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Looks like with all those iPods and bad Christmas movie DVDs everyone’s buying, Amazon is running out of boxes. Jason Coe over at Appmodo bought a simple little car charger last week, and Amazon shipped it to him in a box nearly big enough for said car’s spare tire. Now, obviously, this is bad for both Amazon’s bottom line and for the environment, yet we see it quite often. Even before the Black Friday rush, a small toy for my daughter’s birthday was shipped in a box about five times too large. Why?

I’m going to guess it’s because they just didn’t have enough smaller boxes ready to go. If a product ships late for such a reason, Amazon risks losing the sale (you’re allowed to return products to Amazon without penalty if you feel you had to wait too long to receive it) and the customer. Fewer people will complain about wasted materials than about shipping delays, so my advice would be to simply take advantage of it. Recycle the box, use it to wrap other gifts, or simply give it to your kids to play in. Mine generally enjoy the boxes more than what’s inside, anyway, provided they’re big enough.

Not sure what to tell you about the extra packaging materials, though. Hang them on the tree, maybe?

Read [Appmodo]