Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Is Apple Pay worth it?

NFC payment adoption in Europe is way ahead that of the US. So in the OP's case it would probably be worth it.

----------

Also I think it would go a long way if a retailer, such as Home Depot (who recently had a large data breach), would push the NFC based payments; as a secure way of performing the transaction where the actual card number is not given up.

I see Wells Fargo has a couple of Apple Pay ads....it would be in the best interest of these banks as well to push it.
 
Dan70 said:
I love my iPhone 5s, I think it's great but one thing that'd make my life so much easier is Apple Pay. It's suppose to be coming in Feb 2015, supposedly. Can anyone who has tried Apple Pay provide some insight into how much you use it and whether it's worth an upgrade?

One thing I don't like about the 6 and 6 Plus is the camera although I'd put a case on it any so it wouldn't be much of a big deal.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

I'm a big ApplePay supporter, but honestly at this point it's not a life-changing technology. Most people aren't old enough to remember how long it took credit cards to become as universally accepted as they are today. ApplePay will have a similar transition, i think, though it probably won't take as long. I use it to move the technology forward, not because it's going to replace my physical credit card anytime soon.

The reason I really want to see ApplePay succeed is because it offers a big improvement in security. Credit cards in the US are a security joke. My MC account has been hijacked several times, and I'm a very careful user. The chances of someone hacking an ApplePay account are much, much lower.
 
Keep in mind that next year the credit/debit card companies will be rolling out new cards with new chips that will make it much harder to hax0r. I don't remember if it's Q1 or Q2 but you can google it. New chips, more security.
 
cornerexit said:
Keep in mind that next year the credit/debit card companies will be rolling out new cards with new chips that will make it much harder to hax0r. I don't remember if it's Q1 or Q2 but you can google it. New chips, more security.
Click to expand...

That's true, but it only helps if the readers read the chip. I've got a chipped card, but most readers are still back in the 1980s. :eek:
 
maflynn said:
I really don't use it. I think there's one place where I go regularly that accepts apple pay. I find whipping out my credit card is no more effort and is fine.
Click to expand...
I've tried it at a couple places which supposedly accept it, haven't had it work yet. I like the concept, both for the added security and because it could be useful if I don't have my wallet with me and need to pay for something (doesn't happen often, but it's nice to have the fallback just in case). At this point it's not widespread enough to really be useful though.
 
Dan70 said:
Can anyone who has tried Apple Pay provide some insight into how much you use it and whether it's worth an upgrade?
Click to expand...
I find it very useful but that won't mean much to you unless you frequent the same stores that support it. I wouldn't consider it worth the upgrade on its own.
 
newellj said:
That's true, but it only helps if the readers read the chip.
Click to expand...

... and that will be changing at many places in the next few months as merchants / acquirers prepare for the liability shift. Given that many/most new EMV capable terminals are NFC capable, the landscape is likely to be changing. Verifone apparently has included NFC capability in all terminals since 2011, though not necessarily turned on.

Apple's timing can't be sheer coincidence.

Even if acceptance were widespread today, I still wouldn't say ApplePay all by itself was worth doing a phone upgrade.
 
Dan70 said:
I love my iPhone 5s, I think it's great but one thing that'd make my life so much easier is Apple Pay. It's suppose to be coming in Feb 2015, supposedly. Can anyone who has tried Apple Pay provide some insight into how much you use it and whether it's worth an upgrade?

One thing I don't like about the 6 and 6 Plus is the camera although I'd put a case on it any so it wouldn't be much of a big deal.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

I use Apple Pay every chance I can. It is very convenient and easy to use. There aren't enough stores that accept it yet, but the numbers are increasing. I use my iPhone 6 at Home Depot with an AMEX, Walgreens with a Barclay cash rewards card mainly, and at McDonalds though I don't eat food there,but an ice cream now and then. There is also a grocery that I go out of my way to shop there because I'm trying to support Apple Pay as much as possible.
The camera on my 6 is fantastic. The lens is not in the way at all. I can hand hold in low light and copy letter size documents and the results are astoundingly sharp. Low light family snapshots are very good and really sharp. I've had every iPhone with the exception if the 5S and none of the cameras have come close. I recently did Christmas photos for my daughters family. I used my iPhone and my son in laws Canon, high dollar outfit and the results from both were very good. I used suplimental lighting and you can almost count eyelashes.
I think the 6 is worth the upgrade imo.
I just noticed you were in the UK, my comments were based on American use, but I wont delete, the camera comment may be useful.
 
Last edited:
deeddawg said:
... and that will be changing at many places in the next few months as merchants / acquirers prepare for the liability shift. Given that many/most new EMV capable terminals are NFC capable, the landscape is likely to be changing. Verifone apparently has included NFC capability in all terminals since 2011, though not necessarily turned on.

