Top 11 reasons why you shouldn’t buy a phone without NFC

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Top 11 reasons why you shouldn’t buy a phone without NFC

NFC has reached a point where its inclusion in everyday life is a certainty within the next couple of years, and for consumers to benefit from NFC features they will need an NFC phone. Whether your penchant is for NFC payments or you like the Bluetooth pairing to speakers, near field communication is coming. Within the next year or so, we expect NFC keys to cards starting to become popular. Also expect NFC features built straight into our cars. Smartphone manufacturers are already starting to produce NFC phones and they are becoming more prevalent by the day, but there are still going to be non NFC-phones marketed to consumers. This post is about why you shouldn’t tie yourself into a contract on a phone that doesn’t come with the aforementioned capabilities.

Companies like Microsoft, Google, Intel, Nokia, Research in Motion, Huawei, Acer and Mozilla have said they intend to support NFC in products from now on. Service companies like Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express, Rogers Communications and many more are building their businesses around the model of harnessing near field communications for their customers. However, the big “will they, won’t they?” question lays with the Apple iPhone 5. Many doubt that Apple will include a near field communication chip within its latest and greatest smartphone. We still think it is a 50 /50 split on the probability that the company will support NFC. However, if Apple doesn’t support near field communication, Apple fans will have been done a disservice by the company and there are plenty of Android handsets that are just as, if not more capable, than the iPhone.

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GlobalPlatform launches its compliance trademark

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GlobalPlatform launches its compliance trademark

Global Platform has announced the launch of its compliance trademark to ensure the creation and maintenance of an interoperable, sustainable and trusted end-to-end environment for managing applications on secure chip technology. If you come to NFC Rumors on a somewhat regular basis, you will know that we yarn on about security, Secure Elements and standards like those put forward by organizations like the NFC Forum. Global Platform is the cross industry, not-for-profit association which identifies, develops and publishes specifications that facilitate the secure and interoperable deployment and management of multiple embedded applications on secure chip technology. GlobalPlatform are the organization that put forward the technical specifications to ensure that the secure element in your Google Nexus S is secure, or an NFC SIM or NFC USIM is tamper-proof.

NFC has started to reach a tipping point where mainstream usage is all but assured. Secure Elements are expected to be used globally across finance, mobile/telecom, government, healthcare, retail and transit industries. In the future, GlobalPlatform’s trademark will also be applicable to card products issued by banks and governments.

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

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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.

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Orange, France getting NFC Samsung Galaxy S II in October

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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.

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Google Wallet is live

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Google Wallet is live on Sprint, Google Nexus S 4G owners can now get their NFC mobile wallet on

It’s official, Google Wallet has launched! We reported earlier today that Google Wallet was likely to go live today and it has. The press release winged its way out of Sprint’s HQ at nearly 4.30PM this afternoon announcing that America finally has an NFC mobile wallet, and it is Google Wallet that has got to market first. At the moment the only folks who can use the Google Wallet will be Sprint subscribers who have the Google Nexus S 4G in their pockets. More NFC phones are expected within the next couple of months, which will likely include the much rumored Google Nexus Prime and other Ice Cream Sandwich devices. They are likely to come fitted with the all important NFC antenna and secure element that is required for NFC payments.

“Sprint is thrilled to be the first U.S. carrier to offer Google Wallet,” said Fared Adib, Vice President of Product at Sprint. “Nexus S 4G is the first to receive new versions of Android software, and today’s upgrade puts the near-field communications, or NFC, chip in the phone to work so customers can have a secure virtual wallet on their phone. NFC capabilities on smartphones open the door to a new level of convenience and security.”

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Will you get the NFC Samsung Nexus Prime? Is leaking the details a crime?

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Wax lyrical information leaker publishes NFC Samsung Nexus Prime details to Twitter in a poem

Will you get the NFC Nexus Prime? Is leaking the details a crime? We want to be sure, this guy is no bore, but without proof his poem’s not worth a dime.

Poetry is not dead when it comes to rumors, and last night saw the beginning of yet another poem that leaks information about the upcoming NFC Samsung Nexus Prime. The Samsung Nexus Prime is said to be the next Google Nexus hero phone that will debut with Android Ice Cream Sandwich. Rumors have been rife about the NFC Samsung Nexus Prime all summer and we have even seen Samsung confirm the phone’s existence when it threatened someone who has potentially got a hold of an Android build for the new NFC wonder phone.

Late last night Twitter user @tfleming223 started to recite a poem of his or her own making that started to potentially reveal some details about the upcoming NFC Samsung Nexus Prime hero phone. However, @tfleming223 would only release information, or the next line when he got to a certain amount of followers. That’s a bit corny, but does ensure his message gets out to the masses. From what we can gather so far, the NFC Samsung Nexus Prime is due to be released on the 3rd of November and is likely to be a world phone at that. The accuracy of this poem is completely unknown but it wouldn’t be the first time this has happened and been absolutely correct. Hit the break for the poem so far.

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Is Google Wallet launching today?

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Is Google Wallet Launching today?

On Saturday, we exclusively let you know that Google Wallet was coming within the next week. Now reports are streaming in that suggest today could be the day that we will finally see Google’s NFC mobile wallet hit the prime time and be available to anyone who carries a Samsung Nexus S. We knew the Google Wallet was coming soon, we just couldn’t get an exact date. TechCrunch revealed yesterday that a document had come into their possession that gave the magic launch date of September 19th.  NFC World Congress kicks off tomorrow and MasterCard is the main sponsor, so today would be a perfect time for us to see the Google Wallet hit the street. Let’s also not forget this last week when MasterCard had a press day where it was showing off Google Wallet and some of its other MasterCard lab projects for NFC and audio payment systems.

