RBC: Get a free EeePC (oh, and we’re a bank)
Quite some time ago, a few blogs and several of my friends brought my attention to RBC’s EeePC banking bundle — that is, sign up for a bank account with them, and you’ll [eventually] get a “free” EeePC. Exposing myself neither to television or movies in the cinema, I was shielded from the ads… but they’re going full-force on transit systems (notice the asterisk next to “free” in their ad). Typically, I’m excited by technology, marketing campaigns (really… I miss campaigns) and free stuff, but this is getting a bit silly. Not only is RBC’s latest campaign unrelated to banking, but their website is curiously difficult to navigate if you’re looking for the EeePC offer (I had to ask Google to find the page for me). Obviously, their marketing department doesn’t communicate well with whichever department manages their website.
The conditions?
- Setup the new account yourself, or upgrade the account if you’re an existing client
- Transfer or set-up at least 2 (two) pre-authorized payments from your new account.
- Transfer your automated payroll direct deposit or monthly pension direct deposit to your new account.
- Select paperless statement option on your new account.
- Pay at least 1 (one) bill through RBC® Royal Bank Online Banking from your new account.
- Wait 10-12 weeks (that’s up to 3 months) after you’ve done all of the above… so much for instant gratification
- Pay $13.95/month in banking fees
And, hey, it’s only the 2GB 701 EeePC. Of course, a real penny-pincher can see that it’s cheaper to pay the monthly banking fees until they get your EeePC, then switch to a more suitable bank account, but they’re still risking RBC running out of EeePCs before they ship yours
Tags: eee, rbc, too good to be true
Hi Julianna!
From my perspective, the Eee PC totally ties into banking…
Primarily ’cause I do all of my banking online, and this would be so much better than carting my 17″ MacBook around all the time. I’m totally not eligible for the giveaway, because I work at RBC, but I got my Mom to consolidate bank accounts because of this.
As for the point about finding the page, point taken! I’ll pass that on to our marketing department.
The EeePC isn’t going to knock the socks off of a high-performance laptop, but overall, it’s a pretty decent little machine that isn’t half bad at doing what it’s designed to do. One of RBC’s bloggers reviewed the EeePC here:
http://blogs.rbc.com/rbcp2p/2008/05/asus_eee_pc_review.html
Cheers, and thanks for your feedback!
Hi, Michel.
I’m happy to see that RBC is responsive to feedback!
Although I do all of my banking online and love my Eee, I would never do my banking on it on the go. Most open wifi connections are unsecured and not safe for banking transactions, and even paid access through more private networks like Via Rail or Toronto Hydro are a little iffy for banking, IMHO. And there’s almost never a banking transaction which is urgent enough that I’m willing to risk the security of my entire bank account rather than waiting until I returned home