best buy

Best Buy - boxes

06 Jul: Our shipping boxes will soon talk – here’s what they’ll tell you

When you toss those cans or boxes into the recycling bin, do you ever wonder what happens to them? We do. At Best Buy, reducing waste is key to our sustainability commitment, and we want to help our customers live more sustainably, too.

That’s why we’re joining Keep America Beautiful and the Ad Council to encourage our customers to recycle the shipping boxes they receive from us. As part of the “I Want To Be Recycled” campaign, we’re printing a new moniker on the boxes containing your .com

Best Buy - Corporate Responsibility

30 Jun: Best Buy Releases 2016 Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability Report

It was another banner year for Best Buy’s sustainability work. Today we released our 2016 Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability Report, in which we detail the many ways we positively impacted our communities. It’s where we explain our key social and environmental issues, the progress we’ve made during the year and our goals for the future.

Here are a few highlights:

Climate change was front and center. We attended the United Nations global climate negotiations (COP21), signed onto the American Business Act for Climate Change and reset our absolute carbon reduction goal to 45 percent by 2020.

29 Jun: Tips for Share-Worthy Fourth of July Fireworks Photos

Every year on the Fourth of July, Americans across the country “ooh” and “ahh” over colorful fireworks displays while taking pictures to share with friends and family.

And every year you snap photos, too, hoping it will be the year you finally capture that perfect image.

But hope diminishes when you review your album and find dozens of lousy photos… again.

We’ve all been there, but it doesn’t have to be this way. It is possible to capture those share-worthy shots to show off to friends and family whether you’re taking photos with your smartphone or DSLR camera.

Best Buy - classroom

27 Jun: With VR, Students Explore the World Without Ever Leaving the Classroom

For most students, a field trip to the Galápagos Islands, Antarctica or Machu Picchu isn’t likely to happen. With virtual reality, though, the classroom can be the starting point for exploration of the world’s wonders

In addition to immersive gaming experiences, VR technology enables people to watch surgeries and scale mountains. Now, Best Buy Education, a division of Best Buy that helps schools with technology needs, and Google for Education are teaming up. They’re offering kits to make VR easy in the classroom.

Best Buy - heat

24 Jun: How to Keep Your Smartphone Safe from Summer Heat, Sun

Too much sun or heat can be bad for your body, and bad for your tech, too. So, while you’re taking steps to stay cool this summer, make sure to do the same for your smartphone, tablet and other electronic devices.

High temps can permanently damage your phone’s internal components, causing the miniature circuit board to flex and warp and the battery to overheat. Direct sunlight can also hurt the screen, causing it to pixelate, crack and become unresponsive to touch.

sust-tech-batteries

23 Jun: Sustainable Tech: These Batteries Recharge Quickly, Use Less Energy

Remote control. Flashlight. Digital camera. Kid’s toy. Calculator.

All of these items require batteries, the little energy sources that have become an integral part of our lives. We rely on them so much that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that nearly 3 billion dry-cell batteries are purchased in the United States each year.

As our reliance grows, sustainability is increasingly becoming a focus area for battery manufacturers. Batteries are made to last longer and use less energy.

Take the Eco Cell USB rechargeable battery, for instance.

V Bass

22 Jun: Agent Started at a Geek Squad Academy, Now She Runs One

Six years ago, Victoria Bass was a 15-year-old student at a Geek Squad Academy camp in Louisiana, opening up a desktop computer for the first time and learning about the components inside.

Now, at age 22, she’s a full-fledged Geek Squad Agent, running her very own camp this week in New Orleans.

The excitement from that first experience learning the inner workings of a computer sparked a passion for technology that directly led to her education and career. Her story is just one example of the lasting impact Geek Squad Academy has had on youth over its 10 years of existence.

Best Buy-Blu-ray

20 Jun: Blu-ray Celebrates a Decade

Grab a big bowl of buttery popcorn, pop in your favorite movie and hop on the couch, because today marks the 10th anniversary of the Blu-ray disc.

On this date in 2006, the first Blu-ray discs landed on store shelves, beating the ill-fated rival HD-DVD format to market. Can you name some of the first flicks available? This link has the answer.

Blu-ray transformed the home theater experience by bringing stunning, high-definition movies to the comfort of our living rooms for the first time.

heather silverio

18 Jun: Best Buy Manager Follows in Her Father’s Footsteps

Heather Silverio fondly remembers visiting her dad at work when she was a young girl.

Bill Thompson was a district manager for Best Buy at the time, and Heather and her sister loved to play Donkey Kong on the Nintendo 64 test stations at the stores. And when her parents gave her a car on her 16th birthday, Heather picked it up in a Best Buy parking lot in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Now, Heather, 29, is following in her father’s footsteps.

Clarissa and dad

17 Jun: In His 82 Years, Technology Changed – And Dad Changed With it

When your dad is no longer with you, Father’s Day can be difficult. But technology, and the wonders that can come with it, make it a little easier to be a daughter missing her dad on this day.

While some octogenarians bemoan modern technology and the difficulty of using it, my 82-year-old dad was an internet surfer. He was always an avid reader, visiting the library often to stock up.  So I sold him on the internet by telling him it was a library, open 24/7/365.

20160614_123450

15 Jun: Geek Squad Academy Visits Tribal Nation for First Time

Best Buy’s Geek Squad Academy summer camp is visiting a tribal nation for the first time as part of the federal government’s ConnectHome initiative.

About 135 students between the ages of 10 and 18 are participating in the two-day camp this week (June 14-15) at Durant High School in Durant, Oklahoma, home of the Choctaw Indian Nation. They’re getting hands-on tech experience and learning 21st-century skills that can make a difference in their future education and career choices.

Best Buy-tornado

14 Jun: 35 Years Ago Today, A Tornado Transformed Best Buy

On the afternoon of June 14, 1981, a tornado slammed into the Minneapolis suburbs, mere miles from where the Best Buy corporate headquarters now stands.

The twister churned for 26 minutes, all wind and fury, cutting a swath north and east for 15 miles. When the skies cleared, scores of homes, businesses and trees were damaged. One person died and 83 more were injured.

It was the most significant tornado to hit the Minneapolis-St. Paul area in 20 years — and its wake would change the path of our company.