Big changes are coming to how we shop and use our gadgets, thanks to new updates from Walmart and Apple. Walmart is finally letting shoppers pay with Apple Pay and Google Pay, while Apple is quietly working on a futuristic pair of earbuds with cameras built right into them.
Let's start with your next shopping trip. Starting on August 24, Walmart and Sam’s Club will begin introducing tap-to-pay. This is the handy wireless feature that lets you pay by waving your smartphone or smartwatch over the checkout terminal. The retail giant plans to bring this option to all US stores by the end of 2026, and to its gas stations by mid-2027. For a long time, Walmart was one of the last big stores to reject these simple payment methods, forcing shoppers to use its own retail app instead.
Meanwhile, Apple is designing AirPods with built-in cameras, according to recently leaked software codes. These cameras are not for taking selfies or recording videos. Instead, they will use "Visual Intelligence." This is Apple's new artificial intelligence system that helps your phone understand what you are looking at. Each earbud will have a tiny 1-megapixel camera that snaps quick pictures of your surroundings.
If you look at a book in a shop, you can ask your digital assistant to save it for later. To protect your privacy, the earbuds will feature a small light that glows when the cameras are active. They will also use smart software to ignore blurry images when your head moves. We might see these smart earbuds launch in 2027.
This matters to you because technology is becoming much more helpful in our daily lives. Soon, you won't have to fumble with plastic cards at the checkout, and your headphones might help you remember things just by looking at them.
It is exciting to see how these everyday tools are changing to make our lives just a little bit easier.
