Slashdot: Some Retailers Criticize Amazon's Recall of Eclipse Glasses

Some Retailers Criticize Amazon’s Recall of Eclipse Glasses
Published on August 13, 2017 at 06:39PM
An anonymous reader quotes Portland TV station KGW:

Amazon issued a widespread recall for solar eclipse glasses early Saturday morning, one week before the August 21 eclipse. That move stunned some sellers who say their glasses are verified safe…. “We recommend that you DO NOT use this product to view the sun or the eclipse,” Amazon wrote… “Out of an abundance of caution, we have proactively reached out to customers and provided refunds for eclipse glasses that may not comply with industry standards.” At least a dozen KGW viewers said they received recall notices from Amazon Saturday… KGW viewer Heather Andersen said she bought two separate sets of solar glasses and learned both were not verified. “I give up,” she tweeted…

Manish Panjwani’s Los Angeles-based astronomy product business, AgenaAstro, has sold three times its average monthly revenue in the past month. Ninety-five percent is related to the solar eclipse… Panjwani’s eclipse glasses come from two NASA-approved sellers: Thousand Oaks Optical in Arizona and Baader Planetarium in Germany. He said he provided documentation to Amazon proving the products’ authenticity weeks ago, with no response from Amazon. On Saturday morning, he woke up to 100 emails from customers after Amazon issued a recall for his products. “People have some of the best glasses in the world in their hands right now and they don’t believe in that product,” he said. “They’re out there looking for something inferior.” Panjwani said Amazon is temporarily retaining some of his profits because of the recall. He also has almost 5,000 glasses at an Amazon warehouse, which customers can no longer purchase. “That’s just sitting there. I cannot sell it and I cannot get it back in time for the eclipse,” he said.