Final Thoughts on Johnny27

I first wrote about Johnny27 a few days ago. My beta account has come to an end and I'd like to offer up my final thoughts.

First, I'll rehash that I think it's a great idea and a good service. I found it to be entertaining and, sometimes, helpful. If you're on the road and have a question that requires more than a simple query in Google, it's worth it.

At $2 a pop, though, I question how much use the service will actually get. It's hard for me to justify, in a world full of free information, paying for answers to my questions. It's just not something I'm used to. I would pay $10 or $15 per month, however, for unlimited use.

The fact is, at $2 per question, I probably won't use Johnny27 often or at all. And when I don't often use a service I tend to forget about it all together. At $10 per month they may not be making $2 per question off me (it would probably pan out to about $1), but in my book $10 is better than $0. Of course, I don't know what their operating costs look like.

There were a few times when I was given a URL. For example, I asked if the Blu-Ray DVD player in the PS3 was comparable in quality to a stand-alone Blu-Ray player. They said yes and to check out www.product4me.com to do other product comparisons. Cool site. I hope Johnny27 got paid for that endorsement. If they didn't, they're missing an opportunity.

An unbiased answer should always come first, but what's wrong with some paid endorsement? Q: "Where can I find the best creme brule in the city?" A: "Le Cirque made the creme brule famous, try that. Check out our sponsor, MenuPages.com, for other good eats."