Your smartphone is now a credit card thanks to CBA & Coles

It is a move that will secure the position of smartphones as an indispensible necessity in the life of every consumer. Commonwealth Bank recently announced the pending introduction of a contactless payment system using smartphones. Coles made the same announcement at the same time.

A contactless payment system through smartphones works through a sticker attached to the back of a smartphone that communicates between the phone and payment systems. Commonwealth bank is calling the sticker a PayTag and claims it will be ready for use with Near Field Communication (NFC) capable smartphones. The sticker communicates with the latest version of the Commonwealth Bank phone application, allowing a user to turn the function on and off as well as select which bank account the payment comes out of.

ANZ attempted a contactless payment system with Android phones a year ago, however the technology could only be used in specific shops due to restrictions placed on phones by developers and telco providers. It received a negative response from customers because of the aversion to adding something onto a phone. While Commonwealth’s PayTag can be used in any store, it still requires an attachment to a smartphone. It remains to be seen whether customers will take up the new technology.

The introduction of contactless and cardless payments is just one example of the way smartphones are revolutionising nearly every aspect of the way the world conducts business. It’s not going to slow down any time soon. Future developments in technology mean that a smartphone may power nearly every interaction you have with the outside world even through wearable devices like wristbands and glasses (first pioneered by Google’s Glass products).

Before they start bending and folding though, they will provide us with a view of the world we haven’t seen before through technology known as Augmented Reality. These apps overlay the view seen by a smartphone with information links, graphics and video data about your surroundings.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, smartphones may attempt to bring reality inside the smartphone through the use of 3D imaging and holographic technology.

These uses are quite far in the future though. For now, here’s some cool things you can do with your smart phone already with just a simple add-on:

Open, lock and check the safety of your car remotely.

Track your child or pet and be notified if they get too far away from you.

Watch movies on a full screen projector.

Paint with the colour you always wanted through exact colour recognition.

Monitor your body health and the environment around you.

Find fish. No, really, we’re not joking.

What do you use your iPhone for?