GeekSugar

15 Weird and Wonderful Things You Can Get For $5

Emily Co — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 14:40:47 PDT

If you think $5 can only get you lunch and not much else, then you're not thinking creatively enough. I was looking through some of the options at Fiverr.com, a cool website that lets people buy and sell services for just $5. Some of them seem like jokes, but some actually seem worth far more than a fiver. Read on to see what a few bucks can get you on the website.

Source: Flickr User krossbow

Bank of America Website Is Down

Emily Co — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 12:25:14 PST

If you're wondering why you can't access your Bank of America account online, don't worry you're not alone. The bank's website has been down or slow since yesterday. A spokesperson representing the firm said that the system had slowed due to some routine upgrades that were done over the weekend.

I can't even access my account as the site says banking is down for California residents. However, when I dug around on Twitter, I saw mentions of BoA online banking being down for Florida, Virginia, and New York, so it looks like a lot of other states are facing this problem.

If you're one of the unhappy campers who can't access your website, pay your bills with checks or call the company and try to pay it via credit card over the phone. If you want to check how much you have in your account, you can always take a look at your Mint account (if you have one). The Bank of America site has been down before; the most recent outage was in Jan. 2010. To make sure that you're covered when this happens again, try to automate your payments so you don't have to worry about paying off your bills at the beginning of every month.

Here are some tweets by upset customers:

ThePalestGirl are you kidding me @BofA_help?! fix your damn web site! 2 days in a row! you have how many billions of dollars? #bankofamerica #BoA

shreddel BOA get your act together. Need me to find you a tech guy? #BOA

markep Bank of America is down and it's the first of the Month. Going to have to write checks by hand. Arrrrrgh.

deceptacle Hey norCal people- what's a really good local bank/credit union to join? I'm closing my #BoA account, finally

Savvy Travels: Find Your Local Soul Mate For Free on Tripping

Emily Co — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 13:50:42 PST

Before a trip, I spend hours poring over sites like Yelp and TripAdvisor and asking friends for the best places to go. It's always the advice from locals that's the most valuable, but that can be hard to find. However, there is a new way for you to meet your own local tour guide when you're traveling on Tripping.com, a social media site that hooks up travelers with native residents who will share a meal with you, teach you their language, show you around, or even offer their home for you to stay in. The best part is, the service is free of charge, and as you probably know, we do love freebies here at SavvySugar!

Of course, there are safety concerns, which the website says is helped by Tripping's reference, rating, and validation system. Tripping has to verify you are who you say you are via a Skype interview, and you can read testimonials and ratings of Tripping users for more security. What do you think - is this a service you would use on your travels?

Overstock Launches Private Home Décor Sale Site Eziba

CasaSugar — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 07:00:21 PDT

With the launch of its new home décor site Eziba, Overstock is following One Kings Lane and Gilt Groupe into the private sale game. The products aren't necessarily overstock items, but rather, new and affordable. Overstock president Jonathan Johnson notes, "Overstock.com has relationships with a large network of suppliers, who are in search of different avenues to sell product. It was a natural progression for the O to build a private sale site."

Already the selection seems more upscale than Overstock's usual inventory. This gorgeous reclaimed teak buffet, for instance, comes from C. G. Sparks and is for sale for $1,100. Kitchenaid, Lenox, Cybex, and Calypso Rugs are among the other debut labels, with patio furniture, tabletop wares, bath towels, and furniture in the mix.

Sales begin daily at 11 a.m. EDT and last between 48 and 72 hours. If you're already a member of Overstock, you can simply use that user name and password to log in, and if not, sign-up is free and easy. Just like Overstock, entire orders on Eziba ship for only $2.95. That's the clincher!

Watch the World Cup Unfold With These Apps, Sites, and Streams

GeekSugar — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 15:45:12 PDT

It's kickoff time for the 2010 World Cup, and I'm putting you right in the middle of the action with this roundup of apps to keep you on top of the scores, sites to check out all the day's highlights, and streams to watch the games live. Take a look at all the ways you can watch the World Cup unfold right here!

