Calvin's Hub » Tips n’ Trix

UnionBank’s EON VISA Debit Card… How Convenient

Calvin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 02:30:12 +0000

Previously, I’ve talked about the benefits and advantage of having a VISA debit card. Bearing the VISA brand, it’s widely accepted in a lot of local and international establishments. It also stops you from spending money that you probably don’t have like you would with a credit card.

To put things to test, I’ve been using UnionBank’s EON VISA debit card for quite a while here and during our vacation. This debit card is quite easy to acquire and doesn’t have a maintaining balance whatsoever attached to it. It’s also compatible with PayPal so I think it’s the perfect choice for bloggers and freelancers out there.

First thing I did was withdraw PayPal from it. After registering the card to my account, withdrawal was easy and didn’t give me any problems. UnionBank didn’t charge me anything for it too, I just paid the PayPal transfer fees and after 5 banking days, I have money on my card.

Online purchase

Having some cash on my debit card, I tried using it to purchase something online. I went on to a buy a trail shoe from an international site that accepts credit cards from the Philippines and the EON VISA debit card worked!

Cash abroad

I also brought the card with me in our Malaysia trip to try it out abroad. We dined in this sidewalk restaurant that accepts VISA and as advertised, I just gave my EON card, signed the charge slip and we’re paid. No problem!

Local establishments

Back here in the Philippines, my EON card is like my emergency money. I’ve used it to pay for gas, buy kitchen appliances, for hotels, restaurants, basically places that accepts VISA.

It’s really convenient and like credit cards, all I had to do was sign the slip. I just had to make sure that there’s enough balance in the card that’s why I signed up for EON Online so I can check my money quickly.

If you’re looking for a convenient VISA card but don’t want to be bothered by monthly credit bills, go for the EON VISA card.

Switched to Sky HD cable for Php579 a month

Calvin — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 06:32:28 +0000

Recently, we finally bought an LED TV which I’ve been eyeing for since last year. I didn’t know that it would render our ordinary Sky digibox useless.

For some reason, the picture from the digibox won’t display properly using its RCA input. I called Sky support and they told us that we should switch to their HD Digibox in order to continue getting cable, or Tia’s dose of Cinema One.

I asked them how much was the box and they said it’s Php3,000 non-refundable. Ouch. I asked if there was a promo and they said that if we subscribe to their HD Revolution package for an additional of Php299/month, we’ll get the box setup for free.

Php299 per month. At that price. the box itself would cost 10 months and we could discontinue it after a year so in effect, we would only be shelling out just Php600. Not bad. Hook me up then.

So Sky came over to our house and hooked up the box and all is fine and dandy with our 40” LED TV along with Sky HD. The HD Revolution package gave us seven HD channels (not six as was listed on their site):

Fox Crime HD. Meh.
Fox Family Movies HD. Meh.
Fox Channel HD. Family Guy, Simpsons, American Dad in HD? Cool!
Fox Movies Premium HD. This one replaced Star Movies HD but still have a nice lineup of HD movies like The A-Team, Tron… lots of good stuff.
Star World HD. American Idol. Glee, Junior Master Chef. ANTM. HIMYM, and many more, all in HD. Awesome!
ESPN HD. Watching Nole beat Nadal in the Australian Open in full HD was quite a viewing experience.
Nat Geo HD. My favorite HD channel of the lot. This is what’s keeping me up late at night.
PPV HD. This is an extra and I don’t know what it stands for. Might be a preview channel but it keeps on showing cartoons from Cartoon Network HD.

I’m getting all of these HD channels plus the old SD channels we were subscribed for before for just Php579 a month, which I think is a good deal if you want to maximize your HD TV.

Old subscription (Plan 280)– Php280
HD Revolution – Php299
Digibox HD – Free
Total – Php579/month

Not only that, we’re also getting our Php1,500 back for returning our old Digibox. Coolio! If we decide to discontinue the HD Revolution at the end of the year (although I might not), we can still keep the Digibox for the SD channels.

So if you have an HD TV and Sky HD is available in your area, availing their HD channels is a good plan. HD TV viewing is much more enjoyable than regular channels, trust me. I think it’s time for Filipinos to embrace HD.

How to program a generic Universal Remote Control

Calvin — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 10:02:00 +0000

When the buttons on my old Samsung TV’s remote control started acting up, I looked for one of those universal remote controls. The closest shop we have at our office is CD-R King and they had a few URC on hand. I chose one that uses AAA batteries and it costs just Php100.

Unfortunately for me, there’s no manual included and there are no instructions at the back on how to use it. I couldn’t find a button that would auto-scan my TV nor a menu that would help me get started. I can’t find anything to help me in the CD-R King website as well.

I searched over the net on how to operate the remove and piece by piece, I found how to program it. All I need next was the correct 3-digit code for my Samsung TV. No luck using the codes so I searched for a guide on how to have the remote auto-scan the correct code by itself. Then I got it to work.

