Samsung Galaxy S II HD LTE NFC phone to hits the States?

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

Samsung Galaxy S II HD LTE NFC phone to hits the States?

A welcome surprise just came about as the Samsung Galaxy S II HD LTE NFC phone through the FCC. This version of the Samsung Galaxy S II HD LTE is a GSM phone, so we can pretty much guarantee that if it’s US bound it is heading to AT&T for their newly launched LTE network. Most of the details on the FCC label are unfortunately in Korean so we can’t grab too many details about this NFC phone. However, if NFC is onboard like it is with its Korean cousin, we then have the issue of AT&T disabling it at the software level as they did with the normal Samsung Galaxy S II.

read more

AT&T doesn’t care that you want NFC turned on in Samsung Galaxy S II

Posted by Seth Planck

2comments

AT&T doesn’t care that you want NFC turned on in Samsung Galaxy S II

AT&T has elected to not have the NFC in the Samsung Galaxy S II switched on. In doing so, we look at what this means for consumers, what it means for NFC and what it in turn means for AT&T. The redeeming quality of the AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II was that it has an NFC chip built in, and the mobile network operator has had the chip turned off. This raises the question – would this affect you purchasing the NFC phone when you can’t use the NFC chip you have paid for?

AT&T decided they didn’t want to go for the beautiful 4.5-inch screen that T-Mobile and Sprint opted for. They also decided their customers wouldn’t have the opportunity to benefit from that 1.5 dual-core processor that other competitors can boast. However, the one thing that the phone had over the Sprint phone was that it has an NFC chip built in which would have enabled social NFC actions, pairing with peripherals and sharing contacts. It could have also enabled payments too, but it appears because Isis is not quite ready to control your finances and market that you will not be getting any NFC goodness from the Samsung Galaxy S II at this time.

read more

Samsung SHV-E120L NFC phone outed, dropping down in Korea this month

Posted by Seth Planck

1comments

Samsung SHV-E120L NFC phone outed, dropping down in Korea this month

Another day, another NFC phone rears its head and this time it’s the Samsung SHV-E120L that has caught our eye. The team over at PocketNow spotted a post on a Korean website with specifications for the Samsung SHV-E120L NFC phone a couple of days ago. This new phone eerily echoes the specs of the LG LU6200 NFC phone and appears to be geared up to compete on a mano-y-mano basis. Samsung is finally embracing NFC in more and more models and the Samsung SHV-E120L is no exception. As more and more handset manufacturers are committing to NFC phones Samsung appears to becoming more competitive in every market segment and doesn’t look like it’s about to give any advantage away to competitors.

read more

AT&T NFC Samsung Galaxy S II $199 October 2nd

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

Get your AT&T NFC Samsung Galaxy S II for $199 which launches on October 2nd

Okay, it’s official AT&T has confirmed it will launch its version of the NFC Samsung Galaxy S II on October 2nd for the princely sum of $199 and a two-year-ball-and-chain contract. As we mentioned over the weekend, our sources are indicating that the NFC will be turned on, or at least it is very likely at this time that NFC will be turned on in the NFC endowed Samsung Galaxy S II hero phone.

It may not be surprising that the AT&T NFC Samsung Galaxy S II will launch on October 2nd considering that we have just heard that the iPhone 5 media event will happen on October 4th, but if the new iPhone doesn’t come with NFC it probably won’t effect the buying decision of people that would have bought an NFC Android device like the Samsung Galaxy S II anyway.

read more

LG LU6200 NFC phone to be LG’s hero NFC smartphone?

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

LG LU6200 NFC phone to be LG’s hero NFC smartphone?

Haven’t heard of the LG U+, which is also known as the LG LU6200, NFC phone? Nor had we until a few days ago, but it is impressive to say the least. LG hasn’t really lived up to its smartphone prowess lately and the NFC phones that the company has announced have been geared more towards budget conscious consumers. Meanwhile, arch rival Samsung trots out hero phone after hero phone to the point it has started to threaten Apple in a big way. That could change very soon, in LG’s homeland Korea anyway. The team at Engadget came across a new NFC phone known as the LG LU6200 on the Korean website MovePlayer. If the LG LU6200 NFC phone shown on this little Korean website is half true, it will look as if Korea will soon have an LG LU6200 NFC wonder phone on its hands. Today more photos have been accidentally on purpose “leaked” which you can see below.

read more

Sony Ericsson Nozomi wonder phone to sport NFC and then some?

