Free WiFi at Starbucks

I'm making my first Starbucks stop since returning to the USA. While I was living in Asia, Starbucks switched their WiFi provider from T-Mobile to AT&T. T-Mobile was crazy expensive. The new deal with AT&T is pretty good. You just have to get a Starbucks card for as little as $5 and register online. You then get 2 hours of free WiFi access per day for the next 30 days. You don't pay for the access. You just have to put a minum of $5 on your card every 30 days. If you hang out at Starbucks, I can't imagine you would be spend less than $5 in 30 days.

After living in Vietnam, this seems very American to me. In Vietnam, the WiFi is just free. Sure, the speeds suck but the hassle is minimum. Most cafes don't make you register at all. (Highlands Coffee in Saigon Centre used to make you register, but they seem to have given this up.) Leave it to an American to make a complex system like this.

I am amazed that in my first 5 days back, I now have three AT&T accounts. One for my mobile phone, one for my home phone and DSL, and now one for my Starbucks WiFi.

I did notice that Starbucks seems to be running both AT&T and T-Mobile hotspots. At least all those suckers who signed up for the tres cher T-Mobile accounts can keep using them at Starbucks, for now.

Airport Lounge WiFi

On our recent trip back from the US our flight was delayed for quite a while due to high winds in San Francisco. As a result, we spent a few hours chilling in the United Red Carpet Club. My daughter is becoming well versed in these things and is always bummed when we're stuck in a T-Mobile hotspot. She knows that we're not going to be able to get on the Internet when it's T-Mobile. It just irks me to pay for wifi service, especially at the Red Carpet Club since I've already paid for membership. It seems like an insult that they don't have free WiFi. Even the $10 a night hotels in Vietnam include free wifi!

While in the lounge I overheard the guy behind me saying that he got a prepaid card for Internet access. I decided to give it a try. I went back up to the desk and asked for complimentary wifi access. The United employee manning the desk was happy to give me a one day prepaid card. He even gave me one for my daughter. She decided to keep hers for next time. I was about to use mine when, after a three hour delay, they called our flight. Luckily I hadn't activated my prepaid card.