Another Report Suggests NFC Support for iPhone 6, Chip to Be Provided by NXP

Davelfc said:

Reading these first few replies you could be forgiven for thinking we were in the dark ages, burn the witch, etc.

Truth is times are a changing and technology moves on. I have no idea if the new iPhone or the watch will come with NFC. If it does then knowing Apple it will take NFC to another level. Will this happen overnight, no of course it won't.

Just as we never actually got rid of paper, we will never actually get rid of a wallet. But in places where this takes off, less and less people will carry one.

People will have the choice of opening and starting their car with their phone, opening and locking their front door. Paying for things, clocking in to work, going to the theatre, sports events etc.

If anyone can make this happen, it's Apple. Yes other devices have had NFC for years, like giving a caveman an electric toaster, they just didn't know what to do with it, so they used it as a hat.

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I think we're headed to a place where the wallet is more of an accessory, and the main payment/ID/communication will be the phone. However, there is a dark side...

You get pulled over, and the police ask for your ID. Would you give them your phone, which can be scanned, and have all of the information on it (GPS tracking, communication, where you've been on the internet, etc.) downloaded to their database, or a card that simply has your picture, number, and more work has to be done to see where you've been?

Call me a Luddite (heh... on a computer forum), but I'll take the ID card.

after i got my phone almost stolen for the 3rd time in Barcelona recently i realized that it wouldnt be a good idea to have everything stored in one place. i literally would have ended up on the other side of town without my phone to call someone, no metro card to get home, no money to get home, no way to get money to go home and to go even further thinking of the future no way to get access INTO my own home. (it was 4am)

i would have cried like a baby LOL

NFC is great but what about Qi wireless charging?

H2SO4 said:

So where do you keep your driving licence? Or credit card sized door entry fobs. Have another look in your wallet and see what else is there.
I don’t think we’re rid of it yet.

Why does 99.99% of the population think that the iPhone will replace everything you carry in your pocket?

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I think the OP is either just exaggerating or overstating it, but this could be the next major step toward killing wallets. The original iPhone took the iPod out of my pocket because I used to carry a wallet, keys, phone and iPod.

Passbook was the next huge dent-maker in getting things out of my pocket. I have been able to ditch a lot of the physical store loyalty cards, my AAA card and my health insurance card -- I can ditch that one but haven't yet -- thanks to Passbook and supported apps. Target got smart and started putting almost all of its coupons in a digital format, and so I've saved about $170 since Cartwheel started. I use the Starbucks app to pay there all the time instead of carrying the gold card.

As for someone who asked about driver's licenses, well, the technology exists to kill those cards. Now it's up to governments to figure out a good way to make a digital option. I'm guessing in about 10 years someone will think about doing it since that's how governments like to work. But the tech is there. There's no reason a digital replica of my ID can't go in there, same as my college ID.

Tesla recently said it would soon allow Model S owners to start (and I assume unlock) their cars with an iPhone. This is quite amazeballs if you've encountered finding replacement keys for any semi-new car. My Camry with just a key with built-in keyless entry cost $180 for a new one. My mom's with just a fob cost more than $400. Yeah, the Model S is pricey, but if this tech makes it into the $35,000 Model III in a few years, that could kill car keys. Some home lock makers have devices that allow unlocking using a phone, so that could potentially kill home keys.

By 2020, I wouldn't be shocked for a person to be able to walk around with nothing but a phone, driver's license and cash. Apple and Samsung are putting the hardware and software out there.

Azzin said:

Excuse the dumb question, but what's the point of having NFC on a wireless speaker?

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It automatically pairs bluetooth. Saves you a few minutes of time switching on BT and pairing the phone up. All I have to do is swipe my phone over the top every time I wish to use it and NFC does the rest in a split second.

Super super convienicence. Not really that nessesarry in this instance, but a good example on how widespread NFC is now.

JeffyTheQuik said:

I think we're headed to a place where the wallet is more of an accessory, and the main payment/ID/communication will be the phone. However, there is a dark side...

You get pulled over, and the police ask for your ID. Would you give them your phone, which can be scanned, and have all of the information on it (GPS tracking, communication, where you've been on the internet, etc.) downloaded to their database, or a card that simply has your picture, number, and more work has to be done to see where you've been?

Call me a Luddite (heh... on a computer forum), but I'll take the ID card.

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Wouldn't you just need to 'bump' your phone with the police to identify yourself?

H2SO4 said:

So where do you keep your driving licence? Or credit card sized door entry fobs. Have another look in your wallet and see what else is there.
I don’t think we’re rid of it yet.

Why does 99.99% of the population think that the iPhone will replace everything you carry in your pocket?

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1. I don't foresee myself carrying my driver's license (the physical card) in 5-10 years.
2. Credit Card sized door entry fobs?
3. Not the iPhone, but the watch. It has to be more convenient to access than your regular stuff in order for it to be useful.

