Apple Pay

Royals and Giants ballparks accepting Apple Pay during World Series

Folks lucky enough to be attending the World Series over the next week will be happy to hear that Apple Pay payments will be accepted at both Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City and AT&T Park in San Francisco. MLB Advanced Media (MLBAM) announced the availability this afternoon.

In conjunction with MasterCard, MLBAM says it worked hard to bring a variety of contactless payment services and devices to the ballparks in time for the Championship series, which will allow attendees to purchase food and beverages at concession stands using their own smartphones.

Apps with support for Apple Pay

Alongside today's launch of Apple Pay, the App Store is featuring a running list of apps that have been updated to include support for Apple Pay purchases. These apps can accept payment on any iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPad Air 2, or iPad mini 3 with iOS 8.1 installed and Apple Pay configured.

A number of apps have received updates with support for seamless purchases with Apple Pay, and several more apps will follow suit in the near future. We've complied a list of apps, complete with links, that support Apple Pay and will be adding to it as updates are released, so check back soon. If you know of an app that supports Apple Pay but isn't featured here, please let us know in the comments below or via email at tips@idownloadblog.com.

List of places where you can use Apple Pay

Now that you've got iOS 8.1 installed, and Apple Pay set up, you're probably wondering where you can test out the new service. As we mentioned earlier, the Apple Store app (among others, at this point) has been updated with Apple Pay support, but what about physical stores?

Luckily Apple has you covered, and has posted a list of all the participating retailers that are supporting Apple Pay at launch. It's a decent-sized list, with over 30 national chains mentioned, including various clothing stores, department stores, restaurants and gas stations.

How to use Apple Pay

As expected, Apple rolled out Apple Pay to the masses today, courtesy of its iOS 8.1 update for eligible devices. Apple Pay, as you know, allows users to make in-app and online purchases using certain devices equipped with a Touch ID sensor, and in-store purchases using the NFC chips found in the recently released iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.

In this guide, we'll walk you through the process of setting up Apple Pay, including adding eligible credit cards, along with making in-app, and in-store purchases.

Apple Store app updated with Apple Pay support

Folks looking to test out the just-launched Apple Pay service, but don't have the option to try it in-store, can download the latest version of the Apple Store app. Apple just posted an update for the digital storefront that adds support for the new one-touch mobile payment service.

Folks who have a compatible Apple Pay device, who have updated to iOS 8.1, can set it up either through the Passbook app or in Settings. Once you have a card on file, apps updated with support for the service will offer Apple Pay as a payment option during the checkout process.

Apple Pay launching Monday, October 20th

During his on-stage introduction at Apple's iPad event today, Tim Cook announced a release date for Apple Pay. The company is set to launch the new mobile payment service on Monday, October 20th, alongside the release of the iOS 8.1 update.

Additionally, Cook said that Apple has signed on 500 new banks since announcing Apple Pay last month, and a number of new retailers. The service will work with iPhone 6, 6 Plus and Apple Watch in stores, and iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3 online.

Apple retail employees begin training on Apple Pay as launch nears

As Apple readies the launch of Apple Pay for later this month, it has initiated a mandatory, one hour training program for its retail employees and is coordinating with third-party retailers to ensure that stores will be able to complete transactions via Apple Pay starting on launch day.

Per a recent leak, screenshots indicate that Apple Pay establishment will be an option when setting up the rest of the device, and credit card details can be entered manually or scanned in with the device's camera. A new report by 9to5mac suggests that settings can be adjusted and additional credit cards can be added through an upcoming "Passbook & Apple Pay" tab in iOS's Settings app.

The reports of retailers not supporting Apple Pay have been greatly exaggerated

With Apple Pay set to launch later this month with support from big retailers such as Macy's, Staples, Disney Store, and many more, there has been some drama building regarding the fact that Apple still has a lot of work to do to convince some big names to get on the Apple Pay bandwagon.

A post on the Daily Dot today exemplifies this, claiming that Pizza Hut, Chipotle, and H&M, Coach, Bed, Bath & Beyond, Sears, Kmart, BP, Starbucks, and more don't plan on offering support for Apple Pay.

This sure makes for great headlines, but this kind of post usually fails to omit that retailers aren't against Apple Pay, they're just not on board with updating their costly point of sale systems.

More Apple Pay details leak after iOS 8.1 beta 2 release

Earlier today, Apple released iOS 8.1 beta 2. Like the previous beta release, it was quickly inspected by UK developer Hamza Sood, best known around these parts for his contributions to the jailbreak community.

With iOS 8.1 beta 1, Sood revealed details regarding Apple Pay's presence in the stock Settings app. This time around, we get our first glimpse of the Passbook setup screens, and credit card data entry screen.

A closer look at the layers of security behind Apple Pay

Yoni Heisler gives a detailed look at the security mechanisms of Apple Pay, and explains why it may very well be the safest way to make any type of credit card payment. Based on discussions with a few credit card executives involved in the Apple Pay development process, Heisler paints a great pictures of the various security elements behind Apple Pay.

Apple Pay reportedly launching alongside iOS 8.1 on October 20

Apple is planning to debut Apple Pay on the third Monday of the month, reports Bank Innovation. The outlet claims that according to "multiple sources close to Apple," the mobile payment service is scheduled to launch on October 20, alongside iOS 8.1.

On Monday, Apple released the first beta of iOS 8.1 to developers, and hidden settings pertaining to Apple Pay were discovered within the firmware. Bank Innovation says it has learned that this code is there so Apple can test Apple Pay prior to launch.

PayPal’s deal with Samsung ruined its chances of being an Apple Pay partner

Talks between Apple and PayPal regarding Apple Pay partnership soured following PayPal's deal with Samsung, reports Bank Innovation. The outlet says that the two sides began negotiations early on in Apple Pay's development, but when PayPal partnered with Samsung for Galaxy S5 payments, Apple backed out.

According to the report, PayPal’s now-former president David Marcus was categorically against the Samsung deal, knowing that it would jeopardize PayPal’s relationship with Apple. But apparently eBay CEO John Donahoe didn't agree with the executive, and essentially forced the company into the partnership.