Honestly, anytime someone in front of me is using some sort of mobile payment, the processes almost always seems to take longer then simply swiping a credit card. This happens at a Starbucks more than anything. I don't know if it's the end user not knowing what to do, or if it's the person at the register not having the proper training or if it's a problem with the payment system itself but the vast majority of the time someone tries to use their phone to pay for their frap, I inevitably hear "ok try it again"
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Checkout Problems Hindering Growth in Apple Pay Usage
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In the U.S. we don't have chips in our cards so we don't hold them up, we have to swipe and sign
Normal bank cards in the US do not have contactless (and they're chip and signature, not chip and PIN)
I like the card protection you get with some providers - like the text msg when it's used. No system is perfect i guess. The UK system should use signature as well as a pin.
I got my card cloned about a month ago, but it was detected before i even knew and stopped.
It's a Visa Debit (i.e. at a regular point of sale I can opt to use it as a credit card and sign, or as a debit card and use a PIN).
My local grocery (Lunardi's, a Bay Area chain) has NFC terminals, but after doing the tap/fingerprint, I have to select debit or credit, enter a PIN, answer a cash-back question, and then approve the amount.
Another local grocery -- Mollie Stone's, which says explicitly that they support ApplePay and Google Wallet -- said that they don't require a signature if the purchase is below some amount, but above that amount they do. I forget if it was $25 or $50, but my grocery bill is usually over $50.
At Walgreens, an alleged launch partner, the experience was similar to the Lunardi's experience described above.
Office Depot required a PIN at least -- I forget exactly.
There are others, but those are the ones I can recall offhand. I don't eat at McD's, so I haven't tried there.
I have used Apple's feedback page to report every one of these multiple times (each time I try it). I've also written to the groceries to ask them to do what they can to streamline things on their end, but I have never even received a reply.
I've had a 100% success rate with Apple Pay... but I only used it once
Mine has never worked...
Oh wait....I have an iPhone 5...
I've used Apple Pay at several locations since it launched. Here are my stories of it not working well:
- Subway - This was early on, so hopefully they have learned, but it went something like this...
Me: "Apple Pay?"
Subway Sandwich Artist: "Uh...?"
Me: "NFC?"
SSA: "...?"
Me: "Pay with my phone?"
SSA: "Oh!" *proceeds to switch over to some QRC-based payment thing*
Me: "No, no..."
SSA goes and gets manager, who tells him to just hit the same button he would if I were using a normal credit card. Ever since then I just say "credit card" and then go ahead and use Apple Pay anyway, and it works fine. - Wegmans - Apple Pay has generally worked well here, though I've discovered I have to hold the phone down around the lower half of the NFC terminal. When I hold it up higher, the phone beeps as if the transaction succeeded, but the terminal does not appear to register it.
- McDonalds - Apple Pay in a drive through is ridiculous. They have to hold the terminal halfway out the window, and you have to stretch out your arm with the phone and your thumb awkwardly on the home button, trying not to drop it as you aim for the moving target of the NFC terminal. Inside the store, it has worked well every time.
- Home Depot - Apparently does not support Apple Pay -- or didn't as of a couple of months ago -- although their terminals have the standard NFC logo, and the iPhone buzzes/beeps as if the transaction worked. But the terminal just sits there dumbly and (I think) displays some error message to the cashier.
I have used the Apple Pay at a few places, mostly successful. Panera seems to be the best - 100% success rate, even when the clerk had never seen anyone use it before. Wegmans I have about a 90% success rate, which is because occasionally the terminal will just not register anything. The worst is Macy's. The ladies there have no idea what I am doing, and no desire to figure it out. They just stare at me when I ask about Apple Pay.
I was prompted to call my credit card company in order to setup Apple Pay. That's as far as I ever got with it.
This will always be an issue as we have min wage checkout workers who don't know/care about new tech and how it works.
I never experienced being charged twice, but at Wegmans, where I shop at least 3 times a week, It often takes more than one try to get it to function. Many of the employees have no idea what it is, even though Wegmans is one of the few companies Apple promotes to have it. So I think these companies that are officially supported should have at least basic knowledge of the process.
