Leaked images confirm Google is working on an Apple Card rival

Posted:
in General Discussion
Google is working on first-party physical and virtual debit cards in what appears to be a bid to compete with Apple payment offerings like Apple Pay and Apple Card.

A leaked image of the Google Card's design. Credit: TechCrunch
A leaked image of the Google Card's design. Credit: TechCrunch


Since its launch in 2014, Apple Pay has become one of the most dominant mobile payment platforms in the industry. In 2019, the company launched the Apple Card, which blended physical and virtual payments. Now, it seems, Google wants to catch up.

According to TechCrunch, Google is working on a new Google Pay app initiative, including an associated checking account and physical and virtual debit cards. Leaked images provided to the publication also show off the design of the app, as well as the card itself.

Users will be able to refill the so-called "Google Card" from a connected bank account through the Google Pay app, which will be secured with a fingerprint and a PIN. That means that it won't be a direct credit card competitor to the Apple Card. Instead, it appears that the revamped Google Pay system would be more akin to the digital Apple Pay Cash card, though with a physical component.

Leaked images appear to show off a physical design that echoes the Apple Card, with a clean and minimalist aesthetic. The design isn't set in stone, however, and may be a placeholder.

Google Card in the Google Pay app. Credit: TechCrunch
Google Card in the Google Pay app. Credit: TechCrunch


The card will reportedly be offered as a co-branded card through bank partners like Citi or Stanford Federal Credit Union, TechCrunch added. Images of the physical card suggest that it'll operate on the Visa network, though Google may also support options like Mastercard.

The first signs of the Google Card surfaced in November, when the Mountain View-based company said that it was exploring "exploring" how to offer smart FCIC- and NCUA-insured checking accounts through its existing Google Pay services. Currently, Google Pay only supports online and peer-to-peer payments through a connected financial account, similar to PayPal.

It's currently unclear when Google is going to launch the revamped Google Pay app and Google card.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 32
    BeatsBeats Posts: 3,073member
    When Apple Card was announced my (non-techie) mentor replied "let me guess, Google Card is coming".

    LOL
    bageljoeycy_starkmanwatto_cobra
  • Reply 2 of 32
    The face of that card looks like a constellation of dots that could be scanned by a regular camera for some purpose.
    right_said_fredwatto_cobra
  • Reply 3 of 32
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    Of course they are.  Googles R&D department is called Apple.
    HUNLAVSStrangeDaysBeatsSpamSandwichtenchi211cy_starkmangilly33watto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 32
    mpantonempantone Posts: 2,033member
    Google had worked on this before Apple did. 

    Google had a physical debit card long before Apple Card: it was the Google Wallet card which was discontinued in 2016.



    Up through 2015, the Google Wallet card had NFC, something Apple Card does not have. In this case, Apple cribbed from Google.

    Of course, none of the underlying technology is new.

    The Japanese have been using cellphones as NFC contactless transit passes since 2005. The Suica card can be used as payment at many stores as well.

    Many technology companies' offerings are copied from others. Apple did not invent any of this. They did encourage adoption.

    Hell, the NFC contactless chip isn't even theirs. It's from NXP, a Dutch semiconductor company that was spun off from Philips. The old Amex Blue cards from the late 90s-early 2000s had a Philips cryptocontroller chip embedded in the card. There was a corresponding USB card reader that you'd plug into your PC that basically acted as a form of two-factor authentication for online purchases.

    In the early 2010s, most of my credit cards had NFC contactless chips but adoption in the USA was so poor that the major credit card issuing banks stop issuing these cards and by 2015, most of my cards had gone back to being dumb pieces of plastic.

    The United States consumer finance market is anywhere between 10 and 20 years behind the rest of the industrialized world. It is really slowing down the speed of innovations in this area.
    edited April 2020 tokyojimunetroxpujones1tenchi211olsswat671chemengin1
  • Reply 5 of 32
    kestralkestral Posts: 308member
    Other than new ways to spy on people, does Google do anything original? If Apple ever buys DuckDuckGo or decides to make their own search engine, Google is screwed.
    psliceolswatto_cobra
  • Reply 6 of 32
    avon b7avon b7 Posts: 7,625member
    Beats said:
    When Apple Card was announced my (non-techie) mentor replied "let me guess, Google Card is coming".

    LOL
    I don't understand the LOL.

    Branded physical cards have existed for years. As have virtual cards. As have dual cards. Long before Apple Card even. That aspect is not new.

