How Would You Rather Pay? Thursday Two Questions #118

Reading your Thursday Two Questions answers from last week prompted me with a couple more questions of my own.
One of the many options technology has brought us is the ability to pay with our phones. Yes, have you tried? Starbuck's Mobile Apps enable one to fill his or her account with revenue and use our phones to pay merchants. It is great for people who rather not carry change, count back change, or receive change.


You could use it for yourself, or for your love ones. It could also be a great way to give as gifts, or to control where you want your money spent. It serves two main purposes for me: control and simplicity. The process makes it easier for example, an elderly who doesn't want to use cash or a credit card, instead he or she could just pay with the phone.


Interesting right? I wish that Visa, Master Card, or American Express would get with the idea. Just like a credit card that you carry, why not have the app on your phone? It is much easier to have one thing to worry about, a phone, than tons credit cards for different stores. Talk about coins weighing us down, the cards do too. I have a cards for everything, for clubs, memberships, and grocery stores. I am sick of carrying a card for every store I frequent. How convenient it would be, especially for Christmas shopping that we can just handle all our transactions with our phones.

Above are photos from my daughter's Christmas performance. I wanted to share some Christmas spirit from good old Silicon Valley and wish you a Merry Christmas if you're not going to be around on the day. The photo is blurry, but it is that way to protect the privacy of other children. Thanks for your support and if you'd like to participate in the Top Commenter Contest Details, it starts tomorrow: Dec 20th - Jan 3rd, 2013.

Here are Self Sagacity Thursday Two Questions:
1) What would you rather pay with? Credit cards, cash, phone app? Why?
2) Do you have other ideas in simplifying our paying process? (I know we rather not have to pay for anything at all, but that is not an option ;-)

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16 Comments

  1. Amanda, love your ideas. Can I swap a handful of corn for a product? Just teasing you. I love apps. I was tickled pink when the cashier found a coupon on my phone and got me a free pop, but I just as dismayed by a Meijer staff member the other day who did not have the foggiest idea how their coupon app worked on smart phones. Then we have to consider how the new scammers will be trying to move our money to their own pockets.

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    1. Hi Judy, we are in the mist of a very unique era. The change is happening and some people are just not adapting fast enough. Same thing with Micheal's, they have the 40% off coupons all over the net, yet, the cashiers don't know how to honor them on the cell phone.

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  2. I think that app makes it too easy for the crooks. Get your cell phone and it would be hay day for them.

    Anyway, wouldn't want all of my info on just on push button or readable code.
    ..

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    1. I need to think more like you. Perhaps it will save me from many mishaps.

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  3. I would love to use a phone app rather than all the cards I carry. It would simplify purchases and mean no change in my purse. I have used my phone for coupons, all the store had to do was scan the bar code.

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    1. I would love to be able to purchase with my cell phone. In some foreign countries, this option is already in action.

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  4. I am with Jim on this subject of apps! I don't use my smart phone for anything except for texting, calling, and check email. I remove Facebook and twitter off it too.

    Having all these apps on just one phone sounds like very convenient, but knowing me always forgot my phone, I would be very worry about my personal information that are on it.

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    1. If you could think of your phone like your wallet, it is the same vulnerability. I have had my wallet stolen more times than my phone. :-)

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  5. I do not trust apps with sensitive data, as well what happens if your phone is stolen? Yeah, I know you can use an access code to keep intruders from getting to it easily, but there are a lot of smart people with even smarter technology to get at stuff you don't want gotten to. I guess you get the idea, I will NOT use an an app for this sort of thing. Now, that being said, I prefer using only one CC for all of my purchases where I can then make an online payment either through the CC website or my bank. I do not use, often that is, store CCs. I found this only complicates things for remembering who I owe what and then making sure I pay those purchases off each month without interest being tacked onto my balance. Thanks for hosting and have yourself a very Merry little Christmas! Hugs!!

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    1. I can understand the concern about having all your info in one device. However, it would be depending on the company that you choose to do business with and their security measures too. For example, accessing your info on the lap top and carrying a wallet is not difference to me.

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  6. I am on the fence about this. I love the idea of how simple it would make life having everything at the touch of a phone button, but what a headache that would be if my phone were lost or stolen!

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    1. I hear you. I think it would not be accessible unless you connect to the account and in order to connect to the account, you have to have a password, just like us logging in to our bank online now.

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  7. Haha, not pay for anything at all :)

    1. I rather cash. That's how I grew up. That way it's actually myy money and I"m not running up a credit card.

    I don't have a smartphone so the app wouldn't work for me.

    I like that about making things easier and carrying less cards around, especially if you should lose a wallet or it got stolen!

    It's a great idea, it seems....unless you lose the phone :)

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    1. The app is not depending on the phone itself, but it is depending on logging into an account at the website, let's say it is Visa. We still need to go through the secure log in process, so even if a thief stole our phone, he would need to know our secure information, just as if we were logging into the website.

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  8. I have been using cash for the things that I have to buy! No more credit cards for me.

    As for all the apps thingy, I am still in the 18th century :-(

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  9. Hi Amanda,
    I'm just stopping by to say Happy Holidays to all my blogging friends. Thanks for all the support, comments, visits etc. I hope you have fun with your loved ones and I wish you all the best for 2013.

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