Outfitted with an RFID chip that enables tap-to-charge functionality, new monetary transaction cards that eliminate the somewhat timely swipe and sign process associated with conventional credit cards are set to debut in New York stores within the next few weeks. The RFID technology embedded in each card communicates account information by waving or tapping it in front of a reader. Large chains like McDonalds, Duane Reede, and United Artists theaters have signed on to support this new payment method. Read the article.

Read about this eight year old payment method in Hong Kong.

The Philoneist Says: Saving time is good. Could this RFID chip be easily implanted in American cell phones? Absolutely. This article from four years ago highlights the practice of using cell phones to make credit transactions in Europe and Asia.

The Misoneist Says: Losing your card would be bad, though very few cashiers look at credit card signatures.