Hands on with the Google Wallet Card (video)

Quite some time ago Google released Google Wallet, a payment system that let your NFC-enabled phone work with a very limited number of tap-to-pay merchants. That alone was a big enough roadblock to keep many from trying the service. Add to that the limitations of Secure Elements, carrier restrictions, and being confined to these United States, and it’s a wonder that Google Wallet ever made it to where it is today. Where exactly is that? No longer do you need a Secure Element, and the app is generally available on even previously restricted carriers. All this is good news — as long as merchants support tap-to-pay. Unfortunately that number is still pretty slim. To combat that, and let you use Google Wallet even with stores that don’t support the latest and greatest NFC technologies, Google recently introduced the Google Wallet Card.

Google Wallet Card

The Google Wallet Card is a debit card on the MasterCard network which lets you spend your Google Wallet account balance with anyone that accepts MasterCard. What does it look like? How do you activate it? Does it work the same as other credit and debit cards? Luckily, we’ve gotten our hands on our very own Google Wallet Card. Hit play and we’ll show you everything you need to know!

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Editorial, Google, Google Wallet, Google Wallet Card, Hands-on, MasterCard, nfc, Secure Element, Video

About The Author

Joe Levi

Joe graduated from Weber State University with two degrees in Information Systems and Technologies. He has carried mobile devices with him for more than a decade, including Apple's Newton, Microsoft's Handheld and Palm Sized PCs, and is Pocketnow's "Android Guy". By day you'll find Joe coding web pages, tweaking for SEO, and leveraging social media to spread the word. By night you'll probably find him writing technology and "prepping" articles, as well as shooting video. Read more about Joe Levi here.