Shopping gets snappier in iOS 8 with Safari credit card scanning

Apple’s upcoming iOS 8 software aims to make buying stuff online even simpler.

The updated version of Safari will enable Apple gadget owners to input credit card data by snapping a photo of their card, reports 9to5Mac. When folks using iOS 8 go to enter credit card info into Safari, an option will appear to “Scan Credit Card,” which will prompt them to position their card inside a frame and snap a photo with the built-in camera. The software will subsequently convert the credit card info into text using optical character recognition.

We haven’t tested the feature, so we can’t speak to its accuracy — but assuming it works adequately, it could definitely shave time off the online purchasing process on Apple gadgets.

Web developers don’t need to go out of their way to make the feature work: Safari seems to detect when a website requests credit card data and presents the scanning option just above the keypad. iOS 8 will retain the ability to autofill credit card information with previously stored info.

Credit card scanning is certainly a nifty feature, but it’s a baby step toward Apple’s more ambitious plans for mobile payments. Morgan Stanley (and plenty of others) think Apple has all the ingredients to cook up a massive mobile payment system.

Apple unveiled iOS 8 at the Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday.