PayPal's Android app has just given us one more reason to skip the line at the bank and play with our phones instead. You can now use your phone's camera to scan a check, and deposit it straight into your PayPal account. Not exactly a new technology, but cool to see it added to PayPal. The company says it's been "uploading a million dollars a month" (how cool does that sound?) with its iPhone app. And now you can do the same with Android. Leave it in your PayPal account, or transfer to your bank account. Your call.
Also new for the PayPal app: You can move it to the SD card, and use the "local" feature to find nearby business that accept PayPal as payment.
Download links are after the break.
Source: PayPal
Reader comments
Paypal for Android now lets you deposit checks with a picture
Haven't tried it yet..
I can't find the option on my android at all and I just updated my paypal app.. Is this another app other than paypal or paypal prepaid mc? I don't see the option to deposit a check on either one . Help!
Trying to deposit money with a check to my PayPal account
This is a cool app
How do you take a picture of check and then deposit it in my PayPal account
Hey
My take is great lol
Not sure till I try it
I've heard a lot of good things about this app I'm excited to see how it works for me I will be getting back to you and let you know if I like it
I downloaded to Droid X, captured & sent images just fine. It works great on Droid X!!! Now I just have to wait. Don't like the fact that it takes SO long (6-15 days?) to show up in Paypal. WTH?? it's electronic for pete's sake!
Worked for me first time using my Evo 4G camera. Granted, the check deposit UI could use some work. The Statefarm Bank app allows you to retake check pictures, crop out the background, and shows you what side of the picture to have the signature. It also only takes Statefarm a day or so to post. I'm not complaining though. It's a great added option and I'm sure it will get tweaked soon. Yes, yes, Paypal doesn't have a charter like a bank but you still enjoy pass through FDIC insurance. If you don't need it - don't use it. It saves me a trip to the bank.
Doesn't work, tried four times just now and kept telling me that it could not read the check. My camera is excellent so obviously this things not ready for prime time.
Same here, But I only tried twice.
How safe are these kinds of apps?
Remember, people, Paypal is NOT a bank and therefore doesn't have to play by the same rules as Citibank (a bank with this same feature... I use the feature on USAA).
Just remember all those horror stories of them freezing accounts for seemingly no reason. For this reason, I will never even link my another institution's checking account to them.
I've had better luck working with PayPal than I have through any bank.
I can see that it would be useful if you are overseas / far away from your bank branch. Otherwise I'd probably just deposit at my bank and have access to the money in 24 hours.
How do they handle security for something like this? Can I take a picture of any check and it will be deposited into my account or does the "To" line have to match the account name or something?
That's quite a lot of money.
That's quite a lot of money.
Up to 6 days or longer for the check to be available...then a couple days to get into your bank. for me I can deposit it in my bank and transfer it to paypal in like 3 days...why bother with the app.
Yeah, that doesn't make sense. It doesn't take nearly that long to move the money either direction using my computer.
Except for me, I rarely go to the bank. I still have a few checks that I have had sitting around here for a few months. I wonder how they will keep us from taking a photo of it, and then going to the bank and depositing it there also.
How about in the next update, they let us deposit CASH by taking a picture of it? ;)
And also allow photos of play money!!! ;D
This would be fantastic if it were working. Just happened to have a check I haven't deposited yet and tried it, but it force closes every time.
The old Paypal app was 110% horrendous. Not hopeful that this one is any better.
Does Paypal take a cut of any funds you deposit into it and then transfer to a bank account? I would assume so.
According to paypals website, there is no fee to deposit checks.
They say there is no fee. So I would think that they are making money from having the funds in their bank for up to six days let's them earn interest. Not to mention it takes up to a week to transfer the funds to a bank account once the funds are in your Paypal account. So that is about 2 weeks at the most to get your money. So you gotta figure if they get 100,000 or more people to do this that's a lot of money sitting in their bank for 2 weeks making a hell of a lot of interest.
That is such a great point and makes me give this a second thought. Android Central has the most useful comments section, I swear.
Same here, Downloaded file but does not install. Not in the application list or in widgets.
I next did the search from the market and watched it download and install, so it does not install from this QR code, ok from the market.
They say keep the check for 15 days after you make the deposit just FYI
Wonder how long you have to wait until you have access to the funds.
It appears this is not available on my DX or Xoom. :(