From The Verge: Google Wallet was the company’s first attempt at enabling money transfers on Android with the Nexus S 4G, and no matter how many apps Google launches, it will seemingly always be around. Google Pay tried to replace both Google Wallet and Android Pay a few years ago, but in a few months, Google Pay will be gone, with Google Wallet back on top.
Android Pay popped up in 2015 as a temporary tap-to-pay king, while Google Wallet was recast as a Cash App / Venmo rival, but even when Google changed its mind and combined them, it couldn’t keep itself from messing with the formula again and again.
Don’t even ask me about that 2020 revamp that pulled Google Pay Send’s peer-to-peer transactions back into the fold or a failed attempt at adding “Google Plex” banking features because by 2022 its rebranding efforts had all become meaningless anyway.
That’s when Google Wallet came back, ready to hold credit / debit cards, event passes, loyalty cards, government IDs, or proof of vaccination. Unlike 2011’s NFC-powered Wallet, this one is even compatible with newer tech like ultra wideband (UWB) car keys.
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