There are a wide variety of contact and contactless smart cards currently in use. The Terms "Smart Chip Card, IC Card, and Smart Card" all refer to the same type of card. Smart cards have a chip embedded in them which can be programmed. Smart cards can store over 100 times more information than a magnetic stripe and they can be reprogrammed to add, delete or rearrange data.
Smart cards were invented in Europe in the 1970s and were in wide use in Western Europe by the early 80s. Smart cards are an easy, inexpensive way for European businesses to do off-line transaction verification. The reason for off-line verification is preferred is the high cost of telecommunications throughout Europe. The United States has been slow to implement smart cards because it would require replacing the widely installed magnetic stripe card reading equipment with smart card readers. The cost of having the current magnetic stripe readers "on-line" via telecommunications is relatively inexpensive in the U.S. compared to the rest of the world.
The second type of smart card contains both a microprocessor as well as memory. These cards can store massive amounts of information, plus the micro-processor enables the card to make it's own decisions regarding the information stored.
Smart Cards are rugged, can withstand shock, heat and torque.Smart Cards are not affected by magnetic fields, x-rays or electromagnetic radiation.Tamper-proof Smart Cards protect data better in terms of unauthorized access.Smart Cards provide an audit trail of all changes made to the card.All Smart Card data encoded is non erasable.Presently the Smart Card is a novelty with a familiar format ?that of a credit card.With enhanced artwork, it is a powerful advertising agent to a very practical and useful application. 
Smart Cards feature high reliability and robustness.Smart Cards can be integrated with magnetic stripe, signature panel, and/or embossing.Smart Cards can provide the most secure environment for transactions and records.Smart Cards can be configured and segmented as a credit/debit/electronic purse.The memory can be read and written in excess of 100,000 times.There are three categories of Smart Cards: contact, contactless and dual interface. 
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