While you may think this is a step in the wrong direction, that's just an opinion. While NFC / Bluetooth LE would be preferred so I can pay with my phone, that would mean every merchant would need to have a reader that supported that technology. Today only some merchants support paying with QR codes. At the very least, COIN is a killer stop-gap solution, a convenient & technical solution that would work with every merchant out there.

I personally had no issue giving them $55, the same concept behind kickstarter, for the money to produce my goods. Consider me an investor of 1 unit.