Credit card company, Visa, has plans to give wireless charging a try. No, we’re not talking about charging up cell phones or iPods without wires. This is strictly about paying for things without plastic. So, perhaps the phrasing should be plasticless charging?
Regardless, Visa is planning on allowing credit card payments to be made on Nokia phones or mobiles sporting Google’s cell phone operating system, “Android,” sans card with the bumpy numbers on. This is according to an article last week at News.CNet.com.
The article goes onto explain how not only will mobile-phone-based payments be available, but mobile money-transfers will be doable, as well. This would allow you to call up Mom and Dad or that financially special friend to ask for help should your bank account get a bit too low while in the middle of an emergency. They can then use the phone you’ve just called them on to transfer money into your account (this assumes all involved have Visa cards). Then you can use that money immediately.
Other cool things you’ll be able to do with your Nokia and/or Android phone? You’ll be able to receive notifications in real-time regarding your account. When ever transactions complete or (in theory) when your balance gets low.
However, all of this whiz-bang language makes the casual gadget addict wonder about a few things.
First off, how is this any different from what you can already do with the average smartphone? Any phone with a web browser can conceivably be used to pay for things online. If you’re in a store in person, why is it so much harder to have a tiny sliver of plastic in your pocket?
These days any bank worth its salt can let you transfer money over the phone and many banks also offer email notifications when things happen with your account. Sure, the Visa brand reaches farther than most bank brands do, but it’s not that big of an improvement for such an investment in new technology. This is especially true, considering the risk.
Remember that anything computerized is hackable. Considering the kind of data you’d be tossing back and forth on these phones and the commonality Google’s Android will no doubt reach there shouldn’t be too much doubt in anyone’s mind that hackers will target these phones. Odds are you’ll be fine, but better to go in aware of the risks.
