Android Pay in Australia – Android Pay is a contactless payment system by using your Android phone (Apple Pay for iPhone) to pay over EFTPOS terminals in stores, restaurants, etc.
Whenever you can use Visa Paywave or MasterCard PayPass on a terminal (i.e by just tapping your card on it), you can later use your Android phone in a similar, but not the same manner.
You do need to add your card details into the phone and unlock your Android phone first. No tapping is required, however. Simply hold your phone near the terminal and you should be good to go.
According to this Google blog post about Android Pay launch in Australia, Android Pay will be supported by these banks when it is launching in 2016:
- ANZ
- Westpac
- Bank of Melbourne
- Bank of South Australia
- Bendigo Bank
- Cuscal
- ING DIRECT
- Macquarie Bank
- St. George
with more banks to follow throughout the year. Android Pay will work with MasterCard and Visa credit + debit cards upon launch.
Android Pay will also work with fast checkout within apps such Catch of the Day, THE ICONIC, and Kogan.
At the moment, Apple Pay only works with American Express cards issued by Amex, and not by the banks (here is why).
Your turn, Apple, or you’ll be left behind by Google.
