Credit, debit, gift, membership, rewards and ID cards are just a few of the things cluttering wallets on a daily basis. And more and more, people are relying on digital means, rather than plastic ones, to facilitate making payments everywhere around the world. The makers of the Fuze Card are hoping to capitalize on the anti-wallet trend with their new smart card, designed to hold up to 30 cards in one. It is engineered to seamlessly work with a variety of systems such as ATMs, portable readers, contactless payments, and ID access cards. And hopefully, it has better luck cashing in than Coin, who about a year ago today closed the curtains on their once-promising digital wallet startup.
To use the Fuze smart card, users only need to charge Fuze, pair the device with the companion app, add their cards using the included card reader, and then create a unique six button pin code to secure their data. To know what card you’re about to access, you don’t have to jump onto your mobile phone, like other smart card solutions we have seen in the past. The Fuze Card has an E-Paper display designed to not only display card names, but also show barcodes where applicable. This is especially useful for membership cards that don’t have magnetic strips or chips.
While storing an entire wallet in a single card might sound risky, Fuze has a few safeguards in place to help protect the end user. Should the card get lost, there’s the ability to remotely wipe the card. Users also can receive notifications when they’ve left Fuze behind or if it’s on the move without them. The card also comes with location tracking through its accompanying app.
There is also support for one-time transactions such as handing cards over to a waiter. For these scenarios, users can choose a single card to use when Fuze is out of Bluetooth range. When the card goes out of range, it locks once the transaction is complete.
As far as data storage goes, all payment information is stored within an encrypted chip (using AES256 encryption) and is not stored on servers or the smartphone application.
Fuze Card is sized 3.36 x 2.13 x 0.03 in, weighs 0.2g, is as thin as a credit card and uses a 3.8v lithium-polymer battery. With regular use (4-5 times per day) the battery is rated to last 30 days, while standby battery life is rated for ~90-~150 days. The estimated recharging time is an hour and a half. The device requires Android 5.0 or iOS 8.0 or later.
So far the makers of Fuze Card have raised over $530,000 via crowdfunding. The standard Fuze Card has an estimated shipping date of July 2017, while the Fuze Card with an EMV chip has an estimated shipping date of January 2018. The former is priced at $89 while the latter is priced at $129, and as of writing, those perks are still available.
