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Next-Generation iPhone Prototypes Reportedly Support NFC for Mobile Payments
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Here we go with this short-sighted observation again.
An NFC-enabled phone does not mean you leave your wallet at home. It means you don't pull out your wallet that frequently and it's a lot thinner because you aren't carrying out a stack of loyalty cards.
You still need to carry around a wallet for situations/vendors who do not accept NFC contactless payments. And if you really want to dig around your wallet/purse for a credit card or cash, even though the merchant accepts contactless payments, you are free to do so, just like the little old lady who is writing a check at the grocery store.
Remember, the Japanese and South Koreans have been using walletphones since about 2005 and there aren't any horror stories emanating from Southeast Asia.
Where do you buy gas?? I've purchased gas in fifteen different states in the past year, and I've always had to enter some information. If it's a debit card, they want my PIN. If it's a credit card, I have to enter my zip code. For me, a gas station is one of the safest places...although I do concede there are many places (e.g. Best Buy) where you can buy expensive things and they rarely check ID or look at the card.
However, I don't see how a wallet is more easily pick-pocketed. My wallet is always in my front pants pocket...and I only take it out when I'm paying for something. On the other hand, my cell phone is constantly out--whether it be in my hand being used, left on a restaurant table as I eat, etc. Remember how the public discovered the iPhone 4?
Sheetz is one gas station chain that does not require any additional info after swiping your credit card...at least in my state.
I understand that Google has started using this in their mainstream phones. However how many people actually use this? All of my android friends know about it, but don't ever use it.
That's where Apple will succeed. They will bring this to the masses, and make it easy/simple to use. I can see all of us using this quite a bit by this time next year. Also most companies joining board as well.
This is exciting stuff!
That's where Apple will succeed. They will bring this to the masses, and make it easy/simple to use. I can see all of us using this quite a bit by this time next year. Also most companies joining board as well.
This is exciting stuff!
Seems obvious. Apple always touts 6-8 new tentpole features. We now know three:
1) LTE
2) Larger Retina screen
3) NFC
I think a 720p upgrade to the front-facing camera is a likely fourth. A quad-core processor would be another likely possibility. The rest will probably be minor, or things they noted in the iOS 6 preview but didn't touch on (like perhaps the new iTunes and App Stores, especially if iTunes is getting a significant revision as well, which has been hinted at).
I like the theory that the reason for the redesigned two-tone back of the new iPhone design has to do with NFC.
1) LTE
2) Larger Retina screen
3) NFC
I think a 720p upgrade to the front-facing camera is a likely fourth. A quad-core processor would be another likely possibility. The rest will probably be minor, or things they noted in the iOS 6 preview but didn't touch on (like perhaps the new iTunes and App Stores, especially if iTunes is getting a significant revision as well, which has been hinted at).
I like the theory that the reason for the redesigned two-tone back of the new iPhone design has to do with NFC.
Reading some of the fear-mongering in this thread, it's easy to see why so many people claim that Apple users are misguided, sheepish fools.
Your card details will not be stolen by someone with a massive receiver walking around in Subway. If Apple follow Google's security procedures, NFC will not be enabled while the phone's screen is off. So, unless you like keeping your iPhone's screen on while it's in your pocket, nothing will be stolen. Even if your screen is on, Android phones vibrate whenever there's a NFC connection being made.
NFC payments are used in many stores already, you're just not aware of it. Check out the PayPass/PayWave locators and you'll be surprised. Once Apple jumps on the NFC bandwagon, support will explode. It's just like with applications. There were plenty of applications on Windows Mobile and Symbian prior to iOS existing, but once Apple stepped in, every company wanted their own application. This will happen again with NFC.
A mobile wallet is infinitely more secure than a physical leather one. If you lose your physical wallet, anybody who picks it up now has immediate access to your funds or any other sensitive data within it. With an NFC-enabled wallet, this is not possible due to PINs and the secure element.
I look forward to seeing NFC in the next iPhone. Android/Google have been doing it for ages, but Google are truly a useless company when it comes to execution and follow-through. Apple will dominate this space, and it will probably be a good thing for the industry as a whole.
Your card details will not be stolen by someone with a massive receiver walking around in Subway. If Apple follow Google's security procedures, NFC will not be enabled while the phone's screen is off. So, unless you like keeping your iPhone's screen on while it's in your pocket, nothing will be stolen. Even if your screen is on, Android phones vibrate whenever there's a NFC connection being made.
NFC payments are used in many stores already, you're just not aware of it. Check out the PayPass/PayWave locators and you'll be surprised. Once Apple jumps on the NFC bandwagon, support will explode. It's just like with applications. There were plenty of applications on Windows Mobile and Symbian prior to iOS existing, but once Apple stepped in, every company wanted their own application. This will happen again with NFC.
A mobile wallet is infinitely more secure than a physical leather one. If you lose your physical wallet, anybody who picks it up now has immediate access to your funds or any other sensitive data within it. With an NFC-enabled wallet, this is not possible due to PINs and the secure element.
I look forward to seeing NFC in the next iPhone. Android/Google have been doing it for ages, but Google are truly a useless company when it comes to execution and follow-through. Apple will dominate this space, and it will probably be a good thing for the industry as a whole.
retailers have to add new POS units for NFC to work. Unlike a loyalty card which they already have systems to support.
between the new passbook feature and new payment schemes like Square or Level Up you don't really need NFC or it probably won't go anywhere because of the cost involved
Correct, which is why there are no horror stories emanating from Southeast Asia.