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MacRumorUser said:

Yes because every retailer in every store in every village or every town or every city in every country will all fully support this won't they .....

I'll just go and burn my wallet now ......

Whilst this is undoubtably a step in the right direction ... Let's be realistic. There is a very very long road ahead. Don't go trying to run a marathon when your barely finished learning to tie your shoelaces. and put your wallet back in your pocket....

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who said now? are we ditching our driver's license card in a few weeks? nope.

I wonder if having NFC in the iPhone 6 will finally allow the function to mirror my phone to my Sony Bravia KDL42W805?.

..and I thought Passbook would kill wallets, but sadly MANY retailers still haven't taken it on, especially here in the UK so I'm not holding out much for NFC, not anytime soon anyway..

Azzin said:

1. If I lose my phone, I lose the ability to pay for anything in the event of an emergency (the phone is passcode locked and has Find my iPhone turned on, so I'm less concerned about losing the 'phone' aspect).
2. I don't have anywhere central to keep my receipts (although I suppose I could keep them in the pocket that no longer has my wallet in it).

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1. If you lose your wallet, you lose the ability to pay for anything in the event of an emergency
2. Once we standardize payments through something mobile (whether it's phones or watches), chances are, you can have your receipts beamed to your device or email without punching in details.

roadbloc said:

Your comparison doesn't make sense. This is nothing to do with entering a market. NFC has been about for ages. I've been using it to pay for purchases for quite a while now. My last two phones had NFC built into them. Most of my firneds phones (apart from the iPhone users) have NFC.

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Yes, and what is the point of it? The only point so far was that you can carry a couple of cards less. As Apple stated, that is solving a problem that doesn't exist for most people.

If you ask me, from the way you're all posting, half of you don't even know what NFC is.

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I rather think from the way you're all posting, half of you have no clue what Apple is going to be aiming for with NFC. This is not about only keeping you from having to carry that oh-so-heavy plastic card in your pocket.

It's surprising to me that so many people don't ask themselves why Apple released a phone with an integrated fingerprint reader. Did people really think it was only there for unlocking the phone? Bizarre!

I don't see any retailers with NFC payment terminals around here. The big retailers like Walmart and Target don't, for example. Neither do fast food chains like McDonald's. NFC is neat, but I don't see any way to use it.

randian said:

I don't see any retailers with NFC payment terminals around here. The big retailers like Walmart and Target don't, for example. Neither do fast food chains like McDonald's. NFC is neat, but I don't see any way to use it.

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The only place I've come across here in the uk that appears to use it is food chain Subway.

MentalFloss said:

Yes, and what is the point of it? The only point so far was that you can carry a couple of cards less. As Apple stated, that is solving a problem that doesn't exist for most people.

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Did you not see the picture? NFC is more than mobile payments. It is near field communication, the possibilities of what it can do is endless. Many billboards in my local town now have NFC built in so you can swipe your phone for more info if the ad interests you. Vast majority of shops I enter has it built into their tills. It is built into quite a fair few cash machines now too. As I said previously, most of my friends have it built into their phones too. Now from what I understand, it seems the US is kinda behind on all this NFC technology, I don't think it is even built into their debit cards yet.

I rather think from the way you're all posting, half of you have no clue what Apple is going to be aiming for with NFC. This is not about only keeping you from having to carry that oh-so-heavy plastic card in your pocket.

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Well do you know what Apple is aiming for with NFC? If you do, spill the beans, we'd all love to know! And don't get me wrong, I'm excited for what Apple have to bring to the table, but damn they're late to it. I hoped Apple would be one of the first to adopt NFC (although they'd have had to release the first iPhone in 2005 for that to happen )

It's surprising to me that so many people don't ask themselves why Apple released a phone with an integrated fingerprint reader. Did people really think it was only there for unlocking the phone? Bizarre!

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Well other than a password replacement, what else can you do with a fingerprint reader? And what has this to do with NFC? I get the whole idea of paying with your fingerprint, but the fingerprint bit is just a password alternative to confirm NFC transaction. Nothing really to do with NFC since password confirmation is needed for a lot of things.

Lol so now do you all believe me? I said I knew and here is the proof.

Jsameds said:

How many NFC articles do we need, seriously..

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It is a bit worrying that it's all anyone is talking about! A few years old technology Apple is last to implement. I may be getting the feeling this keynote will be a big let down and will just be a couple of iPhones and that's it. We will have to see what the rest of the next few days brings I guess, in terms of rumours that is.

Groundhog day!

Yes Apple is late to the game but I bet there's a very good reason. Their implementation will be much better than the rest.

boshii said:

Yes Apple is late to the game but I bet there's a very good reason. Their implementation will be much better than the rest.

