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NTT DoCoMo Debuts Credit Card Phone

Posted by samzenpus on from the my-phone-is-maxed-out dept.

Scott S. writes "NTT DoCoMo Unveils its new phone allowing a simply wave to pay for items at the supermarket, rent movies, get airplane tickets and more. The i-mode FeliCa serves as a "mobile wallet" that detects weak electronic signals from a reader/writer and can be used when the phone is off. Credit card phones have been an idea in the past and leave it to the Japanese to make one."

12 of 123 comments (clear)

  1. One FeliCa to access them all by fembots · · Score: 4, Interesting

    It seems almost inevitable that Japanese is going to have a Felica after Toyota's Celica and Mitsubishi's Delica :) Where's Google when you need a Gelica (Girly Car)?

    The article mentioned "i-mode FeliCa will make your wallet more slim. It can be your cash, credit card, membership ID, and even your house key." Given that many people have mobile phones stolen/lost, or worse, broken in the most unexpected moment, is relying too heavily on one device too much a risk?

    I think it's equally annoying to have your cash stolen, house broken into, and not being able to enter your house (and you can't call for help without a mobile phone or cash for payphone!)

    --
    Play iCLOD Virtual City Explorer [iclod.com] and win Half-Life 2

    --
    Rock that crushes, Paper & Scissors that don't matter.
    1. Re:One FeliCa to access them all by kryonD · · Score: 4, Interesting

      I will freely admit to not having RTFA, but that's because I check out DoCoMo's site on a regular basis. There 506i series of phones had one model with fingerprint activiation and the next gen will likely follow that trend as DoCoMo has always done in the past. Having to finger the phone may seem like a minor annoyance, but for anyone who has frantically tried to make it through the crowds to the ticket machines when you realize your pass is your other pocket would consider this almost as eay as just reaching for your wallet with the JR pass in it. Add the ability to pay for items with the press of your finger and a single source of billing and you have a winner.

      I'm counting the days til I can return to Tokyo and replace my two year old 505i (which by the way, still puts 95% of the current US phones to shame)

      --
      I've dirtied my hands writing poetry, for the sake of seduction; that is, for the sake of a useful cause. --Dostoevsky
  2. Why attached to a phone? by LostCluster · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I use ExxonMobil's Speedpass from time to time, but I don't quite see why the same thing needs to be attached into a cell phone. Isn't an RFID chip on a keychain enough to do the job?

    1. Re:Why attached to a phone? by gl4ss · · Score: 5, Interesting

      well.. the idea is that it cuts down on the seperate things you have to carry..

      with eventually you having to carry just one thing(preferably that has the data portions somewhere backed up automagically where they're easily replaceable securely for you if you lose the thing).

      --
      world was created 5 seconds before this post as it is.
  3. Condoms etc. by EmbeddedJanitor · · Score: 4, Funny
    When I was younger and unmarried I'd carry a condom in my wallet. You never know!

    Now I carry a spare CompactFlash and my driving and fishing licenses.

    Unless the cellphone has a handy place to put these things I can't see it replacing a wallet any time soon.

    --
    Engineering is the art of compromise.
  4. Walking through the supermarket line by Faustust · · Score: 4, Funny


    I can't wait til I'm leaving a grocery store without buying anything, I walk through the checkout line to get out, and I end up buying someone else's groceries for them without knowing it.

    *thinks* wait a minute...I might be the one getting free groceries.

    /seconds motion to introduce this

  5. more like... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    NTT DoCoMo DeBuTs cRedIt CaRd pHoNe

  6. Passive reading? by Mad-Mage1 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I always wondered, is it possible to read these passively at some other location (i.e. a small reader attached near the lock on an apartment complex?) and bill later? Perhaps storing the tag's info in flash for eventual DL?

    --
    The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.
  7. Theft without needing to break into your house? by UnapprovedThought · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Does this mean that unauthorized charges can be made without even being able to turn off the capability?

    If so, then drive-by theft suddenly becomes possible. Gives war-driving a whole new meaning.

  8. "a simple wave"?!? by El · · Score: 4, Insightful
    Just remember NOT to wave at those hookers you see standing on the street corner...


    But seriously, shouldn't a monetary transaction require a signature and/or a passcode, not just a gesture? How close does this have to be to the reader in order to bill my account? It would appear that there would be tremendous potential for ringing up unintentional charges when using a remote reader for payment.

    --

    "Freedom means freedom for everybody" -- Dick Cheney

  9. Pretty Old news by I_am_jsking · · Score: 4, Informative

    I live in Japan and these phones have been out for atleast 5 months. That said, I use one and it's really handy. Riding the trains is very nice since I don't have to wait in line to buy tickets any more. Untill the tech. is adopted in more convenience stores outside of the train stations though, I'll still need my change purse.

    As we all know, the japanese love to use cash anyway, so I feel like a tech like this stands a better chance at becomming really really popular in the US or Europe, where credit cards are more commonly accepted. Pretty frequent to have busniess associates of mine get into jams at nice resturants because they don't have enough cash.

    jsking

    1. Re:Pretty Old news by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

      I'll answer this.

      If you want to become a FeLiCa-enabled vendor, you must lease your reader directly from DoCoMo. All charges are stamped with a vendor-ID and the reader serial#. In order to get both items of information, a hacker would have to steal the reader from a store, crack it open to get the serial#, and replace the reader without causing any damage.

      If the reader is missing, the vendor is required by contract (strict!) to contact DoCoMo immediately and have that reader decomissioned. The vendor is then liable for the cost of replacing the missing reader, discouraging them from lax physical security in the first place. If the reader is returned to the store in damaged condition such that the tamper-proof seal is broken (which self-reports to DoCoMo), then the machine is decomissioned and all transactions using that serial# are investigated.

      Essentially, you would have to be a DoCoMo employee to pull off something like this successfully.

      Also, the charge always requires a button-press acceptance on the user's part to acknowledge the transaction. If someone were to just wave the reader at your phone, it wouldn't do anything unless you accept the charge (in 30 seconds or so before the transaction times out).