Google’s SoundPod finally hits Indian merchants: Check pricing

Google announced on Thursday that it is rolling out SoundPod, the company’s wireless speaker that can authenticate payments received through the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) instant payments system, to small merchants in India. The company began testing the device last year as part of a limited trial and revealed it would launch later this year. Google Pay’s rivals PhonePe and Paytm – the latter of which faced restrictions from the Reserve Bank of India for not complying with several rules – already offer similar products to merchants in the country.

in a blog post On Thursday, Ambarish Kenghe, Google Pay’s vice president of product, announced that the company’s SoundPod will be rolled out to small merchants in the country “in the coming months.” Kenghe said that during Google’s one-year trial of SoundPod in India, the company received positive feedback from participating merchants, including faster checkout speeds.

The SoundPod features an LCD screen and a single speaker. According to Google, it supports 4G connectivity. It features three LED indicators that show the device’s battery, charging, and connection status, and has menu, volume, and power buttons.

SoundPod features business-oriented LCD display and speakers
Photo credit: Google

Paytm’s ‘Soundbox’ speaker has a battery life of four to 12 days and comes with 2G or 4G connectivity – two models come with an LCD display and the other supports music playback via Bluetooth connectivity. PhonePe’s SmartSpeaker, on the other hand, offers up to four days of battery life on a single charge and supports multiple languages.

While the company has yet to provide a specific timeline for the SoundPod’s launch in India, rivals such as Paytm and PhonePe offer similar audio devices that are already being used by merchants across the country. Merchants also have to pay a monthly subscription fee – between Rs. 50 rupees. 125 — Access these audio-based bulletin services.

Google said merchants will be able to choose between two subscriptions for SoundPod – priced at Rs. There is a one-time fee of Rs 499 and then Rs. The 125-month subscription plan, or annual subscription is priced at Rs. 1,499. Merchants do not need to pay a one-time fee when choosing the annual package. Customers who receive 400 payments through QR codes every month will get a guaranteed Rs. According to the company, the cash back is 125 yuan.