Apple Now Lets US, UK Buyers Use PayPal For Hardware

Some might take it as hell freezing over, which it has been doing a lot lately. Apple has just flipped the switch and enabled using PayPal to buy hardware and devices from its online store, a privilege previously on available on for less physical purchases. The only caveat, it seems, is that it is a new feature restricted to the US and the UK, and that it might only work on the web browser version of the store. At least for now.

Apple already allows users to use PayPal as an alternative payment source but only for digital goods such as books, music, and apps, and even then not for all markets. This is the first time that Apple has allowed such a payment system for buying its selection of hardware as well, opening the doors to those who perhaps don't own a credit card or prefers purely online transactions. And beyond basic PayPal support, Apple is even supporting PayPal Credit, which lets buyers use PayPal to pay off purchases in installments with no interest.

This revelation is both welcome and strange. Welcome for customers, no doubt, but strange from an industry observer point of view. The two companies have turned into overnight frenemies when Apple launched its own Apple Pay business, leaving PayPal out in the cold. Soon after that, PayPal started hitting Apple with veiled insults. Perhaps at the root of the tumultuous relationship is PayPal's new found friendship with Samsung, Apple's eternal rival, though it might be more of a chicken or egg problem.

That said, that conflict has not yet descended upon consumers and Apple should perhaps be applauded for making available the convenience of PayPal to some degree. Now all that's left is to wait for Apple to follow through with that and expand it to, say its iOS app, and to other markets as well.

VIA: Apple Insider