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

Sony Ericsson Nozomi wonder phone to sport NFC and then some?

If you thought the Droid Prime was the epitome of NFC phones wait until you get a load of the rumored Sony Ericsson Nozomi wonder phone that is said to be launching in March 2012. XperiaBlog has reported that they have received exclusive information concerning the upcoming Sony Ericsson Nozomi NFC phone and if the information is correct the specifications are looking amazing. The Sony Ericsson Nozomi shares many specifications of other NFC phones that are expected to be launched this fall – all except the display. Instead of a 4.5-inch, the company has decided to stay with a 4.3-inch screen that has a resolution of 1280 x 720. And yes, if you are a mathematician that does mean that the PPI is north of 300. In fact, the pixels per square inch are higher than those in the Apple iPhone 4 which tops out at 326 PPI. The new Sony Ericsson Nozomi’s display boasts 342 PPI!

read more

HTC Holiday Android NFC phone caught in the wild testing AT&T’s LTE network

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

HTC Holiday Android NFC phone caught in the wild testing AT&T’s LTE network, it’s fast!

The HTC Holiday NFC phone seems to get caught out in public more than a teenage pop star. Today it was seen out in the field in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas testing the new AT&T LTE network. The image we have was sent to BGR and we have to say it is not the normal blurrycam photos we are used to seeing. The word on the street is that the HTC Holiday, or HTC Waikiki, which is another potential name for the device, could be AT&T’s inaugural LTE device that launches its LTE network later this year.  From a network perspective, this image shows the HTC Holiday topping out at a crazy fast 29Mbps, which looks good for Ma’Bells network. Although, we have to remember it is an empty market at the moment that the testers have to themselves. Even based on that, it is faster than speeds we have seen on Verizon’s network. Let’s just hope that Light Squared and its even newer LTE network makes AT&T’s look slow with equipment that gets faster from deployment to deployment. The HTC Holiday / HTC Waikiki is an Android device that is rumored to be one of the first Ice Cream Sandwich devices along with the Verizon Droid Prime, which up until this point we have known as the Samsung Nexus Prime.

read more

NFC iPhone conjecture ongoing

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

iPhone NFC conjecture ongoing, Apple could struggle if it passes on NFC

It isn’t going to be long until we know one way or the other whether the iPhone 5 has NFC (near field communications) technology built in. We already know that Apple have developed  a lot of apps to potentially use NFC inside and outside of payments, so a formalized NFC payments market isn’t required for the iPhone to have success using NFC. Day in, day out here at NFC Rumors we share uses for NFC that extend far beyond payments and it is hard to believe that Apple doesn’t realize this and want to capitalize on the capabilities that the Cupertino company could bring to the technology.

Rumors are circulating that the iPhone is going to be available on Sprint (the only non-Isis carrier in the United States) and that the screen is of the sub 4-inch variety. See the BGR photo below that shows BestBuy is expecting a Sprint iPhone next month. Yet of late the expectancy of NFC being included in the iPhone has been quiet with most assuming that the issue has been put to bed and the expectations have been set that Apple will not support NFC this time around. However more so, now more than ever the iPhone is facing increasing competition and the iPhone 4 is no longer competitive on specifications or features that are offered in Android and other handsets. With Nokia banding together with Microsoft, the competition is about to get more ferocious than ever. Apple could sue every single handset maker out there and it still wouldn’t dull the consumer demand for more convergence and higher specified phones one bit.

read more

Canadians can Pre-order you NFC Samsung Galaxy S II LTE on Rogers now

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

Canadians can Pre-order their brand new sparkly NFC Samsung Galaxy S II LTE on Rogers now today

We reported that Canada folk would get their hands on an NFC Samsung Galaxy S II courtesy of Rogers and today the mobile network operator came through with a pre-order form for the legendary phone with a touch of LTE 4G goodness. However, we should warn you that they want you to put some skin in the game if you are going to order this beast and they want $40 up front. We posted the details straight from the Rogers site after the break.

