Google Pay to Roll Out SoundPod With Audio Alerts to Retailers in India After Yr-Lengthy Pilot

Google is rolling out the SoundPod — the corporate’s wi-fi speaker that may confirm funds obtained over the Unified Funds Interface (UPI) on the spot fee system — to small retailers in India, the corporate introduced on Thursday. The corporate began testing the machine as a part of a restricted trial final 12 months and has revealed that the rollout will happen later this 12 months. Google Pay rivals PhonePe and Paytm — the latter faces RBI strictures over non-compliance with a number of guidelines — already provide related merchandise for retailers within the nation.

In a weblog publish on Thursday, Google VP of Merchandise for Google Pay Ambarish Kenghe introduced that the corporate’s SoundPod can be rolled out to small retailers within the nation “over the approaching months”. Throughout Google’s year-long trial of the SoundPod in India, the agency obtained optimistic suggestions from retailers who participated within the trial, together with quicker checkouts, Kenghe stated.

The SoundPod is supplied with an LCD display and a single speaker. It helps 4G connectivity, in response to Google. It has three LED indicators to point out battery, charging, and connectivity standing of the machine, and options menu, quantity, and energy buttons.

The SoundPod has an LCD show and speaker that face the service provider
Photograph Credit score: Google

Paytm’s ‘Soundbox’ audio system provide between 4 to 12 days of battery life and have 2G or 4G connectivity — two fashions are geared up with LCD screens, whereas one other helps music playback over a Bluetooth connection. However, PhonePe’s SmartSpeaker presents as much as 4 days of battery like on a single cost and helps a number of languages.

Whereas the corporate hasn’t supplied a concrete timeline for the arrival of the SoundPod in India, rivals like Paytm and PhonePe provide related audio units which can be already in use by retailers throughout the nation. Retailers additionally pay a month-to-month subscription — between Rs. 50 to Rs. 125 — to entry these audio-based announcement service.

Google says that retailers will be capable to select between two subscriptions for the SoundPod — a Rs. 499 one-time price adopted by a Rs. 125 month-to-month subscription plan, or an annual subscription priced at Rs. 1,499. Retailers will not should pay the one-time price when selecting the annual plan. Clients who obtain 400 funds in a month by way of QR codes will get a assured Rs. 125 cashback, in response to the corporate.