NFC or Near Field Communication to give it it’s full title, is a way for devices to exchange information with each other without having to plug in or even physically touch each other. Soon it will be used to create “Contactless” payments where you can simply place your credit, debit or even phone onto a pad and the retailer can charge you for your purchase in seconds.
How does NFC work
NFC uses small chips sometimes called TAGS that have no power of their own but when scanned by an NFC reader a small electromagnetic charge brings the NFC tag to life and the data contained can be read back by the reading device. A device can be both a reader and able to write to NFC tags and TAGS themselves can be write once or written too many times over.
What Android Devices support NFC
At the moment only the Samsung Galaxy S2 (with NFC), Samsung Galaxy Nexus, Huawei Sonic (with NFC) & HTC Ruby (with NFC) have NFC built in, most are capable of reading and writing to NFC TAGS but currently a bug in Ice Cream Sandwich 4.02 (The Operating System for the phone) prevent authoring of some tags. 4.03 is due soon and should fix things.
What can you put NFC TAGS into?
The great thing about NFC TAGS is they are relatively small, so far I have seen NFC placed into Stickers, Keyfobs, Wrist Straps & Posters over time the tags will get even smaller allowing for even more unique uses. Remember Sticker Tags are only at the start of their journey anything you can stick a tag on just became a Smart Object capable of being scanned and offering data, the possibilities are endless.
A few ideas for using NFC TAGS
Due to the small size of NFC TAGS Keyfobs and Wristbands make ideal use for Nightclubs and Restaurants, contained in the TAG could be the owners ID allowing staff to check age or ensure a checked in coat goes back to the right owner. hooked up to door entry systems it could help keep private areas sealed off or provide quicker access to staff instead of button entry or fumbling for a key. Personal use could include encoding a link to your Youtube Channel so people can subscribe from their mobile phone or watch your latest video.
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