What services or apps did you see abroad and wonder: why don't we have them?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44948748

by ekusiadadus • 11 months ago

45 95 11 months ago

news.ycombinator.com

When I was in India last year, I used UPI. Paying or splitting bills was as simple as scanning a QR code. Every shop had it, from street food stalls to restaurants. It just worked.

In Singapore, I saw how much could be done with the digital ID system. Filing forms, healthcare, banking—it felt like everything was one login away.

In the US, even a short hospital visit can cost thousands of dollars. It made me wonder why some basic things that clearly work elsewhere are missing here.

What have you seen abroad that felt obvious, but doesn’t exist where you live?

Nextgrid6• 11 months ago

The Swiss public transport ticketing system. Their app uses location services to automatically determine your fare, so you don’t need to buy tickets in advance: https://www.sbb.ch/en/travel-information/apps/sbb-mobile/eas....

As a bonus there are no ticket barriers so no queues and no overheads of maintaining those machines.

leandot• 11 months ago

This. It also caps your fares in a day to the cost of a daily ticket, so you don't get overcharged.

marcyb5st• 11 months ago

More than that (which is an amazing feature, don't get me wrong) is the fact that there is a single app for every public transportation system in the country.

Compare that to Italy/France/Spain (those that I know) where, depending where you are traveling to, you have to download, sign in, and give your credit card details to N different apps in different states of disrepair/being barely maintained.

Virtual credit cards (I use Revolut) that I then delete mitigate that, but still, what a mess.

interactivecode• 11 months ago

In The Netherlands you just tap your card when you get in and when you get out. the fare is computed based on how many stops you went. No app needed. Supports all the virtual cards too like apple pay etc...

liamwire• 11 months ago

Queensland, Australia introduced state-wide $0.50 public transit fares a year ago, and it’s been a raging success. Conveniently, this also eliminates the entire problem class of needing to calculate fares. Mind you, for those unfamiliar, QLD is a state 2.5x larger than Texas, 5x larger than all of Japan, 7x larger than Great Britain, and is bigger than all but 16 countries.

kingkongjaffa• 11 months ago

I guess size is a factor but also population density, does QLD have way less people per sq.m and does that make it easier to implement stuff like this?

aosaigh• 11 months ago

I believe Copenhagen has this too now. I visited in the same week they were launching the system (last year?) and it worked perfectly. All you had to do was press a button on your phone as you enter and leave the station and it automatically calculates what you owe. I loved it. It also worked throughout all of the different train systems.

p_v_doom• 11 months ago

Whenever I use that one I forget to check out then bike half across town several times over and at 3 in the morning I get a huge ticket.

netfortius• 11 months ago

Certain parts of France and Germany, that I know, use something similar for regional trains and buses: FAIRTIQ

Gud3• 11 months ago

It’s the same. FAIRTIQ is a Swiss company

octo8883• 11 months ago

What an Orwellian nightmare. These systems require real-time GPS data.

Just as buying a ticket with cash is becoming increasingly hard in parts of Europe, I can see a near future where having a phone sending constant GPS updates becomes a requirement (a requirement in an strict sense, or the sense that the alternative is unreasonably cumbersome or more expensive)

tpm5• 11 months ago

Sending GPS updates from the subway?

LargoLasskhyfv2• 11 months ago

Tss...

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation%2013...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number_of_the_beast#Mark_of_th...

Furthermore: Nostradamus, Mühlhiasl, Alois Irlmaier, Baba Vanga

They all had something to say about universal tracking of movement in general, and payments especially. Depending on interpretation, of course. But visions and trips can be hazy and vague. As can be translations of very old texts.

For instance, that (mark of the) beast can also mean just a (new(emerging)) thing, not a literal animal.

Which in this context can mean anything from credit-/debit-/chipcard/smartphone/bar-, QR-code/(implanted or otherwise mandatory)RFID, where without that you can't do a thing.

The new passport, revokable anytime, for any reason.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ID2020 , https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You'll_own_nothing_and_be_happ... , https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bank_Secrecy_Act , https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suspicious_activity_report , https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Know_your_customer which on paper look all very good und justified.

But... when you are cought as bystander in some dragnet, or your accounts are canceled by some zalgorithmic system spasm, the banks have (mandatory)internal systems which forbid them to give any information about why to the affected person.

Which also can be (ab)used to silence/disable/cancel politically divergents/misfits, whistleblowers, etc. Triggered by their political enemies.

Brave new world, isn't it?

Gud3• 11 months ago

You don’t have to use this (awesome) system.