    I can use Google Pay or Samsung Pay or Apple Pay or my bank's Pay system. My bank card is physical and virtual, ties into the secure enclave on my phone, uses NFC, biometrics etc.

    Anyone with a big enough brand could be interested in this activity and they always have been.

    If you happen to make a phone, your interest may be higher but, as has always been the case, you have to go through a bank. Think Apple, Google, Samsung, Huawei and lots more. 

    Obviously my bank doesn't have any of those problems and uses industry standard smartphone hardware.

    As phone pay systems have become more common, It is perfectly reasonable for any smartphone manufacturer to at least consider a card if it is viable once bank negotiations are thrashed out.

    Of course banks have no such worries. 
    edited April 2020 holyoneBeatschemengin1
  • Reply 7 of 32
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,178member
    mpantone said:
    Google had worked on this before Apple did. 

    Google had a physical debit card long before Apple Card: it was the Google Wallet card which was discontinued in 2016.



    Up through 2015, the Google Wallet card had NFC, something Apple Card does not have. In this case, Apple cribbed from Google.
    Yup, I had one. Rarely used it, but it was rolled out sometime before Apple Pay became a thing and made tap to pay cards and smartphone apps high profile here in the US. 
    edited April 2020 Beats
  • Reply 8 of 32
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,844member
    mpantone said:
    Google had worked on this before Apple did. 

    Google had a physical debit card long before Apple Card: it was the Google Wallet card which was discontinued in 2016.



    Up through 2015, the Google Wallet card had NFC, something Apple Card does not have. In this case, Apple cribbed from Google.
    Not the same as Apple Card. That was a debit card that used your Google Wallet balance via POSTs. Not a credit card.

    http://allthingsd.com/20131120/google-to-unveil-the-google-wallet-debit-card/
    edited April 2020 ronnBeatspujones1watto_cobra
  • Reply 9 of 32
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,178member
    mpantone said:
    Google had worked on this before Apple did. 

    Google had a physical debit card long before Apple Card: it was the Google Wallet card which was discontinued in 2016.



    Up through 2015, the Google Wallet card had NFC, something Apple Card does not have. In this case, Apple cribbed from Google.
    Not the same as Apple Card. That was a debit card that used your Google Wallet balance via POSTs. Not a credit card.
    The rumor here is that it's another debit card, an updated version of the discontinued Google Wallet Card, and not a credit card. Not the same as Apple Card. 
    edited April 2020 pujones1chemengin1
  • Reply 10 of 32
    Google: We be the new Samsung™️ 
    SpamSandwichBeatscy_starkmanwatto_cobra
  • Reply 11 of 32
    BeatsBeats Posts: 3,073member
    holyone said:
    MacPro said:
    Of course they are.  Googles R&D department is called Apple.
    Beats said:
    When Apple Card was announced my (non-techie) mentor replied "let me guess, Google Card is coming".

    LOL
    LOL , because Apple was the first company to develop a bank card without being a bank thus no one else is allowed to develop their own and put their own spin on it ? coz..... Apple innovasion ????. You sound like whinny 5 year olds. I for one am glad that there such competition in the tech space & Google is looking at what awesome things Apple is doing (card) and taking those ideas and doing its own thing just as Apple is looking at the awesome things Google is doing (maps) and taking the good ideas and doing its own thing. No one company should have the right to ideas, because nothing would ever be improved upon, imagine if Apple was the only company allowed to make smartphones, we'd still be at 4" screens. Im excited to see what Google does here, and to have something to compare Apple card with to keep them on their toes.
    LOL because Google copying Apple again is like predicting the sun rising. Even non-tech people know this.


    mpantone said:
    Google had worked on this before Apple did. 

    Google had a physical debit card long before Apple Card: it was the Google Wallet card which was discontinued in 2016.



    Up through 2015, the Google Wallet card had NFC, something Apple Card does not have. In this case, Apple cribbed from Google.

    Of course, none of the underlying technology is new.

    The Japanese have been using cellphones as NFC contactless transit passes since 2005. The Suica card can be used as payment at many stores as well.

    Many technology companies' offerings are copied from others. Apple did not invent any of this. They did encourage adoption.

    Hell, the NFC contactless chip isn't even theirs. It's from NXP, a Dutch semiconductor company that was spun off from Philips. The old Amex Blue cards from the late 90s-early 2000s had a Philips cryptocontroller chip embedded in the card. There was a corresponding USB card reader that you'd plug into your PC that basically acted as a form of two-factor authentication for online purchases.

