Robotshop.ca is a disreputable online retailer.

Hello MBNA,

On August 31st, I ordered a Spykee robot to be shipped directly to Peterborough, Ontario for my son for his 8th birthday on September 14th.  (I live 5 hours away in Chatham,  Ontario) Shipping was lightning fast - the item arrived in Peterborough on September 3rd and there it sat in the box until my son's birthday.

After September 14th, after a lengthy assembly process, my son and his mother were unable to get it working properly so when I visited him on October 8th, I examined and tested the product carefully and determined that the battery must be defective.  

It is at this point that I contacted Robotshop.ca and was repeatedly told that I need to deal directly with the manufacturer.  I have emails showing this.  The thing is, no matter how much I insisted, Robotshop would not give me any address or phone number for Spykee robots, only an email address: contact@spykeeworld.com.  They would not refund my money since their policy for refunds is 10-days and they would not give me any other information other than the previously noted email address.  Also, they could not replace the item as it had been conveniently discontinued between Aug 31 and October 8th. 

I complained often and mightily over the next few days and succeeded in getting two actions performed: 1. Robotshop would send me another "base unit" (impressive since they had no stock on this item when I called) and 2. contact@spykeeworld.com replied to my 10 or so emails.  Spykeeworld informed me that they don't deal with battery issues; I had to go to sav@mecanno.com.  Unfortunately (I also have emails showing this) the address they supplied was wrong and the emails came back undelivered.

Finally, the replacement base unit arrived around October 24th, however it was shipped to my son in Peterborough instead of to me (I had the robot at this point.) So finally on October 30th, I reassembled this piece of shit, charged it for the requisite 3.5 hours and marveled as it traveled roughly 6 inches before completely dying.

Robotshop is a DISREPUTABLE online company that DOES NOT stand behind what they sell.  I have spent countless hours trying to work this thing out and that frankly pisses me off to no end, because I HATE wasting my time on this sort of thing.  I would have gladly just let Robotshop rip me off if the amount of money wasn't so great.

So, as of November 1st, I have shipped ALL of this this crap (the entire robot, original packaging, plus extra base unit) back to the company via Canada Post Expedited Parcel using Robotshop's own RMA: 2002883 - CPC Tracking Number: 7146 4105 0756 2596 to Robotshop Inc. 18005 Lapointe. Building 305, Mirabel, QC J7J0GH2.

Please initiate a chargeback on my behalf in the amount of $339 CAD as soon as possible.  

MBNA, if you require any supporting documentation, I am happy to provide it.  Thank you for your attention with this and I apologize for my frustration.  I still have a very disappointed little boy to deal with!

I think they'll see the charm in my message.

Hi:

You must get this complaint all the time...I keep getting job postings from hr-fujitsujobs.taleo.net@invalidemail.com. I can't make them stop as I no longer remember the name, address, email, phone, thumbprint, what-I-had-for-breakfast-that-day that your system requires in order to unsubscribe.

Geez, I hope your point-of-sale systems are better built than your job board software. Remove me from all lists.

thanks,
Stephan Hoppe

What is my perfect crime? I break into Tiffany's at midnight. Do I go for the vault? No. I go for the chandelier; it's priceless. As I'm taking it down, a woman catches me. She tells me to stop. It's her father's business. She's Tiffany. I say no. We make love all night. In the morning the cops come and I escape in one of their uniforms. I tell her to meet me in Mexico but I go to Canada. I don't trust her. Besides, I love the cold. Thirty years later I get a postcard. I have a son. And he's the Chief of Police. This is where the story gets interesting: I tell Tiffany to meet me in Paris by the Trocadero. She's been waiting for me all these years. She's never taken another lover. I don't care. I don't show up. I go to Berlin. That's where I stashed the chandelier.

...the funniest thing to me the other day: "Because of Goldmember, I can't eat Flaky's anymore!"

This was my attempt to cook the perfect steak according to Good Eats - SE01/E01 "Steak your Claim" where you brand a steak for 30 seconds on each side and then pop it in the oven for another 4 minutes at 500 degrees.

Something not covered on the show - the smoke production was unbelievable. Every smoke detector in a 5 mile radius went off and my clothes (all of my clothes) smelled like meat for a week, but man - what a steak! (Made on July 14, 2011)