Apple has quietly revealed that its upcoming digital ID feature, which will allow users to store government-issued IDs in the Wallet app, has been delayed.
Digital ID was first announced at WWDC 2021 with an expected launch at some point this year. However, an update on the official iOS 15 website, as spotted by MacRumors, has confirmed that the company has pushed the release of the digital ID feature to sometime in early 2022.
Once released, this exciting new option will grant users the ability to store state ID or driver’s license in the Apple Wallet in the same manner as credit and debit cards. Locations that make use of the feature will do so by confirming your ID via an iPhone or Apple Watch. It will make for quite a painless experience, too, as a simple tap on the device by an identity reader will get the job done quickly and efficiently.
The initial release of digital ID won’t be usable everywhere right out of the gate, though. Apple has stated that only eight states will support digital ID at launch, including Arizona, Connecticut, Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Oklahoma, and Utah — with more assumed to follow as the technology becomes more widely used.
The first significant location to normalize the feature will be TSA checkpoints at select U.S. airports, though it’s expected to be adopted at a variety of major retailers over time. Apple Wallet is accepted at thousands of locations around the world, so it’s only feasible to see this ID feature become more and more prevalent as everything shifts towards a digital future.
Apple has not yet confirmed a specific date for the release of digital ID, but it’s expected to make an appearance within the first handful of months in 2022 — some time likely after the launch of iOS 15.2. And new rumors suggest that future Apple devices may get advanced wireless charging as, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, AirPower has been reborn.
In the meantime, there are plenty of Black Friday Apple deals happening right now to help you with digital ID’s eventual release. There are multiple Apple Watch Black Friday deals, with the Apple Watch 3 going as low as $109. It’s hit our best Black Friday deals list for being such a tremendous value, even if it lacks in newer features.