To save you the hassle of setting up your URC (might also work with other generic URCs), here’s how I did it.

How to Input TV Code on your Universal Remote Control

Turn on the TV first.
On the remote, press SET for 3 seconds, or press SET and POWER, until indicator lights up. Release the key/s and you will be prompted to input the TV Code.
Enter the 3-digit code of your TV, the indicator light should flash once for each number. After inputting the 3-digit code, indicator will turn off.
Start using the remote and check whether each critical keys are working

TV codes of popular brands

Here are the 3-digit codes of popular TV brands. Try each code one by one. Hopefully it will help you because it didn’t work for my Samsung TV.

LG – 040, 043, 140
Samsung – 008, 011, 016, 021, 024, 025, 033, 037, 039, 040, 043, 050, 051, 091, 113, 123, 235
Sony - 005, 041, 049, 094, 106, 153, 154, 158, 173, 243
Panasonic – 001, 002, 014, 015, 020, 021, 022, 059, 066, 156, 233
Toshiba – 000, 007, 008, 014, 015, 016, 027, 028, 030, 033, 053, 056, 079, 089, 090, 091, 160
JVC – 004, 089, 161
TCL – 051, 053, 068, 071, 073, 082, 083, 08, 085, 110, 111, 151, 212, 244

How to program your Universal Remote Control automatically

If you can’t find the code of your TV, or if the code just won’t work. You can also let the remote control automatically search the code for you. This might take long and requires you to pay attention but it worked for me.

Turn on the TV first.
On the remote, press SET for 3 seconds, or press SET and POWER, until indicator lights up. Release the key/s at the same time.
Press and release the POWER key. The indicator will flash every few seconds. What it does is cycle through TV codes and transmit a “Volume +” command on your TV.
Pay attention to the TV. When you see the Volume being adjusted on the screen, quickly press SET. The indicator light will turn off and you just successfully programmed your URC to work with your TV.

That’s it! No thanks to you CD-R King. The OEM model of the universal remote that I got is Huayu RM-36E+ by the way which I believe is a generic URC.

Get your FREE Facebook cards from MOO now

Calvin — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 07:56:00 +0000

MOO.com makes excellent business cards. Abe had a batch of minicards created for me before and it was a blast handing it out to people. The problem is they’re not exactly cheap.

Recently, MOO had a partnership with Facebook which allows you to print business cards straight from Facebook using your profile pic and Timeline cover. To celebrate, the first 200,000 users can request for a pack of these calling cards absolutely free. No tax. No shipping charges. It’s FREE!

Don’t believe me? Read this article on their blog.

Each pack will contain all your Cover Photos and each card will show your name, company or college, where you live as well as your Facebook URL, phone number and e-mail address. Also on the back of the card is space for you to add your own quotation or sentence about yourself.

Ok goodie. So how do you get started?

Well you must first have a suitable profile pic, preferably a real profile photo (just change it back afterwards).

Then go to your About page (https://www.facebook.com/yourusername/info) where you need to fill in your contact info (if you haven’t done so yet) or else the Print Card option won’t show up). I don’t like putting my number on FB so I just set it to private so it’s only me who can view it.

After that, just hover your mouse on the business card icon and click Print Cards.

It will redirect to MOO.com and will ask you to Allow their app to access your Facebook. Just click Allow.

Then it’s time to edit your card. You can remove Cover Photos that you don’t want used. You can edit the info on each field, don’t really need to follow the entries. When you’re done, just verify and fill in your shipping info. That’s it!

MOO.com said that they’re only limiting 5,000 requests per day so that will give you until mid-February to request for your Facebook card.

My new online shopping buddy – BPI ePrepaid Card

Calvin — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 18:57:55 +0000

Note: This is a guest post by my wife Tia. Men are not that fond of shopping so I guess it’s apt that Tia gets to write about this.

I love shopping. I would trade off sight-seeing or visiting historical places whenever I go abroad just to shop especially in outlet stores. I also love online window shopping than reading news on the net.

Now that I am about to get domesticated and start my life as plain Mrs. Hubs, I am thinking on how to control my shopping expenses. I just recently cut my credit card and I don’t want to get a new credit card as it would only entail annual fees that I could’ve used to shop some more.

Good thing I was recently introduced to the BPI ePrepaid card. With this new BPI card, online shopping becomes more convenient and secure without having to overspend. Or spend money that you don’t have. It makes online purchase of airline tickets, gadgets, latest fashion must-haves and coupon deals purchase easier. Since it’s separate from your main account, it suits those who are paranoid in entering their card details online.

