Orange, France getting NFC Samsung Galaxy S II in October

Orange, France getting NFC Samsung Galaxy S II in October which will be the first NFC Android device to be sold in Europe, will head to the UK soon

Orange has scored itself the first NFC Samsung Galaxy S II in Europe and intends to deploy the legendary hero NFC phone in France next month. The NFC version of the Samsung Galaxy S II has been a long time coming to European shores, especially after it was announced that the UK would get an NFC Samsung Galaxy S II in June. The model of the NFC Samsung Galaxy S II that will hit the Orange network is not the recently upgraded Samsung Galaxy S II, and aside from NFC, it features the original specifications of the phone launched in the UK.

It’s a pity that Orange elected to not give the European that beautiful 4.5-inch Hercules screen or upgrade the processor to the 1.5GHz processor, but at least NFC payments will be an option and so will the rest of the benefits that NFC brings to hero phones. The NFC Samsung Galaxy S II will be the fourth NFC capable phone for Orange’s Citizi customers. Citizi is the brand Orange is using to deploy NFC payments and services in France. According to Orange, 150,000 French consumers have already signed up for the Citizi NFC service, which provides passes for the local urban transport, payment in the partner shops over 1000 shops, loyalty, couponing and tag reading all using NFC.

The NFC Samsung Galaxy S II is only the beginning if a new fleet of NFC phones for Orange in Europe

The NFC Samsung Galaxy S II that Orange will begin selling in October was developed jointly by Orange and Samsung. Orange states that it will be the first to offer “SIM-based NFC Android mobile using the SIM card to guarantee the security of contactless mobile services.” We would ask Orange to prove that the SIM is as safe as an microSD or in-built Secure Element, because from what we hear that is not the case. It is more likely that Orange chose this particular solution because it could prevent competition from working on its network.

Orange also has plans to roll out a new generation of SIM cards nationally in France and is planning for at least of all smartphones that go on its network from now on to be of the NFC flavor. Find below a couple of videos Orange has to show off their NFC services. There are English subtitles available.

Orange NFC Samsung Galaxy S II specifications

As we mentioned, the NFC Samsung Galaxy S II has not evolved like other versions of the phone has. The NFC Samsung Galaxy S II of course still has Android  2.3 (a.k.a. “Gingerbread”) on board. It didn’t get the processor upgrade but it still has a more than respectable  dual core 1.2GHz thinker and 3G+ connectivity (HSPA+ 21 Mbps). The European NFC Samsung Galaxy S II houses the standard 4.27-inch Super AMOLED Plus screen. Around back you will find the NFC Samsung Galaxy S II has the normal 8-megapixel camera, with video recording and reading in 1080p Full HD. WiFi-enabled (b/g/n), and of course features NFC (Near Field Communication).

Before you run out and buy this bulk standard version of the NFC Samsung Galaxy S II, do consider that the Google Nexus Prime is just around the corner. The Google Nexus Prime has substantially improved specifications over the NFC Samsung Galaxy S II European model and will work with Google Wallet, which has just been announced to have global ambitions.