read more

Canadian NFC Samsung Galaxy S II LTE heading to Rogers this fall

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

NFC Samsung Galaxy S II rocking LTE heading to Rogers Canada this fall

Oh Canada, Oh Canada you get a Rogers NFC Samsung Galaxy S II (we don’t think that rhymes but you get the point). Okay, well the Americans didn’t fare well with today’s Samsung announcements. Our hearts sank as we learned that Samsung was dealing out no NFC on any US network for the long awaited Samsung Galaxy S II variants. That said, until the machines have a tear down we won’t know that for sure since Samsung is rumored to be fitting NFC in an inactive state and then switching it on later when carriers ask them to. Will America get an NFC Samsung Galaxy S II? The chances are looking bleak today. Back to Canada and the Rogers NFC Samsung Galaxy S II though.

Samsung has finally started releasing the by now legendary and possibly aging NFC Samsung Galaxy S II to North America. AT&T, T-Mobile and Sprint had their announcements earlier and Canada’s Rogers appears to have trumped them all by getting the NFC Samsung’s Galaxy S II version for their network which is in line with the news lately that suggests Rogers is deploying NFC payments. Canadians won’t get their hands on their version of the Samsung Galaxy S II until later in the fall, but we can at least know what’s on its way now.

read more

Samsung due to announce an upgraded Samsung Galaxy S II LTE Super phone at IFA?

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

Samsung due to announce an upgraded Samsung Galaxy S II LTE Super phone at the IFA show?

There is plenty of Samsung Galaxy S II news and rumors circulating at the moment. A latest tidbit reported by SammyHub has caught our attention firmly and brought up more questions than answers. We knew and reported earlier  that Samsung will be making some announcements at the IFA trade show this next week and we knew there would likely be some news on the 7-inch Galaxy Tab. Samsung had also hinted at a new phone being unveiled in the videos we also posted. Obviously the Samsung Galaxy S II is hot news here in the US due to the fact that Samsung has a press event on Tuesday to officially out the US variants of the Samsung Galaxy S II, but the rumors just keep on coming. The latest claim is that Samsung intends to out an upgraded version of the Samsung Galaxy S II at the IFA, which is said to be a superphone. We don’t know if this new phone will be NFC-enabled and only have the vaguest of rumors to go on at this point and they suggest the answer is yes.

read more

HTC Holiday to be an Android NFC phone?

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

HTC Holiday to be an Android NFC phone?

Will we see an HTC Holiday NFC phone for the holidays? Recent rumors suggesting HTC is readying a new superphone have been bouncing around for sometime. However, in an interesting twist International Business Times (IBT) posted an article yesterday claiming that it is aware of rumors that suggest that the HTC Holiday is an NFC phone. If the rumors are correct, this will mean we can add yet another Android NFC phone to the list of fall releases which starts to allow Google pull away from competitors with regards to NFC support. That said, both Nokia and BlackBerry certainly haven’t been devoid of spreading some NFC love, but their phones currently do not support NFC payments, where Android NFC phones are expected to. We had seen the photos of the HTC Holiday a while back and quite frankly, it didn’t catch our attention because of its lack of NFC capabilities, but this new rumored phone has our ears pricked and our gaze widened now.

read more

AT&T and Vodafone blocking NFC on the BlackBerry Bold 9900?

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

AT&T and Vodafone blocking NFC on the BlackBerry Bold 9900 according to a rumor that’s circulating

If you are buying a BlackBerry Bold 9900 for its NFC prowess, beware. A pretty solid rumor has been circulating that AT&T plans to block NFC at the software level, so if that’s the feature you wanted, at this time the BlackBerry Bold 9900 NFC phone is a fail.  Vodafone has already stated that it wouldn’t be supporting NFC in its BlackBerry Bold 9900 to begin with either. However, we have to ask – what is there to support? The phone already has the capability built straight in, on many occasions NFC doesn’t use any data to read or write a tag, or even to share a contact. If you purchase and own an NFC phone, we wonder what right the network thinks it has to shut off features. It just doesn’t make sense, or does it?

