Dango M1 Wallet

My leather wallet finally fell apart after ten years. It held exceptional sentimental value for me as I purchased it during my honeymoon in Italy, specifically in the “leather goods capital of the world” in Florence from a street vendor along side the River Arno. It was a good wallet, nothing exceptional, but its day came and went.

I wanted something different to replace it so I searched for various products on the internet. I came across Dango products and a particular wallet that held a design aesthetic I appreciate. I am currently playing Cyberpunk 2077 and these wallets reminded me of something from the game. I chose the M1 R-Spec, which contains a combination of aluminum, carbon fiber, and silicone. I also purchased a detachable belt clip so I could secure it onto a pocket for safety. I went with red because I thought it was sharp, and it also matches my favorite iPhone case as well. A fellow’s got to look stylish, right?

The R-Spec is unlike any wallet I’ve used before. It is not a “back pocket” wallet if that’s where you prefer to store your billfold. Evidently police like the model to hold their badges (hence the clip mechanism), and it does have a lanyard for when you need extra security (especially being outdoors), but this is for your front pocket (it’s fairly small) or tossed into a pack. It has enough room for a handful of cards, your ID, and some folded up cash. If you’re a big wallet stuff this won’t appeal to you. Since I rarely use cash anymore, because I either use my iPhone or a credit card, the size doesn’t make much difference to me. In fact, the only time I can think I use cash in a month’s time is to buy beer at the gun club. Otherwise I just swipe (I think the only daily cash transaction I used to make was when I smoked, and I gave that up awhile ago).

I also don’t like to carry much plastic on me in case I lose my wallet. I only keep our main credit card, debit card (in case I do need cash), and medical insurance card (in case of emergency), our Costco card, and my driver’s license. I only have two other credit cards, and those are for big purchases so we can get points. Why would I need those on me? The last thing I need is some joker getting those and rushing off to Wal-Mart to buy out the electronics section. The only shopping card I keep is our Costco membership because I always seem to forget it when we go there. Things like amusement and zoo membership passes and library cards etc. are at home and I take them out only when I’m going to those places. My gym membership is an RFID card in my fanny pack that I wear when I work out. Our family fitness center is on an app. That pretty much covers everything else.

If you think about it, what do we really need traditional wallets for anyway? The smartphone will probably do away with that altogether as places continue to go cashless. The only thing you’ll need is your identification, which most people just slide into a sleeve on their phone case now. It’s like everything else that’s gone away over the years. Separate point and click cameras, calculators, personal music playing devices, voice recorders, there are too many to list right now. Maybe these are the next thing on the horizon.

FOOTNOTE: people are buying RFID blocking wallets and “swearing” by them. Look, if you don’t have an RFID credit card that lets you “tap to pay”, then an RFID blocker is pointless. None of my cards are RFID, as most people’s aren’t, so it’s not a concern for me.