Samsung Pay users are reporting that the app is no longer working on non-Samsung devices. However, Samsung is yet to issue a statement on the subject.
Samsung Pay users are reporting that the app is no longer working on non-Samsung devices. Although Apple Pay and Google Pay are among the most popular NFC payment methods for smartphone users, they are hardly the only options. Samsung Pay is also reasonably popular, especially among Galaxy smartphone users. However, the app isn’t confined to Samsung devices, as it is also available on the Google Play Store for non-Samsung smartphones.
Initially launched in South Korea in 2015, Samsung Pay has since been rolled out to several countries worldwide, including the U.S., the U.K., India and China, among others. The app comes pre-installed on compatible Samsung phones, including all of the Galaxy S-series devices, as well as Galaxy Note phablets and Galaxy Z-series foldables. In addition, a handful of mid-range Galaxy A, Galaxy M, Galaxy J and Galaxy C-series devices are also compatible with the service. It has also traditionally been compatible with Google’s Pixel devices, a few OnePlus flagships, as well as other non-Samsung smartphones.
Over the past couple of weeks, dozens of Samsung Pay users have been pouring onto Reddit and Samsung’s official community forums in Europe, complaining that the Samsung Pay app is no longer working on non-Samsung smartphones. Most of the complaints seem to be about not being able to set up Samsung Pay on their Galaxy Watches using a non-Samsung phone. However, some are also reporting that the app itself has stopped working on non-Samsung devices. According to the posts, users are getting error messages that say their ‘ID is not valid’ when trying to log into the Samsung Pay app on their non-Samsung devices. There’s also a lot of confusion over whether this is just a bug that has crept into the system or an intentional move by Samsung to ditch support for third-party devices.
Is Samsung Pay Ditching Non-Samsung Devices?
According to some of the users, Samsung customer care representatives have confirmed to them that the Samsung Pay watch plug-in is no longer compatible with non-Samsung devices, which would explain why they are having trouble setting up their Galaxy Watches using non-Samsung smartphones. Other users, however, have denied such reports and said that the app is still available on the App Store for their non-Samsung devices, which suggests that there hasn’t been any official change in stance from Samsung. What’s adding to the confusion is Samsung’s silence on the matter, as there’s no explanation about why users are being unable to use the service from non-Samsung devices.
It remains to be seen whether Samsung is intentionally blocking third-party devices from accessing the service, but it would be surprising if that were the case. Even if the company were to go down that road, one would expect it to announce its plans in advance so that users could make alternative arrangements. In the absence of any clarity on the subject, it would be interesting to see if the bug is related to the new Samsung Wallet service in any way. If that is the case, users could expect Samsung to sort out the problems in the coming weeks.
