Today, without any warning or previous announcement, Comixology updated their mobile app for Android and iOS. This update includes a new cart system for a faster purchase experience, includes Paypal and credit cards as payment options, and bug fixs. Sounds great, right? Well, it's not. While these features are great there is a disappointing restriction for each platform.
Android users can't use Google Play Wallet funds for in-app purchases, only credit cards and Paypal transactions. For a lot of users (me included) prefer to use Google Play cards for app transactions for security reasons, they don't have as much personal information as a credit card. Also, it's a good way to make a budget. For example, I buy two $10 cards per month and try to limit impulsive purchases and save my money for something I really like. With a credit card (or PayPal) you don't have restrictions and could pend more than you would have planned. I understand that Google take a percentage of transactions made with their cards, but at least Comixology should offer another type of gift cards. Maybe Amazon's, they own Comixology since a couple of weeks.
For iOS, it's even weirder. You can't purchase anything through the app, you have to go to the Comixology website. After the transaction, you must sync your account with the iOS device and the comic book can be accessed. Not sure if you can use iTune cards but I'm guessing it's a no.
This update offers some neat new features, but these restrictions overshadows them. This was badly handled and they know it (they are giving a $5 eGift Card to all those user who purchased content in the past). If this was announced with a month in advanced, it would still suck but at least it gives time for the user to prepare for these changes. I'm not sure if I'll continue to use Comixology if they don't implement a "gift card" system. As of the date of this post, the independent Marvel and DC app (they're developed by Comixology) are unaffected by this changes (at least the Android app). If you have Google Play funds to spend on comics, you can use them in these apps, but most likely, they'll be updated with the same features as the main app sometime soon.
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