Since early March, Google Wallet has seen a series of somewhat unusual updates, with both new features and behavior changes.
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First, you can now long press the Google Wallet icon to see your saved credit/debit cards and drag them to your home screen to create app shortcuts. This one-tap access allows you to skip the card carousel, making things a little faster when you’re in line.
That being said, a lot has changed when it comes to validation, and people are frustrated. Basically, Google Wallet requires more frequent authentication.
If you try to use your wallet three minutes after you first unlock your phone, Google will ask you to re-authenticate. A “Verify Your Identity” prompt will appear above the carousel and the transaction will fail until you apply your fingerprint. Of course, this means you have to tap the reader again.
Given the new UI added, this is clearly an intentional change aimed at increasing security. However, people find this behavior destructive. For example, we often take out our devices while waiting in line. By the time I get to the register, the screen/phone is still on and unlocked. Previously, you could just tap and pay, but now you have to open your wallet and authenticate, or lock and unlock it again before you can tap. There’s certainly a balance between convenience and security, and if users don’t adjust, Google Wallet may need to be reconsidered.
Meanwhile, a related change that particularly affected people in Europe means that Google will require authentication regardless of the transaction amount.
Finally, Google Wallet has added new “authentication settings” for transit payments. Transit cards don’t require authorization, but you can decide whether you need authorization before using your credit/debit card.
Development is occurring one after another around the mountain pass. Next, we’ll discuss how publishers can link related paths. Associated passes can be linked to boarding passes, event tickets, loyalty cards, gift cards, and rewards. Google says that at this time, “users cannot link their own passes.”
Google Wallet also now has a website for online management. Full access to Passes on the web is the main attraction, but support for Apple Wallet Passes is also being rolled out. Travel tickets and boarding passes from Gmail can be viewed in Google Wallet, but you can also archive them manually.
Looking ahead, I’d like to wait for the wallet notification to actually be sent from the app rather than relying on Google Play Services, but it’s not Google (or Apple), but more state IDs are available. It will take a long time before this is possible.
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