Ryan
Ryan
Walgreens terminals are tricky. They have the NFC receiver so far above the terminal (The translucent blue semi-circle). You really have to hold it above the pad.
But in general, after a few Apple Pay transactions you will have more experience than many cashiers.
Purchasing in apps is also a good experience especially for first timers. Once you see it go through and charge your credit card, you have more confidence.
The Panera order ahead app is a great example. Whole Foods is the best place to use it for the first time, since they are very familiar with it. Sprouts is also a good place.
Mastercard Nearby and Mobile Pay Finder apps, both free, can help avoid the places that don't take it despite trolling us with the NFC symbol.
That's a security protocol set up by Apple and the credit card providers. It's for your own safety. They're just looking out for you; it's not an error.
I don't really think that it's about minimum wage workers as much as it is about the pos terminals and the companies that are supposed to be taking it as payment.
The article has my experience spot-on.
The most frequent places I've used ApplePay so far have been Walgreens and Lucky, and both of those require entering the PIN (debit) or signing (credit, when the transaction is over a threshold). This, after I already successfully touch-ID authenticated with the phone. That means it's not significantly easier than digging out a card, except that I happen to keep my phone in an easier-to-reach pocket usually. I do recognize, however, that it is significantly more secure than a non-EMV (that is, mag-stripe) card.
So to THAT extent, ApplePay at those locations has failed to measure up to the video demo experience at the keynote, which was "da-DONK" and it's over.
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Wells Fargo recently sent me a new Visa with an EMV chip in it, and to my great surprise, they sent me (separately) a PIN for it. I knew what it meant, but the PIN paperwork went through a great deal of explaining that outside of the US it was going to be needed to use the card at all, so I am fairly certain that that *is* a CHIP-and-PIN card.
Of course, I've already forgotten the PIN, but do have that paper in the safe at home.
The most frequent places I've used ApplePay so far have been Walgreens and Lucky, and both of those require entering the PIN (debit) or signing (credit, when the transaction is over a threshold). This, after I already successfully touch-ID authenticated with the phone. That means it's not significantly easier than digging out a card, except that I happen to keep my phone in an easier-to-reach pocket usually. I do recognize, however, that it is significantly more secure than a non-EMV (that is, mag-stripe) card.
So to THAT extent, ApplePay at those locations has failed to measure up to the video demo experience at the keynote, which was "da-DONK" and it's over.
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Normal bank cards in the US do not have contactless (and they're chip and signature, not chip and PIN
Wells Fargo recently sent me a new Visa with an EMV chip in it, and to my great surprise, they sent me (separately) a PIN for it. I knew what it meant, but the PIN paperwork went through a great deal of explaining that outside of the US it was going to be needed to use the card at all, so I am fairly certain that that *is* a CHIP-and-PIN card.
Of course, I've already forgotten the PIN, but do have that paper in the safe at home.
You are using Apple Pay wrong. 1. No need to unlock phone; 2. No need to select passbook 3. No need to select card (if using default card).
Just hold phone up to NFC reader while holding finger over touchID-- bam your default card pops up and transaction goes through.
No wonder that survey has those results, people don't know how to use Apple Pay.
The problem here is that you're attributing the failures and the incomplete deployment of contactless payments in the US market to Apple which isnt right. This is not really an issue with Apple Pay at all. You would most likely run into exactly the same issues with Google Wallet.
When this is released in Europe and particularly the UK where contactless payments are beginning to dominate small transactions Apple Pay will be a massive hit with minimal issues. Most of our retailers are well equipped with working terminals and consumers / staff have a pretty good understanding of how it works.
IF you want to blame anybody for these issues you need point your finger at US financial institutions who have been so slow to adopt new payment technology while the rest of the world moved on.
The most frustrating thing to me, as a consumer, is having an inconsistent experience during checkout with it. For example, at Panera (which has been the smoothest in my experience), all I had to do was authenticate using Touch ID and I was handed a receipt and I left. That's how I want it to work.
My experience with other retailers has been vastly different. Some still require that I sign a receipt even for small purchases (i.e. less than $20).
