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Suica, Japan's First IC Transit Card

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Re: Suica, Japan's First IC Transit Card

#261

Post by seanmcdirmid »

dluan wrote: post #97
seanmcdirmid wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But you should probably just get a suica in your apple or google wallet, you don’t actually need an IC card. I’m not sure if using a phone makes it less fast though, I couldn’t tell (we had to get a card for my kid since he doesn’t have a phone). Definitely better than the QR codes used by China.

You can move your alipay card into apple wallet and have it as the default payment method, so do you don't even have to swipe or turn on your phone, it will even work in low-power/off mode.

Thats interesting, but it seems most subway systems are still QR code based? Anyways, I’ll try to see if I can get that to work next time I go to China.

Re: Suica, Japan's First IC Transit Card

#262

Post by taeric »

Pooge wrote: post #251
taeric wrote: post #12

Huge shout out that if you are going to be in Japan, you need one of these cards. I had thought I could just buy a two day pass in Tokyo. Which, you can, but you are almost certainly going to be limited to what routes and lines you can use, then. Which is brutal when you can't tell google maps which card you have.

The Tokyo Metro Ticket (24h/48h/72h) is very convenient, though. I just looked at the prices and the longest one went from ¥1500 to ¥2000 since November 2025 but I think it's still very valuable, especially if you've never been to Tokyo and want to travel between a lot of places. JR is better if you go to the countryside of Tokyo but for the city itself Metro is much more convenient, IMO. Perhaps it depends on the st…

Yeah, what bit me was the place we were staying was off a JR line. Oops.

Re: Suica, Japan's First IC Transit Card

#263

Post by parl_match »

pjc50 wrote: post #231
parl_match wrote: post #120

i imagine not being reliant on american payment networks for your nation's retail economy has lit a fire under their asses.

Hardly, the country is still heavily cash-using, and where transitioning to electronic payments the local PayPay system seems to be popular. Suica payments for stores are basically only for dense areas of Tokyo.

Hardly? Credit cards passed cash for retail purchases last year. They're neck and neck.

If you break down by age demographic, you'll probably guess who's using what. And the ones using cash are quickly disappearing.

And let's say it wasn't, and if cash was still king: 10% of Japan's payments infra being weaponized during tariff negotiations would still be a huge dent to their economy. The country had been migrating over heavily, but Trump 2 actions put the brakes on a lot of EMV rollout.

PayPay is an evolution/merge of Line Pay (long story), which struggled to capture market share in Japan past peer-to-peer payments, due to a bunch of factors. You'll see it in stores, of course, but it's adoption isn't amazing (not bad, just not amazing). Suica benefits from FeliCa/NFC-F lock-in, and considerable existing deployment, plus integration with the rail network. Almost everyone in Japan has a FeliCa/NFC-F device with currency loaded.

FWIW I am an American, but I am working on payments infrastructure and billing for a American owned subsidiary of a Japanese corporation. This happens to be a subject that I am wading into on a daily basis, at least from a technical side.

Oh, and you might be interested to hear what's happening in the UK with OysterCard. They recently finished their EMV rollout and then paused all OysterCard sunset timelines. I wonder why.

Re: Suica, Japan's First IC Transit Card

#264

Post by filoleg »

kelnos wrote: post #235
filoleg wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I heard from friends that physical Suica cards tend to be difficult to obtain these days at times, but digital one isn't at all. Took me roughly a minute to create one within Apple Wallet ahead of my trip, and that was it. Didn't need to install any apps or register on any websites, because creating a Suica card is natively supported in the wallet app. Idk how the situation is like with Suica card on Android though,…

Many Android phones have the hardware, regardless of where they are sold, but it's disabled for non-Japanese SKUs so the manufacturer can avoid paying the licensing fees for it.

Thanks for bringing this up, I actually had no idea it was simply disabled, and assumed it was simply not included at all (for whichever miniscule savings it would bring).

Your explanation makes more sense, because it is definitely cheaper/easier to just disable (but include) that hardware to avoid licensing fees (as opposed to having an additional factory manufacturing line just to produce the SKUs that physically exclude that hardware).