    In the early 2010s, most of my credit cards had NFC contactless chips but adoption in the USA was so poor that the major credit card issuing banks stop issuing these cards and by 2015, most of my cards had gone back to being dumb pieces of plastic.

    The United States consumer finance market is anywhere between 10 and 20 years behind the rest of the industrialized world. It is really slowing down the speed of innovations in this area.

    Like the argument that Google didn't copy iPhone because they planned Blackberry knockoffs before Apple invented iPhone.

    Like the people who claim AndroidPay didn't copy Apple because Google had Google Wallet before.

    Not even the same thing.
    edited April 2020 pujones1StrangeDaysd_2watto_cobra
  • Reply 12 of 32
    BeatsBeats Posts: 3,073member
    mpantone said:
    Google had worked on this before Apple did. 

    Google had a physical debit card long before Apple Card: it was the Google Wallet card which was discontinued in 2016.



    Up through 2015, the Google Wallet card had NFC, something Apple Card does not have. In this case, Apple cribbed from Google.
    Not the same as Apple Card. That was a debit card that used your Google Wallet balance via POSTs. Not a credit card.


    These people will stretch anything to prove Google/Sammy/Huawei/Xiaomi(MiMoji) is the innovator and Apple invented nothing.
    pujones1StrangeDayslkruppwatto_cobra
  • Reply 13 of 32
    lkrupplkrupp Posts: 10,557member
    Nobody uses Google Pay and nobody will use this card either. Why? Android. And watch them partner with a Chinese bank too.
    edited April 2020 pujones1Beatswatto_cobra
  • Reply 14 of 32
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,178member
    lkrupp said:
    Nobody uses Google Pay and nobody will use this card either. Why? Android. And watch them partner with a Chinese bank too.
    The only bank card issuer in China is Union Pay (state-owned) and Apple already partnered with them.
    ctt_zh
  • Reply 15 of 32
    avon b7avon b7 Posts: 7,625member
    Beats said:
    mpantone said:
    Google had worked on this before Apple did. 

    Google had a physical debit card long before Apple Card: it was the Google Wallet card which was discontinued in 2016.



    Up through 2015, the Google Wallet card had NFC, something Apple Card does not have. In this case, Apple cribbed from Google.
    Not the same as Apple Card. That was a debit card that used your Google Wallet balance via POSTs. Not a credit card.


    These people will stretch anything to prove Google/Sammy/Huawei/Xiaomi(MiMoji) is the innovator and Apple invented nothing.
    How on earth did you reach that conclusion?

    You named five companies. They all invent things. There are millions more inventors out there. Apple doesn't invent everything, of course. 

    Being the conglomerate it is, Samsung probably invents more than many of them. No need to stretch anything. Huawei too. And many more. 

    Apple pays millions to Huawei for use of its inventions. Huawei pays millions to Samsung for theirs. Both pay Google for theirs. That's how the real world works. 

    Are you suggesting they aren't innovators? Are you surprised Apple pays Huawei? 

    No one has to prove anything. And no one says Apple invented nothing. I think you are being unreasonable here. 



    chemengin1
  • Reply 16 of 32
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,844member
    gatorguy said:
    mpantone said:
    Google had worked on this before Apple did. 

    Google had a physical debit card long before Apple Card: it was the Google Wallet card which was discontinued in 2016.



    Up through 2015, the Google Wallet card had NFC, something Apple Card does not have. In this case, Apple cribbed from Google.
    Not the same as Apple Card. That was a debit card that used your Google Wallet balance via POSTs. Not a credit card.
    The rumor here is that it's another debit card, an updated version of the discontinued Google Wallet Card, and not a credit card. Not the same as Apple Card. 
    Yet the claim in the quoted replies was Google had “worked on this before Apple did”. Apple hasn’t done any work on debit cards, it’s released a credit card only. Thus the claim is either confused or irrelevant. There are a million things Apple hasn’t worked on and other tech companies did. But on the topic of a credit card, the above debit card is not the same as a credit card, yes. 
    edited April 2020 d_2watto_cobra
  • Reply 17 of 32
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,178member
    gatorguy said:
    mpantone said:
    Google had worked on this before Apple did. 

