Things I still pay for with cash:

- haircuts
- sweeties from the corner shop
- anything in a vending machine
- takeaway chinese
- alcohol in bars

In the first four cases this is because a card-based transaction is not possible (yeah, my hairdresser’s is kind of backwards). Though I wonder how long it will be before we see chip and pin vending machines? In the latter case it’s a convenience thing, since the whole “terminal dialling in, entering the pin, waiting for confirmation” thing takes considerably longer than it does for most bar-whenches to grab correct change from the till. Indeed, this is probably why card readers haven’t found their way into vending machines yet: for small purchases the security is pretty superfluous.

So, I’m thinking a swipe card that doesn’t need a pin number, but can only have, like, £50 on it at a time, and only be used for transactions less than £10?

Anyone who’s been in Hong Kong since we gave it back, and commuters of London, will know this as the Octopus or Oyster card. It’s easy and totally contact-less; there’s no dialling into a central server; I dig it. A crying shame that, England being what it is, the Oyster hasn’t spread to be accepted in newsagents and fast food places like its oriental brother.

So, in conclusion:
- England (and especially its hairdressers) are reluctant to adopt new technologies.
- I want some sweeties