Apple's timing can't be sheer coincidence.

Even if acceptance were widespread today, I still wouldn't say ApplePay all by itself was worth doing a phone upgrade.
Click to expand...

I totally agree on the last point, which I think I made clear in my first post above. Since it's in the phone anyway, and because I'd love to ditch physical cards (even chipped cards), I use it to do my little bit to build the user base.
 
I upgraded specifically for Apple Pay because my cards were compromised four times in two years. I'm the primary shopper and I'm fortunate because the stores I frequent all use it. It's not quicker than paying with a card, but it's miles ahead with security. Bottom line - I feel it's worth the upgrade.
 
It would be worth it if it worked reliably. Some stores are no problem. Others, it comes up but doesn't go through. At Macy's it asked me for my SSN (WTF?) so I canceled the transaction and paid cash.

I'm sure it'll get better as they work out the glitches though!
 
i will probably never use apple pay but the bigger screen size is muched needed since i pretty much only take my iphone, wall charger, and car charger with me when we go on 10hr trips to see family in the great lakes region.
 
I've actually been using ApplePay probably twice a week since I got my phone. I switched to Walgreens from CVS, went back to Home Depot after my credit card had been breached by them, and buy "quick food" at Panera and Fresh Market.

I wish my grocery store accepted it and frankly WalMart for those super-cheap bargains, but overall I am very satisfied using it. That Home Depot breach had a $2000 charge on my card. I got it reversed eventually but it was a mess and headache. I do not want to swipe cards anymore. We're not there yet, but it is already not bad two months out of the gate.
 
zorinlynx said:
It would be worth it if it worked reliably. Some stores are no problem. Others, it comes up but doesn't go through. At Macy's it asked me for my SSN (WTF?) so I canceled the transaction and paid cash.

I'm sure it'll get better as they work out the glitches though!
Click to expand...

Seems legit lol.
 
I like the iPhone 6 but I think its not worth it for now. Specs are just a bit faster than the 5s. Apple pay needs quite some time to grow. Camera is good but not the best (Note 4 is the best).
 
mattopotamus said:
My favorite part of apple pay is the touch ID integration within apps. That is really all I use it for, not actual "tap payments" at stores. I use my phone naked and would rather slide my card than tap my device.

I am pretty sure the 5s can do what I described though.

With the apple watch I would actually use the tap to pay though. Is that something you need the 6 for?
Click to expand...

You do know that you don't have to actually "tap" your phone right? NFC is a wireless technology and all you have to do is hold your phone close to the terminal.
 
I don't see how even universal acceptance of Apple pay would make a meaningful difference as compared to tapping my credit card now.
 
Jimmy James said:
I don't see how even universal acceptance of Apple pay would make a meaningful difference as compared to tapping my credit card now.
Click to expand...

To a certain degree it boils down to security with respect to the underlying information that's passed around. With a contactless card your credit card number is still going through the merchant's systems and is vulnerable to a hacked POS. With Apple Pay (EMV Tokenization) it isn't, only your card issuer has your actual card number.

There is also an expectation that ApplePay via phone won't have the transaction limits I understand exist for contactless cards. Reason being the authentication.

Functionally I've found it's a bit more streamlined than digging a card out of my wallet. With Apple Pay I pull out my phone and hold it close to the terminal with my thumb on the touchID sensor until it reads then put it back in my pocket. With a card I pull out my wallet, open it, fish out the card, swipe it, put it back into its spot, close my wallet and put it away. Worse is having to insert the card for a chip+sign payment since the card.

Either way not an earth shattering OMG difference, and various people will find one or the other method more streamlined.
 
bigjnyc said:
You do know that you don't have to actually "tap" your phone right? NFC is a wireless technology and all you have to do is hold your phone close to the terminal.
Click to expand...

Are you sure? All nfc tags and terminals I have tried need to basically touch to make the connection.
 
mattopotamus said:
Are you sure? All nfc tags and terminals I have tried need to basically touch to make the connection.
Click to expand...

I've tried quite a few myself and never had to touch. Plus all the Apple pay commercials, reviews and apple's presentation show the phone just being near it and not touching.
 
Calebtt said:
Apple pay was not the reason I upgraded from 5s to the 6, it was the screen size for me.
Click to expand...

Screen size, twice the memory...

Yeah I'm still rocking a 4S. I love it but I'm ready to retire it gracefully back to it's box along with my 3G.
 
I don't tap, but rest the phone on the terminal. Sometimes the connection takes a while, much easier just to rest it on there and let it do its thing.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back