Pump packs are the work of the devil. Not only are they a waste of metal and plastic, when it’s finished there’s always a load of product at the bottom that gets chucked out along with the bottle ‘coz it’s just too much hassle to try and tap it through the (often skinny) bottleneck. Don’t you hate that spluttering noise when the stuff runs out, the deliberately* short straw is no longer immersed in liquid, and it’s just sucking up air like some kind of demented fish gasping for breath?

The companies that make these products flog “refill packs” supposedly to address the problem of packaging waste, but of course all they’re doing is selling more product. Another bugbear of mine is when they make the bottles out of opaque plastic so that you can’t even see how much is is left (and how much is going to waste!)

Pump packs are also entirely useless in showers, where there is rarely a solid surface at a decent height to allow you to apply the pressure needed to operate the pump. The amount that you get is also entirely determined by the pumping mechanism’s ability (or lack of ability). Hands particularly dirty and you need a lot of soap? Sorry mate, keep pumping.

Gargh! Do you see why I’m annoyed by pump packs?

I reckon that for liquids of sufficient viscosity – which is pretty much everything that’s currently available in pump packs – soaps, gels, etc. – the “upside down” bottles, or the ones with the flip-top lids (like the picture on the left) should be standard.

For those of you out there that like pump packs, please help me to understand why…

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* Well, I can’t prove anything really, but take a look at your nearest pump pack and see if it gets anywhere near to touching the bottom…

One of the more curious phenomena on the Internet bargain scene is the proliferation of “daily deal” Web sites. The premise is usually that each day a new item, or sometimes several items, is offered. These are usually significantly cheaper than their regular retail price and have limited availability.

They offer a wide variety of products, ranging from clothes, electronics, perfumes, toys, sporting memorabilia and occasionally even mystery items – lucky-dip style. Many of the products are mass-produced goods sourced from low-cost countries, and I reckon that most of the “limited offer” items are end-of-life or overstocked items that wholesalers and manufacturers couldn’t get rid of through retail, but you do find the occasional gem: for example, around Christmas last year, Catch of the Day offered the 120GB version of the Playstation 3 console for $399 plus shipping, which in conjunction with a Paypal $50 cashback, resulted in a price that has yet to be matched anywhere else on or offline.

If you’re a keen bargain hunter, it pays to keep an eye on these sites:

• Catch of the day (http://www.catchoftheday.com.au)
• Zazz (http://www.zazz.com.au)
• One day, three deals (http://www.1-day.com.au)