Paying for your pretzel with your Windows Phone is a pretty futurist scenario. One that for a few of you is now possible thanks to the new Softcard app in the Windows Phone Store. Softcard is the joint-venture between AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon that allows you to pay for purchases with your smartphone and NFC. The app is new to Windows Phone, but only AT&T customers can enjoy Softcard right now.
Here's a statement from Softcard and their Windows Phone plans:
"Softcard will be available by more than one carrier in the coming weeks, but at the moment, it's only AT&T."
You'll notice that the publisher is AT&T for the Softcard app in the Windows Phone Store. But hopefully we'll be seeing Verizon and T-Mobile support sooner than later.
On AT&T and want to download Softcard? You won't be able to unless you pick up a secured SIM card for your Windows Phone. Do that and you should be good to go.
We'll be grabbing a SIM for ourselves soon, in the meantime have you used it yet?
Reader comments
Softcard for Windows Phone only works with AT&T right now, Verizon and T-Mobile coming soon
Microsoft will lose the battle of NFC payment.
SoftCard App shows up in the MS App Store for Verizon Wireless but unable to download. Hoping this is a good sign that it will be available in the next two weeks. It's available for the M8 One, waiting for Icon availability. Most likely tied to Lumia Cyan so I won't see it until March (pick a year).
Proprietary garbage!
I got the Enhanced Sim Card on my Branded Nokia 1020 and loaded my AMEX with no problem, Chase Card have some issues.They need to have more pariticpating CC and loyalty cards...
Same exact situation here
Can you guys show how I works?
Can youys gu
Very limited store support. Did use it at McDonalds.
I can't even DOWNLOAD the stupid app. I have an AT&T 920, using a Straight Talk SIM card, and it says my phone isn't supported. I took out the SIM and put in the Enhanced SIM and it still didn't work. I've tried a GoPhone SIM, Straight Talk SIM, and Enhanced SIM and they all said my phone isn't supported. It also said it on the windowsphone.com website that my phone isn't supported, even though it is an AT&T 920.
Just set up mine.... after closing my bluebird card to open a serve card, to then having to call and upload proof that I am me and I own those accounts, which took about 30 minutes total. I do like having an extra layer between my bank/cards and phone. plus, serve seems to be giving $1 back at walgreens and mcdonalds.... will test this tonight
I picked up the enhanced SIM card, installed, and activated. Only problem, already mentioned by others, is that the Softcard only accepts a small number of cards, AMEX, Chases, Wells Fargo. I won't be using this feature until they provide more card options/partners.
I picked up my enhanced SIM yesterday and installed the app. Added my AMEX without any issues and am ready to go!
Haven't used it yet for a retail purchase, but look forward to doing that today.
Finally, something I have looked forward to since NFC was integrated into phones.
I have no doubt that this is due to the fact that the Lumia Cyan firmware update has yet to be released for the Verizon and T-Mobile Windows Phones. It probably requires the Cyan firmware update to enable the SIM to function properly. I HATE what Verizon has done to the Icon!
I guess when it comes down to it, if it's easier that pulling out my wallet, pulling out my card and swiping, then it will be worth using.
I guess in the real world, once it actually comes to Verizon, I'll play with the new tech and see how it works but, I think in the long run, it will be easier and more secure to do it the old way...
Maybe it's just me ?
Doesn't seem worth the hassle. Looking at the softcard website all I could buy is McDonalds, Subway, Coke products from numerous vending machines, and travel across town to a Walgreens to buy something.
"should" work at most contactless payment terminals, which are not everywhere (or close to everywhere)
The m8 wont go global with t-mobile right ?
If they partner with Visa and MasterCard so I can use my debit card I'll definitely use it since it keeps my card number out of their oft hacked systems.
Picked up the enhanced SIM card tonight but my SIM removal tool is at work :P
Will try it out tommorrow I guess. :)
Note: You need a credit card to make this work- debit cards do not work.
