Android Pay Is Now Google Pay

Google has announced that Android Pay will now be known as Google Pay. The app still does everything you'd expect, though there's a new Home tab that puts recent transactions, nearby stores and rewards in one place. The Cards tab is now more of a catalog of your payment cards, gift cards, loyalty schemes and offers. It should be noted that Google Pay doesn't include Google Wallet functionality, meaning you can't use it to send or request money, Not yet anyway. Thoughts ?

NYC Subways Get NFC Equipped Fare Systems Starting Late 2018

The New York City transit payment system is about to be to modernized. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is green lit a hefty $573 million contract that will install NFC-equipped fare systems across NYC. The plan should start installing readers in 600 buses and 500 subway turnstiles starting in late 2018, so you may tap your phone or card sooner than you might have thought with a 2021 rollout. The rollout won't reach every corner of the city (plus Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North trains) until late 2020. MetroCards will continue to work through 2023, so don't worry about rushing to replace your phone or bank cards. The new system shouldn't be picky about payment types, either, so you can expect Android Pay, Apple Pay and Samsung Pay among others.

Android Pay Coming To More Websites Soon

Android Pay users will soon be able to speed through checkouts online at any site that already accepts Visa Checkout or Masterpass, thanks to new partnerships with Visa and Mastercard. Unfortunately for holiday shoppers, Google says the new integrations won't show up in the app until early 2017, so you'll have to stick with Android Pay for Chrome for now. Thoughts ?

You Can Now Use Any “Pay” Service At Some Bank Of America ATMs

According to a Reddit post, Apple Pay, Android Pay and Samsung Pay can be used to make withdrawals and transfers at Bank of America ATMs without the need for a physical card. Apparently, this only works at some Bank of America ATMs, but it's scheduled to roll out to all Bank of America ATMs this year. Reportedly, this doesn’t work for deposits yet.

You Can Now Use Android Pay To Make A Purchases Inside Apps

You can now use Android Pay to make purchases inside certain Android apps. Starting today, a number of Android apps will offer Android Pay as a payment option at checkout. Android Pay support means you no longer have to pull out your credit card to make a quick purchase. You don’t even need to enter any information, all you need to do is select Android Pay, authorize the transaction with your fingerprint, and you’re good. Android Pay’s next step will be its expansion into China in the first half of 2016.

Google Announces Android Pay

Google’s I/O event the company announced that Android Pay would be part of the Android M release. Much like Apple Pay, transactions are sorted via NFC and your actual card number isn't shared with merchants. Instead, it'll use a virtual account number to handle payments. When it arrives, the system will be employed by over 700,000 retailers like Macy's, Whole Foods, Walgreen's and many more. It'll also be used for in-app purchases, so if you're ordering food from Chipotle or paying for an Uber ride, you'll be able to use Android Pay there as well. 

Google Rumored To Lauch Android Pay In May

It appears that Google plans to launch Android Pay at its Google I/O conference in May, following its purchase of Softcard earlier this week. The new Android Pay solution, is set to take on Apple Pay as a revamp to Google’s ailing Google Wallet product that’s been around since 2011. Like Apple Pay, Android Pay will reportedly allow companies to add a mobile payments option to their app, to which users can upload credit card or debit card information, so that payments become single-tap transactions within the app. Google announced earlier this week that along with its Softcard acquisition, it has formed a partnership with Verizon, T-Mobile, and AT&T for Google Wallet to be pre-installed on Android devices.