finance

TurboTax is as simple as ever

For the past several years, TurboTax has impressed us with its clear language and simple step-by-step tax prep, and Intuit's offering for the 2011 tax year is no exception. Whether you're an experienced taxpayer or you're fairly new to the system, TurboTax can help you file.

The first thing I should point out is that TurboTax comes in four versions--Basic, Deluxe, Premier, and Home & Business--each of which offers both an online prep option or a software download. All of the online apps let you start a single e-file for free, while the downloads cost a bit … Read more

Snap a pic of your W-2 with SnapTax

If your tax situation is simple (no children, don't own a home, income under $100K, and so on), then you are likely filing a 1040EZ this April. If that's the case, then you may want to think about filing your taxes right from your mobile device.

With the TurboTax SnapTax app, you can fill out your 1040EZ tax form right on your phone or tablet. The app can even enter income information using your device's camera.

Before getting started, SnapTax asks if you'd like to create an account. You can work without one, which is nice, … Read more

Forecast your refund with TaxCaster

Intuit's TaxCaster app can quickly estimate your federal tax refund based on just a few bits of personal information. Even for the most inexperienced taxpayer, it's incredibly simple to understand and use.

At the top of the screen is a meter that displays your estimated tax refund. As you make your way through the app, it considers your answers and recalculates its estimate accordingly. And of course, the more answers you provide, the more accurate its estimate gets.

Three main tabs sit just below the meter, each housing a different category of questions: About You; Total Income; and … Read more

Startup SpringCoin aims to help those in debt

If one Y Combinator startup is successful, it might have just gotten a bit easier to get out of debt.

SpringCoin (formerly DebtEye), opens its online doors this morning with the noble intention of helping you, or possibly someone you know, get out of debt. No, SpringCoin won't pay your bills for you, but through a combination of its "smart-learning software" and human expertise, it will provide a detailed plan to get yourself out of debt.

SpringCoin isn't without competition, though. ReadyForZero, a fellow Y Combinator alum that also boasts an investment from Dave McClure of … Read more

HTC disappoints with financial results, forecast

Mobile-phone maker HTC today reported fourth-quarter results and first-quarter forecasts far short of analyst projections.

The company, which rose to prominence through its early success carrying Google's Android operating system to market, said its fourth-quarter revenue was 102.4 billion Taiwanese dollars, or $3.48 billion, with earnings per share of 13.06 Taiwanese dollars, or 44 cents per share. Analsysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters had expected revenue of 144.6 Taiwanese dollars and EPS of 17.63 Taiwanese dollars.

In the year-earlier quarter, HTC reported EPS of 17.06 Taiwanese dollars on revenue of 104.0 billion Taiwanese … Read more

The 404 970: Where we're makin' a sandwich (podcast)

The second show for the year has its share of bumps, but CNET's Bridget Carey and CBS MoneyWatch's Jill Schlesinger come to save the day, while offering their insights on toys and finances.

In this 404 episode, Jill tells us how she gets fans from The 404 calling into her financial advice show, and that has her producers bewildered by the number of 20-somethings interested in some money-saving tips for things like getting married. One thing that doesn't save a lot of money is having kids. That's got Jeff excited. And it reminds Wilson that kids these days are spoiled. They want iPhones and iPads for Christmas. We remember growing up and thinking a Transformers action figure was good enough.… Read more

Track finances on your iPhone

Mint is the iOS mobile companion to Mint.com, the popular financial services site that helps you track all of your accounts and budgets.

You have to set up an account with Mint.com to use the app (which involves giving Mint.com access to your bank, credit card, and investment accounts), then you can monitor your accounts, budget, and cash flow from the site or the app. The passcode-protected app presents your finances in summary form, with the capability to drill down to the item level of a purchase. Follow the trail to the end to edit an item'… Read more

Military deploys distributed solar en masse

SolarStrong, a project to install rooftop solar panels at 120,000 military homes, will see the light of day after nearly being derailed by political infighting in Washington.

Solar installer SolarCity today said it has secured the financing needed to install about 300 megawatts' worth of solar panels at homes on military bases. The company and the project lender, Bank of America's Merrill Lynch, expect this to be the largest distributed solar-energy project to date, requiring $1 billion in financing over the next five years.

The project calls for installing solar panels at the homes of military personnel at … Read more

Let FAssistant track your finances for you

FAssistant is a free multiuser personal finance tracking and reminder application. It also analyzes your finances, generating useful reports that give you both a "Big Picture" as well as deep details. You can set up multiple user accounts, each with multiple financial or information accounts for FAssistant to keep track of.

FAssistant's installer creates a database, and we had the opportunity to import data during the setup process, which many users will appreciate. Once our database was created, we needed to set up an account, which can be either an Application User or Admin User, though the … Read more