Q: Why would AT&T and Vodafone block NFC at the software level for the BlackBerry Bold 9900 NFC phone? A: Control.

AT&T in particular have blocked features before, and have released them later on their timeline. We saw it with Bluetooth file sharing and we saw it with BlackBerry Bridge. Unfortunately, RIM hands this ability to mobile network operators on a platter allowing them to give and take features as they see fit, even if those features do not effect data usage. The BlackBerry Bold 9900 is the latest example of a mobile network operator cutting features because the features in question are not convenient for the MNO, which has a service that uses that feature coming to market next year.

read more

Samsung Galaxy S II Hercules variant heading to T-Mobile US

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

Samsung Galaxy S II Hercules variant heading to T-Mobile US and Telus

Breaking news this morning is that the Samsung Galaxy S II Hercules variant has been snapped and is definitely heading to T-Mobile. PocketNow and TMONews separately snagged images of the device that’s said to beat them all. It has also been confirmed that the Samsung Hercules is indeed a Samsung Galaxy S II variant. As it stands, we’ll not see any LTE for this beast and we’ll have to make do with HSPA+ and 42Mbps which isn’t too shabby at all. As you will see from the back shot in the images, the phone clearly states it’s a GSII variant.

Update on Samsung Galaxy S II Hercules specifications

Okay, for us here at NFC Rumors the concerning news is a lack of news. Not in any report that is surfacing this morning is there any mention of NFC. The rumors from back in May suggested the Samsung Galaxy S II Hercules would be an NFC phone and now that little detail appears to have dropped off the map. Of course, the Samsung Galaxy S II Hercules could always still ship with NFC but we will just have to wait and keep our ears to the ground for more details as and when they emerge.

read more

Samsung Hercules NFC phone caught on camera, arriving on Telus soon?

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

Samsung Hercules NFC phone caught on camera, arriving on Telus soon?

We have been wondering when and where the Samsung Hercules NFC phone would show. The trail had gone a little cold over the last few weeks and so it was time for one of those leaks that just happens to be picture perfect, to get us gadget lovers talking about the thought of holding a 4.5 inch power slate so anticipation can be built. The photo snapper who caught this shot is Ian Hardy over at MobileSyrup. And where would you think such a beast would choose to be caught on camera? Yup, Canada of course. Land of maple leaves, Tim Hortons and occasional sightings of mythical creatures and now a demigod embodied Android super NFC phone. We must find out where in Canada to go for sightings.

Samsung Hercules NFC phone rumored specifications

If the rumors are true, the Samsung Hercules NFC phone is as strong inside as its namesake and isn’t struggling in the looks department either. Reports differ on the processor speed – some say the Samsung Hercules rocks a dual core 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon APQ8060 thinker, while more recent rumors suggest that the gods have passed on a little more speed and that the phone will slipstream with a dual core 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon speedster.

read more

BlackBerry Bold 9900 NFC phone heading to T-Mobile this month [rumor]

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

BlackBerry Bold 9900 NFC phone heading to T-Mobile this month

We have known it has been coming forever, but the BlackBerry Bold 9900 NFC phone may finally have a release date on T-Mobile in the US. The date in question is August 31st and the NFC phone will be the first BlackBerry to support T-Mobile’s HSPA+ network, so you can expect 4G-ish speeds from the BlackBerry Bold 9900. Amazon already posted a UK release date of the 15th of September for Brits, but until now we have been in the dark as to when the latest BlackBerry would head Stateside. This latest rumor is based on a clipping from a larger T-Mobile document and gave us the launch date but unfortunately no pricing was visible.

