How to use Passbook on Android

Those who have used an iOS device for a long time, if they can boast of something compared to our Android, it is Passbook, that virtual wallet that allows them not to have to carry all the physical cards with them and make our wallet or purse bigger and bigger, instead, it lets them carry them in digital format.

In general, in this iOS app we can store store loyalty cards, concert tickets, travel tickets, lottery coupons… Although it’s a native Apple option, the good thing is that we can also use Passbook on Android and Android devices. In the following paragraphs we will explain why it has so many advantages and why it is an essential option in any mobile phone.

How to use Passbook on Android

Passbook, not just for iPhone

Passbook is an iPhone app that allows you to store loyalty cards, coupons, boarding passes, and tickets in one location. Like all Apple creations, there is no official Passbook app for Android that brings this information together.

passbook

However, given the high number of developers trying to ‘port’ the iOS experience to Google’s operating system, there are ways to work with a Passbook-like experience on Android , albeit not as fully as on Android phones. Manzana.

They won’t remind you when you have tickets to the Estudiantes de Basketball, and a few features may be missing, but it’s the closest you’re going to get to using Passbook on Android, at least until we can all use the ‘new’ tool, Wallet, which Google is working on.

What are PKPASS files

Since the original idea of Passbook is from Apple, it is not surprising that the PKPASS files were also created by the American company. It is the format that was created by those from Cupertino to digitally store all kinds of cards, whether they are credit cards, loyalty cards, travel tickets, concert tickets or whatever.

Being a file ‘made in Apple’, Google has not developed any tool capable of reading and opening them, but, again, this is where the developers of the Android ecosystem come into play, putting at our disposal a good number of applications created , solely and specifically, for the purpose of working with PKPASS files.

billete avion

These are set up around a compressed ZIP file that contains everything needed to generate the pass or loyalty card. It can be made up of several PNG images, JSON files and text documents, so it’s not very difficult to get them to read on our Android, to the delight of all those who want to simulate the Passbook experience on mobiles that are not iPhone.

Android ‘wallets’

It is true that lately iOS seems to copy every Android novelty that hits the market, but it is also true that Google has been behind Cupertino for a long time in this regard. Storing our boarding tickets , loyalty cards or show tickets is something that has always required third-party apps on non-Apple mobiles.

Google-wallet

Now it looks like we’re finally about to get the closest alternative to Passbook on Android phones. It has not yet been officially launched, but in June 2022 the new Google Pay API was announced through which we can pay with a touch in various applications and in the case of a ticket, ticket or something similar, we can add it to Google Pay so you can have it on hand and not have to rely on other systems to store it on your phone.

This implies that Pay will change its name and will be renamed Google Wallet, taking up the app that the company launched in its day to do something similar.

google wallet

In this way Google Pay, hereinafter Wallet , will be the closest we will be to using Apple’s ‘wallet’ app without having to download anything to the phone. In a similar way to what we have already seen in other services, this new function integrated into the company’s payment system will act as a repository, not only for credit cards, but also for gift cards, boarding passes, vaccination cards and even car keys and digital IDs.

In fact, Google announced that as long as a card has some text, a barcode or a QR code, it can be saved as a generic card by the end user. In addition, the company is already working on allowing developers to integrate the API with related applications, which will allow those applications to issue automated alerts about travel or flight schedules based on the documents stored in Wallet.

The change is expected to occur throughout the summer of 2022 in the 42 countries where Google Pay is Google’s main payments application. The app will be automatically updated and replaced by Google Wallet on both Android and Wear OS.

SamsungWallet

Almost identically to what Google Wallet will offer, Samsung has gone ahead of the American brand in launching its own wallet. It was mid-June when Galaxy phone users were able to download (or update) this app, which essentially does the same thing as the Google app.

samsung wallet

In it you can store your credit cards, loyalty cards, tickets for sporting or cultural events, vaccination certificates and, as an exclusive novelty, a cryptocurrency wallet so as not to depend on external apps.

How to use Passbook on any mobile

This compilation brings together all those applications that we can download for free from Google Play , capable of replicating the best functions of Passbook on an Android phone without much difficulty.

passwallet

PassWallet

With PassWallet, you can download and add the famous PKPASS Passbook files to your Android device from email attachments or web links. Thanks to it we can have loyalty cards from different establishments, movie tickets, etc. In other words, it will be the central axis to access different venues without having to physically carry printed tickets or without having to get lost in a pile of emails.

Simply, we have to download it, start it and we find ourselves before a rather curious interface due to the fact that it imitates what the same tickets or discount coupons are. Everything will appear organized by categories and with a QR code that allows us to identify it and scan it with a camera application from another device.

PassAndroid

More than similar to the previous app, PassAndroid allows us to carry all those cards and documents that we usually carry in our wallet on our mobile, but without taking up space.

When you receive a PKPASS file via email or download link, you can add it to the app to mimic what iPhone users do with Passbook. Basically, it is a replacement for the plastic card or paper ticket that you would normally have to carry with you to access certain places.

It is true that its interface is somewhat more outdated and that its functions are less than those of the previous application, but it serves us perfectly for what we are trying to achieve.