Yea, but, I am sure if you have a DEBIT card with a Mastercard logo (like most banks in the US use), you can use it with that account...
Well. Can't use my Chase debit card.
Nope. I'm pretty sure it's credit cards only and then only certain ones at that.
What's up with the enhanced SIM? Does that mean apple pay needs one too?
The iPhone has a dedicated chip that takes the place of the secure/enhanced SIM.
Stores are rejecting the iPhone pay. Walmart and several other stores have already dropped support for it. They don't like that it won't provide credit card information to the store and that makes returns and store credits very difficult.
Actually what those stores are trying to do is to avoid paying CC fees.... using a proprietary circuit. In fact they have shut down NFC tout court, not just Apple,
Not bad. Works fast. Almost instantly. I had to add my card as a backup card but the money was pulled without issue. It isn't Apple Pay but this works fine.
Why cab no one else anytime in all platforms at once? Xamarin anyone?
All set up, would like to see more card choices since I use my Upromise card for just about everything. One thing I will suggest is if you are trying to activate your card the gentleman I spoke to set shut off your wifi and get a good 4G LTE signal and it should go thru faster.
I successfully added my 5/3rd bank card to the Amex option and ate breakfast at McDonald's this morning using the tap to pay. It took about 5 minutes for the deduction to show up on the Amex card within the app.
I've finally got my Amex card loaded into Softcard on my Lumia 920. For some reason, I'm really excited about this. I don't really like McDonalds, but I'm probably going to buy a Big Mac for lunch tomorrow just to pay with my phone. Kinda sad.
1520.3 not supported. You messed up AT&T.
Definitely interesting...will have to venture down to my local AT&T Corp store and get one...however reviewing the comments regarding debit and Visa cards has me hesitant to try...lol
It's a dismal selection, only option if yours isn't listed is to use an American Express Serve card, haven't tried it but they allow you to set one up in the app.
Question. I use an unlocked at&t 920 on T-Mobile. Would that work with a T-Mobile SIM?
good question... you'll need a t-mobile secure sim, but no clue if it'll work or not.
No it won't. WIll only work with the same carrier-branded phone as carrier's secure SIM
So what happens if you're on an MVNO carrier that uses att?....
This whole NFC payment and Softcard is making things more complicated than it even should be to the point it's defeating NFC payment altogether. I don't understand why it's not as easy as using your Windows Phone while asleep, tap an NFC terminal, punch in your PIN (after selecting a card) and having a physical receipt or one emailed to your Microsoft account...
How about cricket?
Got mine all setup, had to get a new "Enhanced SIM" first though, its interesting. Haven't yet used it, I'll have to try it out to pay for something to see how easy it is/isn't.. One annoying thing is the loyalty card options, they are lackluster to say the least. Glad to finally join the mobile payment bandwagon.
Still wish the built in "Microsoft Wallet" worked... Oh well, at least there's this I guess...
Should also mention, there are only a few cards that are 'accepted' to be used. If you don't have a American Express, a Chase credit card, or a Wells Fargo credit card, you are SOL. Only option is to setup a American Express Serve card, which you'll have to link whatever card(s) you have to that.
I've noticed that the Softcard app uses AT&T's custom message box control, so AT&T must've developed it by themselves...
Everything was set up, don't get a chance to using it yet
I grabbed my SIM this afternoon and just paid for some stuff at Walgreens. The best part about it was that I had a $5 discount from points gathered through having my Fitbit linked with my Walgreens Balance Rewards account :D.
Used it twice today with no issues on Lumia 920
Sadly I am on Cricket so non starter for me right now. I have a factory unlocked Lumia 925 and waiting for the 930 to come down in price still or maybe for the next "Microsoft" Phone.
Anyway assuming Cricket ever supports this, and I get to use it, does it work in all the same places that Apple Pay works? Thanks.
Will this work with AT&T MVNOs... Go Phone, Cricket, Net10, Straight Talk, etc.?
Not 'yet'.
