Apple Testing New 'Tap to Pay' iPhone Feature At Apple Park Visitor Center

[3rdiguy]

I still see this working between private individuals. I know a lot of small vendors that use Zelle , cashapp, Venmo and Square. The iPhone 📲 to iPhone tap transaction would be huge. It might not replace those others but would be a great option to have

 

[reggierob2]

In Australia it's common to see wireless card payment things. The banks here invested heavily in this kind of technology so tap and pay is everywhere, it's free, and any business no matter how small can access card readers.

That's everywhere. The difference in this article is that the iPhone an be used to receive the payment. So, a waiter could install their Employer's app ( or perhaps some Apple or other payment app) and take your payment using just their iphone. It's more useful in situations where the person receiving the payment doesn't already have (and pay for) point of sale transaction infrastructure.

 

[contacos]

When was the last time you were in the US? This hasn’t been the case in a lot of places for the last few years.

The last time was in 2018 in Hawaii and California (for some reason it seemed more recent!)

 

[AndreaCicca]

I want this technology but between private individuals.

I want to be able to send a friend £15 or something just by tapping phones together.

Sure, are you ready to pay the fee of your fiend’s card (and vice versa)?

Apple has already Apple Pay Cash, they only have to expand it WW.

 

[Cheesehead Dave]

So instead of tapping your phone to a third-party NFC terminal at the store you'll instead tap your iPhone to the store's iPhone.

Correct. You probably wouldn't see this in the checkout lane at a retail store where you'd normally see a traditional POS terminal, but it would be useful for a restaurant where the waitstaff could just take your payment right at the table with a tap, or at a smaller venue where someone might otherwise have to purchase something like a Square reader to take payments.

And if I'm reading it correctly, it would be platform agnostic: The iPhone would just act as an NFC reader for accepting payments. As someone making the payment, you could use any tap-to-pay device, e.g. another iPhone, Google Pay, a credit card with an embedded chip, etc.

 

[Lihp8270]

Sure, are you ready to pay the fee of your fiend’s card (and vice versa)?

Apple has already Apple Pay Cash, they only have to expand it WW.

I’m sure they can figure out some way to do it. Since all instant bank transfers are free.

Just needs a will to do it

 

[AndreaCicca]

I’m sure they can figure out some way to do it. Since all instant bank transfers are free.

Just needs a will to do it

you are confusing 2 different ways to transfer money.

They can’t figure out any way because these are transactions via credit card’s circuits.

This is a business feature, if you want to transfer money via Amex, Visa, Mastercard etc you have to pay a fee (ask to a friend that has a POS if you prefer)

 

[Lihp8270]

you are confusing 2 different ways to transfer money.

They can’t figure out any way because these are transactions via credit card’s circuits.

This is a business feature, if you want to transfer money via Amex, Visa, Mastercard etc you have to pay a fee (ask to a friend that has a POS if you prefer)

I understand exactly how it works.

It still doesn’t mean it can’t be done.

Maybe if the payment NFC is opened PayPal can do it PayPal to PayPal. Which will work for me.

 

[AndreaCicca]

I understand exactly how it works.

It still doesn’t mean it can’t be done.

Maybe if the payment NFC is opened PayPal can do it PayPal to PayPal. Which will work for me.

We are talking about tap to pay…
In order to open the NFC a regulator have to change something. Apple will never open the NFC API (by themselves)

If you want to give some bucks to a friend you can already use Apple Pay Cash (us only) or something else.

 

[jaytv111]

It's all very well suggesting that we will not need cards as everything will be possible with just our phones. The consequences of a flat battery or dropping a phone could be ridiculously severe if we have no alternative means of paying for what we need. Especially if we have already racked up the charge (e.g. in a restaurant). Which is (partly) why I carry a credit card, a debit card and my phone pretty much all the time when I am out of the house.

The iPhone payment reader will actually take contactless cards too, it’s not an Apple Pay only kind of thing, it takes contactless anything, even Google Wallet or Samsung Pay or contactless cards.

 

[2540497]

I want this technology but between private individuals.

I want to be able to send a friend £15 or something just by tapping phones together.

This is what I thought Tap to Pay was going to be! Really disappointed if this is what it actually is - another (arguably unneeded) option for paying a business.

I’d also question if Android would be compatible with it.

If it is, Google will copy and no doubt launch to market cheaper. Android phones are also much more affordable to buy than iPhones.

What’s the point!

 

[jaytv111]

This is what I thought Tap to Pay was going to be! Really disappointed if this is what it actually is - another (arguably unneeded) option for paying a business.

