Joel Henriques

Q: Is there a trick to Apple Pay? I can never get it to work stores.

I've had nothing but embarrassing failures when trying to use Apple Pay. First two times I tried it were on my iPhone 6 Plus in an Apple Store! They couldn't get it to register. Third time I tried it, also in an Apple Store, it failed to work, so they got a new handheld payment thing, and then it finally worked after quite a few seconds on holding it just in the right spot against the payment receiving device.

 

Now armed with my Apple Watch, I went to New Season's grocery store where they just got Apple Pay a few days ago. I double clicked my button, Apple Pay shows up on my watch. I hold my watch close to the screen at the store........nothing. I try holding it in 4 other spots for a few seconds each. There's a big line behind me, so I whip out my credit card and pay in two seconds. What's up!? Are there tricks or ways to hold your watch to these things so it works? Or are some of the payment receivers just so picky they don't work right? I've heard some store clerks say that some of their machines work better than others. Or that some people's phones work, and some don't

 

Thanks for any tips! Seems like I must be doing something wrong.

Posted on Sep 2, 2015 2:14 PM

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Q: Is there a trick to Apple Pay? I can never get it to work stores.

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  • Helpful answers

  • by Jonathan UK,

    Jonathan UK Jonathan UK Sep 2, 2015 3:06 PM in response to Joel Henriques
    Level 7 (30,804 points)
    Apple Watch
    Sep 2, 2015 3:06 PM in response to Joel Henriques

    Hi Joel

     

    When paying with Apple Watch, after double-clicking the side button and, where appropriate, choosing from your available cards:

     

    - Turn your wrist so that the face of your watch is pointing towards and parallel with the screen of the contactless reader;

    - Hold it within a few centimeters of the center of the reader's screen (certainly closer than 10cm and potentially nearer to touching, depending on the reader);

    - Keep your watch there for a few seconds, until you feel a pulse from the watch and, if noise levels allow, hear the accompanying tone.  

  • by John Galt,

    John Galt John Galt Sep 2, 2015 4:01 PM in response to Joel Henriques
    Level 8 (48,590 points)
    Mac OS X
    Sep 2, 2015 4:01 PM in response to Joel Henriques

    It shouldn't be that difficult. You only need to hold the Watch a few inches from the NFC device reader. I suspect a hardware problem exists.

  • by Joel Henriques,

    Joel Henriques Joel Henriques Sep 2, 2015 5:10 PM in response to Jonathan UK
    Level 2 (215 points)
    Sep 2, 2015 5:10 PM in response to Jonathan UK

    Yeah, I'm doing all that for sure. Hovering over the reader less than a centimeter away, almost touching it for I'd say about 3 or 4 seconds, then I moved to another spot near the screen for another 3 or 4 seconds, etc... No luck. The readers are brand new, less that a week old. I'll have to try again at another checkout stand. Maybe I need to hold it there for longer than 4 seconds in some cases?

  • by Joel Henriques,

    Joel Henriques Joel Henriques Sep 2, 2015 5:11 PM in response to John Galt
    Level 2 (215 points)
    Sep 2, 2015 5:11 PM in response to John Galt

    Yeah, that's what I would think, but this has happened to me 3 out of 4 times I've tried Apple Pay. Hmm. 3 of those times were with the assistance of employees at an Apple Store. Definitely something wrong with the hardware or software. ha. I guess that's obvious.

  • by Jonathan UK,Helpful

    Jonathan UK Jonathan UK Sep 2, 2015 9:08 PM in response to Joel Henriques
    Level 7 (30,804 points)
    Apple Watch
    Sep 2, 2015 9:08 PM in response to Joel Henriques

    Certainly hold it there for a few seconds.

     

    Also be mindful that any metal objects (eg staplers) that have been placed close to a reader can potentially cause interference and affect connections with contactless devices.

  • by G3gator,

    G3gator G3gator Sep 2, 2015 5:44 PM in response to John Galt
    Level 3 (571 points)
    Sep 2, 2015 5:44 PM in response to John Galt

    Sounds like hardware to me as well. I have been surprised at how well the Watch signal is picked up. Much better than my phone.

     

    George

  • by Joel Henriques,

    Joel Henriques Joel Henriques Sep 2, 2015 8:09 PM in response to Jonathan UK
    Level 2 (215 points)
    Sep 2, 2015 8:09 PM in response to Jonathan UK

    Thanks for all the advice everyone. 

     

    One more question. Do you have to touch the reader at all to tell it you're going to use Apple Pay, or do you just hold your watch up and hold it there? (After you've double tapped to pull up Apple Pay on your watch of course.)

  • by John Galt,Helpful

    John Galt John Galt Sep 2, 2015 9:08 PM in response to Joel Henriques
    Level 8 (48,590 points)
    Mac OS X
    Sep 2, 2015 9:08 PM in response to Joel Henriques

    There is no trick to it, no special technique, no contact (ick!). Double-click the button, hold it near the reader, and you're done. All of that, start to finish, literally takes a second and a half.

  • by Joel Henriques,

    Joel Henriques Joel Henriques Sep 2, 2015 9:08 PM in response to John Galt
    Level 2 (215 points)
    Sep 2, 2015 9:08 PM in response to John Galt

    Excellent! Thanks!