Deal: PC-Cillin Internet Security 2007 Free After Rebate

Posted by Sun on December 13, 2006 (0) Comment

According to Ableshoppers.com, NewEgg.com currently has TREND MICRO PC-cillin Internet Security 2007 (3-User pack) on sale for $39.99. The product has a $40 mail-in-rebate (expires December 17th) making the final cost of the software at -$0.01. The shipping charge is $6.13. However, Ableshoppers.com says if you use PayPal to check out your order with coupon code PAYPALFREE (expires December 15th), the shipping fee will be waived.

The product reviews on Amazon.com aren't that good with an average 2.5 stars.

Considering Open Another Savings Account: GMAC or UFB

Posted by Sun on December 13, 2006 (7) Comment

I have four online savings accounts already (all join accounts with my wife): INGDirect, EmigrantDirect, HSBC, and Virtual Bank. INGDirect used to have all my deposits when it offered superior rates than other online banks did. Now it fell far behind with a 4.50% APY. At one time early this year, I put all our cash at Virtual Bank when it was hot. With an interest rate of 4.60%, it's only better than INGDirect and I only have a little over $100 with them now, just to keep the account alive (I am too lazy to close the account).Currently, EmigrantDirect and HSBC are our primary savings banks. Tied at 5.05% APY, there's no better or worse between these two. I have $300 automatically transferred to EmigrantDirect on every pay day (biweekly) and my TreasuryDirect account is linked to HSBC for weekly T-Bill purchases. Other than these, EmigrantDirect and HSBC are the same to me. I don't really care their interfaces, or whether they have easy to use web site, or if they offer any extra security features. Except once-in-a-while manual fund transfers, I don't even log into my accounts. I am only interested in rates, nothing else.

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Deal: 1GB MP3/WMA Player and USB Flash Drive for $9.99

Posted by Sun on December 12, 2006 (0) Comment

TigerDirect.com now has Power Up MP3/WMA Player and USB Flash Drive on sale for $49.99. There are 2 mail-in-rebates for this item: $20 with original UPC lable and $20 with photocopy of the UPC bar code (expires on December 15th). The final cost after rebates is $9.99 plus shipping (yes, shipping is not free). Reviews on Amazon.com complain about the quality of the audio, but it's OK for a large capacity flash drive.

First QQQQ Purchase Made with QQQDirect

Posted by Sun on December 12, 2006 (4) Comment

I opend a QQQDirect account about two weeks ago and set up an automatic investment plan (the plan that offers one free QQQQ purchase every month) with $50 monthly purchase of QQQQ. When I checked my account last Friday, there was still no record of any investment yet, though the date I chose is the first Thursday (with QQQDirect plan, purchases can only be made on Thursdays) of the month, which was December 7th.

Last night, I got a trade confirmation letter from MyStockfund, the owner of QQQDirect. It shows that indeed 1.1337 shares of QQQQ were purchased on December 7th and there was no any other fees associated with the investment as advertised. However, what I found after logging into my account was a little surprise.

I only scheduled one purchase every month and $50 were drafted from my bank account on the 6th for the above transaction. But, my online account indicates there are $50 cash available while the account histroy shows no such transaction. My bank account also has no record of the second cash withdraw. I don't know if this is just a display error or anything like that, but it needs to be clarified with QQQDirect. Except that, everything seems to be OK. Whether now is a good time to buy QQQQ (NASDAQ at five-year high) is another story. Since I use dollar-cost-averaging buy purchase a small amount every month instead of a big one-time lump sum, the current price level doesn't really bother me too much.

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EPA Issues New Window Sticker for 2008 Car Model for Better Fuel Economy Estimation

Posted by Sun on December 11, 2006 (2) Comment

When you visit new car dealerships shop for a new vehicle next year, you will notice the revised window sticker that more accurately reflects the fuel efficiency of the car you are going to buy. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today issues new rules on how the fuel economy of new cars is estimated. From the sample window sticker, I see several new features compared to the old sticker: 1) Higher estimated annual fuel cost; 2) Lowered MPG; 3) A scale indicating the combined fuel economy of the vehicle in the same class.

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