Google Wallet has had its share of troubles. First carriers refused to include it, citing security concerns. Payment centers were hard to come by as well, with many point-of-sale terminals supporting NFC payments, but not Wallet. Now there is news that with the update to Android, Google Wallet may be shifting gears, or disappearing altogether.
With the Nexus 7’s inclusion of Broadcom NFC hardware came the inability to use some legacy NFC tags. It also meant that Google Wallet was being left out, as Broadcom lacked the necessary element to store payment options, like credit card data. According to one Redditor who dug through the leaked LG service manual for the Nexus 5, the same can be said for the upcoming Nexus flagship phone.
It’s doubtful that Google will drop Wallet support, considering they use it for Play Store purchases and have recently rolled out the ability to send money via email using Wallet. What isn’t clear is how this will affect Wallet on mobile devices, moving forward. A recent update supports Wallet’s move from NFC with the secure element, but there is no indication it’s being accepted by more retailers.
The security concern for carriers was that element present on the older NFC chips which stored the payment information. Now that it’s gone, we wonder if Wallet will serve as a funnel for other services, or forge a new path in mobile payments. A recent patent filing by Google for mobile payments without the secure element suggests they’re sticking with Wallet for the foreseeable future.
VIA: Android Authority
