Contactless payment trial goes live on San Francisco's BART
We knew full well that a contactless payment trial would soon be underway in the city by the Bay, and now it's finally ready for use by 230 guinea pigs. Unfortunately, there's not a lot of details on the Samsung handsets and the technology itself, but we do know that the program is being closely watched in hopes of it operating quite smoothly. If indeed that happens, it could be "expanded," presumably allowing others in the area to have their bank account dinged with the swipe of a cell each time they need a lift. Furthermore, a video clip at CBS5 shows the pilot phone being used to snag some totally nourishing grub from Jack in the Box. Hungry for more? Hit up the read link to take a peek yourself.[Thanks, Hans]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Hans @ Jan 31st 2008 2:10PM
I've seen the phone up close. It looks like a Samsung a920 and has a dedicated button on the keypad to launch the wallet software.
Tim @ Jan 31st 2008 3:28PM
I don't know what cell company is hosting this, but I would not want to be on their customer service team when the bills for these transactions start rolling by.
Most bills are overly complicated to explain as it is, let alone trying to tell some old guy that when he set his phone down at subway he agreed to pay for his food 3 weeks later...on his cell bill.
Oh, and for the record, I am familiar w/ the bart system and know that it is in no way related to the eatery. simply an example.
Hans @ Jan 31st 2008 5:42PM
None of the Jack or BART transactions are on the cell phone bill. The phone has a Jack prepaid card and BART EZ-Rider card securely stored in a smart card chip in the phone. Charges are reflected on those accounts, not your Sprint bill.
crow610 @ Jan 31st 2008 3:29PM
So this will only work with certain phones?
scott @ Apr 16th 2008 10:10AM
These phones use NFC, (near-field communication) and they require a specific chip to be a feature of the phone. At this point, it's not really possible to get an NFC enabled phone in the US. By the way, the chip has credit/debit card data on it, so the phone is really just a case for a contactless pay-pass style credit card.
NuShrike @ Jan 31st 2008 5:43PM
Seen these all over in Japan. Thought it was never make over the ocean. Nice! Now if they can just sell it separate from the cellphone as a card!