The other annoying thing is that I have to continue to touch the PIN pad at all. Why do I have to indicate whether it's credit or debit? Walgreens is bad about this. I know, I know, I can only get cash back if it's processed as debit.
I wish I could indicate whether or not I wanted cash back on my phone prior to touching the Touch ID sensor and the merchant's system would then process the payment as either credit or debit accordingly. As it is now at Walgreens, it takes four seconds to take my phone out of my pocket and authenticate with Touch ID and then I spend another five or six seconds, at least, pressing buttons on the PIN pad.
My experience with other retailers has been vastly different. Some still require that I sign a receipt even for small purchases (i.e. less than $20).
The other annoying thing is that I have to continue to touch the PIN pad at all. Why do I have to indicate whether it's credit or debit? Walgreens is bad about this. I know, I know, I can only get cash back if it's processed as debit.
I wish I could indicate whether or not I wanted cash back on my phone prior to touching the Touch ID sensor and the merchant's system would then process the payment as either credit or debit accordingly. As it is now at Walgreens, it takes four seconds to take my phone out of my pocket and authenticate with Touch ID and then I spend another five or six seconds, at least, pressing buttons on the PIN pad.
I use it at Walgreens, but honestly it's still a pain in the ass.
Hold up phone -check
type in phone number for awards -check
credit or debit, click proper button- check
are you sure? - check
is this the correct amount? - WtF
Hold up phone -check
type in phone number for awards -check
credit or debit, click proper button- check
are you sure? - check
is this the correct amount? - WtF
Exactly so contactless payments in general for you guys is a completely new concept. Therefore there is a lot of confusion around the whole contactless payments thing. Had you been using contactless without apple pay for a while consumers and retail staff would be more familiar and issues with Apple Pay would occur less.
So I guess Im trying to say that its not Apple Pay that people are having problems with, its actually contactless payment technology and the terminals already deployed which don't sound like they are fully optimised for NFC. Which is absolutely not Apple's fault.
I set it up when I got my iPhone 6 in December, it's basically April now and I still haven't used it once.
You don't consider rampant credit card fraud a problem? It's not just way easier to use Apple Pay, it's the security factor that is most appealing. The only problems I've encountered were clueless cashiers who were often unaware their terminal even supported Apple Pay. Part of that is Apple's fault for not encouraging retailers to train employees or make them aware of it.
2 problems with this entire dialogue:
1. This isn't apple's fault, it's a problem with the entire retail industry. They need to update many US pay terminals, and that will take a long time. Quit blaming Apple for this. They cannot do anything about it. All they can do is encourage retailers to roll-out NFC payment terminals quicker.
2. We need to stop focusing on the Apple Pay portion and call it what it is: CONTACTLESS PAYMENT. This same problem (see #1) is the SAME issue for Google and other NFC payment platforms.
Apple, Google and other NFC payment providers are all in the same boat. It would be nice if they all actually started working together and as a GROUP encourage greater adoption of NFC terminals.
Let's stop calling it Apple Pay and call it what it is. THis will help adoption.
w00master
1. This isn't apple's fault, it's a problem with the entire retail industry. They need to update many US pay terminals, and that will take a long time. Quit blaming Apple for this. They cannot do anything about it. All they can do is encourage retailers to roll-out NFC payment terminals quicker.
2. We need to stop focusing on the Apple Pay portion and call it what it is: CONTACTLESS PAYMENT. This same problem (see #1) is the SAME issue for Google and other NFC payment platforms.
Apple, Google and other NFC payment providers are all in the same boat. It would be nice if they all actually started working together and as a GROUP encourage greater adoption of NFC terminals.
Let's stop calling it Apple Pay and call it what it is. THis will help adoption.
w00master
Apple Pay salesperson conversation..
Hi how are you? Fine. I see this store has Apple pay. What's that? Apple pay. You know a way to use your iPhone to pay wirelessly in the store. I don't know anything about that. Thanks. Have a great day!
Hi how are you? Fine. I see this store has Apple pay. What's that? Apple pay. You know a way to use your iPhone to pay wirelessly in the store. I don't know anything about that. Thanks. Have a great day!