Category: Featured News

Though these two industry giants are working together, it is still unlikely that it will be enough.

Samsung and Visa have recently announced their mobile payments partnership that will have the PayWave app automatically installed in all of the Galaxy S4 smartphones, but most experts in the industry agree that this still won’t be enough to lead to mass adoption of the service.

This channel has seen considerable struggles in getting started, but this likely won’t be enough to make the difference.

It is particularly unlikely that this extra step toward mobile payments will lead to much of a difference overnight. The partnership brings the Visa service together with the Samsung NFC technology that would allow consumers to use their smartphones to tap a reader at a point of sale in order to quickly and easily complete a purchase transaction.

The devices with the mobile payments technology and app will become available next week.

It is unlikely that the mobile payments will begin to occur with any great impact as of that point. Experts feel that while this type of move is important so that potential users will have the technology that is required to actually use a wallet over their smartphones, those owners still don’t quite have the desire to use it as of yet.

Eden Zoller, a researcher from Ovum, said that “Ovum’s consumer survey showed that usage of mobile payments is still very low for most people and this clearly needs to be change if mobile payments are to become mainstream.” That said, she also pointed out that it is still very important to add the NFC technology equipped devices to the market so that as users become interested, they will have what is needed and be familiar with it.

Similarly, Forrester analyst Clement Teo said that adding the payWave app from Visa is only one of a large number of efforts that will be needed to plunge the world into the use of mobile payments. He pointed out that there are many players, and they will all need to align for the explosion of use to actually occur.

Teo added that “The popularity of Samsung handsets is but one factor for mobile payments, but it also depends on the type of payments.”

Apple shows strong interest in wearable technology

Rumors concerning Apple’s development of wearable technology reached a fever pitch this week as Bloomberg reports suggest that a watch-like smart device could generate more revenue for the company than its line of iPads and its potential foray into the world of TVs. It is rumored that Apple has been working on a wearable device that speculators call the iWatch. This device is, essentially, a smartphone combined with a wristwatch, and while it may sound very simple, the device could have major implications for the company’s financial future.

Patents point to wearable technology from Apple

Apple has filed 79 patents concerning the development of wearable technologies. Some of these patents pertain specifically to devices worn on the wrist. Apple has shown strong interest in moving smart technology beyond the realm of cell phones and tablets, believing that wearable technologies may be attractive products for future consumers. Apple’s interest in the watch industry is not misplaced, as analysts from Citigroup suggest that the global watch industry will generate more than $60 billion in sales this year.

iWatch may be a promising opportunity

Analysts suggest that the iWatch represents a $6 billion opportunity for Apple. Moreover, the development of such a device could have major implications for the company’s future. When Apple released the iPod, it was considered something entirely new in the realm of consumer electronics. The iWatch may have a similar impact on the sector, returning Apple to the proverbial throne of mobile technology, which was recently taken over by Samsung.

Innovative steps must be taken to compete with Google and Samsung

Apple has not announced any definitive plans concerning the development of a wearable smart device. CEO Tim Cook has alluded to the company positioning itself to compete with both Samsung and Google more aggressively in the near future. The company has plans to take innovative steps in the realm of mobile technology in order to compete in the consumer electronics market, but whether the iWatch is anything more than rumor has yet to be seen.