Paying with your smartwatch is gaining popularity, also among customers of ABN Amro. The bank also offers customers an alternative: selected analog watches that are suitable for contactless payment a la Apple Watch thanks to a special chip. Computer! Totaal tested such an ABN Amro watch.
Laks watch with payment chip
Price €69
Colors: Brown, other watches in more colors
Diameter 40 mm
Band for payment chip: 20 or 22 mm
Payment function: NFC payment chip for in band
Others: Analog timepiece with standard battery
Website www.laks.com
Website www.abnamro.nl
Review Score: 80
Pros
- Contactless payment works great
- Affordable wearables and chip
- 20mm strap also works with other watches
Cons
- At that time problematic ordering process
- Watch sometimes shows the wrong time
- Leather strap not very comfortable
As one of the largest Dutch banks, ABN Amro is committed to paying with wearables. Apple Watch users can pay smaller amounts contactless through Apple Pay by holding their watch against the payment machine, but there are more options. For example, various brands – with ABN Amro’s approval – sell a variety of accessories that you can use to make contactless payments. From rings and key chains to bracelets and watches from Swatch, Mondaine, Olympic and Laks: the choice is large and is steadily increasing. Thanks to a voucher from ABN Amro, I ordered a watch from Laks and used it for three months.
Problematic order
You can buy an ABN Amro-suitable wearable at the relevant manufacturer. I therefore ordered a (men’s) watch via the website of the German Laks. That did not go wrong, because the website was apparently updated and therefore did not work for days. When I finally ordered the watch, I could not use the resulting registration number to give the payment chip access to my ABN Amro account. Several phone calls followed with ABN Amro, with the conclusion that my type of account was not yet suitable, but that this would soon change. In other words: I could not use the wearable yet. This is strange, because the bank already advertised large amounts for payment wearables before my order.
As luck in an accident, the shipment of the watch from Germany took almost two weeks because UPS first sent my package to the wrong address. When I finally received the watch, I could not – as expected – register it. E-mail and telephone contact followed again with the – helpful – employees of the bank. One of them had to convert something manually, after which the registration was successful. A day later, the head of ABN Amro’s wear department called me for an apology and explanation. Friendly, but I cannot imagine that I have been the only one with registration problems.
Payment chip makes watch special
After successfully linking the Laks watch to my bill, I was able to squeeze the payment chip out of the package and push it into the bottom of the upper strap. Paying is not possible without that chip. This watch and the strap have nothing to do with most other Laks models, ABN Amro confirmed to me. You can therefore attach the strap with payment chip to another suitable watch – more about that later.
It’s all about the payment chip, but you can also buy it separately for 18 euros. You do need a suitable watch strap.
Contactless payment works great
After a difficult order and hassle with registration, I was finally able to pay contactless with the watch. The first time in the supermarket was a bit exciting, but I was positively surprised about the speed and accuracy of the payment. And three months later I still am. In all this time the number of misses can be counted on one hand and it always worked the second time.
Hold the bottom of the belt, where the payment chip is, against the designated place on the payment machine and the payment is done in exactly the same way as when you use your debit card. The payment will be processed within a few seconds and you can withdraw your arm. In the beginning it felt a bit strange to hold your wrist above or against a payment machine, but that got used quickly. The payment method still regularly raises curious looks or even questions from store employees or other customers, but I find that funny. It remains fun to explain to people how you can pay with a “stupid watch”, certainly because by far the majority respond positively with answers such as “dear, the technology stands for nothing” or “cool, I want that too!”
Payment chip can last a long time
The payment chip in the watch band is passive and, according to Mastercard, ABN Amro and Laks, has no influence on other electronics. There is no limit on the number of passive wearables per payment account. So you can buy different watches, key chains or bracelets and, for example, share them with your partner if you have a joint checking account. The payment chip does not have an expiration date, as long as it does not damage. Because the payment works via NFC and the required energy comes from the payment machine, the payment chip in the watch does not need its own power. So you don’t have to charge the Laks watch. However, in the long term you must replace the battery of the timepiece.
Exclusive for ABN Amro customers
Since I pay with this watch, I use my debit card much less and I regularly go out the door without a wallet in my pocket. Not only can I pay with my smartphone, I also always have my watch on which I can pin with. Up to 25 euros that goes without a pin code, above 25 euros I enter my pin code. You can pin contactlessly up to 100 euros per day without a pin code, then you must enter it anyway.
Nothing is perfect, not even this wearable and payment method. Firstly, the payment chip can only use contactless PIN. Not all POS terminals in the Netherlands and abroad support that. In stores where you can only pin by putting your card in the slot, you have nothing to do with the watch.
The second but more important: to be able to use this watch or other wearable in this way, you must have a checking account with ABN Amro. Chances are that you don’t have that, so you would have to switch. Is this – extra – payment method worth the switch? The answer will vary per person.
If you cannot pin contactlessly somewhere, the watch is no good
Moderate watch
Anyone who sits at ABN Amro or is about to switch can buy a suitable wearable from Laks or one of the other partner brands. The splash-proof Laks watch that I tested disappointed me. Not because you have to put the loose payment chip in the watch band – that’s just an advantage. It is partly the leather band that I don’t like. He has few holes (I have had a few punctures) and even after months of wearing it is still rough, and that is why he is still not feeling well.
A bigger problem is that the watch regularly shows the wrong time. Quite a thing for an analog timepiece, because you have to be able to rely on the time shown. Due to the wrong time, I almost missed my train to the airport in Berlin, I arrived almost an hour late at an appointment and I had to hurry a few times to catch the bus. Very annoying, because it is not clear to me what causes the problem. Sometimes it went well for weeks, followed by days on which the watch alternated between the front and back. A new battery didn’t solve the problem.
A day when the watch shows the wrong time.
The same strap on a different watch
The unreliability of the watch and the less pleasant strap have meant that I no longer use the watch. I have placed the top band, which holds the payment chip, on my Amazfit GTS smartwatch, which also uses a 20mm strap. The fact that the lower band is made of rubber does not matter for the payment. It may not be the most elegant solution, but the wearing comfort is better than with the full leather strap.
I now use the payment band with my Amazfit GTS smartwatch
Other Laks straps
Those who, just like me, prefer to use their own watch, can buy a separate strap of 20 or 22mm at Laks. A payment chip is included as standard. You pay a total of 45 euros for this, in my opinion a competitive price. If you need a new or extra payment chip for whatever reason, you can buy it for only 18 euros. Buying a loose band without a payment chip is only possible after contact with (non-Dutch) customer service from Laks and costs 36 euros – a less good deal. A good watch shop can slightly adjust your existing (leather) strap so that you can use the payment chip without Laks accessories.
Conclusion: Should we buy ABN Amro watch?
My problematic order and registration were a bad start to contactless payment, that may be clear. In the meantime, ordering and linking such a wearable must be a piece of cake, according to the bank. I’ll just assume that. Paying with the watch works in any case (surprisingly) well and in terms of ease of use is not inferior to contactless pin or mobile payment. In fact: because you always wear your watch, you pay faster than when you have to take your debit card or telephone to pay.
I can’t live without this watch anymore, although I have placed the pay band on another watch. The Laks watch disappoints me in quality. Fortunately, you can also purchase a separate watch band with a payment chip or even only a separate payment chip and use it with your own accessories. The big but in this story is that you must have a checking account at the ABN Amro. Do you have that or are you willing to switch? Then you can get started with a wide range of affordable wearables that you can easily contact with PIN.
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