NFC

UK-based printing company Moo has given its business cards a post-smartphone remix by creating a design which imbeds a near-field communication (NFC) chip within, enabling it to interact with NFC-equipped smartphones.  Read More

By now, we’ve all become quite used to seeing QR codes on products, price tags and advertisements – just scan the code with your smartphone’s camera, and it’s converted into readable information. Soon, however, those codes could be facing competition from something known as the rectenna. It’s an inexpensive label-like device that transmits data to a near-field communication (NFC)-enabled smartphone, using that phone’s radio waves as its power source.  Read More

As a child, there was something magically rewarding about dropping some small change into the slot of a gumball machine, turning the lever and being rewarded with some hard candy. The Razorfish Emerging Experiences team has now updated the mini-vending machine for the digital age with a prototype Digital Gum Machine that delivers a digital treat to a smartphone in exchange for a 50 cent coin.  Read More

Despite increasing numbers of smartphones sporting near field communication (NFC) functionality, the technology hasn’t really set the world on fire just yet. The simple fact is that, apart from the limited rollout of cashless transaction systems from the likes of Visa, Google and Orange, there’s still not a hell of a lot that these NFC capabilities can be used for. Samsung is looking to change this with the introduction of NFC stickers called TecTiles that can be programmed to automate various smartphone functions.  Read More

Near-Field Communication (NFC) is generally associated with contactless payment methods such as the mobile wallet. In practice, NFC's uses include connecting a smartphone to a car and other devices. Now Norway-based one2TOUCH is offering silicone keyboards that connect to smartphones and tablets simply by laying the mobile device on top - no pairing required.  Read More

The first Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich smartphone will soon be available in its country of origin on Wednesday. OK, technically the Samsung Galaxy Nexus is made in Asia, but the latest Google phone carrying the anticipated Android upgrade traces its software roots to California. Fans there and in the rest of the United States have eagerly been awaiting its arrival while watching the device's global rollout pass them by.  Read More

Smartphones are in the process of replacing cameras, phonebooks, land lines and maps ... and wallets are next. First announced in May but just launched today, the Google Wallet free app allows its users to store electronic versions of their credit cards on their smartphone, and pay for items simply by tapping their phone on a near field communication (NFC) reader at a store’s front counter.  Read More

Near Field Communication (NFC) was initially promoted as a mobile payments method, but the technology has since been applied to a broader range of applications - and the list is still growing. One of these is a new system allowing for NFC implementation in a car key, which has been launched by the Dutch company NXP Semiconductors. The system is a production-ready single-chip solution dubbed KEyLink Lite (codenamed NCF2970) that enables a connection between a "smart" car key and external NFC-compliant devices, such as mobile phones, tablets and laptops.  Read More

Nokia has unveiled the N9, its first smartphone featuring the MeeGo mobile operating system. It has no buttons on the front, and features a curved polycarbonate body and a 3.9-inch AMOLED WVGA (854x480) display. The home button is replaced with a swipe gesture, taking the user back to the homescreen from anywhere in the menu. The N9 features a Cortex A8 1GHz CPU and 1GB of RAM, with a PowerVR SGX530 GPU responsible for graphics. It comes with either 64GB or 16GB of internal memory.  Read More