Online Banking Comparison (BDO, BPI and Metrobank)

Online banking allows the customer to conveniently transact anywhere an internet connection is available. While I enjoy this convenience from three of the major banks in the Philippines, namely Banco De Oro, Bank of the Philippine Islands and Metrobank, some are more convenient than others.

One of the differences in the online processing of the three banks involves the OTP or one-time password. The one-time password is sent via SMS to the customer's registered mobile number. Some online transactions cannot proceed without the OTP.

For BPI, the OTP is only used for online purchases. The OTP is not required for balance inquiry, online payments and fund transfer.

For Metrobank, the OTP is used for online purchases and fund transfers for over PhP20,000 even if you are moving funds between your accounts. Their system should only require the OTP if funds will be transferred to a third party's account. The OTP is not required for balance inquiry and online payments.

For BDO, all online transactions will require an OTP, including balance inquiry. The OTP is required immediately upon logging in BDO online. You either key in the OTP or answer security questions.

While the OTP adds another layer of security, it may also introduce unnecessary inconvenience. Telco services is very unreliable in certain areas of the Philippines. This will prevent the customer from receiving the OTP via SMS on time. The same is true for Filipinos abroad who would rather not avail of the roaming services.

There are also a lot of Filipinos who are not post-paid subscribers. Losing a phone may add to the inconvenience of having to update the bank in case the customer has to change her prepaid number.

Of the three banks mentioned, only BPI does not require an OTP for most online transactions. They only require the OTP for online purchases. BDO, on the other hand, requires the OTP for all online transactions making their transactions not really online, but mobile-online. I think it's silly to always have a mobile phone in hand while doing online bank transaction.

i2i New York (forget Fly Shades)

The only reason why I bought from Fly Shades was because I wasn't able to find the i2i New York store in a certain mall. I have known the i2i brand from way back and I have bought a number of shades from them. They offer sunglasses with sensible prices. The quality is not poor either.

I thought Fly Shades will be the same. I actually expected more from Fly because their products generally cost more than i2i. Most Fly shades cost over PhP300. Most i2i shades cost lower than PhP300!

Price, of course, is not the only factor. With sunglasses, aesthetics is the main consideration. i2i has a variety of design for different personalities or occasions​.



I recently got the Dabu model. It has a metal frame with flexible temples. There's no need to worry of ruining the hinges if you overextend the temples to the side. I particularly like the nondescript design.

It's not polarized but for the price of PhP289, it will serve the purpose of protecting the eyes with UV400 protection.

Fly Shades Can be a Waste of Money

I bought a Rovigo model sunglasses from Fly Shades five days ago. They cost around PhP340. I have noticed that they used a very bendable plastic for a frame. I thought this bendability will make the frame less brittle, less prone to breakage. I was wrong. 

My Fly Shades broke in less than a week. The crack strangely started at the thickest part of the frame. I will never buy sunglasses with plastic frames from Fly Shades again.

Promo Comparison: Globe GoSurf 50 Vs Smart GigaSurf 50 Vs Go Sakto Combo 70

Based on the table below, Globe's Go Sakto Combo for 7 days is best for low mobile data users who want to extend the lifespan of their prepaid load. 

A 300-peso load with take you only 18 days to consume using Globe's Go Surf 50 or Smart's Giga Surf 50 while you only need PhP280 for 28 days of data connectivity for Globe's 7-day Go Sakto deal. That GoSakto deal will have a lower total data of 4GB whereas the Globe Go Surf will give you 6GB and Smart Giga Surf will give you 7.8GB.

Based on personal experience, I seldom consume the allocated data. I have other means of going online like via the home wi-fi and office internet. Whenever I do connect using mobile data, the service is usually slow and unreliable making me rely on the mobile connectivity less.

Between Smart and Globe, Globe is a better choice since the unused data allocation can be carried over to the next availed promo. This is possible since the GoSurf promo is allowed to co-exist with the GoSakto promo and vice versa. The later expiry date of the two Globe promos is the effective expiry date of the remaining unused data. This adding on of promo's is NOT applicable to Smart.