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How? Implementing NFC is like implementing WiFi or Bluetooth. Most likley is that they'll stick in icon in Settings and Control Center just like everyone else has. I don't see how such a thing can be implemented any more simply than that. But I guess we'll see.

OutSpoken said:

The only place I've come across here in the uk that appears to use it is food chain Subway.

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M&S use NFC, so do McDonalds in the UK, there are a few other ones, even some corner shops do, there is a £20 limit though. So buying a new Mac will require quite a few transactions with NFC, so maybe a bit early to say goodbye to cash and chip and PIN.

apolloa said:

It is a bit worrying that it's all anyone is talking about! A few years old technology Apple is last to implement. I may be getting the feeling this keynote will be a big let down and will just be a couple of iPhones and that's it. We will have to see what the rest of the next few days brings I guess, in terms of rumours that is.

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you are getting a feeling this keynote will be a letdown based on 5 NFC rumors ? so the structure apple is building doesn't get you excited ? or the fact that they are using a theatre to introduce something we know nothing of? or the fact that they are using the same space that the macintosh was introduced 25 years ago?

all previous keynotes for iPhone have been pretty obvious with their campaign/invite/illustrations. This won't be a let down ill bet but its always down to perception, apple mat introduce a new planet and people will be like ''yeh a new planet to inhabit, we want 4k video recording''

just sit back and enjoy the ride

So basically Apple wasn't going to add NFC to the iPhone just so they could check it off a spec list. If they're adding it now it's for a specific reason, most likely that they're jumping into mobile payments in a big way.

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apolloa said:

It is a bit worrying that it's all anyone is talking about! A few years old technology Apple is last to implement. I may be getting the feeling this keynote will be a big let down and will just be a couple of iPhones and that's it. We will have to see what the rest of the next few days brings I guess, in terms of rumours that is.

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Why are you worried? I think all signs point to more than just a new phone but it's not something that's worrying me (and I own AAPL stock). Honestly I think adding NFC is going to be part of a broader mobile payments strategy, it's not Apple just adding NFC so they can check it off a spec list. How many of their competitors have that? Is Google Wallet really a big thing, especially in the US?

OutSpoken said:

The only place I've come across here in the uk that appears to use it is food chain Subway.

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same here. i wanted to try it once but i was scared i couldnt figure it out holding up the line behind me so i just paid in cah as usual. there r probably many ppl that feel the same way

Ventilatedbrain said:

the macintosh was introduced 25 years ago

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Um... 30. Didn't you happen to notice the party Apple had on their site, or the mentions of it here on MR (or soooo many other places)? Just sayin'...

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roadbloc said:

Implementing NFC is like implementing WiFi or Bluetooth. Most likley is that they'll stick in icon in Settings and Control Center just like everyone else has. I don't see how such a thing can be implemented any more simply than that. But I guess we'll see.

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Adding and turning on a new radio isn't what this about. It's about the programming behind it. WiFi is useless without TCP/IP, HTTP, blah blah etc. Do you honestly believe that Apple's been afraid to add just the radio all this time? I think they've just finally figured a way to put some programming (read: eco-system) behind it that's not just as good as but better than all the other stuff NFC is already being used for by all the other people that build it in thinking it's just like implementing WiFi... but maybe that's just me.

eac25 said:

Adding and turning on a new radio isn't what this about. It's about the programming behind it. WiFi is useless without TCP/IP, HTTP, blah blah etc. Do you honestly believe that Apple's been afraid to add just the radio all this time? I think they've just finally figured a way to put some programming (read: eco-system) behind it that's not just as good as but better than all the other stuff NFC is already being used for by all the other people that build it in thinking it's just like implementing WiFi... but maybe that's just me.

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I'm not understanding this one bit. Maybe you can elaborate?

Pay by watch

I was still in the "Apple NFC, no way, not ever" camp last year.
NFC is ancient legacy crap, that has been refusing to gain traction for years.

But.

The banks/credit card/debit card are going to do NFC. They are lumbering dinosaurs themselves, in the process of catching up with that old legacy crap.

NFC for payments is eventually going to be everywhere.

If Apple wants to do mobile payments, ignoring NFC is not going to work.

So, I'm more 70/30 for Apple doing NFC now.

Initially, and maybe forever, the NFC bits will be completely closed off. No 3rd party apps that use NFC. At first it will work with 1 or 2 major credit card companies and nothing else. More will be added later. Slowly. Maybe even some public transport stuff eventually. All the other stuff NFC is supposed to be good at, BLE is better.

What makes this extra interesting is the intriguing idea of having the NFC transceiver in the rumored wearable.
After all, how much more convenient is taking out your phone instead of your wallet? Somewhere between not very and not at all.

But not needing to take out anything, because what you need is already on your wrist is a completely different story.

This can be done with low battery impact for the wearable too. It can just operate as a card would where the other end will provides the power.
The same antenna can be used for charging the wearable too.