Lets see...I can burn the extra calorie it takes to pull my wallet out of my back pocket. I guess im hitting that age now, because I don't see the advantage to using these things. Get off my lawn!
Only time I see it being truly useful is if you didn't have your wallet with you, just your phone.
I totally get where you're coming from. I'm not "that age" yet, but I sympathise with the mentality. Bunch of lazy people out there! However, in this instance, I'm on board with this idea when it finally becomes truly mainstream. Its the swiss army knife effect. Why carry a pocket knife, a screw driver, a nail file and a toothpick, when you can get it all in one compact package? I've been eyeing the little phone cases that work as a wallet so I don't have to carry a phone AND a wallet. But they only carry two cards and have little space for cash, license, loyalty cards, etc. If I can JUST have my phone, but still access all that, with a $20 bill in my pocket, I'd be a happy man!
Oh, and I'll get off your lawn as soon as you trim your damn tree! :-D
Just got a secured SIM but now I'm only getting 4g... Hmmm on a Lumia 920.
If toggling airplane mode on and off or restarting your phone don't work, call 611 and tell them you got a new SIM card and are only getting 4G, not LTE.
Takes like 10 minutes to get LTE signal, but I'm getting it now... problem is making the stupid account. It just sits on the "We're creating youre Account" screen. I've already gone through ATT and Softcard support....
Wifi helped speed for me.
The words Verizon and soon in the same sentence makes LOL
Doesn't work with Visa. Nearly useless.
Set up serve and link your visa to it
I've got the SIM, I've got the app, but can't use it because I'm not 18. Bummer.
I'll give this a try, I'm on ATT.
Very good AT&T!
AT&T stores and customer service have never heard about it and can't tell me anything!
Just tell them you need a SIM card for the Galaxy S5 and that you'll call to activate it.
It now shows up on AT&T's site...
https://www.att.com/shop/apps/softcard.html#fbid=vkZ8uwUHz-1
click on how to get softcard and scroll down, you'll see Google Play AND Windows Phone Store links/logos
My store had no clue until i showed them the installed app, then they gave me the sim.
I got the secure SIM a few weeks ago so I downloaded the app and it worked my first try. I see two problems- it took several steps to get to where I could tap and pay. I wish I could tap and the app would pull up automatically, let me type in my PIN and run it right away. The other issue is a lack of supported cards. I used my AMEX which is supported but to use my debit card I'd have to set up the American Express service with a prepaid account. I'm not sure how that works and it seems like a real hassle. Hopefully we'll see an expansion soon but considering the it has taken a few years to even get the app I won't hold my breath waiting.
Can someone explain what is involved with getting a secured SIM card from AT&T? Are no phones issued with one by default?
I just walked in, and they verified my account, and swapped my sim. it was an authorized reseller and they didn't know softcard was available.... salesperson yelled across the store to the OWNER and she said "Great! Time to go back to my Lumia!"
Should have taken almost no time, but the systems were runing slow.. about 10 minutes max
Just go to your local store and ask for one.
And this is why WIndows Phone is 3rd....Microsoft get some balls and intergrate this into the Wallet... Wasn't that the point of it on Windows Phone in the first place ?
Think if MS headed this up when Widnows Phone 8 hit, and got acceptance in a ton of places, one would think if MS headed up cardless payments before apple did, there is a good chance WP would of sold more devices.Now it will look like Microsoft is just copying Apple when they copied everythign they have from everyone else away.
Microsoft has to wait till everyone else does it and they will finally do it...
Sounds interesting, I am sure it requires 8.1/Cyan, so Verizon users, too bad....again
^^^ ...and this is why you just don't get it.
Right? Everytime something happens that someone doesn't like it's "This is why..." and "They NEED to...".
How is he wrong?
And if you actually were paying attention to all the details of Windows Phone, you would know that Microsoft quoted this feature on the release of Windows Phone 8, go head, go to youtube and find the orginal annoucement of Windows Phone 8.... you would see what I mean.
