SITA Lab and Orange get together to trial NFC at airport models

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SITA Lab and Orange get together to trial NFC at airport models

SITA Lab and Orange have recently got together to look further into the use cases for NFC for passengers, airlines and the security at airports. The thought of giving an NFC ticket at the airport is not a new concept. However, apart from a couple of airlines trialling NFC with stickers and apps, we are yet to see anything truly ubiquitous and usable for users across the globe. The SITA and Orange research project developed NFC apps for smartphones that allow NFC boarding passes, security check-ins, lounge check-ins and checked them out with real technology to show how NFC holds the possibility to streamline airport processes, improve security and generally make travel less frustrating for flyers. This is in part because IATA and the GSMA have developed industry use cases for NFC that cover check-in, security access, boarding and lounge access. NFC boarding pass information can be loaded securely to the travel wallet from online, over the air or at a kiosk.

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Duly Note[d]: The Galaxy Note is missing at least one very important “note”

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Duly Note[d]: Something the Galaxy Note failed to “note”

The rumors were answered at CES about the new Samsung Galaxy Note LTE for AT&T. The smartphone-meets-tablet device, or “superphone”, definitely created something to talk about. The two-in-one is available in carbon blue and ceramic white with AT&T. The highly talked about 5.3-inch HD Super AMOLED touchscreen display crushes its competitors (HTC Titan and Nexus S) in size and appearance. The touch of 4G LTE is an added bonus especially for the U.S. market.

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Sprint Galaxy Nexus and LG Viper hands-on during private CES event

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Sprint Galaxy Nexus and LG Viper hands-on during private CES event

As you may or may not have heard over at CES, Sprint announced that it is going to carry the Galaxy Nexus and the LG Viper NFC smartphones. Well, photographs and details have been very thin on the ground. This is especially true of the LG Viper, which wasn’t even present at the LG booth at CES. What many people didn’t know is that Sprint held a private event over at CES and we were invited. The Galaxy Nexus and the LG Viper were there for some hands-on time and we had the opportunity to play a little.

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White Galaxy Nexus NFC smartphone hitting the UK February

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White Galaxy Nexus NFC smartphone hitting the UK February

It was only a matter of time until Samsung couldn’t contain itself and produced a white version of the now legendary Galaxy Nexus. That seems to be the modus operandi these days for Samsung. Set a hero smartphone in to the market and then a few months later reignite interest in the product by producing it in white. It now appears the UK will be getting its hands on a white Galaxy Nexus HSPA+ 16GB model next month for a cool £415.00 ex VAT. Pocket Now reports it’s the same price as the normal grey version of the Galaxy Nexus.

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Want Ice Cream Sandwich & Android Beam on your Nexus S 4G?

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Sticky, sticky Ice Cream Sandwich & Android Beam on your Nexus S 4G

Waiting for Google to send out that magic Ice Cream Sandwich update for your Nexus S 4G can be hard, especially when you want the added Android Beam NFC capabilities now. As you will probably know by now, Google has chosen to update the GSM Nexus S before its Google Wallet-touting brethren. So, at this time Nexus S 4G owners are left waiting and lamenting about the update that hasn’t come. That doesn’t mean that Nexus S 4G owners can’t get their hands on Ice Cream Sandwich though. Yes, devs have been hard at work porting the ICS OS over to the Nexus S 4G. For those who don’t mind rooting their phone, that sweet sticky Ice Cream Sandwich update has arrived. As ever there are considerations you should take into account before attempting the update though.

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Nexus S Ice Cream Sandwich update on hold but will start again soon

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Nexus S Ice Cream Sandwich update on hold, Christmas Android Beaming Star Wars fight dreams dashed

If you are a Nexus S owner and were planning to use the NFC force this Christmas your hopes may have been dashed because Google has halted the Ice Cream Sandwich downloads for the time being. Well, you do still have NFC but not with some of the newer interfaces that Android Beam brings along for the ride in Ice Cream Sandwich. Over the weekend, Google started pumping out updates to GSM based Nexus S handsets that promised some sticky, sticky Ice Cream Sandwich goodness. However, some eager downloaders found that the download simply wouldn’t start installing. We are still hearing that some are able to download and install the Ice Cream Sandwich update although the majority haven’t seen ICS yet.

