New reader will let you Apple PayAnywhere this fall

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PayAnywhere reader will support Apple Pay
Apple Pay is about to be available in a lot more places.
Photo: PayAnywhere

The updated version of the PayAnywhere mobile credit-card reader is set to launch next month, and it will be all about Apple Pay.

This new partnership will help make good on some of Apple head Tim Cook’s bold claims during the company’s most recent earnings report.

PayAnywhere‘s new reader will launch exclusively for sale on Apple’s online store and physical retail locations in September, continuing Apple’s recent trend of cozying up to select third-party vendors that make the most of its services. Yesterday, the first third-party Apple Watch accessory landed on Apple Store shelves, a dock that is well suited for the upcoming Nightstand Mode in watchOS 2. Apple has also played favorites with smart thermostats, dumping the Nest in favor of the Ecobee3, which is compatible with Apple’s HomeKit home-automation framework.

“We are thrilled to offer PayAnywhere to sellers and business owners of all sizes and types, anywhere in the U.S.,” said Marc Gardner, founder of PayAnywhere parent company North American Bancard in a press release announcing the deal. “Customers will be able to purchase a solution which will enable them to accept Apple Pay on their iPhone or iPad.”

The company is so sure that people will love its reader that it’s waiving the 2.69% transaction fee on the first $5,000 in sales for new users of its service. That means a savings of about $135.

During Apple’s third-quarter earnings call last month, Tim Cook announced that Apple Pay was set to be available in 1.5 million locations by the end of this year. We’re not sure if this figure includes individual vendors using both PayAnywhere and the upcoming, Apple Pay-compatible Square reader, but it definitely can’t hurt the cause.

The PayAnywhere reader will sell for $39.95 when it launches next month, and it will work through a free iOS app. In addition to Apple Pay, the reader will accept physical cards from Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover. It will also be compatible with other contactless payments like PayPal and EMV cards that store data on microchips instead of the traditional magnetic stripe.

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