Samsung Pay is set to launch by September 29, but as early as now, you can sign up and be a beta tester. There are certain requirements that you need to meet in order to qualify for the program, specifically regarding your Samsung unit, having an active account, having a qualifying credit card, and lastly, which carrier you’re currently subscribed to. It’s also a given that you understand that beta testing is meant as a dry run and so not all the spokes and wheels might turn, so frustration with the service is a given.
First of all, to be able to use Samsung Pay, you would need to own any of the following devices: Galaxy S6, Galaxy S6 edge, Galaxy S6 edge+, or Galaxy Note 5. The device needs to be under service with any of the following carriers: AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and US Cellular. Verizon seems to be the only major exemption. You also need to have a “qualifying credit card” from Bank of America, Mastercard, Visa, or U.S. Bank Visa.
Of course, you would need to have an active Samsung account and your email address here would be where they would notify you that you have been accepted into the program. Before you submit your email address and sign-up, you have to agree to the Beta program terms and conditions. It says there that the use of Samsung Pay is subject to the Samsung Pay Terms of Service and since we’re dealing with money here, you better read that document, when you get it, first.
Samsung Pay is different from other mobile payment solutions in that it can recognize both NFC and magnetic stripe card readers. We don’t know if Google’s soon to be announced Android Pay will also be able to do so.
SOURCE: Samsung