Canadinas took part in the Boxing Day bonanza on Wednesday, although shopping malls may have been less crammed with bargain hunters this year.
December 26, 2007 | 11:32 AM EST
U.S. house prices drop by a record 6.7 per cent
House prices in the United States fell in October for the 10th consecutive month, posting their largest monthly drop since early 1991, a widely watched index showed Wednesday.
December 26, 2007 | 4:13 PM EST
Apple Inc. shares reach $200 on core strength of IPod
Shares of Apple Inc. hit the $200 mark for the first time Wednesday as investor confidence in the company continued rising near the end of what has been a strong year for the IPod and computer maker.
December 26, 2007 | 3:30 PM EST
more »

Consumer Life »

Canadians flock to Boxing Day bargains
Millions of Canadinas took part in the Boxing Day bonanza on Wednesday, although shopping malls may have been less crammed with bargain hunters this year.
December 26, 2007 | 11:32 AM EST
Boxing Day purchases in cars easy prey for thieves: police
Vancouver police are advising Boxing Day shoppers not to leave newly-bought items in parked cars because they're easy prey for thieves.
December 26, 2007 | 9:41 AM EST
U.S. house prices drop by a record 6.7 per cent
House prices in the United States fell in October for the 10th consecutive month, posting their largest monthly drop since early 1991, a widely watched index showed Wednesday.
December 26, 2007 | 4:13 PM EST
more »

Sports »

Scores: CFL MLB MLS

Leafs lose Islander game, Toskala
Mike Comrie scored with nine seconds left in overtime as the New York Islanders topped the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-3 in a game where both clubs resorted to using their backup goaltenders.
December 27, 2007 | 12:23 AM EST
Senators cool off surging Sabres
Dany Heatley notched three points ? including an empty-net goal ? for the Ottawa Senators as the Eastern Conference leaders snapped the Buffalo Sabres' six-game winning streak with a 5-3 road win Wednesday night.
December 26, 2007 | 11:49 PM EST
Tavares leads Canada
John Tavares scored twice in his world junior championship debut and goaltender Jonathan Bernier earned the shutout as Canada opened the tournament Wednesday with a 3-0 win over host Czech Republic.
December 26, 2007 | 5:56 PM EST
more »