You can buy tickets to the trains and trams everywhere.

equinox_nl3• 11 months ago

I don't understand how so many tech-minded people on this site completely disregard the value of privacy. How is this a win?

yen2232• 11 months ago

My expectation of privacy when in a vehicle with dozens if not hundreds of strangers with cameras is low.

jjice3• 11 months ago

I'm a bit confused - how does this differ from something like The Tube in London where I tap on and tap off and it'll charge me based on the entry and exit points and whatever the appropriate "zone" travel I did was?

preya2k• 11 months ago

Swiss/Danish/Finnish Mobile Payment alternatives like TWINT and MobilePay.

Also: physical lockers with PIN/Code instead of keys (in basically every country aside from Germany). It's just completely bonkers to me, that German train station lockers still use physical Keys EVERYWHERE.

Nextgrid6• 11 months ago

There’s probably an economy around those keys - people who lose them have to pay an (overinflated) deposit, some company is overcharging the locker owner for key replacements, etc. At every layer someone skims a bit of money, so nobody in power of changing the system is actually incentivized to do so.

tdeck3• 11 months ago

I like the keys. The key has the locker number on it, so you don't have to remember anything. And there's no way to screw up setting the pin because of a language barrier, since there are basically no instructions needed for key lockers. FWIW the key lockers are more common in Japan as well.

seabass-labrax3• 11 months ago

I agree with you with regard to convenience, but what about security? For the application of railway station lockers, one can assume that they will be under CCTV or other monitoring. I am no expert in locks, but presumably an electronic lock, whilst perhaps less secure overall, is harder to break without obviously looking like one is tampering with it. This is in contrast to a conventional barrel lock, which can be picked with tools that look enough like keys not to arouse suspicion from a distance.

wojciii• 11 months ago

I use mobilepay when paying online. Its quicker than the credit card.

But the service is owned by the greedy banks so it will probably end with me abandoning it because it will get too expensive when they have enough users.

ano-ther• 11 months ago

London and Stockholm: swipe your credit card for public transport. Great for visitors (I guess for residents a subscription will be cheaper)

chrismatheson• 11 months ago

I don't think so (not a Londoner)

It was my impression that the whole thing was just about simplification in order to provide a better service.

ukoki• 11 months ago

In London contactless payment via credit/debit/Apple/Android has automatic daily and weekly caps

https://tfl.gov.uk/fares/find-fares/capping

Depending on the frequency of travel, it can be cheaper to get season tickets though

jjice3• 11 months ago

New York's MTA does this as well. You just need to make sure it's the same card being used.

https://omny.info/fares

bravesoul2• 11 months ago

Sydney too, for quite a while (I am sure at least 5 yrs maybe 10)

mjrbrennan• 11 months ago

Brisbane now as well since the past ~1 year or so, much better than the old Go Card system. The only downside in most places with these systems though is that there is no easy way to pay for e.g. children, would be perfect if you could say 3x tickets on this card when you tap in + out.

Ylpertnodi• 11 months ago

App: Fountains in Italy.

tveyben• 11 months ago

ThirstyInRome I presume (the only iOS app returned when searching for ‘Fountains in Italy’ :-)

tionate• 11 months ago

Old school but all the machines for paying in cash in Japan are so optimized for speed. Train stations, onboard buses, convenience stores. Just throw in a handful of coins and it quickly picks what it needs and returns what it doesn’t.

In other countries (eg australia), the ticket machines could only take a single coin at a time and would reject if you did it too fast.

I believe this is one (of several) reasons why cash has continued to be dominant in Japan.

bombcar3• 11 months ago

We have the tech in the USA but it’s only ever used for coin counting machines (which themselves are relatively rare).

al_borland2• 11 months ago

Not only in coin counting machines.

I've seen people on YouTube using the U-Scan at Walmart like a CoinStar. Apparently if you lift where the coin slot is you can dump in coins and it will process it all. If the total is more than your bill, it gives you the money back.

While I'm not sure about the refund of an overpayment, there are also the toll booths that have buckets to throw change into. Though most tolls seem to be electronic these days.

yen2232• 11 months ago

Sydney lets you use your credit card to tap on to trains and buses, which is very nice

tdeck3• 11 months ago

Vancouver does this too, at least on the SkyTrain. Very convenient when you're a visitor.

petralithic4• 11 months ago

The best part is it's very useful for getting rid of lots of smaller denomination coins, just dump them all in and the machine will give you the fewest number of coins back that equal the balance.

bombcar3• 11 months ago

If I can go the other way - one thing the USA has that Europe, at least, doesn’t - the ADA.

US businesses are basically all wheelchair accessible - easily, too. Most sidewalks have curb cuts at street crossings. Ramps are commonplace.

This is NOT the cause in Europe, and not only in the historic old buildings.