I’d also question if Android would be compatible with it.

If it is, Google will copy and no doubt launch to market cheaper. Android phones are also much more affordable to buy than iPhones.

What’s the point!

Android phones have this ability already. Google has allowed 3rd parties to read NFC for years. Apple is the one opening up an API so iPhones can allow a 3rd party payment app to read NFC.

 

[jpr281]

Very ironic that Apple discontinues the iPod Touch so soon before this is set to launch. Would be great for small businesses, restaurants, etc. to use for POS terminals.

 

[Digital Dude]

Yeah, nothing could possibly go wrong with this idea. 🙄

 

[ksnell]

So does this mean we can finally have an iPad with an NFC chip in it?

It seems kind of required now, not just for point of sale use but also YubiKeys/security keys.

 

[2009 mac user]

This would be great! I have always wished we had something similar to paying on WeChat pay using your phone and QR codes here in the US, but this takes it to the next level. I have some privacy concerns when it comes to WeChat, but this is a very cool feature.

 

[T Coma]

We are way behind in the US. It’s getting better but still many of the largest companies in their sector dont accept contactless payment in any form. They dont want easier transactions, they want a method that avoids the credit card processing companies since they pay so much in fees. Their fight is making the adoption much slower here. Our largest grocery chain, the two largest home improvement chains and especially the largest retail provider initials WM. I dont want to include the full name has been the main opposition to the adoption. I use it where I can and look forward to some of my interactions having this better method. My haircut is paid to someone with a square reader that she has to fiddle with to make work. It eventually does but at some point this being available and a new phone she will be faster with the payment with less effort.

Sounds like your hairdresser needs to get better payment equipment to suit your preferences. I live in a small to medium sized midwestern city and I use contactless payment quite frequently including at many of those "largest companies in their sector." Still, I do carry this "cash" type of payment method when tapping a phone can't fit the situation. It works quite reliably, and there's been a whole lot more of it added to the economy lately, so it's pretty easy to come by.

 

[jaytv111]

The last time was in 2018 in Hawaii and California (for some reason it seemed more recent!)

Well I'm American, restaurants are still taking the card away from the table, well when you dine in at least.

Some chains now have a specialty tablet at every table where you can view the bill and pay at the table, that's not the norm though.

I think they're not supposed to take the card away now according to merchant agreements but no one cares to enforce that.

 

[Cheesehead Dave]

Yeah, nothing could possibly go wrong with this idea. 🙄

My thought as well. Seems like a win-win for everyone, businesses and customers.

 

[dontwalkhand]

This would be great! I have always wished we had something similar to paying on WeChat pay using your phone and QR codes here in the US, but this takes it to the next level. I have some privacy concerns when it comes to WeChat, but this is a very cool feature.

If you really want to “experience” this in the US, just go to Walmart and use Walmart Pay.

 

[dontwalkhand]

Well I'm American, restaurants are still taking the card away from the table, well when you dine in at least.

Some chains now have a specialty tablet at every table where you can view the bill and pay at the table, that's not the norm though.

I think they're not supposed to take the card away now according to merchant agreements but no one cares to enforce that.

I’ve been to quite a few restaurants lately and I live in Arizona. A lot of them, but not all, are equipping the server with wireless card terminals like Europe. It is very nice, and I just tap their equipment to use Apple Pay.

The ones that take your card away, I just ask them for Apple Pay and they walk me up to their reader.

 

[tmiw]

I think they're not supposed to take the card away now according to merchant agreements but no one cares to enforce that.

I'm not sure this is actually true. Otherwise, we'd see pay at the table a lot more often in the US. (After all, as much as merchants dislike Visa and MC, most at least nominally follow the rules they agreed to when they started taking cards.)

 

[Johns12]

Here in south west Florida, most restaurants still take your card. I had a situation where my wife, sister and I finished eating, and when the bill came, I realized I forgot my wallet at home. I asked the waitress if I could pay with my phone and she said yes. I used the terminal by the waitstaff counter.

 

[_Spinn_]

This will be very nice when this is in widespread use.

 

[gsmornot]

Sounds like your hairdresser needs to get better payment equipment to suit your preferences. I live in a small to medium sized midwestern city and I use contactless payment quite frequently including at many of those "largest companies in their sector." Still, I do carry this "cash" type of payment method when tapping a phone can't fit the situation. It works quite reliably, and there's been a whole lot more of it added to the economy lately, so it's pretty easy to come by.

You're lucky your small town has ApplePay at Kroger, Home Depot, Lowes, and WalMart. Its rare since none of them allow the option around here.