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GSM Nexus S gets Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade, get your android beam on!

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GSM Nexus S gets Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade get your android beam on!

On Friday, Google announced via its Android Twitter account that it is rolling out Android 4.0 or Ice Cream Sandwich to Nexus S owners. Well, GSM Nexus S owners anyway. There is no word yet on an Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade for the Nexus S 4G that is running on Sprint. We have heard about the update already hitting AT&T Nexus S phones OTA, but we are yet to hear of any others.

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Ice Cream Sandwich bug NFC tag NDEF formatting bug found

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Ice Cream Sandwich bug NFC tag NDEF formatting bug found

A bug has been found in Android Ice Cream Sandwich that means a non-pre-formatted NFC tag isn’t being recognizable as a NDEF Formattable tag for Mifare Classic 1k, Ultralight or Ultralight C tag. The problem isn’t affecting MifareClassic and MifareUltralight NFC tags. What this means is that NFC tags are not being recognized as being writable using the standard NDEF formatting, which could be an issue for folks trying to encode NFC tags using any Ice Cream Sandwich device.

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Galaxy Nexus NFC smartphone launched on Verizon finally

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Galaxy Nexus NFC smartphone launched on Verizon finally

Ah, what a relief to no longer have the need to speak about when Verizon will launch the Galaxy Nexus NFC smartphone. It’s done, it has happened and it’s sans Google Wallet. For us, the Galaxy Nexus specifically on Verizon has lost its luster. But if you still have a penchant for your own slice of Ice Cream Sandwich, you can head over to the Verizon Wireless website or pop into your local store. Do remember it’s nearly the holidays though and try not to give the Verizon retail staff members a hard time. It’s not their fault Verizon has acted like a complete…[enter your description here].

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ViaForensics finds Google Wallet security vulnerability with a rooted Android phone

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ViaForensics finds Google Wallet security vulnerability with a rooted Android NFC phone, Google plugs it tight within hours

It was bound to happen that someone would find a vulnerability in an NFC mobile wallet, however, as exploits go the Google Wallet faired pretty well. ViaForensics took a rooted Android phone that we can only assume was a Nexus S and was able to gain access to database tables which revealed some arguably sensitive data. They found that databases weren’t properly flushed after cards were deleted from the Google Wallet.

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Taggle social NFC retail shopping is here for consumers and retailers

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Taggles social retail apps use NFC and barcodes to create a social shopping experience all based on Amazon’s web services

Word of mouth marketing has always been the most powerful form of marketing that has ever existed. If you add to the a viral expansion loop model some NFC, a massive database of UPC product codes, some social sharing abilities and shopping you end up with Taggle. Taggle is a new shopping service that allows consumers to scan bar codes, QR codes or read NFC tags associated with retail purchases and either review them or give them a star rating. Users of the mobile apps don’t even need to sign up for an account. Once a product has been scanned, the social bit happens and users can share their buys on Facebook and Twitter.

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Google Wallet experience is not great and needs improving

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Google Wallet experience is not great and needs improving

We are going to come straight out and say we are fans of Google Wallet. We think it’s great for consumers and wonderful for NFC. Having a brand name like Google behind NFC has started to educate consumers to what NFC can actually do and how much the nascent technology is set to change the way we interact with the physical and online world. Of course, the alternative being Isis helps add some sparkle to Google’s offering considering most of the US will be trapped in a closed Isis environment.

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How to make a better NFC antenna with New rFid Concept

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How to make a better NFC antenna with New rFid Concept

You may have never heard of the New rFid Concept NFC antenna system, but you will soon want it in your NFC smartphone. If you have an NFC smartphone you will no doubt have become frustrated at one point or another with the ability to read tags easily. This is especially true if you are attempting to read NFC tags through glass or on certain materials like metals. At best most NFC antennas will only pick up a signal at around a distance of 4cm and sometimes substantially less. There has to be a better way, right? Well, there is and French firm New rFid Concept have it ready to roll with an advanced NFC antenna that substantially increases the performance of NFC smartphones.

