What's On Your Mind? iPhone, Providian Bank

The iPhone 4S has produced a number of complaints from consumers who bought the new phone and found the battery doesn't hold a charge for very long. Sharon, of Shelby Township, Mich., has a different sort of problem with the older model, the iPhone 4.

“It heats up and becomes too warm to talk on, drops calls constantly, turns totally black and I have to turn it off in order to get it to come back to life,” Sharon said. “I was told by someone at the Apple store to contact Apple and tell them my problem and maybe just maybe they will help me. I need to have a working phone especially in the business of health care.”

Meanwhile, the iPhone 4S battery issues were still drawing complaints on Apple user message boards this week.

Insecure card

In theory, a secured credit card should be a good thing. Instead of getting deeply in debt, spending money you don't owe, you are only spending your own money – money that you have deposited as collateral on the card. But Katherine, of Sunrise, Fla.. has somehow found herself in a deep hole.

“I opened a secured credit card with $500.00,” Katherine told ConsumerAffairs.com. “I closed my account and Providian sold the account to a collection agency. They claim I owe almost $5,000.00.”

How could that be? The sad fact is that most secured credit cards are saddled with numerous fees. Katherine said she closed the account 12 years ago. If Providian assessed fees that weren't paid, they could have multiplied quickly.