Do You Use Websites and Apps to Get Fit?

FitSugar — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 03:47:55 PST

Owning an iPhone is pretty cool - in large part because there really is an "app for that," especially in the health and fitness category. There are apps that count calories, motivate you to do push-ups, map your runs, and provide yoga sequences. I dare you to think of anything fitness related and not find an app for it. Personally, using the fitness apps on the iPhone is sort of like having a scaled down personal trainer. I can develop personalized workouts and meal plans while also tracking my progress, but I don't have to shell out a bunch of money to do so. (That is, if you factor out the initial cost of the phone . . .)

Besides iPhone apps, websites are becoming another great way to monitor and track fitness goals. Sites like the DailyBurn, FitDay, and SparkPeople help you track weight loss, manage your diet, and also provide a community of support amongst their users. Technology has really changed the way people approach and reach their fitness goals.

Website of the Day: Inter-Face 2.0

FitSugar — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 13:15:50 PST

Adding to our list of time-wasting websites is Inter-Face 2.0. When I first came across it, I didn't know what to think. I was creeped out, mesmerized, and puzzled all at once - I also couldn't stop clicking. You're immediately greeted by seven very realistic faces on the site staring back at you and blinking. Click on any one of them and things get even weirder. Moving your mouse across the face or clicking on any area of the face will produce a variety of natural facial movements. At times, it feels like there's a guy just hanging out on your computer screen. Even if you don't do anything, the face still has a life of it's own: it stares at you, blinks, and looks around.

Gathering from the limited information on the website, Inter-Face 2.0 was created as research for the facial recognition iPhone app iFace. Not surprisingly, the app is only available to law enforcement, the military, and security companies. The app was developed by a company called Animetrics that has a bunch of other facial identity programs that can create a 3D model of a person from a photo, recognize individuals that are on "watch lists" from video surveillance, and more. It's like all that crazy stuff I see going on in the CSI crime labs isn't as made up as I thought!

Get Holiday Wish List Help From a Few Little Elves

GeekSugar — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 13:45:09 PST

There's nothing worse than watching someone you love open your holiday gift and try to act happy about what they received. Sometimes people are just too hard to shop for! We've all been there - gifted someone with something they don't like. Well if all my holiday gift guides don't solve the problem, then use this handy site to find out exactly what is at the top of their wish lists.

Called GiftCracker, this site lets you send an anonymous email (well, they'll think it's from a few helpful elves) to your closest friends and relatives asking what they want to see under the tree (that way, you won't be giving away any hints as to what you will be buying). They create a wish list, and you get the deets safely and securely. Happy shopping!

The Ultimate TV Search Engine Opens Its Doors to the Public

GeekSugar — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:57:34 PST

Here's a word you're going to be hearing a lot of - Clicker! I know I often bombard you with the names of sites that stream TV shows and movies online, but now you can throw all of that knowledge out the window because a new streaming site called Clicker aggregates practically all of the shows across the web into one location.

According to TechCrunch, Clicker also pulls in Amazon Video on Demand and Netflix's Watch Instantly content (which you still have to pay for!). The site already has 400,000 full-length TV episodes (and growing), and its easy to use search feature toolbar is another reason to check it out.

Obama Shows You What the Weather Is Doing in Your City

GeekSugar — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:15:53 PST

In San Francisco, the weather can be hmm . . . how do I say . . . so up and down that I really do depend on my daily cell phone weather forecast deliveries to know what the heck I should wear each day! I like Umbrella Today because it texts me whenever I need to take an umbrella to work with me, but I also like Sleeves, since it says if I need to wear a long-sleeved shirt, a t-shirt, or if I can go sleeveless!

Well I think I've found one that tops em' all. With Obama Weather, you just enter your zip, and there's our cute President Barack Obama showing you a full weather forecast, and the most appropriate attire to wear each day! I'm loving it!