Turn your iPhone into a credit card reader

WOW. A new app is on the block and this one got some innovation behind it.

Still being Alpha tested in NYC, Square is a new iPhone payment processing system that allows pretty much anyone to start accepting credit cards through their iPhone. The apparently simple to use interface and easy to plug in adapter transforms a standard iPhone or iTouch into a credit card reader. It's all paperless so receipts are emails out including a map of purchasing location (geomaps...cool), a penny is donated to your charity of choice per transaction, picture verification is available for security and frequent purchase rewards are also available without punch cards (you know much you love keeping 10th one free cards in your wallet)!

So my first instinct was where can I try it and I want one for my business!

Then I started wondering if everyone is walking around with credit card machines how this would impact credit card theft and misuse. I think I need to investigate this more with some primary research and o'darn, guess I have to go all the way to NYC to test it out!

More information: http://squareup.com/

iPhone Apps...gotta love it!

I'm always on the lookout for more apps for my iPhone. I like this list of apps because many of them sounded cool and I hadn't already downloaded them. Enjoy!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/08/16/AR2009081600099_5.html

If I had a dollar for every iPhone app downloaded...

...I'd have over a billion dollars

Apple has to be pretty proud of their current position. Over a billion apps downloaded and in their countdown to the billionth app, 5.5 million apps where downloaded daily. For any iPhone owner, apps are just a part of daily life. It's almost a social status to know the 'cool' apps out there and of course a great filler while waiting for a movie to start, filling space before your food arrives, on the train, plane or just sitting on your couch.

In many ways, it's almost expected as an iPhone user that your favorite websites have iPhone apps - myspace, facebook, craigslist just to name a few. And there are so many practical uses. If you want to learn Spanish download 24/7 tutor, or maybe find a move you add Fixster, or before the movie looking for a close by restaurant UrbanSpoon has it all. Regardless if you want to find cheap gas, calculate a tip, need a flashlight, check stocks, take pictures at night, skype or play games - there is an app for that.

So the question that most marketers and companies ask themselves is how do we stay on top and who are the close competitiors. How can we continue to evolve avoiding the fate of the cassette tape or even Geocities that was officially shut down by Yahoo! this month.

I think the big questions that Apple will need to answer is global scalability and flexibility. Right now they beat out Google's Android in terms of users and apps; however, Android is just getting out to market and it's ability to be used globalily on a larger number of devices and providers may change the playing field.