the not-so-free wi-fi offer

for gizmonauts like myself, nothing helps to while away the time any better than the offer of gratis wireless internet access while on the move. unfortunately, it sure is irritating to see places boldly claiming that they have it for free, when they actually mean to say, "free with _______ (insert your condition, usually involving an exchange of cash)!"

while i'm still setting up my gear for the reviews i'll be doing (still setting up a small macro shot studio) and in between posts i'll be talking about some other things i'll encounter over the course of my journey.

so without further ado:

- not-so-free wi-fi hotspot #1 -
Gloria Jean's Coffees store, SM Megamall, 2nd level, Building A

entrance fee: P200 store purchase

i don't have a picture right now, but they have a sign outside that clearly states free wi-fi. i even went up close to check if they have any extra clauses like the one the Ohana Hawaiian BBQ store across the store has. i'll put it up as soon as i can get a good shot of it.
as you can clearly see now after i managed to get a picture, their sign outside states, ABSOLUTELY FREE WIFI.

anyway, having been a tiring day of walking around and waiting, i went in and got a drink, fully intending to take a peek online while i was there. i even asked the young man on the other side of the counter if the signal reaches the seats farthest from the store. after paying, i went to my seat. when the nice lady came by to give me my drink, i wondered how i could connect onto the network. it was only then when i was told that there was a P200 "entrance fee" to connectivity. ouch.

in hindsight, i think they may have stipulated the clause at the very, very bottom of their sign, but that doesn't really chang anything, does it.

lesson learned: don't forget to ask about the things that really matter.

my journey: a prologue

let me tell you about why i decided to embark on this journey in the first place.

it all started when Cd-r King began to flood the market with cheap goods. initially it was just about the quality of their optical media, but we all know that they sell pretty much anything and everything these days, from PSP sleeves to gigabit ethernet routers. and they sell their wares significantly less (~ 30-50%) than what the other stores are dictating. with such huge price differences, it made me think, what the heck are they selling us? are we being sold cheap, substandard knockoffs? or is there truth to their claims of passing on all their savings by cutting on marketing, uniforms, etc. to the consumer?

that made me think: if i had these questions in mind, surely there must be others out there asking these very same questions. thus, it became my goal to create a place where the very same people can check out simple product reviews on how these gizmos perform.

and so i begin my journey...

a message to the citizens of the internets

today i embark on a journey to boldy tinker with gizmos, gadgets and other technologically-inspired miscellany that no man has tinkered with before... and to provide you, my uninformed readers, an insight on what it is, how it performs, and ultimately, whether it is worth your hard earned monies!

join me in my journey through the vast world of cheap tech that is the unknown!