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I’m a big fan of technology that strives to make life easier and better. Anything that aims to make the world less confusing and less difficult is great. Something that I’m particularly fond of are the new ticketless transport systems sweeping the world. The Oyster card in London, the Octopus card in Hong Kong (and the others) are terrific.

In fact, I think many big, busy cities in the world by now have some form of electronic transport money. I don’t mean VISA or Mastercard, I mean rechargable microchip touch-ticketing for trains, buses, trams, and other forms of transport. Japan, however, seems to have taken this an extra step further.

Japan is adopting ticketless transport systems

Don’t let the adorable penguin fool you. This card is possibly THE most useful thing in the history of ticketing. In fact, Suica cards don’t stop at ticketing. Sure, they started in trains and busses, but now they can be used for almost anything. You can flash your Suica almost anywhere; at a vending machine to get a drink on the go, at a restaurant to pay the bill, at a supermaket, at a cafe, or even at a clothes shop. All this shopping without once fumbling for change. Suica is so useful that it has almost become the second currency of Tokyoites.

Apparently though, Suica’s evolving even further - soon everyone will be able to load their Suicas onto their cell phones. Who’ll ever need small change again? I have a feeling it won’t be long before piggy banks go extinct.

This is very exciting for 2Large2Email. The more widely adopted technology like this becomes, the more likely people are going to search for further improvements in their day-to-day lives. Watch this space, because we’re developing a new 2Large2Email for iPhone and mobile.