Never pay a phone bill again .... ever!

I heart Ooma.  Ooma is a VoIP based phone service that allows you to make free phone calls from home for a one-time fee to purchase the device.  You need a telephone and cable internet to make it happen.

My husband stumbled upon this little gem a few months ago and I thought it was too good to be true because the product offers you:

• Unlimited U.S. local and long distance calls (to all 50 states)
• Impeccable voice quality sound
• Super easy set up
• Ridiculously cheap international rates (If you buy a bulk package it's only 0.5 cents per minute to China and 3 cents per minute to Mexico).
• Caller ID
• Call Waiting
• Online voicemail playback
• Online call logs
• MANY more features

... all for the one time purchase of their device.  Today you can get the Ooma Telo on the website for $229.99.  Scott found the older version, the Hub, on woot.com for $122 in late November.  Most people prefer the Ooma Hub as a lot more technology is in the hardware, therefore more features are free.  For example, with the Telo you would have to shell out $12/year for incoming caller ID.  Not like that's a bad price, but given that is free with wireless plans, we're not accustomed to paying extra for those frills.

I don't know how these guys are making money which leads to my only fear, that they would go out of business and this Utopia of talking to friends and family for free would abruptly end.  These guys appear to be growing, which hopefully is a sign of their profitability and strength - they appeared in this weeks Costco weekly email advertisement!

This product may not be incredibly useful to everyone.  There are a couple of reasons it is a Godsend to me:

• Bad cellphone service.  I don't get service in my condo because I have an iPhone and if you live in New York City or San Francisco, you can't make a call on AT&T's network to save your life.
• Buzz my friends in.  One of the new updates recognizes DTMF touch tones.  I need a 415 phone number to easily buzz people in to our building.  I don't want to change the cell phone number I've head for years just so I can buzz people in the building so this has been a great solution for that.
• Pump up the volume.  If I am out running errands and want to get in touch with Scott who is playing video games in the living room, but left his cell phone in the bedroom.... chances are he won't hear it.  Having a home phone makes it easier to get in touch with him quickly!

 
I've had it for the last few months.  It works flawlessly.  I don't know why anyone would ever pay for a phone bill again.

1.3% Online Savings Account from American Express

American Express entered the online savings market in September 2009.  I currently use EmigrantDirect and their interest rate has fallen from around 6.125% when I first opened it in 2006 to 1.0% five today.

I haven't been very proactive about my online savings hygiene so I decided to poke around and see what was out there that could improve my current situation.  Below is a summary of what I found.  These accounts, other than when noted, have no minimum balance, no monthly fee, and minimum to open an account.

1. American Express Personal Savings - 1.3%
2. EverBank - 3 month introductory rate of 2.01%.  After that it is 1.0%, but if you're only keeping your money in there for a year, it averages out to 1.3%.  (requires $1500 minimum to open)
3. Discover 1.25% (but requires $500 minimum to open)
4. ING Orange Savings 1.1%
5. Ally 1.05%
6. EmigrantDirect 1.0% (minimum $1000 to open)

There are other accounts out there such as Capital One and Zions, but they require a minimum balance and/or minimum to open an account.  However, none of them (as of today) have a higher APY than American Express Personal Savings.  A great summary that compares account rates, minimums, fees etc. can be found on Google - compare savings accounts.

My recommendation would be to open up the American Express Personal Savings account.  It has no minimum to open an account, no monthly fees, and no minimum balance but still gives you the highest rate of return.    It is FDIC insured for all of those skeptics out there, is easy to get money in an out of, and has 24/7 customer service.

Happy Saving!

Seen the recent corn syrup commercials?

In the last few weeks I have seen several high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) commercials plaguing cable, boasting that "corn syrup is the same as cane sugar, your body can't tell the difference."

A study from Princeton in February of 2010 revealed that "Rats with access to high-fructose corn syrup gained significantly more weight than those with access to table sugar (sucrose), even when their overall caloric intake was the same."  Specifically, animals with access to high-fructose corn syrup gained 48% more weight than those eating a normal diet.  This means that the rats aren't fat, they are obese.  For humans, this means our body's could experience high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, cancer, and diabetes.

