Your quick mental checklist of "phones, keys, wallet" before leaving the house could soon be narrowed down to "phone, wallet." That's because Apple may be introducing a new function that would allow you to unlock your car and house doors with your iPhone.

According to The Information by Engadget, the near field communication (NFC) chip in your iPhone – responsible for the easy transactions behind things like Apple Pay – is rumoured to be expanding beyond its current capabilities.

"The change to the near-field communication, or NFC, chip, which is expected to be announced next month, could pave the way for people to use iPhones for other security-sensitive interactions, from paying transit fares and opening car doors to verifying their identity in other ways," reads an article by MacRumors.

World’s first habitable 3D printed houses to be built in Netherlands

The Dutch city of Eindhoven is to be the world’s first to have habitable homes made by a 3D printer, in an innovation its backers believe will revolutionise the construction industry. Of the first five new houses to be put on the rental market next year, the smallest, with two bedrooms, has already attracted applications from 20 interested families just a week after images were made available.

Known as Project Milestone, the development is said by the Dutch construction company Van Wijnen to offer a solution to a shortage of skilled bricklayers in the Netherlands. The method will also cut costs and environmental damage by reducing the amount of cement that is used, said Rudy van Gurp, a manager at the firm, which is working in collaboration on the project with the Eindhoven University of Technology.

Google Lens now available as a standalone app on Playstore

If it's not already on your Android device, Google Lens is now available as a standalone app from the Play Store. Lens is useful if you see something but don't know exactly what it is, or want more information. Launched at Google I/O last year, the intelligent camera allows you to identify an artwork, landmarks and a lot more stuff.

The feature also allows you to scan barcodes and also text, allowing you to translate words, call a number, add an event to the calendar, and even simple copy and paste.

The standalone app will serve as a quick launch to those features, but according to the Play Store it will only run on devices with Marshmallow and up.