At its I/O developer conference this year, Google finally showcased the new and improved Google Wallet. The revamped wallet app combines the old Google Wallet app with Google Pay to give users a single comprehensive digital wallet that can store everything from digital tickets to IDs, credit and debit cards, gift cards, and more. Following in Google's footsteps, Samsung has now combined its Samsung Pay and Samsung Pass apps into a similar comprehensive offering called Samsung Wallet.
Samsung says that Samsung Wallet is a new platform that helps Galaxy smartphone users organize digital keys, boarding passes, IDs, payment cards, and more in a single easy-to-use app secured by Samsung Knox. The company claims that the app also uses the open Galaxy ecosystem by integrating with Samsung Blockchain Wallet to help users easily monitor cryptocurrencies and SmartThings to unlock doors with digital keys. Currently, the Samsung Wallet app doesn't offer support for official IDs, like driver's licenses and student IDs, but Samsung will roll out the functionality later this year.
Talking about the new app, Jeanie Han, EVP and Head of Digital Life, MX Business at Samsung Electronics, said, "Samsung Wallet is bringing a new level of everyday convenience to mobile devices with a totally safe and secure environment for storing digital keys, cards, and more. As a part of our ongoing commitment to open ecosystems, we will continue to expand on the capabilities of Samsung Wallet by working closely with our trusted partners and developers."
What can you store in the new Samsung Wallet app?
Samsung's press release states that Galaxy users can store the following things in the Samsung Wallet app:
- Payment cards
- Loyalty and membership cards
- Passwords
- Digital Keys (both home and automobile)
- Korean Air boarding passes
- Digital IDs (coming later this year)
- Monitor cryptocurrency portfolio via Samsung Blockchain Wallet
The fine print states that the availability of these features will vary by market and based on the Galaxy device you're using. Sadly, the company has not gone into detail regarding the same.
Samsung Wallet app availability
At launch, the Samsung Wallet app will be available in six markets -- France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the UK, and the US. Users in these regions can open the Samsung Pay or Samsung Pass apps on their eligible Galaxy devices and follow the prompts to update and migrate to the new wallet app. Alternatively, users can visit the Galaxy Store to install the app.
It's worth reiterating that some of the features mentioned above may not be available in all regions for now. Another thing worth mentioning is that you'll need a Samsung Pay-enabled Galaxy device running Android 9 Pie or later to use the new Samsung Wallet app. Additionally, some elements of the app require an embedded Secure Element-enabled (eSE-enabled) device.
We'll update this post with more details on compatibility and availability as soon as we learn more.
What do you think of the new Samsung Wallet app? Would you use it over the Google Wallet app? Let us know in the comments section below.
Source: Samsung Newsroom