Google is working on a way to add cards to Google Wallet on your Android phone in the most convenient way imaginable.
According to code discovered in the new Google Play Services beta (version 25.16.33), Google is working on a way to add debit and credit cards to Google Wallet with a simple tap.
The current system requires you to scan a new card in using your Android phone’s camera, or to do it the painstaking manual way.
Tap to add for Google Wallet
However, Android Authority has discovered mentions of “nfc add a card”, “nfc tap card details” in the code, as well as the instruction to “Hold your card close to the back of your device until it vibrates”. This appears to be in specific reference to Google Wallet’s ‘Add payment method’ screen.
NFC, of course, stands for Near Field Communication, and is the technology that allows you to tap-to-pay with your phone in shops.
This method would ostensibly reverse that process, allowing you to tap card details onto your phone.
All tapped out
As the report suggests, you’ll almost certainly still need to provide the three-digit CVV code for security reasons, and there’ll still likely be a verification process to go through with your bank. That can be a text message code, a call, or a mobile app prompt.
Even so, being able to add your card with a tap sounds way more convenient than the existing methods. To be honest, we’re astounded that neither Google nor Apple has implemented such a feature already.
The report also points out that there may be limitations when it comes to compatibility, as not every debit or credit card offers up basic card info in such an NFC-friendly way.
There’s no indication as to when this tap-to-add feature will be added to Google Wallet, but we shouldn’t have too long to wait.
