You think body hacks are cool, but aren’t quite ready to get that electronic implant. Fair enough. If you’re style-conscious, then a set of RFID-impregnated fake fingernails might be a good compromise. It’s certainly fashion forward.
London-based Lucie Davis decided to transform this idea into reality by embedding an Oyster card (a reusable, electronic travel ticket) into a set of acrylic nails.
As Davis explains to WAH London, it’s a lot more convenient (and stylish) than hunting around your bag for that elusive piece of plastic:
“I took the RFID chip from an Oyster card and embedded it within a full set of acrylic nails to give commuters the ability to pay for their journeys with a single tap/touch,” … “You can still top them up with money too. Now you’ll never have to worry about misplacing your card again!”
I’m sure you could apply the same approach to integrating an Opal or myki — if you can see through the red mist of anger over Australia’s bungled attempts at electronic travel cards.
I’d also be worried about snapping the tag off, but I suppose that can be mitigated somewhat by placing the chip in the base of the nail.
[WAH London, via WAH London]