[Enter science lesson here]  HFCS and sucrose have two clear differences:

1. Sucrose is 50% fructose and 50% glucose.  However, HFCS is imbalanced containing 55% fructose, 42% glucose, 3% saccharides (larger sugar molecules).
2. Because HFCS is manufactured, the fructose molecules are free and unbound.  Fructose and sucrose, that come in cane or beet sugar, are bound to a corresponding glucose molecule and go through an EXTRA metabolic step before it's utilized.  AKA your body burns more calories digesting this. 

In both the commercials an on their websites, they state that corn syrup is handled by the body the same as sugar.  What they fail to mention is that in a study published in Environmental Health, almost half of tested samples of commerical high fructose corn syrup contained mercury.  Mercury is toxic.

I'm wondering how much the corn syrup lobbyists need to pad the USDA's pockets to continue to show these commercials with false information.  I'm also wondering why the USDA isn't doing anything about revelation of mercury in our foods.

Restaurants can tip YOU (the customer) using Groupon

I just watched a 1 minute Groupon video the blew my mind because it explains how merchants can rate and reward their customers via Groupon.  I don't know of any other site that allows this .... Please comment if you know of one.

There are so many good things I can say about this company and it's business model that I don't know where to start.  Here goes ......

1. Awesome deals.  Groupon has built it's business on collective buying power.  A steeply discounted deal (always greater than 40% off) will be offered within a geographic area every day.  If a minimum number of people agree to purchase it, the deal will be released.  Sign up to get an email every day for the deal of the day in your area.  Here is a that explains how they work.
2. Awesome businesses.  Groupon has some of the most exclusive businesses participating.  Some of the restaurants I have purchased, I have never seen a coupon for ... ever.  If you know me, you understand that I take coupons and deals very seriously.  Some of my favorite exclusive Groupons include Sushi Groove and Supperclub in SOMA (although supperclub participates in restaurant week, it's usually too hard to get a reservation).
3. Seamless referral bonuses.  Apparently someone joined Groupon because of me- I didn't even know!  The next time I purchased a Groupon they automatically called out that I was saving $10 on this purchase because of my referral.  I didn't have to dig up a coupon code, hidden 3 pages deep within my account activity.  Nor did I have to mail a receipt with 3 forms, wait 6 weeks, get a check in the mail, and have to make a special trip to the bank.  They just gave it to me.  I love when a business make my reward seamless and automatic. 
4. Merchants can rate customers.  Not only do they give users the opportunity to rate a business, but merchants can rate customers!  If you are good tipper, become a regular, or compliment the chef, they may rate you positively so that other business can see you are "good people".    It will be very interesting to see what happens now that merchants can rate, reward, and respond to the clientele that they serve.  As a former server for 6 years, there are several occasions where I would have loved an opportunity to provide feedback on my customers :)
   
   To make this deal even sweeter, when a merchant gives you an "award", you get Groupon bucks to use toward your next purchase!  Here is a page with tips on how to be the type of person an establishment would award.  Groupon Etiquette

"Big" failed at finding Tom Hanks' Doppleganger

In 1988, the movie Big debuted with Tom Hanks playing an older David Moscow.  At the time of filming David was 14 years old and Tom was 32.  After seeing this movie this past weekend on cable television, enough time had passed that I was curious to see if David Moscow turned out to look anything like Tom Hanks.  Here are the results:

David Moscow at 14 and Tom Hanks at 32

At first glance I would say that the casting director made a decent attempt at finding a younger version of Tom Hanks.  Both have dark, wavy hair and they have similar eyes and ears.  The key difference seems to be that they have very different facial bone structures.  You can already start to see David's chiseled jaw bone which is not even close to Tom's softer lines.

David Moscow at 32

Take a look at David in September of 2006, just a couple months before his 32nd birthday.  If these two entered a doppleganger contest - they shouldn't even get the obligatory participation ribbon.

Update - I added another image of David at age 33 as the first image was not showing up in all browsers.

FIRST!

Allow me to introduce myself.....

This blog is meant to be entertaining, somewhat educational, and funny on days when I try really hard.  The main purpose of this endeavor is take advantage of a platform to publish thoughts, learnings, ideas, and - hopefully - promote some discussion.