It can also be used to shop from the widest selection of MasterCard affiliated online shopping sites. Unfortunately, you can’t use it on MasterCard establishments since it’s restricted to online purchase. As an added bonus though, BPI also hosts DealMania.ph, a deal-buying site exclusive to BPI cardholders which includes this ePrepaid card.

Now, I don’t have to worry about over-spending as Mr. Hubs can limit the load for my BPI ePrepaid card and reload it anytime from his BPI online account. Mr. Hubs, don’t forget to load my BPI ePrepaid card as payment for this post ok?

How to create your Google+ Page

Calvin — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 11:22:49 +0000

You’ve probably heard already that Google+ is now accepting Pages already. Before, it’s just profile and if you create a profile for your brand, Google will promptly delete it. Now with Google+ Pages, you can create as many pages for your brand, store, web site, band, or whatever as you like on your profile.

Creating is easy but I didn’t know where to start at first. However, if you look at the bottom right part, there’s the link that will direct you in creating a Google+ Page. Or click here instead.

Next thing you need to do is choose a category. For blogs, you might want to pick Others.

Then fill up the fields – name of the page and the optional URL. Click Create and you’re all set!

Now when you go back to your main Google+ page, you will have the option to use Google+ as your page so every time you comment on something, people will see it coming from your page instead of your profile.

It’s also nice to know that sharing links on your Page stream will also show a summary and thumbnail of the post, just like in Facebook.

There’s still no way to use a name for your Google+ Page URL unlike Facebook but I hope they will come up with one soon. Right now, your page URL is comprised of a series of numbers you probably won’t memorize. Might as well use a link shortening service if you want to share it to someone or put it on your business card.

Oh boy. Another social network account to maintain if you want to be serious in your blog. Hehehe. Go ahead and add Calvin’s Hub to your circle and give it a +1 will ya!

VISA Debit Card can be the smarter choice

Calvin — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 13:08:53 +0000

Disclosure: VISA got in touch with me to help educate my readers on the benefits of having a debit card. It got me thinking that it’s really a nice thing to know for a lot of people so I agreed.

If you’re having a hard time getting a credit card, a VISA debit card can be a smarter choice… especially for bloggers or people who deal with getting payment via PayPal.

When it was time for Tia to renew her credit card, we were hoping that the bank would waive the annual fee. Well they won’t under any reasonable circumstance so I told her to just have it cut it off. And so she did and she’s now without a credit card. I told her to get a Debit Card instead, make it a Visa so she can use it when traveling abroad.

I would like to think that most Filipinos are frugal. The only reason why I would want a credit card is because it’s convenient than having a huge wad of cash with me all the time. I don’t use it to incur debt and we always pay the full amount required every month.

One drawback I have with a credit card is that it gives me the false sense of having money in my bank account when it should already be allotted for my credit card bill, thus making me overspend. Then there’s also the late arrival of monthly bills letting the interest kick in.

So where am I going with this? Well it’s about Visa debit card which I just recently learned about.

I thought EPS was cool but I still find a lot of establishments that don’t support it. With VISA Debit Card, as long as you see the VISA logo on the merchant, you’re good to go. You can use it in gas stations, restaurants, online purchases and it’s widely accepted in more than 200 countries. You can also use it on ATM machines carrying the VISA logo if you need some hard cash with you.

It’s important to note that a VISA Debit Card is tied up to your checking or savings account. Anytime you use it for paying, it will automatically deduct the amount from your account. It may be difficult at first to keep track of your balance but in the long run it will teach you how to budget wisely and monitor your spending.

What’s nice with a VISA Debit Card is that there are now lots of banks offering it (unlike bank-specific debit cards) and getting one is easy. No need to wait for approval. No annual fees (only maintaining balance for some). No interest rates. And no monthly bills to worry about.

I think for bloggers, UnionBank’s EON VISA Debit Card is the popular and perfect choice. You can transfer your PayPal money into it without any fees and you don’t need to maintain a certain balance so you can withdraw all your money from it.

How to activate your Facebook Timeline

Calvin — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 23:47:15 +0000

One of the upcoming Facebook upgrades people are harping about is the new way of displaying your profile called Timeline. It’s a more personal and interesting way to view your profile since the time you signed up on Facebook. If you’ve been diligently updating your status on things that are happening on your life, you will definitely going to appreciate this.

However, it is not available to the public until September 30 although app developers can already use it and view other people who has it. If you want to enable your Timeline on Facebook before it launches, here’s how you can easily do it even if you’re not a developer.

1. Search for Developer on your Facebook and access the app.

2. Click Create New App on the upper-right corner.

3. Fill in a random name and a unique namespace (any name will do). Click the I agree checkbox and click Continue. Answer the security question that follows if it appears.

If you ran into a prompt from Facebook asking for your mobile phone number or credit card, it means that you haven’t verified your account yet. It’s Facebook’s way of letting you own your profile, and will prevent people from creating multiple profiles. Go use your mobile phone number to continue to receive the code you need to key in next.

