Google Wallet is finally catching up to Apple’s with this neat little trick

Google Wallet is about to get way more useful for travelers

A couple of other small tweaks

Google is also rolling out two other small, but handy, updates. First, if you’re on an older phone (Android 12 or earlier), you’ll finally get notifications when a loyalty pass is imported from Gmail. Second, and maybe more useful, is the ability to add credit or debit cards directly from your bank’s app, no plastic required.

This is all about closing the gap

An example of live updates in Google Maps. | Image credit — 9to5Google

It’s about time

I’m genuinely excited about this, even if it feels overdue. I don’t fly that often, but when I do, that anxiety of “is this the right gate?” or “did the time change?” is real, and having that info live on my lock screen is a huge quality-of-life win.

The bank card integration is also a bigger deal than it sounds. Scrambling to find your physical card just to add it to your phone is always annoying. This just smooths out one more digital rough edge. This is the kind of smart, integrated feature that makes the Android ecosystem feel more cohesive.

“Iconic Phones” is coming this Fall!