Even using a stroller is noticeably different; I can’t imagine being in a wheelchair in some cities.

equinox_nl3• 11 months ago

This depends on where in Europe. From personal experience of a relative (going back 20+ years), the Netherlands is very accessible by wheelchair.

disgruntledphd2• 11 months ago

Basically every building in Ireland is wheelchair accessible in some form.

Has been for well over twenty years at this point.

It had a number of unexpected consequences, like making it much harder/illegal to rent flats over shops in much of the city centres.

bombcar3• 11 months ago

The apartment (flats) issue is one that has some exceptions, in the USA, as I've seen single family homes and small duplexes, along with larger complexes that have inaccessible units - I think over a certain size, at least some percentage have to be accessible (just as a bathroom has to have at least one accessible stall, but is not required to have more).

melesian• 11 months ago

Blinkered nonsense.

Yes, of course Europe doesn't have any US laws but to suggest that it doesn't have legislation about accessibility is simply wrong. Guess what... the legislation generally applies to buildings and construction post-dating the legislation. Applicability to earlier structures will vary depending on feasability and justification (cost, traffic).

LargoLasskhyfv2• 11 months ago

Europe is diverse. The parts of Germany I happen to know, are mostly ADA compliant, or even more so. From the little bits I know about stuff like that. Anything wheelchair accesible I tend to notice as avid bicyclist. Other things are clearly visible, audible, or tactile. Like textured markings on the ground for the blind, braille markings on all sorts of buttons, near screens, acoustic signaling at street crossings, in stations, doors of buses & trains, lifts, in all sorts of public spaces. If there is something wrong with that, say a lift for acessability of platforms, it's in the local news. Which doesn't necessarily means it gets fixed fast, depending on who manages that property. Let's say Deutsche Bahn, which is mostly foobared.

Anyways, that is NOT the case in the parts I know of the US. Much less markings, much less signaling, much shrug, so what?

I guess the US are diverse too, uh?

What comes to mind for .de and its ADA-equivalents are:

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Behindertengleichstellungsgese...

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barrierefreiheit

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barrierefreies_Bauen

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodenleitsystem ( I like to walk on these! )

Also funny, in the middle of the night, when there is no traffic at all, are the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syncopation 's the traffic lights produce.

Beeping or 'knocking' drifting slowly apart, to randomly come to be synchronized for a moment, then drifting apart again. I think I'd go crazy when I'd have to live near such things.

Otherwise, during daily life I tend to be annoyed by all that beeping.

jamesdhutton• 11 months ago

In the USA, the postal service picks up outgoing mail from your mailbox. I wish they would do that in the UK.

nevon• 11 months ago

That's very interesting. How do they know what's outgoing? Do they have to check the address of each letter, or is there like a separate compartment for outgoing mail?

tyleo• 11 months ago

Most mailboxes have a little plastic flag on a hinge you flip up to mark that you have outgoing mail. The process is is generally:

1. Remove all mail from the mailbox

2. Place outgoing mail in the mailbox

3. Raise the outgoing mail flag

4. Carrier will empty the box and file outgoing mail during the next delivery before putting new mail in the box

Edit: here is a good example of a mailbox with that red flag https://www.amazon.com/Step2-541200-MailMaster-Mailbox-Black...

gadders• 11 months ago

You can get them to pick up parcels now, at least.

tdeck3• 11 months ago

This is only true in rural areas and most suburbs. In the city, you often have to take it to a blue post box.

Although some carriers will pick up outgoing mail in an apartment building if you leave it where they can see it and indicate it clearly.

tietjens• 11 months ago

Instant free bank transfers by IBAN.

In comparison with how tightly-guarded personal email addresses are protected (GDPR, etc.), it's shocking how common it is to freely give out your IBAN.

equinox_nl3• 11 months ago

Not sure if I understand correctly, but are you saying that IBAN leaks personal information?

rkomorn6• 11 months ago

It helps that, to be able to use an IBAN for withdrawals, you basically have to "sign" a recurring transfer agreement. Otherwise it's pretty much always a "push" transaction from buyer to seller.

Better than being able to commit ACH fraud merely by virtue of having the bank's routing and account number.

Side note: shout out to both MB Way and Multibanco payments in Portugal that have made it so I haven't have to give payment information to an online vendor in years.

Nextgrid6• 11 months ago

But there is no cryptography or any kind of identity verification involved in "signing" such an agreement. If I know your IBAN I can subscribe to such an agreement on your behalf.