My iPhone has a simple four-digit PIN on the lock screen. An NFC payment app would have a PIN and most likely the option for a more complex password.
It's rather sad to see the number of paranoid people here on this forum since the Japanese and South Koreans have been successfully using these phone-based contactless payment systems since about 2005.
The main reason why America is way behind isn't the security nor technology. It's the lack of a dominant standard.
In Japan, NTT DoCoMo basically said, "here's our system, this is how it will be." They were smart because they also supported the Mobile Suica system (the contactless payment system for JR East -- the largest transit provider in metropolitan Tokyo).
It would be bad news if you had a flat battery and couldn't pay for anything though
Touche!
Think about it. Everything around us serves as a good indicator that this scenario I'm describing is very probable. "National security", "personal safety", and the "convenience" of things will make chipping people a no-brainer. And once the government gets involved, rest assured it'll become a standard, and they'll most likely require everyone to get with the program. Those who refuse it, will probably be unable (or it will be very difficult) to access their money, health care, employment, purchase/sell goods and services, or even travel without the embedded passport/ID. Those people will be left on their own to survive like stray dogs.
IF it ever comes down to that, I will find it to be very invasive and manipulative of our freedoms. And I certainly hope that this comes to pass long after I'm gone. I don't about you, but that type of oppression doesn't sound very inviting to me.
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No, not touché. Depending on Apple's implementation of NFC, it might still be possible to use NFC (as a passive tag) while the battery is dead. BlackBerry NFC devices have this functionality.
However, that would of course be less secure. We'll see which route Apple takes.
That would be pretty useful. For sure. I'm still a bit concerned about security though, and although I'm not the paranoid type, I if it can be protected from fraudulent near-field interactions, and/or malware that could compromise credit card information, etc. They've been using NFC in Asia for a while now (and some parts of Europe too I think), so what kind of security issues (if any) are they having over there? I don't think the security threat is necessarily huge or anything (I imagine it's similar to other electronic payment technologies, none of which are fool-proof), I'm just wondering what kind of problems they might have...
It still be very convenient though
It still be very convenient though
I'd be more worried about the lost $650 phone than the $50 some dollars I usuall have to my name.
Where do you buy gas?? I've purchased gas in fifteen different states in the past year, and I've always had to enter some information. If it's a debit card, they want my PIN. If it's a credit card, I have to enter my zip code. For me, a gas station is one of the safest places...although I do concede there are many places (e.g. Best Buy) where you can buy expensive things and they rarely check ID or look at the card.
However, I don't see how a wallet is more easily pick-pocketed. My wallet is always in my front pants pocket...and I only take it out when I'm paying for something. On the other hand, my cell phone is constantly out--whether it be in my hand being used, left on a restaurant table as I eat, etc. Remember how the public discovered the iPhone 4?
Now that you mention it - You're right, the gas station that I frequent is the only one I can think of that doesn't ask for a zip code. My mistake.
I guess I think it's more easily pick-pocketed because my wallet is back pocket, and rarely handled - I could go a few hours without noticing it was gone.. My phone, however, is front-pocket, and always either in my hand, in my front pocket, or in my vision.
NFC and BT4 are used/designed for different purposes and for the most part, don't cross over.
NFC is very short, one-time, data transfer sessions. Something like sending a kilobyte of data from two very simple devices that have a high likelihood of never seeing each other again after the transfer completes in a second.
BT4-LE is for a connection between two devices where data may be periodically exchanged during a longer session. Like a heart rate monitor. Very small amounts of data over longer period of time.
Bluetooth is for personal devices that will likely be in communcations fairly often and at much higher data rates. You know what that looks like.
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Although I haven't been to Korea, I don't remember ever seeing a Japanese person use their phone for payment. Most of the ones I know all carry the RF cards instead. So it's actually they're typically plopping their wallets or a card holder onto the rail gate instead of a phone.
Maybe it might be more frequent now, as the last time I was there was 2010.
The retailer will not be adding another piece of equipment but just replacing the existing PIN Pad with one that incorporates an NFC reader.
So just one device on the customer side of the counter that can take payment from
a) NFC (£20 limit here in the UK)
b) Chip & PIN for larger transaction and cards without NFC
c) Mag strip reader for Ludites
And as tiguk posted earlier Barclays and VISA are already pushing this to retailers so Apple putting their weight behind NFC will get this going mainstream a bit quicker.
Cool
This would be a cool feature. I think the iPhone is such capable device, it's almost hard to go a day without using it at least once. If it allows NFC technology, then this would make it even more powerful. I'm excited to see where PassBook and the next iPhone take us.
This would be a cool feature. I think the iPhone is such capable device, it's almost hard to go a day without using it at least once. If it allows NFC technology, then this would make it even more powerful. I'm excited to see where PassBook and the next iPhone take us.
The irony here is that all these features showed up first in Android devices a year ago. One can look at a year old Android phone and safely guess what the next iPhone will look like. In addition to the list above we can probably guess that, just like Android phones, iPhone will get 1GB RAM (although Android phones already started to move to 2GB RAM) and 1.2Ghz CPU.
If this story confirms NFC mobile payments, don't be surprised that the chipset that enables this is compatible with the Sony-developed FeliCa standard for NFC communications, which would make the next iPhone become THE device for mobile payments in Japan for transit tickets and convenience store purchases. And I wouldn't be surprised the NFC functionality will also work with the new ISIS mobile payment system being developed for the US market.