I think you could simplify that to:
If you're at [anywhere], trying to use some app on your phone to pay for [anything]. And it takes you an incredibly long time. Just give up and use your credit card
this post was submitted on 14 Aug 2025
34 points (70.2% liked)
Unpopular Opinion
7979 readers
133 users here now
Welcome to the Unpopular Opinion community!
How voting works:
Vote the opposite of the norm.
If you agree that the opinion is unpopular give it an arrow up. If it's something that's widely accepted, give it an arrow down.
Guidelines:
Tag your post, if possible (not required)
- If your post is a "General" unpopular opinion, start the subject with [GENERAL].
- If it is a Lemmy-specific unpopular opinion, start it with [LEMMY].
Rules:
1. NO POLITICS
Politics is everywhere. Let's make this about [general] and [lemmy] - specific topics, and keep politics out of it.
2. Be civil.
Disagreements happen, but that doesn’t provide the right to personally attack others. No racism/sexism/bigotry. Please also refrain from gatekeeping others' opinions.
3. No bots, spam or self-promotion.
Only approved bots, which follow the guidelines for bots set by the instance, are allowed.
4. Shitposts and memes are allowed but...
Only until they prove to be a problem. They can and will be removed at moderator discretion.
5. No trolling.
This shouldn't need an explanation. If your post or comment is made just to get a rise with no real value, it will be removed. You do this too often, you will get a vacation to touch grass, away from this community for 1 or more days. Repeat offenses will result in a perma-ban.
6. Defend your opinion
This is a bit of a mix of rules 4 and 5 to help foster higher quality posts. You are expected to defend your unpopular opinion in the post body. We don't expect a whole manifesto (please, no manifestos), but you should at least provide some details as to why you hold the position you do.
Instance-wide rules always apply. https://legal.lemmy.world/tos/
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
True. Thank you
Wherever checkouts are asking for a phone number for rewards, I use (local area code) 867-5309. Works at all the gas stations, and it's luck of the draw who gets the fuel discounts because other people use it too.
So we all charge the discounts up, and one lucky asshole gets to benefit.
Joke's on you, Jenny is getting all those discounts for doing nothing. Maybe what was written on the bathroom walls was right.
I use that at 7-11 all the time lol. They caught on to our local area code and removed it, but my hometown area code works just fine.
They caught on to our local area code and removed it
Fuckers
Yea, I just don't bother using my phone for this kind of stuff.
A card just works, a paper boarding pass just works.
Phones are tech that can decide to go belly up for no apparent reason.
I will say that I use my phone for my boarding pass, but I am willing to defend that on the grounds that I do not own a printer and the way I do it is I just pull up a screenshot on my phone, rather than using some bullshit app.
I check in online, and print my boarding pass at the airport
Screenshot is at least much more stable.
I print mine at the airport. There are self-serve kiosks.
Just take a minute to wait for someone who's not having their best day.
Using an app to pay doesn't always take longer.
They didn't purposely fuck around just to make you wait.
I'm not one, but there are people who don't carry a wallet/cards anymore because they can (technically, assuming it works) do what they need with just their phone. I wonder how many people who fiddle with the app are like this and how many just don't think to give up and use their card.
Exactly, op is assuming the person has another payment option on them, which is unlikely to be true if the person is struggling to get the phone payment to work for a long time. No one wants to hang around at the gas station for twenty minutes struggling to get a payment system to work, everyone just wants to get the gas and go as quickly as possible
Zero credit cards skimmed since switching to apps.
RFID (tap) and chip both aren't able to be skimmed either. I haven't gotten a card in many years that doesn't have those features.
If you're still worried about skimming you can mar the shit out of your magstripe.
If you are concerned about RFID intercept attacks (really, REALLY hard to achieve, especially at point of sale instead of a controlled environment to prove a conceptual attack exists), use a hole puncher or drill to punch a hole in the embedded RFID antenna in your card.
You're at a much greater risk for card fraud when you let a server take your card at a restaurant than any of these, or people working for businesses stealing card info from poorly protected computer systems. IMO card skimming isn't really a threat any more unless you're careless in certain areas (ie by not yanking on the skimmer hardware before you use it - vast majority of skimmers are "stick on" devices that cover up the original equipment so you stick your card in unknowingly. These are ridiculously easy to spot/detach if you're actually paying attention)
Or maybe figure it out in advance
Those apps usually have points systems where you get discounts on your next fill up once you hit a certain number of points. So that person was likely really trying to avoid using their credit card. I personally like using the app because of said points, and I no longer need to worry about card skimmers.
It has only happened to me once where the app didn't work and I tried a different pump to confirm that there was just something wrong that day. Fortunately the gas station wasn't busy so I wasn't really holding up anyone. I'm definitely moving on quickly if there was a line behind me and the app won't work for whatever reason.
I had something like this during my lunch break. I went to the supermarket to buy a snack, and there was a pensioneer in front of me at the checkout. Why do they have to do a weeks' grocery shopping during lunch break time, especially now that we have a heat wave?
It took him ages to put his stuff on the belt. It took him ages to put the stuff back into his cart. Then it took him ages to open the store app on his mobile to claim some pennies in savings, and ages again to pay.
Actually in your case the old people are just watching and waiting for you
What did this person who frustrated you make you late for? Kraft Mac and cheese while watching Yellowstone?
You were so perturbed that you went online and whined. Bro, you chose to get mad about it. People do weird shit. Move on. Life is easy if you let it be.
Read the other replies and you’ll realize I’m not the only one.
Doesn't disprove their point
Don't place the onus on consumers to solve a problem that is only going to increase the more regulations are dismantled.
just park next to someone who has gone inside to use the bathroom or buy stuff and borrow their pump while they are gone
Here’s my unpopular opinion: anything that makes polluting the atmosphere and contributing to the downfall of the human species via oil less convenient is a good thing. So please, block that pump for as long as you can. It’s a public service.
So block the pump so that way everybody else is Waiting longer and burning more fuel? Does that sound like a very good idea?
I’m thinking there’s probably a flaw on that logic somewhere
Maybe turn off the engine while standing still?
A small price. If it convinces even a single person to stop driving then it’s worth it.
I did warn you it would be unpopular. I think I got you beat on this one.
narrator: and it didn't convince even a single person to stop driving
Creating friction, unpleasantness, and delays in the driving experience can definitely motivate people to drive less.
I know a bunch of people, exclusively women unfortunately, who avoid to drive because lots of drivers are assholes and dangerous, or have trauma from an accident. So yes it is a solution in a way
Yeah including me lol. That’s how I know it works.
You might think you got be beat but that would be only your opinion
Not just my opinion. Also the people who downvoted me lol