I’m trying to move away from Google and other big tech corporations as much as I can without sacrificing practicality but it seems like the only way to make contactless payments is with stock android on a Google approved device.
Is there any alternative out there that would allow me to make contactless payments without these conditions met? (For example, if I put grapheneos on my phone)
In the UK here I use ringpay https://mclear.com/ringpay/?gclid=Cj0KCQjwwISlBhD6ARIsAESAmp67u2zu3kgn9n_vvxn9sJU986eJvECtX9H1rYObmzNmkT98HnnrCuEaArZKEALw_wcB
That looks interesting. Is it accepted for all contactless payments, and are there any limits?
It has a £100 max spend on a single transaction. Requires you to log into the app every £200 as a fraud protection measure. (Any time you log in resets this not just when you hit £200) It is a Visa card. It’s basically a contactless card chip squashed into a ring. I’ve used it for a few years now and the only place I’ve ever had it declined was on a parking meter that had to dial out for approval. it acts like like a top up card, so rather than it linking directly to your account… you set up an auto top up from you bank account to the ringpay account I have mine set to auto top £100 up if the ring account drops below 100.
They do have a limited lifespan though. They expire just like a normal contactless card so you need to buy a new one every 3-4 years.
I checked the app the other day and it tells me I have spent nearly £25k on it in three years so like £700 a month on average with no major problems.
That’s really helpful, thank you! I’ll definitely pick up one once they offer a snazzy color that matches my other jewelry.