Consumers Cancelling

Vicon Helps You Capture Your Life Without Lifting a Finger

2009-10-20T11:22:00.000-07:00

We're a pretty snap-happy society when it comes to documenting our lives--we take photos wherever we go, even using our phones to post images online while we're on the move. Thanks to U.K.-based firm Vicon, capturing these memories is about to get even easier.

vikon revueThe company will soon launch a camera that automatically takes pictures as often as every 30 seconds. Worn around your neck, documentation becomes virtually hands-free. The camera uses an accelerometer, light sensors, and heat sensors to know to capture an image whenever you enter a new environment, or when someone is standing in front of you.

The technology was originally developed for the Microsoft SenseCam to help patients with Alzheimer's and dementia--studies have shown that reviewing the day's events can improve long-term memory. Vicon's version will originally be marketed to researchers with a price tag of $820, and it's one-gigabyte memory can hold 30,000 images. A consumer version expected in 2010.

It's an interesting notion, especially for people into lifelogging, but it's hard to see how this constant surveillance will appeal to the mass market. When the shots are taken from an object hanging around your neck, what will picture quality be like? And what do you do with 30,000 images, most of which would be of mundane day-to-day happenings? How many people really want to document every minute of their life?

Loan Modification Program Inadequate, Report Says

2009-10-12T10:36:00.001-07:00

Current government programs to help homeowners keep their homes are inadequate to address a coming wave of foreclosures and will only delay foreclosure for many, according to a new report from the bipartisan Congressional Oversight Panel.

The report, which assesses the effectiveness of the administration's Making Home Affordable Program, says that the program is not set up to address some of the major factors that are expected to drive foreclosures in coming months, including scheduled resets on payment option adjustable rate mortgages and interest-only mortgages, and rising unemployment rates, which the report says appears to be one of the biggest factors driving foreclosures.

The report, released on Friday, came out one day after the Treasury Department announced that the Making Home Affordable Program had reached a major milestone one month early, achieving a level of 500,000 trial loan modifications begun by the first of October. However, the report notes that even if the program achieves its goal of modifying 3-4 million mortgages, that will be less than half of the estimated 10-12 million foreclosures predicted to result from the current financial crisis.

The report did say that the benefits of the $42.5 billion foreclosure modification program are likely to outweigh the costs to taxpayers, however. An estimated one mortgage in eight is current in default or foreclosure, according to the report.

Cites concerns with scope, scale and permanence

The report cited three major concerns with the administration's foreclosure avoidance program as it currently stands. First, it said the scope of the program is too narrow, appearing to address the foreclosure problem as it stood six months ago instead of today, noting in particular rising problems with unemployment and mortgage resets the program was not designed to address.

Second, the report says that the scale of the program is inadequate to address the current foreclosure crisis, noting that foreclosure starts are outpacing loan modifications under the program by a 2-1 ratio. It questions whether the program will be able to slow down the foreclosure crisis and moderate its impact on the economy even if it manages to achieve its targets for loan modifications.

Third, the report questions the permanence of the solutions offered under the program, questioning whether the loan modifications will put homeowners into a long-term stable situation. It notes that for most homeowners, their loan modifications will expire after five years, after which their payments will rise. It also points out that reducing mortgage payments for many homeowners will actually result in greater negative equity, which has been associated with increased rates of default.

The bipartisan Congressional Oversight Panel was created to oversee the expenditure of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) funds authorized by Congress in the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (EESA).

Irate Consumers Cancelling Credit Cards

2009-10-06T21:53:00.000-07:00

A new survey by Consumer Reports found that one-third of all U.S. credit card holders had paid off their balance and cancelled at least one card during the previous 18 months. Half of those said they did so in response to higher interest rates, new fees, reduced credit limits or other changes imposed on their account.

One cardholder in five complained that they had been treated unfairly by their credit card company, while only two-fifths said they were highly satisfied with their credit card companies, one of the lowest ratings of all service industries monitored by the nonprofit consumer information organization.

In addition to the survey results, Consumer Report says it has received scores of angry letters and emails from readers complaining about their credit card companies.

The survey found that one-third of respondents said they don't have any credit cards, a surprisingly high number for an economy widely regarded to operate on credit. Of the others, about 45 percent said they are charging less than they did one year ago, a similar number is charging about the same and only 11 percent said they are charging more.

Just over half of credit card holders said they pay off their balances in full each month. One-third report carrying a total balance on their cards of $10,000 or less, with a median debt of $2,500, while 13 percent said they carry a monthly balance of $10,000 or more, with a median debt of $17,000.

Much of the monthly debt in excess of $10,000 was reported to be the result of emergency expenditures. Of consumers carrying a balance over $10,000, 44 percent said they would not be able to survive financially over the next six months without using credit cards to meet expenses.

The telephone survey of 1,200 adults was conducted in July, and reportedly has a sampling error of plus or minus 2.8 percent, at a 95 percent confidence level.