I read a really interesting article on TechCrunch today called “When Will Your Phone Replace Your Keys and Wallet?” by one of their columnists named Jon Evans. What the article discussed in fairly self explanatory from the title. It brings up several really pertinent questions as we progress into a world in which everything you would need keys and wallets for can be done with a smartphone.
Yes, it’s quite possible that in a few years credit cards and cash will seem equally cumbersome. Many stores, especially if you live in a major metropolitan area, accept payment from programs and apps on your phone. And if these are the major reasons people still carry wallets, there will be no need to anymore if these apps become even more common place. The other reason people need wallets, Evans points out, is ID, but many states are creating and instituting government apps which in the very near future, as soon as the imminently approaching 2015, will be able to serve as acceptable forms of identification.
The next item in your pocket that you never leave the house without, if you hope to get back in that is, is your keys, but for these too there will soon be a digital replacement. Several companies (see the article from the link above for names) are creating the software that would make your entire house accessible from your phone. There are many safety and security issues still very much in need of being worked out, but the technology is and will soon be more widely available. This smart-phone-as-key technology makes even James Bond style finger print recognition seem archaic.
The article is very interesting and I suggest reading it, both for the discussion of how these commonly carried articles can and will be replaced, and the security issues that are brought up as well.