Tales from Retail

I recently finished working for a major UK retail company and though they want to present themselves as a knowledgable source of information, I can tell you, there are lots of bullshitting going on. The adage "jack of all trades, master of none" is especially true.

Many times the assistant simply read off information from the tablet. In addition, a couple of times I have overheard information that is either misleading or plain wrong. For example, I overheard someone say that QLED means the TV has a full backlit display whereas LCDs are lit from the side. While technically true, since QLEDs are often backlit, LCDs can also be backlit. QLED refer to the quantum dots that Samsung uses for a "purer" light source.

Another example is that a manager said a fast read and write times for micro SD cards means the SD card can capture faster action. With slower speed, they said that the dash cam cannot capture fast actions. While technically true, I don't think a dashcam with a recommendation of UHS 1 will require a card with UHS3 speed. It would be a bit of overkill.

And don't get me started with the tech. The tills run a Windows 7 and they frequently freeze. Twice I have had a cash register freeze mid-sale. Also, there is a ticket printer that hasn't been working for over 1 month!

Furthermore, managers often push for the sale of mishaps insurance. Sale assistants get 50p for every plan sold. Also, the additional services count against your "measure" and you could be disciplined if you fail to meet your measure. What they don't tell you is that you can get £5-£10 discount on the plan, depending on the colleague or manager.


Moreover, one quirk I found was that some items are cheaper together than separate. For example, you can get Microsoft Office Home & Student (2019) for a lower price if bought with McAfee AntiVirus and their brand name cloud storage. So always ask to check for customer offers.

Another odd thing I found was that the "reviews" you get after a sale of an online order or delivery reflect upon the colleague who sold you the item, not the online team. I think that's a bit unfair if the delivery team did a rubbish job and the customer dings you for it.

Fossil Hybrid HR review

I received this product as part of a review program in return for an unbiased review.

Fossil Hybrid HR is an interesting watch.  As the name suggests it's a hybrid between the traditional watch and smartwatches.  This is done with an e-ink display under the watch's mechanical hands.

With this approach, the watch is able to achieve a really long battery life. In my experience that's about a week or more.  I had been using the watch for a week at the time of the review and it's still ticking.

Like Wear OS watches and other smartwatches on the market, these watches are able to receive notifications.

As you can see from the video above, the interface is quite clunky.  Navigations are done using the buttons on the side instead of swiping like other smartwatches.  Double tapping on the screen turns on the 4 LED embedded in the side of the watch.

The watch contains most of the functions you expect from a smartwatch.  It supports heartbeat tracking and sleep tracking.  However, there is no way to display a digital clock, so before buying the watch, make sure you're a fan of the mechanical watches with watch hands.

One feature lacking by the watch is the "find your watch" feature.  On my Huawei watch, I can use the feature to ring the watch.  However, this watch lacks this feature.  It merely shows the location of the watch, which is not that useful if you lost the watch in your room.

Now for the watchband.  The watch I received is stylized using a metal watchband.  This is not ideal for those with chunky hands like mine.  It digs into my skin and I am unable to adjust the band of the watch.

Based on this, I cannot recommend this watch.