Apple’s iOS 8.1 update is now available to download. The biggest addition is the shiny new feature Apple Pay. Apple Pay will allow iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPad Air 2, and iPad mini 3 owners to pay for purchases within compatible apps by using finger print recognition “Touch ID” technology.iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus customers will also be able to use their mobile devices to pay in participating stores by tapping their phone onto the card readers using a combination of Touch ID and NFC.
Apple Pay integrates into the existing Passbook feature on iOS 8.1, allowing you to setup and store credit and debit cards. Experts say the new Apple Pay is more secure than a traditional credit card payment, because the system being used sends one-time codes to merchants to complete purchases rather than your actual credit card numbers.
Apple Pay is now available in the US and became available to additional countries in 2015. More than a quarter of a million stores in the US accept the contactless payments, including Nike, Mc Donalds and Whole Foods. Once you’re ready to pay for your purchases in-store with a contactless terminal, you hold your iPhone close to the device.
Apple Pay is now live on most Apple Devices including the iPhone 6 & the iPhone 6 Plus. Will it be the same on the iPhone 7 and will there be an iPhone 7s?
Apple Pay Interface
The Apple Pay interface opens and shows the credit card you have set as the default and offers you the choice to choose another card if necessary. To complete payment, simply put your finger on the fingerprint reader to complete the purchase. It’s extremely simple, although the process might be slightly different depending on what store you’re in.
The setup is easy too. You activate it by heading to Settings, selecting Passbook and then clicking Apple Pay. Or you can open the Passbook app and turn it on from there. You have to have a credit card stored in your iTunes account as Apple Pay hasn’t joined forces with PayPal.
You can add several cards to the Passbook app by using the phone’s camera to enter the numbers and expiration date or enter them manually. Most credit cards from major banks will work, although some smaller credit union cards or store-specific cards may not.
When you are ready to make a payment, you don’t have to turn on the phone or unlock it. If you are near a terminal and have an app open the phone turns automatically to the Pay interface and in most cases, once you press the fingerprint reader, the transaction is over.
