Technology – Page 11

Philippine Banks Catching Up with Technology

Banks should be at the forefront of technology, especially in this internet age, delivering real-time data about their customers and their accounts.

The Philippine banks may not be as nimble in adapting the latest technologies in rendering their services as that of banks from other countries, but at least we know that the effort is there in trying to catch up.

Internet Banking

Disclaimer: I currently own Metrobank, BPI and Security Bank accounts, although I used to own PNB, BDO, EastWest and even Equitable-PCI (before their merger with BDO) bank accounts.

From my experience, the first to offer the most reliable (in terms of security, uptime, utility, and convenience) internet banking service was Metrobank. I have to admit, though, that BPI was able to catch up and in my own opinion (sans the downtimes that recently plagued their online banking) offer the best internet banking experience, especially when coupled with the convenience in managing your investment accounts via BPI Express Online.

Continue reading Philippine Banks Catching Up with Technology

Happy 10 Years!

10-years

Today marks the 10th year of existence of Deuts.NET. I registered this domain name on May 17, 2006 — check the whois.

I’m sure we’ve seen better days in blogging, when I used to post a lot more often, and daily traffic was much better. Perhaps, those were the glory days of blogging — before Facebook even came around. Continue reading Happy 10 Years!

The search for a cheap web hosting

It’s been like 3 years since I let go of my shared web hosting service in favor of WordPress.com and Tumblr for some of the domain names I own. Recently I wanted to pursue to develop my ChessHive project, which I knew WordPress.com won’t cut it because of so many limitations. In the case of Tumblr, though, I guess it’s because of too many spam Tumblr blogs that it no longer plays well along with Google Search.

Thus, the search for a cheap web hosting.

best-web-hosting

I thought, after 10 years of blogging and paying for web hosting (yes, this blog is celebrating 10 years of existence this month!), web hosting costs — specifically shared web hosting — must have gone down a lot. Oh crap, I was wrong! How? Check out why »

The Pre-Retina Display MacBook Pro

Marco Arment enumerates the reasons, “Why the 2012 non-Retina MacBook Pro still sells.”

As we’ve progressed toward thinner, lighter, more integrated Macs, we’ve paid dearly in upgradeability, versatility, and value. There are many Macs to choose from today, but in some ways, we have less choice than ever.

When Apple introduced the 3rd generation MacBook Pro (MBP) back in the middle of 2012, it then came with the Retina Display and solid-state drives (SSDs) in lieu of the hard-disk drives (HDDs), but dismissed the optical drive altogether. Moreover, you cannot upgrade the memory (RAM) by yourself, it has to be pre-packaged when you buy it.

I own an Early 2011 13-inch Macbook Pro, and I’ll probably hold back from upgrading to the latest MBP in the near future. Why? Here are my reasons: Check out my reasons after the jump »

Waze vs. Google Maps vs. Apple Maps

Thrillist enumerates their reasons ‘Why You Should Ditch Google Maps for Apple Maps‘.

The points mentioned in the article may perhaps be valid if you’re living in U.S. But here in the Philippines, your best bet would be Waze. Why?

It offers important data like traffic, accidents, the police, etc. and those are actually crowd-sourced. Google Maps and Apple Maps have no traffic data in the Philippines;
Public transportation data is basically non-existent for Google Maps and Apple Maps in the Philippines;
Don’t get me started with 3D and/or satellite view of Google Maps and Apple Maps, when they still show our 30-storey office building as plain earth.

Nevertheless, I wish you could use Siri to search for locations via the Waze app.

Smart’s regular internet, is it P10 per 15 minutes now?

I have a Smart (Freedom) postpaid plan. I used it merely for internet via a pocket wifi. Since Unlisurf is now gone (the plan is not eligible for SurfMax), I opted for the regular P5 per block of 15 minutes data instead.

Last week, I used it for less than 45 minutes. Going with Smart’s current rate, my unbilled usage should have only been P13.39 (net of VAT), but instead what reflected in My Smart Dashboard was P22.32 (net of VAT).

Last Monday, I used it for another 26 minutes (less than 30 minutes). My total unbilled usage for 75 minutes should have been P22.32 (net of VAT), and yet lo and behold, My Smart Dashboard indicate I have unbilled usage of P44.60 (net of VAT). Continue reading Smart’s regular internet, is it P10 per 15 minutes now?

No thank you Microsoft for Office for iOS

I was trying out the MS Office apps (Excel, Word, and Powerpoint) on my brand new shiny iPhone 6s Plus today, and I found they’re nifty little applications that can surely help in some ‘office works’ while on the go. Continue reading No thank you Microsoft for Office for iOS

Where’s the 2-step verification in Facebook?

I was greeted by the above reminder when I opened Facebook today. Apparently, Facebook is concerned about our security. What with the reports of cases of user account hacking, some even compromise the personal reputation of the affected individuals. Continue reading Where’s the 2-step verification in Facebook?

Who’s up for a 1-Gbps Fiber internet connection?

Are you willing to spend P9,499.00 per month (~US$204.15) for a whopping 1Gbps fiber internet connection speed? That is — only if you’re located in Acropolis, Bel-Air Village, Forbes Park, Greenmeadows, Urdaneta Village, and White Plains areas.

Continue reading Who’s up for a 1-Gbps Fiber internet connection?

A clear testament that Smart Bro Flexitime is a rip off

So I’ve been blogging about this and calling @SMARTCares‘ attention for the last two weeks or so:

Perhaps, to make up for their flawed service or a futile attempt to buy me and this blog off, they reversed P100 to my Smart Bro account;

Indeed, I received that P100. But wait, there’s more »