MURMER GADGET

Great news for corrupt restaurant employees and criminal scum everywhere: you can now use the latest Google Wallet app to skim credit cards right into your iPhone. In theory at least. And without actually recording the magnetic strip. But “Google Wallet update allows easy addition of credit cards using the iPhone camera” doesn’t have the same link-baiting ring to it. So scum and villainy it is. Google Wallet is best described by Google’s own “about” page: Google Wallet is a free service that lets you securely store your payment information, transaction history, offers and more. Everything’s synced to the cloud – giving you one wallet on any device you use, for in-store and online shopping. This is either amazing or terrifying, depending on your level of paranoia. I have been systematically quitting Google services over the last few months, so you can guess where I come on that scale. Then again, I use cash for most transactions, so I really can’t be trusted. Then latest update lets you...

We are, I believe, in an interstitial zone when it comes to payments. Credit cards are still king – just ask Square – and NFC is just a dream in most countries. That’s why Coin is so interesting. It’s a credit-card-sized device that holds other credit cards, allowing you to swap from card to card and even store gift cards inside its ultra-thin innards. The company planned a pre-order campaign that would top out at $50,000. They blew past that goal in 40 minutes today, a testament to the desire for folks to leave their plastic at home. The card itself is as thin as a regular credit card. To use the card you select a payment type with the button and just swipe. The Coin card “mimics” your read credit or gift card. The technology is tightly packed inside the card’s plastic case. It uses low-power Bluetooth to connect to your iOS device that is coupled with a standard credit-card reader. You swipe your cards into the system and you’re done. The device holds up to eight cards. Engineer Kani...