The Galaxy Card Is Samsung's Answer To the Apple Card (wired.com) 18
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Wired: Nearly seven years after Apple debuted the Apple Card, Samsung is following the iPhone maker's footsteps with the Galaxy Card, aiming for its own slice of the credit card market. The announcement comes two days before Samsung's second Galaxy Unpacked event of the year, where it's expected to showcase new smartwatches and folding smartphones. The Galaxy Card is issued by Barclays on the Visa network; the Apple Card, originally issued by Goldman Sachs but now transitioning to Chase, is on the MasterCard network. There is a physical card -- it's not made of titanium but recycled steel.
The virtual card will be provisioned to a user's Samsung Wallet account. With no annual fee, Samsung says cardmembers can earn 5 percent cash rewards on all in-store or online purchases made directly from Samsung in the US, 3 percent cash rewards on purchases made with the Galaxy Card using Samsung Wallet, 2 percent cash rewards on streaming service subscriptions, and 1 percent cash rewards on everything else with the physical card. The cash rewards can be redeemed as a statement credit or transferred to a checking or savings account. The annual percentage rate (APR) varies by cardmember, but the card has no foreign transaction fees. Other perks include a 20 percent discount on Samsung's VIP Advantage membership, which offers extended device protection, specialized support, and exclusive deals, and $200 in cash rewards after spending $2,000 in the first 90 days.
Applications open up on July 22. The Samsung Wallet app is only available on Samsung smartphones and watches, so what happens if a consumer switches to a different smartphone brand? The company says Galaxy Card is not limited to Samsung device owners and that anyone can use the physical card, but you lose the key perks; the card can be managed through a BarclaysUS.com online portal. (Similarly, if an iPhone owner switches to Android, their physical Apple Card will still work, but they lose access to the Apple Wallet app and the 3 percent daily cash perk on Apple purchases; there's a web portal to manage the account.)
The virtual card will be provisioned to a user's Samsung Wallet account. With no annual fee, Samsung says cardmembers can earn 5 percent cash rewards on all in-store or online purchases made directly from Samsung in the US, 3 percent cash rewards on purchases made with the Galaxy Card using Samsung Wallet, 2 percent cash rewards on streaming service subscriptions, and 1 percent cash rewards on everything else with the physical card. The cash rewards can be redeemed as a statement credit or transferred to a checking or savings account. The annual percentage rate (APR) varies by cardmember, but the card has no foreign transaction fees. Other perks include a 20 percent discount on Samsung's VIP Advantage membership, which offers extended device protection, specialized support, and exclusive deals, and $200 in cash rewards after spending $2,000 in the first 90 days.
Applications open up on July 22. The Samsung Wallet app is only available on Samsung smartphones and watches, so what happens if a consumer switches to a different smartphone brand? The company says Galaxy Card is not limited to Samsung device owners and that anyone can use the physical card, but you lose the key perks; the card can be managed through a BarclaysUS.com online portal. (Similarly, if an iPhone owner switches to Android, their physical Apple Card will still work, but they lose access to the Apple Wallet app and the 3 percent daily cash perk on Apple purchases; there's a web portal to manage the account.)
the sweet sweet middle man (Score:2)
"Hell yeah, a credit card!" - people I don't get
Re:the sweet sweet middle man (Score:4, Informative)
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Re: the sweet sweet middle man (Score:2)
I use it anywhere I can tap to pay, even if the Apple Pay logo is explicitly shown...I can only think of a very rare time when it didn't work.
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You can load your plastic cards onto your phone for tap though, but that doesn't give you access to controls or history.
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You want to hope so. You better get something for having an intermediary sitting between you and the intermediary sitting between you and your purchase.
Honestly I don't get what the fuss is about. There's nothing "cool" about whipping out a card, and who the fuck needs an app. Just pay and leave.
To paraphrase a line from Jurasic Park (Score:2)
"Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should.”
Eco System (Score:3)
Maybe it's just me but when I think of Samsung I don't think of a brand that has an eco-system, I just think of a generic company that usually makes decent quality hardware. I don't want to use their app store, or their attempt at a personal AI assistant, or their password manager. I don't expect innovation, I don't care about their flagship products, I'm just content with using their hardware with no interaction with the company whatsoever.
What is a "credit card" ? (Score:2)
It will be like explaining floppy disks and corded telephones to the current generation. That you used to have a physical piece of plastic with a magstrip or chip in it won't be relevant to people 5 years from now.
That you had credit, even if you were a student with no job, is going to be pretty alien to future generations. The vast majority of people will have a debit-like account with hidden fees and sale of spending habits and marketing info to support the business further. It will be like paying rent in
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Gen-X, but I can understand the confusion given that I can afford to own a home.
Why bother with tech? (Score:2)
Everyone knows that the real money is in finance and pharma. Stop building phones - just sell credit and opiods.