In recent times smartphones have completely changed the way we lead our lives with regards to the use of old desktop PCs, as well as other ways of communicating with the world, and today it has been announced that UK consumers can use the new PayPal InStore app for high street purchases.

The company has revealed that there is now a dedicated smartphone application available for both the Android and iOS platforms and as an article on Shiny Shiny is reporting can be used in high street stores that are owned by Auroria Fashions, which includes the likes of Coast, Karen Millen, Oasis, and Warehouse.

Customers are provided with a barcode and a transaction number that sales assistants can then use to take the payment straight from the customers PayPal account. To some this new service may sound exciting, but others are questioning the need for it when you can just as easy pay by cash or use your credit or debit card and simply enter a PIN number, or if you have a compatible device swipe it using NFC connectivity at selected stores.

The PayPal InStore app does mean though that you don’t need to have your cards or cash to pay for something, as it’s all done via your mobile device. It remains to be seen though whether this will be a big enough draw to get huge numbers of consumers downloading the app to use the service, but if more retail chains join the service its popularity will likely grow significantly.

Cameron McLean of PayPal UK said that the service kicks off “a quiet revolution in the way we shop on the high street”, and added by 2016 consumers will not need cash or cards to shop on the high street in the UK thanks to the smartphone. PayPal’s new service starts tomorrow in 230 stores across the country, and more information can be found via the official website or to download the free application head over to the App Store or Google Play.