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A question of ownership of the secure element for NFC mobile wallets

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A question of ownership of the secure element with regards to NFC mobile wallets

A big question surrounding the wallet wars is concentrated around who owns the secure element. The focus is misplaced, if that is the place where MNOs and service providers are focusing their efforts. Yesterday we posted about Verizon’s statements about the Galaxy Nexus where they obviously either made an error in their statement or were intentionally attempting to mislead the media about why Google Wallet would not be allowed on the Galaxy Nexus.

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Hands-on with the Taztag Tazpad NFC tablet at WIMA NFC USA

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Hands-on with the Taztag Tazpad NFC tablet at WIMA NFC USA

We have been following the development of the Taztag Tazpad, which took the title as the first NFC tablet to be announced, since earlier this year. From its inception, the Tazpad NFC tablet had its work cut out for it in standing up to colossal electronics giants who would undoubtedly release competitive products.

The Tazpad has prospered, moved beyond vaporware and is now in the market for integrators and larger organizations. As NFC tablets go, the Tazpad is the only one we know of that is available today and has features that make it an attractive prospect for business based implementations. In fact, it has features not available in a single slate anywhere else. We met up with Taztag Co-Founder and International General Manager, Michel Delaux, over at WIMA, where our first question was “Do you have one with you?” Luckily enough, he did!

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Amazon BlackFriday deal busts NFC smartphones down to 1 cent

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Amazon BlackFriday deal busts NFC smartphones down to 1 cent

Amazon has busted all smartphones it stocks for Verizon, AT&T and Sprint, including a few NFC smartphones, down to a penny up until Cyber Monday. So, if you have wanted that NFC Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket 4G that rocks LTE or a BlackBerry Bold 9930 ready for BlackBerry Tag when it is released soon, now may be the time to make the jump. All deals require an eligible upgrade or a new line of service and you have to, of course, sign on with a 2 year contract. Amazon is even paying you $100 if you take a mobile hotspot as part of your agreement, as long as the phone you chose supports the feature. So, if you play your cards right you could find yourself being paid $100 for getting the NFC smartphone of your choice.

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Galaxy Nexus coming to Canada December 8th on Bell and Virgin Mobile

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Galaxy Nexus coming to Canada December 8th on Bell and Virgin Mobile

Yep, that’s right – the Galaxy Nexus NFC smartphone is hitting Canada on Bell and Virgin Mobile December 8th. You can pre-order the Galaxy Nexus today. Pre-ordering the highly anticipated Galaxy Nexus NFC smartphone early ensures you are among the first to get your grubby mits on the NFC totting Ice Cream Sandwich device “as soon as it’s available” but that doesn’t mean you will have the device in your hands on launch day.

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Galaxy Nexus NFC smartphone for Verizon official with specs and videos

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Galaxy Nexus NFC smartphone for Verizon gets official with specs and videos

Finally, more details about the Galaxy Nexus are becoming available with a specification sheet and a multitude of videos. Interestingly, the Verizon Galaxy Nexus departs slightly from the version announced in Hong Kong earlier this month. The changes are subtle and revolve around a larger battery, which has no doubt been included because LTE is known to suck you dry of juice quicker than 3G. These differences also are related to the CDMA versus the HSPA+ version that Google showed off.

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Galaxy Nexus speeds past the FCC with NFC

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Galaxy Nexus speeds past the FCC, getting ready to hit Verizon this month with NFC onboard The Galaxy Nexus NFC smartphone saga continues as the handset passes through the FCC without a firm release date. NFC is on board as is LTE, however, the docs point out that Verizon specifically asked for VoLTE (Voice over [...]

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NFC isn’t just payments at WIMA NFC USA

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NFC isn’t just payments at WIMA NFC USA

The WIMA NFC USA conference is getting closer and from what we are hearing, it is set to be a packed event with Near Field Communication stake holders stacked to the rafters in San Francisco. The event happens between November 30th through December 1st. Most people NFC Rumors has spoken with lately are heading out to California to see the latest and greatest NFC use cases and applications from industry leaders and to listen to speakers and panels from leaders in every segment.

