Android 15 will allow you to set a default wallet app

One of the main advantages of the Android operating system over iOS is more extensive customization support. On Android, you can change not only the default home screen launcher, but also the default Assistant service, default browser app, default dialer app, and default SMS app. Starting with Android 15, the operating system will also allow you to choose a default wallet app.

Unlike iOS, Android has long allowed third-party apps to access NFC chips for contactless payments. Most Android devices ship with Google Pay as the default contactless payment app, but Galaxy devices ship with Samsung Pay as the default instead. In either case, the Android OS allows users to choose which app to set as the default payment app.In standard Android, users can[設定]→[接続されているデバイス]→[接続設定]→[NFC]→[非接触型決済]→[デフォルトの支払いアプリ]You can change this setting by going to .

As you can see, changing the default app for contactless payments on Android requires quite a few taps. Many users may not even know that they can change this setting.[設定]→[アプリ]→[デフォルトのアプリ]It is not listed with other default settings under . To fix this, Android 15 is gearing up to add a new “Wallet App” setting, according to the code string. Android headlines It’s in the latest Android 14 QPR3 Beta 2.1 update.

According to the string, “The Wallet app allows you to store credit cards, loyalty cards, car keys, and more to help with various forms of transactions.”

<string name="role_wallet_description">Wallet apps can store your credit and loyalty cards, car keys and other things to help with various forms of transactions.</string>
<string name="role_wallet_label">Default wallet app</string>
<string name="role_wallet_short_label">Wallet app</string>

This is exactly what wallet apps like Google Wallet and Samsung Wallet already do. So it’s no surprise that Google Wallet already appears on the “Default Wallet App” settings page if you manually enable it. Alongside Google Wallet, the American Express (“Amex”) app also appears on the “Default Wallet Apps” settings page. Following the code changes that implement this feature in Android 15, apps with default contactless payment support can also function as wallet apps.

If you’re wondering what the difference is between the new “Default Wallet App” setting and the old “Default Payment App” setting, there really isn’t. In fact, by activating the new “Default Wallet App” page, users can You will be redirected to the new page instead of the old page. In most cases, the new “Default Wallet App” setting will look like a rebranded version of the existing “Default Payment App” setting.

However, there is one small difference between the two. The new “default wallet app” is defined using Android’s Roles API, a platform and developer feature introduced in Android 10. A role is defined as a “unique name within the system that is associated with specific permissions and privileges.” Android has a number of internally defined roles. However, most of them can only belong to system apps. However, the role of the new wallet is not limited to system apps, which is why it appears in Android’s “default apps” settings.

advantage

One of the benefits of the Roles API is that apps can use it to request to be granted a specific role. In this case, your wallet app can ask you to grant it a new wallet role in Android 15, so you don’t have to dig into your settings to do so. Device manufacturers can still set defaults, as Google does with his Pixel smartphones, but with your permission your favorite wallet app can take over.

<string name="role_wallet_request_description">No permissions needed</string>
<string name="role_wallet_request_title">Set %1$s as your default wallet app?</string>

Apart from that, as far as I know, the introduction of the wallet role in Android 15 brings no additional benefits to apps. Still, making this default setting more understandable to users and more accessible to third parties could alleviate some of the regulatory pressure Google has faced recently.

April 11, 2024