    Google had a physical debit card long before Apple Card: it was the Google Wallet card which was discontinued in 2016.



    Up through 2015, the Google Wallet card had NFC, something Apple Card does not have. In this case, Apple cribbed from Google.
    Not the same as Apple Card. That was a debit card that used your Google Wallet balance via POSTs. Not a credit card.
    The rumor here is that it's another debit card, an updated version of the discontinued Google Wallet Card, and not a credit card. Not the same as Apple Card. 
    Yet the claim in the quoted replies was Google had “worked on this before Apple did”. Apple hasn’t done any work on debit cards, it’s released a credit card only. Thus the claim is either confused or irrelevant. There are a million things Apple hasn’t worked on and other tech companies did. But on the topic of a credit card, the above is not the same, yes. 
    You're referring to what the AI article implied then since it is not an Apple Card rival as the headline says?

    Several commenters are seeing what they want to see when two things are obvious:
    1: Google is probably reintroducing something they first rolled out in 2013. The timing now is better.
    2. If Google is copying anyone it is themselves and not Apple since this is a debit card play, not a credit card. 

    Too much kneejerk reaction in this thread, not enough time spent reading. Perusing the comments in some threads is like watching reruns of Gilda Radner as Emily Litella on the SNL Weekend Update. "Oh. Nevermind."
    edited April 2020 chemengin1
  • Reply 18 of 32
    avon b7avon b7 Posts: 7,625member
    gatorguy said:
    mpantone said:
    Google had worked on this before Apple did. 

    Google had a physical debit card long before Apple Card: it was the Google Wallet card which was discontinued in 2016.



    Up through 2015, the Google Wallet card had NFC, something Apple Card does not have. In this case, Apple cribbed from Google.
    Not the same as Apple Card. That was a debit card that used your Google Wallet balance via POSTs. Not a credit card.
    The rumor here is that it's another debit card, an updated version of the discontinued Google Wallet Card, and not a credit card. Not the same as Apple Card. 
    Yet the claim in the quoted replies was Google had “worked on this before Apple did”. Apple hasn’t done any work on debit cards, it’s released a credit card only. Thus the claim is either confused or irrelevant. There are a million things Apple hasn’t worked on and other tech companies did. But on the topic of a credit card, the above debit card is not the same as a credit card, yes. 
    I dont think credit vs debit is important in this case. Credit vs debit is simply a payment mode. 

    I have virtually complete control of how my card works. I am free to set limits, what kinds of payments the card can be used for, notifications and can turn them on or off at will. I can turn the entire card off too, if needed.

    I can't avoid things like PSD2 of course.

    I have to visit a physical branch once a year to have some documentation scanned (an EU thing). Other than that I just use the bank app for day to day life and my bank assigned assistant is on hand via secure communication within the app or an old fashioned voice call. When someone needs cash for some reason, I can send it to a nearby cash machine for them to take it out using a code that is sent to their phone. I'm pretty much covered for more options than I could find a use for.

    Ironically, I'm a bit old school and will often just carry my physical card with me (no phone) and cash in my pocket.

    COVID-19 has brought some changes here. No PIN required now for contactless card payments up to 50€ instead of 20€.

    Overall I'm happy with my bank and what it offers. Zero commissions too. 
    chemengin1
  • Reply 19 of 32
    dkddkddkddkd Posts: 14member
    The card will reportedly be offered as a co-branded card through bank partners like Citi or Stanford Federal Credit Union, TechCrunch added. Images of the physical card suggest that it'll operate on the Visa network, though Google may also support options like Mastercard.

    The first signs of the Google Card surfaced in November, when the Mountain View-based company said that it was exploring "exploring" how to offer smart FCIC- and NCUA-insured checking accounts through its existing Google Pay services. Currently, Google Pay only supports online and peer-to-peer payments through a connected financial account, similar to PayPal.

    It's currently unclear when Google is going to launch the revamped Google Pay app and Google card.
    What is exploring "exploring"?  Is that like tremendously tremendous (if there are any hockey fans here, that reference might make some sense)?  And isn't it the FDIC- not the FCIC-?

  • Reply 20 of 32
    kimberlykimberly Posts: 427member
    gatorguy said:
    lkrupp said:
    Nobody uses Google Pay and nobody will use this card either. Why? Android. And watch them partner with a Chinese bank too.
    The only bank card issuer in China is Union Pay (state-owned) and Apple already partnered with them.
     :D  :D :D
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