What do you like? That's the question Facebook and otherwebsites ask, or will soon, every time you visit. In a quest to make it easier to share the things you like with your social network and to know everything you like on the web the Facebook Like button is now showing up on popular websites (like ours!).

The Facebook Like button is similar to the various sharing options which many websites and blogs already use to make it easier for users to share content that they enjoy, or like, with their friends.

You can see examples of this technology in this post where there is a button to share content on Twitter at the top left and many other options at the bottom. You'll also notice that WalletPop now has a Facebook Like button at the bottom of every post that allows you to share the page with your social network with one click. If you click the Facebook Like button at the bottom of this post it will instantly create a link on your Facebook profile that shares the story with your friends. When your friends "Like" a story on WalletPop or one of the other websites that use the Facebook Like button you'll see it show up in the "News Feed" so that you'll always know what your friends enjoy reading. Go ahead and "Like" this post, we'll wait.

Amazon has just released a new Kindle that starts at $139, which is $10 less than the competing Barnes and Noble Nook. The new Amazon Kindle comes in two models; the Kindle WiFi for $139 and the Kindle 3G for $189. Both models are available to pre-order and will be released on August 27th just in time for the start of school.

The new Kindle, known simply as Kindle, doesn't just bring a lower price; it is also 21% smaller, 15% lighter and offers faster page turns and better contrast on a six -inch screen. The Kindle still uses E Ink technology like that found in previous models but offers double the storage (4GB) and a claimed battery life of 10 days with wireless on and a month without it.

In addition to the smaller frame and screen improvements, the new Kindle sports a revamped keyboard and directional pad and according to Engadget, a build quality that was, "slightly more polished than the previous version." The new Kindle also comes with an experimental web browser that allows you to browse the text portions of websites for free.

Alongside the new Kindle, Amazon is releasing a Kindle case with a built in light that runs off the Kindle's battery so that you can read at night without bothering a roommate.

If you love getting group discount prices on local deals and events, then Groupon has an app for you -- if its deals are available in your area. The website has been growing in popularity recently, so much so that it is difficult for some businesses to cope with the consumer interest in deals that can cut 50-90% off of a purchase price. And now, with the Groupon app for the iPhone and Android devices, it is easier than ever to find a local Groupon and redeem it without a printer.

The Groupon apps are available free on iTunes and the Android Marketplace and allow users to find local Groupon deals and then redeem them with a few taps, which is great for users who are mobile or simply live without a printer.

These days shopping without a loyalty card for anything from groceries to consumer electronics will result in a higher bill or missed rewards. But to take advantage of every loyalty offer you need a key chain that weighs as much as a shotput. That is until you digitize your loyalty cards with an App like CardStar. And that's just the beginning of how loyalty cards and your digital wallet might look in the future.

CardStar is a free app that is available for the iPhone, Android and BlackBerry devices that will allow you to use your phone's camera to store an electronic copy of your loyalty card, creating an image which can be scanned to redeem discounts and in some cases coupons, like those offered by Cellfire.

CardStar CEO Andy Miller told WalletPop that there is an exciting future to be found in apps that will work like a mobile wallet or the Sunday circular.

Digital Receipts: One of the most exciting items that we will likely see in a future version of CardStar is a digital receipt tied to our loyalty cards that would allow for easy retrieval in case of a return or warranty issue. This is a feature which CardStar is already testing at select retailers.

TiVo stocks took an upward swing Monday on rumors that the company's once must-have TiVo DVR software would power the next Apple TV device. While it would be a big boost for TiVo, which has been on a "deathwatch" at our popular sister-site Engadget for going on five years now, the rumor is as likely to happen as consumers actually having a choice in who provides their cable service.

For starters, while TiVo is still one of the prettiest and most intuitive ways to access DVR content, Apple's more likely to copy the best features rather than partner with a company that just switched over to a Flash-based user interface and already has partnerships with many rivals.

Next, TiVo is well-known for organizing content you record from your local cable or satellite provider, a task that it has had trouble competing in lately, rather than organizing loads of digital content purchased online from a store like iTunes or from a local collection.

If the more detailed rumors of what Apple's next generation Apple TV will look like are to be believed, it won't be a device you hook up to cable, but instead will be a cloud-based media hub that connects and entertains on a more a la carte model of distributing TV than your local cable company will be able to provide.

With any luck the next Apple TV will be something to shake up a market that is built around a few powerful companies and a distribution model that thrives on a lack of choices.

Wal-Mart is trying to keep better track of its inventory by adding smart tags, or RFID (radio frequency identification) tags, to individual items in its stores. But privacy experts and consumers are worried that store merchandise won't be the only thing it tracks.

