7 Wearable Items with Payments Potential

December 14, 2013 10:34 AM

Many companies are already looking past the mobile phone to find the next high-tech payment device. A few companies are also equipping fashion items with Near Field Communication chips and other technology that can be repurposed by the industry. (Image: ShutterStock)

Rings

NFC Ring and Smarty Ring are developing jewelry with wireless hardware built-in. Though the devices are in their infancy, some are already exploring their potential to make contactless payments. (Image: NFC Ring)

A photograph is displayed on the screen of a Galaxy Gear smart watch device, manufactured by Samsung Electronics Co., in this arranged photograph at the IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin, Germany, on Friday, Sept. 6, 2013. Global smartphone revenue will rise 22 percent in 2013, or nearly half the pace of an expected 41 percent gain in shipments, amid falling prices, according to UBS. Photographer: Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg

Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg

Smartwatches

Some smartwatches, such as Samsung's Galaxy Gear, use NFC chips to pair the watch with a user's phone. Galaxy Gear doesn't yet use NFC for payments, but it supports mobile commerce through apps. Apple and Google are also rumored to be developing their own smartwatches. (Image: Bloomberg News)

'Ordinary' Watches

Another approach to the payments watch comes from Watch2Pay. It doesn't have the bells and whistles of a full-featured smartwatch, but it comes with a full-featured prepaid card that supports direct deposit, ATM withdrawals, mobile account access, bill payments and alerts.

Google Glass

Though still in limited release, Google Glass has turned heads at many payment companies. MasterCard is working to combine Google Glass with its MasterPass digital wallet. LevelUp, ZooZ and shopkick are also eyeing Google Glass for its payments potential. And RedBottle Design has already created a Google Glass app that allows users to spend bitcoins.

Guests walk along Main Street USA at the Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom in Orlando, Florida, U.S., on Wednesday, March 5, 2008. Walt Disney Co., the world's biggest producer of animated films, will team up with Japanese studios to make programs for local audiences and perhaps other Asian markets, Nikkei English News reported, without citing anyone. Photographer: Matt Stroshane/Bloomberg News

MATT SHROSHANE/BLOOMBERG NEWS

Disney MagicBands

Walt Disney Co. is ramping up its use of MagicBands, wristbands that facilitate payments and allow park patrons to access their hotel rooms and skip longer lines. The wristband concept has been tried before, and Hersheypark discontinued its version, but does Disney have the magic to make it work? (Image: Bloomberg News)

Picasa

Clip-on NFC

Motorola now distributes Skip, a magnetic NFC clip meant to stick to users' clothing. Right now the technology can be used to unlock some Motorola phones, but if it takes off, an NFC-embedded clip could see wider use in the payments industry and beyond. (Image: Motorola)

QR Codes

The payments industry is using QR codes more and more as part of mobile wallet initiatives, but there's nothing about a QR code that makes its use specific to a mobile device. The two-dimensional bar codes can be printed on anything cards, clothing, jewelry and more. (Image: ShutterStock)