Back when Google officially announced Android Pay at Google IO this year, they had mentioned that Google Wallet, their previous app for mobile payments would be undergoing some changes to make way for the changes coming with the launch of Android Pay. Wallet would no longer be the home of mobile payments on Android devices and would simply be an app used for transferring money back and forth between Google Wallet users. Basically, a person to person payment app, however, it would no longer be used to make payments at stores, or online. Today Google has posted the New Google Wallet to the Play Store which can now be downloaded.
This is a completely new Google Wallet app with a brand new user interface and is separate from the old Google Wallet app, so to be clear this is not an update to the old one. Having said that, the old app stays put and isn’t replaced by the new app which is a little bit of an odd move since the old app is basically useless with the new app out, but this is likely because Android Pay hasn’t yet officially been released and the app isn’t available for download. Once that happens Google will most likely do away with the old Google Wallet as there will be no need for it anymore.
The new app acts much like the old in regards to transferring money from user to user, but it has a much more material design style interface complete with the slide out hamburger menu, and a new notifications button in the top right corner of the app. When you first open it up you are greeted with the brief tutorial of what the app offers, and from then on the homescreen of your Wallet balance is put front and center. In the hamburger menu you have options for Wallet & Card Balance, settings, send feedback, and help sections. For the notification button, this is a menu which Google will likely send out notifications to users about special offers or changes with the app, and currently there’s a notification alerting users that they can pick up the Google Wallet Card. The app will users to send requests and send payments to other Wallet users instantly, and you can also cash out your balance at any time as well as manage it with “lock card” and “cancel card” options. The app should be live in the Play Store as of now for everyone here in the U.S. We have no indication of whether or not Google has made this available in other regions just yet.
