I may be a bit premature in posting this, since I only just installed and loaded it up this morning and haven't tried it at a Starbucks yet. But it looks like a legit Starbucks barcode and r/bitcoin is pretty positive about it.
So what's the big deal? This seems to be a biz model like Purse.io uses.... worldwide buyers of bitcoins willing to pay a premium for BTC by purchasing Starbucks gift cards. Fold takes ALL of the complexity out of it. You send $10 to your app, it shows up as spendable on the app friggin' fast. During setup, you paste-in any bitcoin receiving address for your refunds and instantly get $2. This just works.
Newbies are generally not willing to link a bank account to Circle or Coinbase and go through all of that hassle for the benefit of having to worry about exchange volatility and maybe see their worth go down. But FREE bitcoins going into a savings wallet is another thing. Zero downside.
I have a coworker who spends more than she can afford at Starbucks--I'd say she is psychologically addicted even. She is quite excited about doing this so I'll be setting her up soon.I'll report back on her experience in a few weeks.
I love the innovation that is starting to show up. Programmable money is inherently badass and it is starting to show. Of course even friendly wallets like Airbitz are still too complex for newbies, but they are getting better. This trend will sooner or later lead to hyper-bitcoinization.
