Google has announced that the company is shutting down its Hand Free payment service after 10 months of pilot testing in San Francisco Bay Area on Feb. 8. The payment service was launched at Google I/O in March 2016.
"Based on all the positive feedback, we're now working to bring the best of the Hands Free technology to even more people and stores. To focus our efforts on that, we'll be shutting down the Hands Free app on February 8. While we can't share any more details about what's next just yet, we encourage you to enjoy quick, easy checkout with Android Pay," as noted on the Hands Free website.
The payment app worked by using Bluetooth Low Energy, Wi-Fi and location services in a participating store. The payment service will be shut down and the company asks consumers to switch over to Android Pay. Google assures that all information and settings that are stored will automatically be permanently deleted.
According to the Android Police, although the payment service experiment made by Google has hit its end, however, it encourages customers to use Android Pay, which is the quick and easy way of making payments. Google is giving a $10 Whole Foods gift card to customers who will use Android Pay at any stores.
Android Pay is a digital wallet platform, which features power in-app and tap-to-pay purchases on smart devices. It uses Near Field Communication (NFC) to transmit card information assisting funds transfer to the retailer. Android Pay is a successor to Google Wallet, which was released in 2011.
Android Pay features physical security such as fingerprint ID, which offers more advanced security. For devices without fingerprint ID feature, it is activated with a passcode. It creates a virtual account number of the user's account information, which helps to keep the customer payment information privately and to send a one-time security code instead of the card details.