Re: Suica, Japan's First IC Transit Card

#265

Post by filoleg »

alerighi wrote: post #119
filoleg wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I heard from friends that physical Suica cards tend to be difficult to obtain these days at times, but digital one isn't at all. Took me roughly a minute to create one within Apple Wallet ahead of my trip, and that was it. Didn't need to install any apps or register on any websites, because creating a Suica card is natively supported in the wallet app. Idk how the situation is like with Suica card on Android though,…

Well you can get it only in some kind of machines, and you need to pay it cash. Also you need to use cash to charge it, and you can charge it minimum by 1000 or 500 yen at a time depending on the station, not less. The digital version only works on iPhones, since Android phones sold outside Japan doesn't have the Felica chip, or if they have it (e.g. Google Pixel) is disabled in EU/US firmware because the manufacture…

> Well you can get it only in some kind of machines, and you need to pay it cash. Also you need to use cash to charge it

Totally forgot about that aspect, you are 100% correct.

I remember traveling with my friend who had a physical card, and more than once we had to reroute to a nearby kiosk and wait in line, so he could recharge the balance on the card. Apple Wallet felt more convenient, because recharging it was as simple as picking the amount to recharge and hitting "submit."

Re: Suica, Japan's First IC Transit Card

#266

Post by ezfe »

jen729w wrote: post #150
ezfe wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That was not my experience in Japan; I found that it still took a second to go through every time, just like in New York/etc.

Am in Japan now and can confirm: you got a broken one. It's magically fast, everywhere. I prefer it even at the 7-eleven. Why wait the interminable 2 seconds for your Visa 'cardo touchy' to work when Suica is literally instant. Reading this article it makes sense why it feels too fast to be real, especially when using a powered phone. The things are already communicating as my hand is moving towards the reader. By th…

I spent 2 weeks in Japan and used the Suica card near-daily in multiple cities. Sometimes it wouldn't even activate until I tapped it again, other times there was a delay.

Re: Suica, Japan's First IC Transit Card

#267

Post by ezfe »

klausa wrote: post #204
Zee2 wrote: post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

iPhones still let you use certain contactless features (like Suica) even when the battery has "run out" (ie., the main OS has shut off). The reserve battery power is enough to run Suica, CarKey support, and FindMy.

I imagine there are only maybe three people as stupid as me to try this, but just in case: it works fine when the battery runs out; but it does _not_ work during the OS update process.

Interestingly, but not exactly related - the OS update process will not start if you're connected to CarPlay. Probably to avoid automatic updates from triggering when you plug it in to charge in the car.

Re: Suica, Japan's First IC Transit Card

#268

Post by SenHeng »

Zee2 wrote: post #86
aqfamnzc wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Are you saying that an iphone can be used as a Suica card even with a dead battery? Or just that a discrete card still works when your phone is dead?

iPhones still let you use certain contactless features (like Suica) even when the battery has "run out" (ie., the main OS has shut off). The reserve battery power is enough to run Suica, CarKey support, and FindMy.

I don't know about the iPhone but the Apple Watch definitely doesn't work when the battery is dead.

Re: Suica, Japan's First IC Transit Card

#269

Post by ranger_danger »

eloisant wrote: post #236
cptcobalt wrote: post #20

If you haven’t experienced suica, it’s like magically fast. Faster than NFC, faster than Apple Pay, faster than tap to pay, faster than Disney magic bands, faster than your work badge. It absolutely floored me every time I used it in Japan and it’s a full payment transaction.

The Japanese gate machines with tickets are even more impressive because they're mechanical, and super fast. You can put a single tickets or 2, insert in any direction, and in a few seconds the tickets is out at the other end of the machine so you don't have to stop walking at a fast pace.

The inside of these machines are a sight to behold. Even more than 2 tickets are supported, including different sizes, and they're always sorted and re-oriented properly when they come out.

https://i.redd.it/karotzuqw8uf1.jpeg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NyoXbsS1Jo

Re: Suica, Japan's First IC Transit Card

#270

Post by seanmcdirmid »

seanmcdirmid wrote: post #261
dluan wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You can move your alipay card into apple wallet and have it as the default payment method, so do you don't even have to swipe or turn on your phone, it will even work in low-power/off mode.

Thats interesting, but it seems most subway systems are still QR code based? Anyways, I’ll try to see if I can get that to work next time I go to China.

Oh, now I remember: Tianfu Tong (Chengdu) isnt supported, and I didn’t spend anytime in Shanghai or Beijing on my last trip.
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