Search Results for: nfc

Android Gingerbread 2.3 to have NFC support

NFC in AndroidWe’ve covered NFC tech in the past, notably the work done by Nokia and tititag (now touchtag). Now a vendor with a lot more marketplace clout is adding NFC support to one of its products, namely Google to its Android mobile OS.

The next version of Android, v2.3 (Gingerbread) will include support for the industry standard of NFC (Near Field Communications). So how will this benefit you? Well NFC will allow you to interact with other NFC and RFID-tagged devices to perform acts such as transferring money (think credit card payments), ‘beaming’ data, reading info, all by simply coming within range of those devices and with few button presses.

This is welcome news for NFC enthusiasts as it will probably (hopefully) give it a welcome boost in uptake.

CES 2008: NFC – Get or Send Info by Swiping Your Phone

I reported last month on Nokia’s trials with payment and ticketing in London using NFC technology and was thrilled to see some working demos up close at CES. There were 8 vendors there, including Nokia and Visa, and this is probably just a taste of things to come, as the possibilities for NFC applications are more numerous than the demos shown. But even this handful of applications is enough to change our daily lives. As Nokia is a primary driver of NFC technology, all of the demos used a NFC-enabled Nokia phone.

Nokia Testing NFC Phones in UK

Nokia NFC

Futurists going back at least to the days of Star Trek have dreamed of having a single handheld device that was ‘smart’ as hell. That device should not only be a communicator, but be able to conduct science experiments too. Ok, so the 2nd part isn’t about to happen soon, but your phone may soon act as your wallet, particularly if Nokia’s current test is a success.

Nokia is running a 6-month pilot involving over 500 users who get to use their cell phones as Oyster cards. For the non-Brit readership, Oyster cards are electronic ticketing smartcards used by the Underground and National Rail systems in London. The Nokia phones use a technology that has a TLA (three-letter acronym) called NFC (Near Field Communications). NFC sounds just like what it is – a wireless comm that only works over very short distances. NFC operates on different frequencies from those used for phone calls, so I can just picture people on the phone bending their heads over to get within range of the card readers!

Of course, if your phone can act as an Oyster card and the Oyster card can act as a virtual wallet, then so can your cell phone! Take a look at this video to see some of the ways in which they are imagining using NFC. Makes sense. Only problem is the obvious one – what happens when your cell phone gets stolen?

Review: Kinivo M2 Bluetooth Speaker

Kinivo M2 Bluetooth Speaker SystemKinivo sent the Geeks a sample of the Kinivo M2 Bluetooth Speaker system which is a 2.1 speaker system designed for computers, smartphones and tablets for testing. I’ve tested the Kinivo speaker system using Bluetooth from a Mac, iPhone, iPad and Samsung S4 as well as NFC on the Samsung S4… yes, Bluetooth AND NFC. If you are looking for either a budget or nice wireless speaker system that plugs into AC, you should read on.
 

Apple Readying To Announce New iPhone?

iPhone 3GS, 4S, and 5

On the back of the recent announcement, from Apple, regarding the flatter but more “depthy” version of iOS, Internet rumors abound that the company may be preparing to announce one or more new iPhone product(s).

This kind of speculation does the rounds on an almost annual basis but this time the rumors are supported by the likes of Reuters and Stuff. Whether there will be an iPhone 5S before a full-blown 6 is not yet known but it does sound as if another new physical display size is likely to appear – with a possible 5.7” display reportedly in the works. Whatever the speculation we can be pretty sure a new iPhone will be announced at some point and our best guess (wish list!) of features is likely to include: a 12 megapixel camera, an A7 processor, NFC, and longer battery life.

Apple iPhone sales “remain resilient” against other brands, according to a Tech Trader Daily report, including Windows Phone 8 which IB Times are reporting has seen sales growth, in British smartphone sales from February to April 2013, of “up 4.4% on the same period last year”.

What features would you like to see in a new iPhone from Apple?

#CES09: tikitag Links Real World to Online Applications

Released in early October 2008, tikitag attempts to bring the online and offline world together by tagging real world object which, when scanned, will run an online application. Scanning involves touching the real-life item to a Near Field Communications (NFC) RFID scanner hooked to your computer which then executes an event on your computer such as dialing a number in Skype or loading a URL.

tikitag runs the Application Correlation Server (ACS) that provides remote tag management via web-interface allowing users to create associations of the appropriate actions with the RFID tag. tikitag includes an open platform via API (web services using SOAP and REST) for 3rd party application developers and geeks.

tikitag opens up NFC technology via an application platform that is available to consumers and businesses who are interested in using, sharing and creating NFC applications. The core element tikitag manages is the network-based Application Correlation Server, which monitors and launches the right actions in the right context whenever an NFC tag is touched with an NFC device.

The first demographic of users for tikitag were R&D companies interested in RFID but has spread to the geeky consumer over the holiday season. I wouldn’t mind playing with tikitag, but after a couple of weeks my interest would wain. The value for consumers will be in families where geeks can setup their non-techie family members to automate techie tasks such as calling a family member via Skype. tikitag will probably see more success with commercial applications such as tagging badges at a conference, but at least consumers can play with NFC RFID technology starting at $50 for a reader and 10 tags. Additional tags are $30 / 25 tags.

#ces09 : tikitag Links Real World to Online Applications

Released in early October 2008, tikitag attempts to bring the online and offline world together by tagging real world object which, when scanned, will run an online application. Scanning involves touching the real-life item to a Near Field Communications (NFC) RFID scanner hooked to your computer which then executes an event on your computer such as dialing a number in Skype or loading a URL.

tikitag runs the Application Correlation Server (ACS) that provides remote tag management via web-interface allowing users to create associations of the appropriate actions with the RFID tag. tikitag includes an open platform via API (web services using SOAP and REST) for 3rd party application developers and geeks.

tikitag opens up NFC technology via an application platform that is available to consumers and businesses who are interested in using, sharing and creating NFC applications. The core element tikitag manages is the network-based Application Correlation Server, which monitors and launches the right actions in the right context whenever an NFC tag is touched with an NFC device.

The first demographic of users for tikitag were R&D companies interested in RFID but has spread to the geeky consumer over the holiday season. I wouldn’t mind playing with tikitag, but after a couple of weeks my interest would wain. The value for consumers will be in families where geeks can setup their non-techie family members to automate techie tasks such as calling a family member via Skype. tikitag will probably see more success with commercial applications such as tagging badges at a conference, but at least consumers can play with NFC RFID technology starting at $50 for a reader and 10 tags. Additional tags are $30 / 25 tags.

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