Travelling With A Smartphone

If you’ve been reading Irreal for a while, you know that one of my goals is to be able to leave my house with nothing but my iPhone. That’s possible right now if you live in the right state, have the right car, and have a smart lock on your door. The right car and the smart lock mean you don’t have to carry keys. Living in the right state means you can carry a digital license on your phone. You can use Apple Pay virtually everywhere now so you don’t need to carry credit cards no matter where you live1.

When I wrote about this previously, there were still a couple of holdouts on accepting Apple Pay but now virtually everyone—except Walmart, of course—accepts Apple Pay and I hardly ever use an actual credit card anymore. In the meantime, Florida implemented a digital license but then suddenly suspended the program and withdrew the app from the app stores. They’re currently looking for a new vendor and expect to start up again next year. I’m hoping that something happens before I die. There really is no excuse for having to carry around a physical card just so you can drive.

The Florida suspension of its digital license program is a step backwards in my quest to be wallet free but the general situation does appear to be improving. Over at Sunset, Sarah Yang, a self professed Luddite, has an informative article on all the ways you can use your smartphone for travelling even if “travelling” simply means going to the supermarket or your favorite restaurant. In addition to replacing your credit cards, you can also put your plane or theater tickets on your phone. If you’re staying at a hotel, the chances are good that you can replace your room key with an electronic key on your phone or even automate your check in. If you live in or visit a city with mass transit, you can probably put a pass on your phone too.

Smartphones are well on their way to replacing our everyday carry. That doesn’t begin to capture all their uses, of course, but it’s certainly a significant one. I, for one, can’t wait for the holdouts to get onboard

Footnotes:

1

At least in the U.S. I’m not sure what the situation is in other parts of the world is but it seems as if Apple Pay and its Android analog have near universal penetration.

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