A friend of mine & I got to talking the other day about the pros & cons of NFC relative to QR codes. The fact of the matter is they both accomplish similar goals but while QR codes are free & require no hardware, NFC are more costly but they are eerily more attractive to use due to their convenience, accuracy, and the fundamental lack of effort it requires on the part of the recipient.
So let’s start at the beginning… because there’s a bunch of folks reading this that are already totally confused.
WHAT IS NFC?
NFC stands for Near Field Communications. The purpose of the technology is to allow people to embed around 1KB of information in small, cheap, paper-thin memory chip-laden electronics known as “NFC tags” that can be read/written using a “NFC reader” – the technology for which is typically embedded within a smartphone.
NFC tags are typically embedded within small quarter-sized stickers, purchasable on Amazon or any retailer for as little as $1. They can be programmed with most smartphones or purchasable desktop NFC readers and can store usually 1KB-8KB worth of data, depending on the NFC tag type. (The vast majority are 1KB)
WHAT MIGHT THEY BE GOOD FOR?
Here’s a few interesting things you can do with NFC tags:
Embedded your vCard in them and place them on your business cards
Store your voice in them for quick messages for people
Command the receiving device to “check in” to Four Square at the current location
Instruct the receiving phone to send a SMS text message to someone
Send the phone used to a web site for a particular product
Start a specific music playlist
Start installing a specific application for the recipient’s phone
Follow a particular user/company on Twitter
Like a particular company on Facebook
HOW DO I GET STARTED FOR WINDOWS PHONE?
It’s pretty simple. Just make sure your phone supports NFC and install a NFC application. If you have the Nokia Lumia 920, 925, 928 or the HTC 8X, you’re all set. Just download a program from the Windows Phone Store like below:
NFC Interactor – NFC read/writing software for Windows Phone 8 (More extensible & customizable than Nokia’s NFC Writer… but more complicated – $1.99)
http://www.windowsphone.com/en-us/store/app/nfc-interactor/4e1598fe-4885-4e2b-9c69-8d3f882c545b
NFC LaunchIt – NFC read/writing software for Windows Phone 8 (Rather limited in nature however completely free to use)
http://www.windowsphone.com/en-us/store/app/nfc-launchit/c7010644-ace4-4df0-b08a-7f95a83d80a8
Nokia NFC Writer – EXCLUSIVE TO NOKIA PHONES: NFC read/writing software for Windows Phone 8 (Very powerful & user friendly… but has less customization than NFC Interactor)
http://www.windowsphone.com/s?appid=709e64e0-5849-4ce4-b252-b7b252aefacf
Nokia also has a free NFC Writer available for download through the Nokia store for Nokia Lumia users called “Nokia NFC Writer”. It is very user friendly & a very complete tool to start with although not as customizable as NFC Interactor.
WHERE DO I GET NFC TAGS?
You basically buy them from Amazon or any number of places that sell them. They generally cost around $2-$3 each if not purchased in large quantities. Here’s one of my favorites:
5-Pack NFC sticker/ NFC tags Programmable Near Field Communication Tags for NOKIA NFC Lumia 920,820, 720, 620 and All Other NFC Enabled Phones
5-Pack NFC sticker/ NFC tags Programmable Near Field Communication Tags for NOKIA NFC Lumia 920,820, 720, 620 and All Other NFC Enabled Phones
NFC Chip Type: FM11RF08 (compatiable Philips NXP)/ Mifare S50 / Mifare S70) Memory Capacity: 1K EEPROM/ 8k Erasable:> 100,000 times) support NOKIA Lumia 920/820/720/620 and all other NFC Windows Phone can work http://www.amazon.com/5-Pack-sticker-Programmable-Communication-Enabled/dp/B00E3PSM3K/
IMPORTANT WARNING REGARDING WINDOWS PHONES & NFC TAGS:
The thing to remember is that the NFC tags you purchase for Windows Phone 8 need to be pre-formatted in a format called “NDEF” to work with any Windows Phone. Usually the manufacturer will explicitly tell you that their tags will work with Windows Phone or they’ll say they’re NDEF pre-formatted. (Note: This applies to Android-based & Symbian-based devices as well)
This is an important point because many outlets sell unformatted NFC tags which can be written by desktop computers using low level instructions without preformatting – but not smart phones. If they aren’t preformatted, you’ll need to use a Windows-based desktop/laptop to write the NFC tag.
Continued in the next post:
Windows 7/8 & NFC programming & usage…