BlackBerry Bold 9900 NFC phone may launch with a $50 rebate

The leaked document that gave us the release date for the BlackBerry Bold 9900 also offered another nugget of information suggesting that consumers could get a $50 rebate on the NFC phone if the correct plan was chosen.

read more

Apple, NFC, iPhone 5, iPad 3, rumors, blah, blah, and more blah

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

Apple, NFC, iPhone 5, iPad 3, rumors, blah, blah, and more blah

Apple, NFC, iPad 3, iPhone 5…is it just us, or is it getting a little repetitive? Ever heard the phrase “there’s nothing to fear but fear itself?” We suggest it gets changed to “there’s nothing to Apple, but Apple itself” because at the end of the day all the speculation is just that, until we hear from Mr. Jobs. The frenzy field that emanates from Cupertino may block out the sun if it gets any more hyped, and the mastery of Apple is that it is generated because the company keeps quiet and plays dead until its ready to roll over and offer us a treat.

In a week where a bomber killed innocent people in Norway, the US is about to go broke, and Amy Winehouse passed away, we still found time for what seems to be a billion Apple rumors. Because that’s what’s important, right? Well, that and Rupert Murdoch getting a pie in his face because his media empire has been found to be sleazy. (Spoiler alert: Perhaps aside from the BBC and a few others, all mega media conglomerates are sleazy. It’s like gravity, it just is that way.)

We ourselves have written a myriad of articles on the business case for NFC in the iPad 3 and iPhone 5.

read more

Bell Canada to launch Blackberry Bold 9900 NFC phone in late August

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

Bell Canada to launch Blackberry Bold 9900 NFC phone in late August

Bell Canada is getting ready to launch the NFC Blackberry Bold 9900 flagship phone at the end of August, according to a leaked ad. Just a few days after learning that the Blackberry Bold 9900 would launch in the UK on September 15th, thanks to Amazon UK, we find out RIM will be bringing the 9900 series NFC goodness to its homeland first thanks to Bell. Ad below, click to enlarge.

Bell Canada, Blackberry Bold 9900 NFC phone and more within the next couple of months

Bell Canada may be getting the Blackberry Bold 9900 NFC phone, but it’s not the only desirable phone the network will be carrying. Let’s face it – Bell Canada hasn’t always been known for its bleeding edge selection of phones, but that could change over the next few months. The Blackberry Bold 9900 will be joined by some of its brethren in the form of the BB Curve 9360(September), the Torch 9860 (late August) and the Torch 9810 (late August). The network has also just launched the HTC Sensation, and as we reported this last week, July 14th is the date that the Samsung Galaxy S II superphone will be released.

read more

Samsung Hercules NFC superphone coming this fall

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

Samsung Hercules NFC superphone coming this fall

The Samsung Hercules NFC superphone could hit T-Mobile with Ice Cream Sandwich at around the same time as the Google Nexus Prime, which is also emanating from the house of Samsung. We reported that a gaggle of NFC superphones were slated for this fall, and the Samsung Hercules is likely to make good on that promise and take the demigod award as it does it. The as yet unconfirmed NFC superphone has specifications that will make the Galaxy S II weep with envy – well, it would if it had bothered to show up to the party here in the U.S. – and has reputedly been fashioned by the gods and bathed in ambrosia before being packaged.

Samsung Hercules rumored specs are worthy of NFC superphone status

Ok, well we can pay a rumored phone compliments all day but the crux of the matter is what does this NFC superphone have under the hood to deserve such admiration? Reports differ on the processor speed – some say the Samsung Hercules rocks a dual core 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon APQ8060 thinker, while more recent rumors suggest that the gods have passed on a little more speed and that the phone will slipstream with a dual core 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon speedster. The uncertainty with the processor that the Samsung Hercules will use is exactly the same rumor that we can’t get a clear picture on with the Google Nexus Prime. These two NFC superphones share a lot of the same specifications and we wouldn’t be surprised if they are not variations of the same phone in different skins with differing radios for different carriers here in the U.S. That would make it pretty different, actually.

read more

Apple iPhone 5 to be released in August?

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

Apple iPhone 5 to be released in August with radically new teardrop design?

Well, no one can say that the digital fruit factory hasn’t kept us guessing with its upcoming Apple iPhone 5. It didn’t release it on its yearly June /July schedule; the rumor mill swore up one side and down the other it would be an upgraded iPhone 4, and so far we have heard that the new device will not contain either NFC or LTE technologies. Today, however, everything has been turned on its head again as new details emerge from a couple of sources and to a couple of sites.