I'm not sure about Europe, but at least in the UK, what makes such a system secure is that the account holder can reverse any "pull" transaction for over a month, with the merchant being on the hook. So it reduces the incentive to exploit it (or at least shifts the risk off the account holder), to a level where it's pretty much never done.

tpm5• 11 months ago

Why is that shocking? You can't really do anything with my bank account's IBAN unless you want to send me some money.

rkomorn6• 11 months ago

It is shocking because ACH fraud in the US is shockingly easy to commit if you have the equivalent to someone's IBAN (ie routing + account number).

bacr• 11 months ago

Car sharing in Germany such as Bolt and Miles. The pickup and drop-off anywhere model is so much more convenient than the point-to-point or round trip model that zip car uses. They are cost competitive with public transit or private car ownership.

qwertfisch2• 11 months ago

I was in Paris some years ago, and it surprised me that a jug of water for drinking was free on every table. Of course if you wanted any other beverage you’d pay for it, but just quenching your thirst was free.

In Germany water is not free, but instead another income for restaurants. Also it needs a law (only since 2001) that the cheapest beverage must be non-alcoholic. (Yet water could be more expensive than beer, as long as e.g. apple juice costs equal or less.)

saaspirant• 11 months ago

In India water is free in almost all restaurants.

Even if you don't order anything, you can just drink it and leave.

Some fancy restaurants don't allow it though.

csomar• 11 months ago

I thought the author from the US where water is usually served for free, pretty much in all restaurants?

petralithic4• 11 months ago

That's pretty funny that this is novel for you, as it's very common in many countries.

eithed• 11 months ago

BLIK from Poland - https://www.blik.com/en/how-to-use-blik

It's a code you generate in your bank app to pay for anything - no need to fill in card details etc, you just provide this one time code.

tintumon• 11 months ago

BankID (or Freja ID) in Sweden which makes login to almost everything a breeze.

- Sweden’s national digital ID, run by banks - Used for login, payments, contracts, gov services - Legally binding like a handwritten signature

iteria• 11 months ago

How does someone login via this system? I'm asking because it has the force of law. In that sense, I can't imagine that passwords alone would be enough.

dcminter• 11 months ago

Typically the website displays a QR code which you scan with the BankID app - the app prompts you to authenticate and you use a fingerprint or a 6 digit pin code to confirm.

The app has a certificate set up so if some rando has the app and shoulder surfed your pin they would not be able to login.

Establishing the app certificate initially on your device requires interaction with your bank account - via an existing BankID setup or a bank issued OTC dongle.

It works extremely well and allows for a lot of "joined-up" thinking. For example I can log in to various online pharmacies and see and refresh the prescription from my doctor (and from the vet for my cat). The ubiquitous Swish cash transfer app is authenticated by BankID.

Downsides:

It can be a nuisance for those moving here; before you get your state ID ("personal number") you can't get BankID and it's borderline impossible to get a bank account!

The app has a single owner and uses pinned certs so it's virtually impossible to do BankID on anything except an Android or iOS device. No Pine Phone for you unless you want to carry a second device for BankID.

scarface_74• 11 months ago

Caja - universal healthcare in Costa Rica and even relatively cheap private insurance.

m463• 11 months ago

Shinkansen

and japanese toilets

TheCapeGreek• 11 months ago

CityMapper for more cities.

Found it super helpful for getting around London. Would be great for somewhere like Athens. Google Maps decently supports this as well, bit CityMapper UX is better for the task.

cddotdotslash• 11 months ago

In China, nearly everything works via the same app (WeChat) and via QR code. Every grocery store, coffee shop, train station, or point of sale has the same scanner, where you can flash your QR code. I don't think I saw a single physical currency exchanged in the entire 6 weeks I was there.

I keep hearing that X wants to be the "everything" app. WeChat is _already_ the everything app. It's DoorDash, Venmo, Facebook, Instagram, and about 500 other apps in one.

I will say that I disliked the pattern of every restaurant using a WeChat "mini app" where it basically loads an entirely new app within WeChat just to see the menu or order. It felt much clunkier than just using a web page.

petralithic4• 11 months ago

You're misunderstanding, Musk wants X to be the everything app in the US. He knows about WeChat, that is in fact where part of the inspiration came from, and more generally he talked about it during the PayPal days.

aprilnya• 11 months ago

definitely loved renting e-scooters when I was in Germany, really convenient with how many bike paths there are

seabass-labrax3• 11 months ago

The problem with these scooters is that people leave them in awkward places, such as where they block the pavement or a wheelchair ramp. Their wheels lock when not in use and they're really heavy too, which means that some people can't move them out of the way.

With bike rental systems the frustration is slightly less common as you often need to put them up against a bicycle rack in order to return them.

Ultimately this is just a societal issue, but unfortunately there's neither the public co-operation nor enforcement of sensible rules about where to park them in many large cities such as Berlin.

jimkleiber• 11 months ago

m-pesa in Kenya, where mobile payments are as simple as typing in a phone number and sending. It's like Venmo if every person and business had it and used it.

What services or apps did you see abroad and wonder: why don't we have them?

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