By quoting it would work and just dropping the ball (not doing any back work on it to make it work), you need Apple to acutally do something with it...
So, yea, if MS actually jumpped into a lot of these new innovative techs before other companies went mainstream with it (apple in this case), I bet the share of Windows Phone would be higher by now, instead around a 4% share in the US...
I stand by what I said and Yes, I clearly get it...your the one who does not get it...
Microsoft doesn't have that negotiating power that Apple does...
If you dont sell the iPhone (as a carrier) you're DOA. If you dont sell Windows Phone, it's not a deal breaker.
When they announced Wallet back when, they mentioned it would work with Secure SIM's. Now that Secure SIM's are FINALLY available maybe we'll see the Wallet app become useful! You never know...
I've had a secure SIM since I first got my 920... Wallet has never worked for NFC payments. It never even asks for permission.
If I remember correctly, Wallet was originally tied directly to NFC and the secure element, sort of like Apple. then MS decoupled it back in the spring, for Amber maybe. This allowed apps to use NFC. My guess is ISIS (Softcard) and the carriers demanded it.
Good to hear it is coming to T-Mobile
Only sure way to stay in control js to use cash, none of this carrier locked bs.
Sam, it's also not working on unlocked phones like the 1520.3 and other unbranded phones. Can't get it working on my new 1520.3 saying unsupported device.
Haha nice (not nice, I have a 1520.3).
Sam, you have it mixed up. You can download softcard as long as you're on AT&T, you just can't use it unless you have the SIM card.
Isn't that what he said ?
I actuallty thought this was common knolegde that NFC payments required a secure SIM card....It's always been this way and I believe MS said something about this when they showed off WIndows Phone 8 for the first time....(NFC with digital payments needing a secure SIM card)
Maybe this is what MS has been waiting for to finally make their Wallet app work with NFC payments! Ha, here's to wishing!
Actually the article says that you can't DOWNLOAD the app without the enhanced secure SIM, which is not true. Also, it might be common knowledge to people who are into this tech news. I'm sure a lot of people didn't even know what NFC was until recently.
Verizon.....so effing worthless when it comes to WP..... No push of flagships, no marketing other than MS's own commercials that mention the carrier availability. .... We might see this app by 2016
If we ever see it....
Weren't they beta testing this
Who honestly knows....that was a rumor
Heading to AT&T for SIM. :-)
they dont even know what it is lol
Anyone know if this will work on T-Mobile (or AT&T) BYODs when they roll it out? Or will it be like WiFi calling and only work on phones T-Mobile sells and can tweak the firmeare for? I had no use for WiFi calling (plenty of bars everywhere I use WiFi) and not sure if I would use Softcard but would like to know if it won't be available anyway.
Judging by the AT&T app, it will only work on phones branded by the carrier.
And only if you have a phone with their logo, an unlocked phone does not allow you to download!
How come pre-paid carriers aren't supported with Softcard?
Because right now for now its only on ATT! Coming soon to other carriers presumably among others the mvno's.
The app description specifically calls out post paid plans only. You pre pay, you no tap-to-pay.
Because they want people to have postpaid accounts & I assume the lack of a monthly data plan
Actually, you can install the app without a secure sim, I did, and I picked up my sim during lunch.... now I have to kill my BlueBird (amex) card in order to setup serve :(
This is how it works on other OSes apparently. On my iOS device, there are multiple SoftCard apps for each carrier. Makes sense I guess.
Either way, I'm excited for this! I've been waiting so long to use this! I wonder if there if there's some way to integrate it with Wallet or if that would even make sense lol
Will we have to have a carrier-branded phone as well? Or will it work so long as that carrier has published the app and we have an Enhanced SIM?
Someone posted that their unlocked tmobile 925 on att carrier didn't work
Looks as though it has to be a carrier-branded phone with an Enhanced SIM from said carrier.
Carrier-locked garbage, annoying. MS needs to strong arm their way to get their Wallet app to finally work!!
