Wallet Woes

Big wallet hurting your big butt? No worries Apple can fix that too! That's right, Wednesday, Apple is expected to introduce the highly anticipated new iPhone, which will include Passbook a new "digital wallet" app that can store several credit cards plus digital coupons, tickets and loyalty cards. The iPhone, as well as the iPod Touch and iPad, will have the new iOS 6 software that will drive the devices. For owners of older Apple devices the new iOS 6 software will be available as a free upgrade to effectively modernize your existing device.

There has been much talk in the past few years about turning phones into digital wallets that would allow people use their phones to surf the Internet, make calls and pay for lattes and muffins. Visa, MasterCard, Starbucks, Google, Square, PayPal, Intuit and others have been working feverishly to make mobile payments a way of life, but the practice has yet to go mainstream, because businesses are waiting for it to become more widespread.

Analysts expect the new iPhone to come with a bigger screen, spiffier design, a faster processor and improved camera."With Passbook, you can scan your iPhone or iPod Touch to check in for a flight, get into a movie and redeem a coupon," Apple says on its website. "You can also see when your coupons expire, where your concert seats are and the balance left on that all-important coffee bar card."