HSBC Direct - 5.05%

HSBC Direct just raised their rates to an outstanding 5.05%. This is the highest interest rate offered by an Online Savings Account. I highly recommend HSBC, except for the slow money transfer times.

ING Direct - 4.35% APY

ING Direct just raised their interest rate to 4.35% APY.

Citibank Raises Interest Rates

Citibank Direct raised their interest rate to 5% APY, which is the highest. However, there are strings attached to the Citibank account, unlike the other Online Savings Account. I believe I have posted this before. The Citibank online savings account requires a linked Citibank checking account. They advertise that the online savings account has no fees or minimums, but the checking account does and there are fees to transfer money to the online savings account if you are not transferring from the checking account. If you already use Citibank for checking, this is a great deal. Otherwise, stay away from it.

Best Buy Reward Zone: Now Even More Difficult to Get Rewards

I got a letter from Best Buy today, along with a coupon for 12% off. The letter says that's it's easier than ever to get Rewards and lists why. Well, they lied. They just changed the amount you need to spend to $250 to get $5 back rather than $150 to get $5. It also says that your membership will automatically renew as long as you make one purchase per year.

I got my membership for free when I got my computer so I've been doing most of my shopping at Best Buy, but this is ridiculous. I hardly get any rewards now anyway because their system is so out-of-date and doesn't track the spending correctly.

Even though it usually takes the cashiers about 10 minutes to do a price match, it still ends up being the cheapest deal. So, until Wal-Mart comes to NYC, I think I'll still have to shop at Best Buy.

HSBC Direct - 4.8%

HSBC Direct has taken the lead again by offering 4.8% APY, starting today.

eBay

I've been selling some things on eBay recently to make some extra money, including my Sony Clie. To see my current auctions, click here: http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZajoycetbQQhtZ-1
Or search for eBay member 'ajoycetb'.

Thanks.

Midnight Nintendo DS Lite Launch Bash at Nintendo World Store

"When the clock strikes 12:01 on the morning of the June 11th, you can pick up the brand new lighter, brighter Nintendo DS Lite. The first 100 people to purchase a DS Lite at the World Store will also get a free carrying case and a copy of Brain Age: Train your Brain in Minutes a Day."

The Nintendo World store is located at 10 Rockefeller Plaza.

One Thousand Paintings

One thousand blue numbers painted on a white canvas. The young artist, Sala of Switzerland, is quickly making about $500,000 just from painting each number from 1-1000 and selling the numbers with an unique pricing scheme. The prices vary by the demand of each number (the lowest are the most valuable) and the cost increases for every 100 paintings sold.

The available paintings and their corresponding prices are all listed on the website: One Thousand Paintings

According to the One Thousand Painting's blog, a star of The Life Aquatic, Waris Ahluwalia, purchased a number.

It's a great way for the artist to make money and it would be cool to own a number but I can't recommend someone to actually purchase a number at those prices.