At the end of the sign in process using the app, with a brand new AT&T enhanced SIM on my 1520.3, it says that my phone is not supported and directs me to gosoftcard.com for supported phones, which says it supports only Android. You select carrier, then phone model, and all phones listed are Android only.
Same experience for me too.
This is why carrier locked solutions are crap. Thank goodness for unlocked phones, not giving them up least of all for this carrier rubbish.
How would an unlocked phone help in this scenario?
Looks like it's AT&T branded phones only for now. Although I'm on the AT&T Network, my phone is T-mobile, so I'm assuming I'll get it when T-mobile does. However I'm not sure what the case would be with an international variant like yours. You may never get it, but I hope I'm wrong.
Same with mine
I have an unlocked 925 from T-mobile that I'm using on AT&T. I just picked up a secure SIM this afternoon, and the app gives me an error, saying that it's not available for my phone. Seems like Softcard might not work on this phone until the T-mobile app comes out, despite the fact that it has a secure AT&T SIM, and is using the AT&T network.
Redownload app
Just tried it. No dice.
Correct, several people have reported that only AT&T branded phones work.
Must be the case. My prototype 830 doesn't work with my AT&T SIM.
Well I an screwed then. My unlocked 920 is originally from a carrier called Movistar, probably from Mexico. Not sure if I care much though.
Its using phone identity which means they've only coded their strings into the app
On their page talking about the old ISIS mobile wallet, the page says it will only work with open-market or even ATT unlocked phones. This might be the case with Softcard as well.
Make sure you have cellular data on, I have the same phone
I've used it already, works well.. I just wish I could get it to start up automatically whenever I put it against something that accepts that type of payment
My GUESS is that won't be possible because our NFC is not limited to just payment like Apple's. I use mine to pair with my speakers, for example. I don't want the SoftCard payment app to open when I approach that NFC device.
NFC contactless payment terminals use a specific application ID to represent EMV contactless payments, the NFC controller can easily use this information to act appropriately, in fact that's precisely how Android handles it.
Just in time for retailers to disable NFC payments on their terminals. Also, it supports 0 of my cards. Awesome service.
You can purchase that Amex card thingie and use. Of course, not sure what the great advantage is with this anyway. As long as it requires manually opening an app and punching in the pin, it seems more cumbersome than a plain ol' card. Only Apple with their fingerprint scanner seem to make it somewhat easier.
The only benefit I could come up with is if you only have your phone with you and not your wallet, then it would be helpful, that's about it though.
The card options as well as the Loyalty card options are beyond dismal. Hopefully they add more over time, preferably soon.
Well, it seems safer to me. I don't have to hand anyone my card that can be swiped. They'd have to actually have my phone with the specific SIM and know my PIN to steal from me.
It's also not as slow as people like to say. I'll PIN the Softcard app to my start screen. TAP - Enter PIN...ready for action.
This article is a bit tardy... LOL. Considering all the people whining about the other one. Here's your answer people. The lack of common sense this generation has is gross :)
Why couldn't they have just allowed Microsoft wallet from the start?
Benjamin's. MS gets credit for trying at least
Because carriers want more money, and they can charge for using softcard
Why can't MS just use their wallet service on their own stores....i am unable to buy music from my phone using the MS wallet.... Maybe if they use their own service on their own products others will want to use it too?
I can't even get it to work on my 830. Reports about it not working on the 1520.3 are common too. MS should just force its hand with Wallet like Apple did with Apple Pay.
Does anyone who has gotten a secure SIM know if it unlocks other features in the Waller app. Curious to see if with a secure SIM it allows you to pay with the Wallet app.
Nope.
Blaaaaaagh another "Slacker Radio" situation.
The AT&T version got a new update? Well, wait another year to get it on the T-Mobile version. Yay.
"Softcard will be available by more than one carrier in the coming weeks" Have hope my friend, choose to be an optimist not a pesimist.
I see