Apple iPhone 5 to feature a teardrop case design

After last year’s debacle with Gizmodo, it appears the secretive crew known as Apple, have tightened security more than ever to keep the details of its upcoming, latest and greatest iPhone mum. It did until today at least. BGR reports that they have confirmed through a reliable source that the new Apple iPhone 5 will not just be an upgraded Apple iPhone 4. It has also been affirmed that the new Apple iPhone 5 will feature a teardrop case design which was reported on Thisismynext earlier today. Homemade renders of the potential new design have been floating about all day showing a variety of styles that may or may not represent the new iPhone 5. Interestingly, as a side note, the name appears to have settled on iPhone 5 again after flip flopping between iPhone 4s and iPhone 5 for sometime.

read more

Google Nexus 4G: New NFC sporting LTE superphone rumored

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

New NFC sporting Google Nexus 4G LTE superphone beast launching around Thanksgiving?

BGR reported today that it had obtained some information showing that Google is gearing up to launch a new NFC-enabled Google Nexus 4G superphone this fall. The phone reputedly is being built as a 4G LTE model with substantial upgrades on those found in the current Nexus S.

Google Nexus 4G rumored to be launching this fall

The leaked Google Nexus 4G LTE phone has some formidable specifications.

Oh, where to begin, where to begin…Let’s start with the brains of this monster. The new Google Nexus 4G supposedly runs with a next-generation dual-core 1.2GHz or 1.5GHz CPU. It was literally just a couple of years ago when you would have been happy with a processor with these specs in your laptop and most netbooks didn’t even come close. There is some debate on the particular chip that has been used for the Nexus 4G, and whereas some thought it would utilize a NVIDIA Kal-El processor, the latest rumors suggest that it is more likely that Google has chosen a OMAP 4460 or a ultra low-power 28nm Krait-based Snapdragon. Either way you look at it any of these processors are a welcome addition to the Nexus’ next iteration, or perhaps we start calling it a lineage.

read more

NFC Phones BlackBerry Bold Touch 9900 and 9930 Close to launch

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

NFC BlackBerry Bold Touch 9900 and 9930 Close to launch

RIM unveiled its NFC-enabled BlackBerry Bold Touch 9900 and 9930 early last month stating the phones were due to be released sometime this summer. Well, it’s summer and we are ready for some NFC goodness! Only yesterday we were commenting on the lack of released NFC Phones and how the projected numbers of sales seemed a little high for this year. We are sure the BlackBerry 9900 and 9930 plans to sell through a few units and as far as we know it will be the second NFC Phone in the marketplace for the United States, which is expected to account for half of all NFC-enabled phones sold for the next few years. The only difference between the BlackBerry Bold Touch 9900 and 9930 is that the BlackBerry Bold Touch 9930 features CDMA support.

What we know the NFC BlackBerry Bold Touch 9900 and 9930

We know pretty much everything about the raw specifications that the NFC-enabled BlackBerry Bold Touch 9900 and 9930 will tote:

It has a 2.8-inch capacitive touchscreen display with a resolution of 640×480.
1.2 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon Processor.
8GB of internal storage, expandable via a microSD card slot.
Qwerty Keyboard with an optical trackpad.
HSDPA and HSUPA support.
WiFi b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP and EDR.
A 5 megapixel shooter around back with an LED flash that supports 720p video recording.
Near Field Communications (NFC) support.
BlackBerry OS7

read more

10 reasons why Apple should include NFC in the iPhone 4s

Posted by Seth Planck

0comments

10 reasons why Apple should include NFC in the iPhone 4s

Okay so we have 10 reasons why Apple should include NFC in the iPhone 4s, or 5, or whatever its moniker eventually tells us it’s called. As I sit here writing this post I am typing away on my iMac while I simultaneously render out some graphics on my MacBook Pro, my better half is watching a movie on our LCD hooked up to a Mac Mini and I have an iPhone sitting next to me. That doesn’t even represent all the Apple products I own but none the less I think you get the idea that I am far from an Apple hater. That said I’m not a fanboy either, but I am someone with 10 reasons why Apple should include NFC in the iPhone 4s. Are you seeing a pattern here?

read more