Availability of Suica or Pasmo IC Cards?

[RS18U]

Just wondering what the availability of the Tokyo area IC cards is currently.  On our trip last March they were basically unobtainable, but has this changed?  In the past I just used a JR Pass but as my trip in November is business I won't be eligible, nor does the pass make any financial sense given my travel plans.  But there will be a bit of travelling around the Kanto area, and it would be good to have an IC card for future visits.  Would like to pick one up at Haneda if possible.

 

Will

[Yugamu Tsuki]

If you have an iPhone you are able to get a digital version. I know it's not an answer to the original question but is another option.

[chadbag]

I did read an article a month or so ago that they were again becoming available.

 

If you have a chance for the e-Suica on your phone then I'd recommend that.

[katoftw]

Mostly back for all types. The welcome suica are easily obtained.

[Tony Galiani]

Do the new cards expire after a certain date?  The last time I got the actual card it had an expiry date which I found bothersome.  Even though I tend to be low tech, I switched to the digital version and found it a better value and easy to use.  And when the yen dropped really low against the dollar, I loaded up my digital Suica even though I was not in Japan which was nice.

I am not sure that they accept all credit cards though.  In the US, I use Amex -  not sure which card you would need to use in Canada.

Cheers,

Tony

[katoftw]

Welcome suicas have a 28 day validity.

 

All other IC cards doe not. But they terminate after 10 year of non use.

[kuro68000]

6 hours ago, katoftw said:

Welcome suicas have a 28 day validity.

 

Do you know if they can be re-activated after that? Seems a bit off if you just lose whatever money is on them.

 

Very frustrating that most Android devices do not support e-Suica/e-saifu too. At least you can read the cards I suppose.

[Yugamu Tsuki]

Welcome Suica cards are meant more as a one time deal trip. To counter the short timeframe the do not require the deposit that a physical Suica card does. If you plan on going to Japan more than once, digital or physical regular Suica cards are suggested.

[Tony Galiani]

I took a look at the PASMO site but it is not clear to me how long they last.  They also offer a digital option but only for iPhones.  Wonder why neither PASMO nor Suica offer a Android option - seems like it would make sense to expand their business.  I can understand this would frustrate Android users.

Tony

[chadbag]

5 hours ago, Tony Galiani said:

I took a look at the PASMO site but it is not clear to me how long they last.  They also offer a digital option but only for iPhones.  Wonder why neither PASMO nor Suica offer a Android option - seems like it would make sense to expand their business.  I can understand this would frustrate Android users.

Tony

 

(Many/most) Japanese Android phones have an option.  I think it's just the non-Japanese phones, which don't have the Felica (or whatever it is called) compatible NFC hardware to interact with it.  When iPhone first introduced it around iPhone 7 time only Japanese iPhones had it.  The next iteration of the phone made it universal.

 

I also loaded up both my watch and phone Suica and my e-Pasmo when the yen was really cheap against the dollar for our next trip.  (It still is really cheap at 150 but hit over 160 earlier this year)

Edited October 17 by chadbag

[kuro68000]

5 hours ago, Tony Galiani said:

I took a look at the PASMO site but it is not clear to me how long they last.  They also offer a digital option but only for iPhones.  Wonder why neither PASMO nor Suica offer a Android option - seems like it would make sense to expand their business.  I can understand this would frustrate Android users.

Tony

 

It's because Sony charges a fee to implement Felica. The hardware is often capable, e.g. it can read back Suica cards just fine, and download the balance and last 20 transactions.

 

I think Apple must have convinced Sony to give them a blanket licence early on, like they did with ARM. Other manufacturers don't get the same sweet deal, they have to pay a licence fee per device, so they only pay for ones sold in Japan. Google also has its own Android system for this and would probably very much like for Japan to adopt it along side the Sony one.

 

There's a hack you can do to unlock the functionality on Google Pixel phones, but you do need a rooted device which comes with some downsides.

 

Incidentally I've noticed that often contactless payments in shops don't work with Google Pay, but that may just be either confusion with the clerk thinking I meant おサイフケータイ (which uses the Sony Felica system), or because my bank was being it's usual unhelpful self. I will try pointing at the logo and saying very clearly "グーグルペイ" next time.

[katoftw]

11 hours ago, kuro68000 said:

 

Do you know if they can be re-activated after that? Seems a bit off if you just lose whatever money is on 

There a touristy one time thing.

 

Suica is pretty available nowadays. And is you want any others. No issues with available.

 

The JR ticket office at KIX had drawers and drawers of ICOCA cards of various types last month when I travelled.

[RS18U]

Thanks everyone for the replies.  I use an Android phone so the digital option is no option for me.  I will look to get a regular card when I get to Haneda as I will most definitely be traveling back to Japan again.

[kuro68000]

There are some apps for Android that can read Suica and similar cards that you might be interested in.

 

CardReader: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=digital.cardreader

Suikakeibo: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.mediavrog.ic_card_expensetracker

 

Both are in English, but CardReader has all the station and bus names in Japanese, where as Suikakeibo has them in English. The latter is I think a bit less complete in that some names are missing though. Both let you export the history to a spreadsheet so you can see exactly where you went and how much you spent. I use it to calculate how much I spent on transport, which lead me to the conclusion that the JR Pass wasn't worth it.

 

Just remember that the card only stores the last 20 transactions. I set a reminder to scan it once a day.

[RS18U]

I got a Welcome Suica card at Haneda and used up the 1,000¥ I put on it pretty quick what with taking the wrong train to start with.  Was told I could get a regular Suica card at "the big station" so eventually I found the right machine at the JR north gate of Tokyo Station.  You need to find the black ones, not pink, green or other colours.  Easy to get the card once you find the right machine. The card is super helpful, even some vending machines accept them, plus of course some stores.

 

Hopefully this helps others.

 

Will

[chadbag]

Just a generic note (not directly related to OP).  It's Suica / ICOCA related 🙂

 

It seems that virtual ICOCA cards are now available through the Apple Wallet / Apple Pay.  It was just Suica and Pasmo but ICOCA is now too.  I added a virtual ICOCA to my iPhone and a separate one to my Apple Watch today and was able to add some money to each.  I now have a Suica and an ICOCA on my iPhoen and a Suica, ICOCA, and Pasmo on my Apple Watch.  I add some every once in a while as a way to get ready for our next trip and try and lock in some of these high rates in case they drop back down before we go.  (Each has a 20000 ¥ limit I think so you can do more with multiple different cards.

[Yugamu Tsuki]

Yeah...so I found a few Taito Station amusement centers took Suica... not saying I have a problem, just this trip I let emotion take over vs. what I know was a winnable crane machine. Won the 4 prizes I was gong for in the end but needed assistance from a worker as well as a quick top-off of the card...