In the last couple of weeks, we have seen Google gearing up for its Google Wallet launch in a couple of released videos. One of those videos we brought to you the other day, and the now famous George Costanza “Costanza Wallet” one, which you can check out below. With rumors getting louder that Visa’s own NFC mobile wallet is just around the corner, it is important for Google to get Google Wallet launched. At this time, however, only Nexus S 4G owners will be able to utilize the Google Wallet.

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Sprint to launch more than 5 NFC smartphones by Q1 2012 [Exclusive]

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Sprint to launch more than 5 NFC smartphones by Q1 2012

NFC Rumors has exclusively learned that Sprint is set to launch at least 5 NFC smartphones by quarter one of 2012. Considering that Sprint is the launch partner for Google Wallet, we haven’t seen that many NFC smartphones hit the Now Network as yet. So far, we have a couple of BlackBerry NFC smartphones and the now legendary Google Nexus S to choose from. At this point, the Google Nexus S is the only one of Sprint’s NFC smartphones that will even accommodate Google Wallet. We think it is fair to say that Sprint has had a slower start with NFC smartphones than we would have perhaps imagined back in May. We were surprised when Sprint decided to not get the NFC version of the Samsung Galaxy S II. That’s okay because the pace is about to pick up according to or sources.

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First NFC digital billboard to launch in Times Square

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First NFC digital billboard to launch in Times Square

Today we see the next step in NFC marketing as Radiant Outdoor and the NFC Bootcamp put on a show in New York’s Times Square that will be a first in NFC. Yes, we are talking about the first NFC digital billboard, but you already knew that because you read the title. We knew you would because we know most of you range in age from your twenties to your late forties and sneak a peak at NFC Rumors from work and we know you can read! Welcome to the NFC fan club.

NFC marketing is taking off in a multitude of ways. We have seen collaborations, analytics that blow web based stats away and exclusive representation deals being signed.  NFC is set to change the fundamentals of marketing and any marketer who doesn’t embrace the new parody that is interactive offline / online marketing could get left behind in the next couple of years. We have said it before and we will say it again, NFC Rumors loves marketing. The only thing we like better than marketing is coffee and NFC marketing, in that order, for real. We’re not joking, honest!

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Isobar Create 48 NFC Hackathon Boston Event

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Isobar Create 48 NFC Hackathon Boston Event

If you are an Android app dev, like the sound of NFC capabilities and want to get the low down from those in the know, you will make sure you are in Boston on September 13th – 15th for Isobar Create 48.

If you live somewhere round the Boston area or can get there between September 13th and the 15th, you can take part in a unique experience the guys and gals from FutureM are calling Isobar Create 48. The point of the get n’ code together event is to explore the possibilities of Near Field Communication (NFC). NFC is going to be built into products, services and marketing from here on out and for those with some solid knowledge of managing NFC developments, the future will likely be bright. The Isobar Create 48 NFC Hackathon will be the first of its kind to explore the NFC chip inside the Google Nexus S and find greater uses for this NFC. The Isobar Create 48 organizers are inviting local developers, programmers and hackers to create what they see as their visions for uses of NFC technology.

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Samsung Droid Prime launching on Verizon Wireless exclusively in October (leaked)

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Samsung Droid Prime launching on Verizon Wireless exclusively in October

For months now we have been following the rumors about the Samsung Nexus Prime which is supposed to be Google’s next pure Android experience NFC smartphone that features Android 4.0 “Ice Cream Sandwich”. This last week, we reported that Verizon was passing on the legendary Samsung Galaxy S II and we are now starting to understand why. BGR, who first broke the Samsung Droid Prime story back in June and who has posted news about the device ever since, has reported that Verizon Wireless is launching the phone we have known as the Samsung Nexus Prime – and which we are now learning will be called the Samsung Droid Prime – in October. The information given is reported to be from a Verizon insider who suggested that “Verizon doesn’t think the Samsung GALAXY S II will be competitive with the iPhone 5 when it launches.”  The source didn’t want to be named for obvious reasons, but this latest rumor makes sense in not only giving a real competitor to the iPhone 4S of iPhone 5, but also in staying in front of AT&T, T-Mobile and Sprint.

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HTC Holiday to be an Android NFC phone?

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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.

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The NFC University ecosystem project

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Seeking the best NFC brains to help a Portuguese University develop an NFC feasibility study and ecosystem

NFC Rumors has quite a few people hit the contact form on our site to either introduce their company or products or to simply comment on the website. We love the interactivity and sense of community that comes in from people all over the globe. (Isn’t the internet cool?) A few days ago, we were contacted by a fellow from the Instituto Superior Politécnico Gaya (ISPGaya) based in Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal, who asked us to help with a feasibility study the university was endeavoring to assess. After a couple of emails, we were hooked and thought the project was interesting and worth investigating further. The name of the person who contacted us is Justino Lourenço and he has quite the challenge ahead of him. Justino has taken it upon himself to complete and present a full NFC conversion of major services available within his university and he needed a way to get in contact with professionals like you who would be interested in supporting a perfect use case study for schools. Intrigued? We were!

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