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HTC Edge quad-core NFC phone coming March or April

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HTC Edge quad-core NFC phone coming March or April

Images and specifications for the HTC Edge quad-core NFC smartphone have leaked online, and if the rumors are true this new phone will be a beast. We have been waiting for quad-core super phones for well over a year now and it looks as if it will be HTC that delivers in the form of the HTC Edge. There has now been a plethora of NFC smartphones announced and as of yet, most are rocking Android. The HTC Edge could well represent the next bump in usability for smartphones, and from what we are hearing, the quad-core wonder phone will support NFC from the get go. In fact, if the rumors are correct the specifications for the HTC Edge set a new premium standard for smartphones that even the rumored Samsung Galaxy S III does not compete with.

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PayPal Android app finally gets P2P NFC payments

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PayPal Android app finally gets P2P NFC payments

For months PayPal has been talking NFC payments down. PayPal in August then announced the upgrade to their Android PayPal app that added P2P NFC payments functionality. Since then, there has been nary a word about it until the app update hit the Nexus S the day before yesterday. The crew over at the internet bank have finally released the update that enables NFC P2P payments using PayPal.

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Verizon Galaxy Nexus NFC phone launch date leaked

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Verizon Galaxy Nexus NFC phone launch date

If you have been waiting for the Verizon Galaxy Nexus NFC phone to launch, we can confirm that you won’t be waiting much longer. Our sources have let us know that consumers will be able to pick up a Verizon Galaxy Nexus NFC smartphone on November 21st at their local Verizon store.

From what we are hearing NFC services will be available but don’t expect to see Google Wallet or any other form of payments available on the phone. Word is that Isis is way behind on its deployments and Verizon has been locked into a legal stranglehold where it cannot bring any other NFC mobile wallet on board other than services that are to be offered by Isis. It appears that Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile may not be feeling so hot to trot with the deal they signed with Isis after all.

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NFC Forum Chairman Koichi Tagawa demos Sony NFC Speakers at 4G World

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NFC Forum Chairman demos NFC Speakers at 4G World

Have you ever seen the NFC Forum Chairman give a demonstration to a few people? Well, now you can. We caught some footage of Koichi Tagawa demonstrating his phone connecting to a Sony NFC speaker. We went to Chicago this last week to 4G World. We got to see some of the most important industry stakeholders in NFC talk about everything that challenges and represents opportunity in near field communication. In case you don’t know, when Mr. Tagawa isn’t being the Chairman of the NFC Forum, he’s a General Manager at Sony. The NFC speakers in the video are Sony NFC Felica based accessories and you will see them working with a Nexus S 4G.

Like with all great demos, the speaker didn’t want to switch off once it had turned on, but upon a reboot of the app the speaker worked great. We loved the motorized activation that the Sony NFC speaker had. We don’t know if there will be a US version coming and hope to see it in various colors.

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Sprint focusing on NFC, developer conference next week

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Sprint focusing on NFC, developer conference next week

We caught up with some of the Sprint team at 4G World this week. They let us know some interesting information about how Sprint is viewing their company these days, which gave clues to what they have planned in the future. Sprint team members told NFC Rumors that Sprint no longer views itself as a telco. These days, the word around Sprint is that Sprint is a mobile ISP. This shows that Sprint is moving with the times. It shows that the Kansas company is aware that mobile data is all that matters these days and calls, email, NFC and all other services are an extension of the mobile ISP services that Sprint supplies.

Sprint Developer conference “Open Solutions Conference” has an NFC focus this year

The Sprint team is getting ready for their developer conference that happens this next week. A focus of this conference is NFC apps. Again, Sprint is looking to enable further services that build on top of its core business of providing data. NFC Rumors actually thinks this new internal identity that Sprint has embraced places it ahead of its competitors. It also shows us why Sprint is not trying to profit from NFC transactions in an Isis type manner.

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