Today in the Connected Economy: Meta Tweaks Its Metaverse Offerings

Today in the connected economy, Meta reveals the price tag for its new virtual reality headset and unveils features to make that reality seem a bit more real. Plus, Apple introduces a new savings account tied to the Apple Card, while consumer financing company Synchrony debuts Allegro Credit, a point-of-sale (POS) tool.

Zuckerberg’s Metaverse Avatar Finds Its Legs (and Headset) at Last

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said users can enter the metaverse — with avatars that will soon have legs — for the cost of $1,500. That price tag is for the new Meta Quest Pro virtual reality headset, which has better resolution and graphics and a more powerful onboard computer than previous — and considerably cheaper — models.

Apple Lets Card Users Set up Goldman Sachs Savings Accounts

Apple has unveiled a feature for Apple Card users that lets them save their Daily Cash rewards and grow them using in a high-yield savings account from Goldman Sachs. Apple will roll out the program for card members in the months ahead, letting them have their Daily Cash deposited automatically into their accounts with no fees, minimum deposits or minimum balance requirements.

Synchrony Debuts Consumer Financing Tool for Audiology Practices

Synchrony has debuted Allegro Credit, a point-of-sale (POS) consumer financing tool for the hearing industry. The new solution, launched through the Sycle practice management platform, lets audiology providers offer financing options, such as healthcare credit cards and installment loans, and represents an expansion of Synchrony’s partnership with Sycle.

Payments Tech Firm Priority Integrates With Valor PayTech

Payments technology firm Priority Technology has integrated its MX Merchant ecosystem with Valor PayTech, part of a larger partnership between the companies for omnichannel solutions. Priority’s platform which operates at scale and lets companies collect, store and send money. Valor offers what it described as “cloud-based, end-to-end, processor-agnostic omnichannel payments solutions” for resellers and their merchant customers.

Italian iGaming Firm Lottomatica Revamps With Nuvei for Digital Payments

Italian iGaming company Lottomatica is re-platforming its digital services and working with payments technology provider Nuvei to offer faster payouts to users. Lottomatica Managing Director of Digital and Betting in Italy Alessandro Fiumara said the company’s players are looking to provide a payments experience similar to the one offered by Nuvei.