4. Click Open Graph on the upper-left menu.

5. Fill in the two blanks on the next page and click Get Started.

If you ran into a problem here, try different combinations like listen a song, or read a magazine.

6. On the Edit your Action Type page, click Save Changes and Next at the bottom.

Now it will bring you to the next page but that’s not important anymore.

7. Go to your Facebook Profile page and you will see the Introducing Timeline notification. Just click Get It Now.

8. Lastly, click Publish Now to finally activate it. Or you might want to Add a Cover first before clicking Publish Now.

There you have it. Now you can view other people who has their timeline enabled and they can view yours. People who doesn’t have Timeline enabled will still see your old profile though.

Now go play with your Timeline. You might want to add important milestones in your life, like a trip to another country, or the time you got confined. Check out the new status with the Life Events. It may not be of value now, but in a couple of years time you can easily go back to memory lane with this new Facebook Timeline.

How to control from being tagged in Facebook

Calvin — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 04:15:06 +0000

I don’t know about you but I just hate it when people tags me on Facebook on photos of things that they are selling. Condos? Slimming pills? Or photo memes like these are my best friends and other things like that. Some people just don’t care about social networking ethics.

Fortunately, Facebook now has a feature that will prevent people from tagging you, or let you review the tag first before it appears on your wall. It’s the Tag Review and here’s how you can turn it on.

How to turn on Tag Review in Facebook:

1. On your Facebook, Go to Accounts > Privacy Settings

2. Click Edit Settings on How Tags Work

3. Click the right portion of Tag Review

4. Click Turn On Tag Review

That’s it. You can now review tags friends add to your content before they appear on Facebook. When someone who you’re not friends with adds a tag to one of your posts you’ll always be asked to review it.

Switching from Torrent to Usenet

Calvin — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 14:46:19 +0000

I’m sure most of you use torrents to download but have you heard of Usenet? You probably have. I did… way back more than a decade ago in the days of bulletin boards.

Anyway, I heard again of Usenet a couple of weeks ago and found out that it’s now a premium service where you can download content off the internet. If you’re still scratching your head, Usenet is a worldwide network of commercial grade servers where members can post and download files.

Torrent vs Usenet

In torrent download, you download from peers and at the same time upload as well. The speed will depend on the number of seeders and their upload speed as well as your max speed. Not a problem if the torrent is new and popular, but when it gets old, the number of seeders will go down as well as your speed.

Now with Usenet, the files are already uploaded to servers. You can get them anytime you want and you will be downloading it at the speed your Usenet provider allows (most often its max).

Obviously unlike torrents, you won’t have to spend a lot of time waiting for the seeders to go online just to complete your download which is pretty much what you would experience when downloading old files.

The downside with Usenet is that membership is not free but if you rely heavily on downloading stuff, the price can be insignificant for the amount of things you can get from it.

Trying Binverse

I came across with a Usenet provider called Binverse and they gave me a promotional account to try Usenet out. We’re also going to give away a couple of accounts to lucky readers.

The account they gave me lets me download up to 50GB worth of files at max speed. After the 50GB is consumed, the speed will throttle down to 2Mbps which is still fast here in our country.

Putting it to test, I looked for an open-source OS called Meego to install on my spare netbook. Traditionally, you browse at newsgroups to get your .nbz files (think of it as the .torrent equivalent). Binverse however has an app that let you do this and download it at the same time.

The problem with the search engine of Binverse is that results are kinda cryptic especially when you’re used to TPB or isoHunt and other torrent trackers. What you need is a newsgroup indexing site that will help you search properly. I suggest you use nzbMatrix (need to register) to download .nzb files which you will open with Binverse.

Anyway, I was easily able to look for my MeeGo from the Binverse app. When I clicked download… whoa! Check out the speed I’m getting!

I was able to download this 737MB file in less than an hour. It even supports resume if you need to go. Also, there’s no need to upload anything in order to get more download which is good if you have a bandwidth cap on your connection. Nice huh?

Binverse doesn’t keep logs of downloads and they provice SSL encryption so your connection is secured and privacy protected.

Free Binverse Accounts Giveaway

Now the good folks over at Binverse has told me that they can give a free account to five of my lucky readers. The account is a 50GB worth of download at max speed that doesn’t expire until you consumed all 50GB. Here’s how we’re going to do it.

Simply leave a comment below answering this question:

“The most hard-to-find file I want to download from the internet is ________ “.

Be specific and leave a comment. I’ll choose ten of the best answers and will randomly pick three from that list.

Please use a valid e-mail account when leaving a comment ok? Deadline of entries is next Saturday, August 27 at 11:59PM.

Oh if you’re interested with what Binverse has to offer, do visit their site at http://www.binverse.com/. If you don’t win an account here, you can try them out for three days for free.