Smart Card

Smart Card As well as being an ID card, a smart card can also be used to for many of the payments, shopping etc. these cards are not like the magnetic strip cards and so no fear of wear and tear.

As well as being an ID card, a smart card can also be used to pay for goods like: petrol, public transportation, general retail stock, meals at a restaurant and drinks at a bar. Also un-like the magnetic strips on credit cards, smartcard memories do not come in contact with their readers and therefore do not wear out from overuse like magnetic strips do. Users can load smartcards with cash value(credit) to pay for goods or services: known as an electronic purse. Or they can collect points in order to receive discounts: known as a loyalty card.

A smart card is a plastic card about the size of a credit card, with an embedded microchip that can be loaded with data, used for telephone calling, electronic cash payments, and other applications, and then periodically refreshed for additional use. Currently or soon, you may be able to use a smart card to:
•    Dial a connection on a mobile telephone and be charged on a per-call basis
•    Establish your identity when logging on to an Internet access provider or to an online bank
•    Pay for parking at parking meters or to get on subways, trains, or buses
•    Give hospitals or doctors personal data without filling out a form
•    Make small purchases at electronic stores on the Web (a kind of cybercash)
•    Buy gasoline at a gasoline station.