Reading Felix Salmon's financial blog today (http://blogs.reuters.com/felix-salmon/), and saw his article on Gobank (https://www.gobank.com). Basically, it looks like an internet-based bank / checking account run by the same company that does GreenDot. You can get a debit card with your name on it for free, $2.50 ATM withdrawals.

A couple things stood out for me though:

1. You can load funds with MoneyPaks.
2. You can load funds with any debit card.
3. You can have them mail a check to pay a bill for free.

They have a limit on mobile-deposited checks of $2000 per check and $3000 per month; no stated limits on debit / Moneypak deposits. Per the website it's an actual checking account with routing number and all that, and is FDIC insured.

This does open up some additional possibilities, in my mind. First, it's a second account to do bill pay with in addition to Bluebird. Second, it allows you to diversify away from Vanilla Reloads. Third, if it will take any debit card, then you may potentially be able to load Visa / MC debit gift cards to it as well - which may mean you can skip the Vanilla Reload / MoneyPak step altogether. Finally, since you've got a routing number, you can potentially pay your credit card bills online without having to send yourself a check first.

I have not yet experimented with this and have no idea about customer service, hidden limits, potential pitfalls, or any other such things. Welcome any thoughts / experiences other folks on this fine forum might have.