Starting next month the tags, which the retailing giant previously used on pallets carrying products, will be embedded in the items you buy at the store. Equipped with a handheld reader, store workers will be able to quickly check the stock of an item on a shelf by scanning the tag. In addition to managing inventory, Walmart hopes that the tags will help curb employee theft by allowing the store to track the clothing throughout the store. Privacy experts are concerned, however, that the tracking may occur beyond the store.

If you're looking for one of the best ways to book a hotel room dirt cheap, use a tool such as Priceline.com or call the hotel in the evening to get a room that would otherwise be empty. The Priceline.com app for the iPhone and iPad (which covers cars and hotels) makes this even easier, since you can name your own price in a few taps. But do note that it doesn't always offer the best deal.

While traveling across the country on what we're calling the Great American Road Trip 2.0, we made a hotel reservation for our first night using the Priceline iPhone app and landed a 3-star hotel for just $45. This was great news as it meant our travel budget would gain a bit more flexibility, but we didn't know how much it would help until we tried to get a hotel room at our final destination near Mount Rushmore.

Bartering for goods is as old as commerce itself, but the ingenuity and resourcefulness of a teen from California, who traded an old cell phone all the way up to a Porsche is a testament to the power of trade. And also possibly, to the current economy.

Starting two years ago, Steven Ortiz took an old cell phone he had been given by a friend and traded it on Craigslist.org for a better phone; and thus kicked off a cycle of trades that landed him an iPod Touch, dirt bikes, a MacBook Pro, a Toyota 4Runner and a tricked out off-road golf cart. That was all before he turned 16.

After these initial trades Ortiz found himself in possession of several more dirt bikes, street bikes and a '75 Ford Bronco, which, as luck would have it, was a collectible worth approximately $15,000.

It was this Bronco that, according to the San Gabriel Valley Tribune, sealed the deal on a 2000 Porsche Boxster Convertible, which was actually worth less then the Bronco on paper, but not to the Young Ortiz.

This isn't the first time someone has traded an item of insignificant value for a highly-prized possession. In 2005 a Canadian man famously traded a red paperclip for a house in a series of interesting trades.

Forget the coupon clipping. A straightforward, realistic budget is the best deal you'll ever find.

Why is a budget the best deal? Because, just like your childhood puppy your budget will always be there for you, no expiration dates, no fine print to yank away the savings after you've already been whipped into a furry of consumerism. If you care for your budget it will take care of you so that "saving" isn't just not unnecessarily spending an extra $5 at the grocery store this week; but actually saving money in a high yield savings account. Another great thing about a budget is that, again like your puppy, it will take you back even if you screw up.

Think outside the sale. For years I chased after deals and discounts like they were the oxygen keeping me alive. It didn't matter if I needed an item or not -- if there was a sticker advertising 60, 70, 80 or 90% off a gadget, I wanted to buy it. How could I pass up the savings?

It wasn't until recently that I realized a budget is the best deal you can find. After taking a few minutes to look at how to put together a budget I realized that it takes less time to set up and follow a budget than it does to look for deals every day of the week.

Thanks to great free personal finance management (PFM) tools from sites such as like Mint.com, Rudder and others you can easily create a budget and track how well you are following it each day. These tools will even send you a notification when you go outside of your budget so you aren't shocked at the end of the month. If you don't already have a successful budget don't start creating one yet. First go read these tips for setting realistic budget.

Advice on Budgeting

• Reverse Budget - A savings first solution from FiveCentNickel
• Budgeting basics - a Budget primer from Consumerism Commentary including suggestions on how to get started.

My personal favorite and current method of budgeting isn't so much a budget as it is smart spending. Ramit Sethi explains the model in his book I Will Teach You to Be Rich, calling it, "Conscious Spending." Instead of focusing on the minutia Sethi concedes that it is in fact OK to, "Spend extravagantly on the things you love, and cut costs mercilessly on the things you don't."

A budget may be the best deal, but that doesn't mean you need to give up on coupon clipping and bargain hunting; just make these tools that support your plan instead of the main focus. If you plan for your purchases, by saving up at SmartyPig or setting a goal in Rudder, you can still go looking for a deal on your next purchase and pay in cash. Trust me, there's something really incredible about paying in cash for the new camera that you've researched and found the best deal on.

Odds are, your smart phone is full of apps to help you live your life: games, task management, e-mail and more. You may even have an application like WebMD, but did you know there are other medical apps on the market, or coming soon, that might save you a trip to the doctor's office?

Thanks to increasingly sensitive sensors on smart phones, developers are able to create apps to diagnose what ails you and even figure out what prescription you need. In addition to helping you cut out a doctor visit, these apps may also help an aid worker bring medical care to people living in impoverished areas, without the need for an on-site physician or expensive and difficult-to-transport equipment.

These first three apps can be downloaded today to help you determine if an office visit is necessary; the last two are on the horizon.